Mark 1 - Summary

Mark's Gospel opens abruptly with John the Baptist fulfilling Isaiah's prophecy as the wilderness voice preparing the Lord's way, preaching repentance baptism and announcing One mightier who will baptize with the Holy Spirit. Jesus is baptized in the Jordan, experiences the Spirit's descent and the Father's declaration of sonship, then is immediately driven into the wilderness for forty days of Satanic temptation. Following John's imprisonment, Jesus begins His Galilean ministry proclaiming the kingdom's nearness, calling Simon, Andrew, James, and John, casting out demons in Capernaum's synagogue and healing Peter's mother-in-law, and traveling throughout Galilee preaching and healing, including the cleansing of a leper.