Mark 4 - Great Miracles

Great Miracles

From here to the end of chapter 5 are accounts of great miracles. These miracles raise the stakes over miracles which have been reported before. Mark probably intends to demonstrate the greatness of Jesus' authority (εξουσíα). The calming of the sea demonstrates Jesus' authority over nature. Jesus has authority over not only men but even an untamable man, delivering the demoniac from not merely one demon but a whole army of demons, see Mark 5. At the climax of these miracle accounts, Jesus does not merely heal the sick, but he raises the dead girl, all of which sets the reader up for a greater contrast when Jesus is rejected in his home town of Nazareth (6:1-6) in Mark 6. (see France for an extended discussion)