Why, then, does Jesus command silence on so many of these occasions? I think it becomes clear throughout the Gospel of Mark what the people are expecting of a messiah. They’re expecting a conquering messiah who will defeat the Romans. Jesus is going to redefine what messiahship means. He doesn’t want to get lots of public acclaim about His messiahship before He’s able to define what it means to be the Messiah. He keeps a damper on it. He keeps it quiet as much as possible. That’s the reason, we believe,