Peter as Eyewitness in the Gospel of Mark

Three of the Four Gospels are either self-evident or at least explain their authority to compose the book. Both Matthew and John are eyewitnesses. Luke begins his book explaining his process of research. Mark, however, is not an apostle and is possibly not an eyewitness. So why should we believe him?

The importance of this question is made even more clear when we consider that Mark was possibly the first Gospel written which became a primary source for at least Matthew and Luke. Unless Mark had direct eyewitness testimony, can we trust his account?

Scholars are largely in agreement that Mark did use said eyewitness and it is none other than the Apostle Peter himself. In this and the following posts, I want to offer some of the evidence of this collaboration between Mark and Peter.*

The Internal Evidence

Before we consider evidence outside of the Gospel itself, let us begin by looking at the narrative to see if we can find evidence of Peter's influence. We should state up front that much of the following is circumstantial since Mark never clearly outs Peter as his chief eyewitness. Nevertheless, put together, I believe it is clear that Peter is the major voice behind Mark's pen.

1. Mark and Peter Knew Each Other

It is unclear when John Mark was converted to Christianity, but it is clear that he and Peter were well acquited with each other. Consider the following two passages:

• Acts 12:12-14 - And when he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John who was also called Mark, where many were gathered together and were praying. When he knocked at the door of the gate, a servant-girl named Rhoda came to answer. When she recognized Peter’s voice, because of her joy she did not open the gate, but ran in and announced that Peter was standing in front of the gate.
• 1 Peter 5:13 - She who is in Babylon, chosen together with you, sends you greetings, and so does my son, Mark.

Regarding the latter passage, modern scholars and the ancient church believed that "my son, Mark" was a reference to John Mark, the author of the second Gospel. Clearly the two men knew each other and were close.

2. Peter as Inclusio

Peter is both the first and last discipline explicitly named. Scholars have noted other ancient texts where such a literary device is used to identify the author's primary eyewitness. Consider the following two bookend references:

• Mark 1:16 - As He was going along by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew, the brother of Simon, casting a net in the sea; for they were fishermen
• Mark 16:7 - But go, tell His disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see Him, just as He told you.’”

One should note a couple of things above. First, Simon Peter is named twice in Mark 1:16. Secondly, Peter is the only disciple explicitly named in the second reference. Clearly the emphasis is on Peter.

3. Peter is Mentioned More Frequently in mark than in the Other Gospels

Though Mark is the shortest chapter, he mentions Peter more frequently (in relation to the books size) than the other Gospels. In Mark's Gospel, Peter is named twenty-six times in sixteen chapters. That is 1.625 times per chapter. Matthew, on the other hand, mentions him twenty-nine times in twenty-eight chapters. That is a ration of 1.035 per chapter. Clearly, Peter is more central of a character for Mark than the other Gospel writers.

4. Certain Details Suggest Peter as Eyewitness

In comparing the four Gospels, Mark gives us extra detail through the eyes of Peter that the other writers seemingly leave out. Consider the following:

• Peter's Looks for Jesus While He is Praying
• Mark 1:35-37 – In the early morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house, and went away to a secluded place, and was praying there. Simon and his companions searched for Him; they found Him, and *said to Him, “Everyone is looking for You.”
•  Peter Identifies the Fig Tree
• Mark 11:20-21 – As they were passing by in the morning, they saw the fig tree withered from the roots up. Being reminded, Peter *said to Him, “Rabbi, look, the fig tree which You cursed has withered.”
• Matthew 21:18-19 – Now in the morning, when He was returning to the city, He became hungry. Seeing a lone fig tree by the road, He came to it and found nothing on it except leaves only; and He *said to it, “No longer shall there ever be any fruit from you.” And at once the fig tree withered.
• Peter Named In Olivet Discourse
• Mark 13:1-4 – As He was going out of the temple, one of His disciples *said to Him, “Teacher, behold what wonderful stones and what wonderful buildings!” And Jesus said to him, “Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left upon another which will not be torn down.” As He was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew were questioning Him privately, 4 “Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign when all these things are going to be fulfilled?” 
• Matthew 24:1-3 – Jesus came out from the temple and was going away when His disciples came up to point out the temple buildings to Him. And He said to them, “Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, not one stone here will be left upon another, which will not be torn down.” As He was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?”

5. Mark Omits Embarrassing Events Involving Peter

When we compare Mark with the other Gospels, it appears as if Mark may have left out embarassing parts of Peter's story. This does not mean that all embarrassing moments have been omitted (his denial, for example, is included in Mark).

• Peter and the Catch of Fish
• Mark  1:15-20 - 
• Luke 5:1-11 -
• Peter's Foolish Statement 
• Mark 5:21-34 - 
• Luke 8:42-48 -
• Peter's Failure to Understand a Parable
•  Mark 7:14-19 - 
• Matthew 15:10-18 -
• Peter's Lack of Faith When Jesus Walks on Water
• Mark 6:45 - 
• Matthew 14:22-33 - 
• Peter on Money
• Mark 10:23-31 - 
• Matthew 19:23-30 - 

6. Mark Follows The Outline of Peter's Preaching

This, I believe, is much stronger evidence than some highlighted above. If we compare the Gospel of Mark with Peter's preaching in Acts, especially Acts 10:36, we will see some striking parallels. It appears as if the two follow the same pattern and outline. They also avoid other details regarding Jesus's life like his birth narratives.

Acts 10:36-42

“Telling the good news of peace through Jesus Christ” (v. 36)

“After the baptism that John preached” (v. 37)

“God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit” (v. 38)

“Beginning in Galilee” (v. 37)

“He went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil (v. 38)

“We are witnesses of everything he did . . . in Jerusalem” (v. 39)

“They killed him by hanging him on a cross” (v. 39)

“God raised him from the dead on the third day” (v. 40)

“He was seen . . . by witnesses . . . by us” (v. 41)

“He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify” (v. 42)

Now compare the above to Mark:

“The beginning of the good news about Jesus Christ” (1:1)

“Jesus . . . was baptized by John” (1:9)

“Jesus . . . saw the Spirit descending on him” (1:10)

The Galilean ministry (1:16-8:26)

“Jesus healed many who had various diseases. He also drove out many demons” (1:34)

“Jesus entered Jerusalem” (11:11)

“And they crucified him” (15:24)

“He has risen! He is not here” (16:6)

“Tell his disciples and Peter . . . ‘you will see him’” (16:7)

See 6:6b-13 and 13:10

Conclusion

The above is only some of the internal evidence. For those wanting to dive much deeper, consider Richard Bauckham's argument in Jesus and the Eyewitnesses. I have summarized his argument here.
 In the next post we will consider some of the external evidence for Peter's influence.


*Much of the evidence presented in these posts is taken from several sources including The Following is taken from several sources including http://www.str.org/articles/mark-s-gospel-is-an-early-memoir-of-peter#.VqW6Ga88KrU; https://bible.org/seriespage/10-eyewitness-testimony-mark-s-gospel; https://bible.org/article/introduction-gospel-mark#_ftn1; http://crossexamined.org/the-brief-case-for-peters-influence-on-marks-gospel-bible-insert/; http://coldcasechristianity.com/2014/good-reasons-to-believe-peter-is-the-source-of-marks-gospel/.