“JOHN, WHOSE SURNAME WAS MARK” (ACTS 12:12) · CALLED IN ACTS 12

John Mark. Son of a Jerusalem household where the church prayed; left the first journey, and was later “profitable” to Paul.

ALSO CALLED

John · Mark · Marcus (KJV, Colossians 4:10; Philemon 24; 1 Peter 5:13)

FROM

His mother Mary had a house in Jerusalem where “many were gathered together praying” the night Peter was freed from prison.

TRADE

Scripture does not say

FAMILY

His mother was Mary, at whose house the believers met.

WRITINGS

The Gospel according to Mark (its traditional title)

BACKGROUND

Home, trade and family

FROM

FAMILY

  • His mother was Mary, at whose house the believers met. Acts 12:12
  • From the textPaul calls him “sister's son to Barnabas” in the KJV; the Greek word is rendered “cousin” in the Revised Version (1881). Colossians 4:10
  • From the textScripture never names his father. Acts 12:12
  • Scholars' viewPeter calls him “Marcus my son” (1 Peter 5:13). Smith (1884) takes it that Mark “probably owed his conversion” to Peter; MacRory (1910) that the word “need not be taken to imply more than affectionate regard for a younger man”. 1 Peter 5:13 [16][19]

THE CALLING

Called, as 2 accounts tell it

“took with them John, whose surname was Mark.”

Acts 12:25 (KJV) →

WHERE HE WENT

Acts and after

Dashed pins are places known only from later tradition, not from Scripture.

  • Jerusalem · His mother's house; where he went back from Perga. Acts 12:12 Acts 13:13
  • Antioch (Syria) · Brought here by Barnabas and Saul; where Paul and Barnabas parted over him. Acts 12:25 Acts 15:35–37
  • Salamis · Serving Barnabas and Saul on Cyprus. Acts 13:5
  • Paphos · The party sailed from here to Perga. Acts 13:6 Acts 13:13
  • Perga · Where he left them. Acts 13:13
  • Cyprus · Sailed there with Barnabas. Acts 15:39
  • Colossae · Paul expected he might come to the church there. Colossians 4:10
  • Babylon (1 Peter 5:13) · no map pin · Where Mark was with Peter; whether this is Rome by a figure or another city is disputed, so no pin is drawn.
  • Rome (in tradition) · tradition · Clement of Alexandria (about 200): Mark wrote down Peter's preaching at Rome.
  • Alexandria (in tradition) · tradition · Eusebius (about 325), “they say”: Mark founded the church there; Jerome (392): buried there.

IN ACTS AND THE LETTERS

  • Peter, freed from prison by the angel, went to the house of “Mary the mother of John, whose surname was Mark”. Acts 12:12
  • He went with Barnabas and Saul through Cyprus, but at Perga in Pamphylia “John departing from them returned to Jerusalem”. Acts 13:4–13
  • When Barnabas wanted to take him on the second journey, Paul refused, since he “departed from them from Pamphylia, and went not with them to the work”; Barnabas took him and sailed to Cyprus. Acts 15:36–39
  • Later he is with Paul while Paul is “in bonds”, and Paul tells the Colossians to receive him if he comes; he is one of the few “of the circumcision” who are Paul's “fellowworkers unto the kingdom of God” and “a comfort” to him. Colossians 4:3 Colossians 4:10–11
  • Paul names him among “my fellowlabourers” in the letter to Philemon. Philemon 1:24
  • In 2 Timothy Paul writes: “Take Mark, and bring him with thee: for he is profitable to me for the ministry.” 2 Timothy 4:11
  • Peter sends greetings from “The church that is at Babylon … and so doth Marcus my son”. 1 Peter 5:13
  • From the textColossians and Philemon do not say where Paul was imprisoned, and which city 1 Peter 5:13 means by “Babylon” is disputed (see the Letters page for 1 Peter). Colossians 4:10 Philemon 1:23–24 1 Peter 5:13

COMPANIONS

Who was with him

Each line joins him to someone Scripture places beside him.

  • Mary, his mother Her house in Jerusalem was a meeting place of the church. Acts 12:12
  • Barnabas His relative; took him to Antioch, on the first journey and to Cyprus. Acts 12:25 Acts 15:37–39 Colossians 4:10
  • Paul Took him on the first journey, refused him for the second, and later called him a fellow-worker and “profitable to me for the ministry”. Acts 13:5 Acts 15:38 Colossians 4:10–11 2 Timothy 4:11
  • Peter Came to his mother's house after his escape; sends greetings from “Marcus my son”. Acts 12:12 1 Peter 5:13
  • Aristarchus With him and Paul in the greetings of Colossians and Philemon. Colossians 4:10 Philemon 1:24
  • Jesus called Justus Named with him as one of Paul's Jewish fellow-workers. Colossians 4:10–11
  • Luke Named with him among Paul's fellow-labourers; “Only Luke is with me”, Paul writes when he asks for Mark. Philemon 1:24 2 Timothy 4:11
  • Demas Named with him among Paul's fellow-labourers. Philemon 1:24
  • Timothy Asked to bring Mark with him to Paul. 2 Timothy 4:9–11
  • Silvanus Named with him at the close of 1 Peter. 1 Peter 5:12–13

HOW THE STORY ENDS

Scripture says, tradition says

SCRIPTURE SAYS

  • From the textScripture does not record Mark's death. His last mentions are 2 Timothy 4:11 and 1 Peter 5:13; which of the two is later is not known. 2 Timothy 4:11 1 Peter 5:13

TRADITION SAYS

  • “And they say that this Mark was the first that was sent to Egypt, and that he proclaimed the Gospel which he had written, and first established churches in Alexandria.”[1][2] Who says so: Eusebius, Church History 2.16.1, about AD 325
  • “When Nero was in the eighth year of his reign, Annianus succeeded Mark the evangelist in the administration of the parish of Alexandria.”[1] Who says so: Eusebius, Church History 2.24, about AD 325; Nero's eighth year is AD 62 (McGiffert)
  • “He died in the eighth year of Nero and was buried at Alexandria, Annianus succeeding him.” MacRory (1910) thinks this is probably drawn from Eusebius, and notes that if Mark was alive when 2 Timothy was written he cannot have died in 61-62. 2 Timothy 4:11 [3][19] Who says so: Jerome, Lives of Illustrious Men 8, AD 392
  • The Acts of Mark give him a martyr's death, dragged through the streets of Alexandria. MacRory: “we have no evidence earlier than the fourth century that the saint was martyred”, though he adds that this silence “is not at all decisive against the truth of the later traditions”.[19] Who says so: The Acts of Mark, as reported by MacRory (Catholic Encyclopedia, 1910), no earlier than the 4th century
  • Venetians later carried his remains from Alexandria to Venice; Farmer (ISBE, 1915) gives the year as 815.[21][19] Who says so: Venetian tradition, as reported by Farmer (ISBE, 1915), 9th century

WRITINGS

Writings tied to him

READ

The Gospel according to Mark (its traditional title)

OPEN QUESTIONS

Where readers have differed

One man

Eusebius (about 325) and Jerome (392), who join the Gospel's Mark to Peter's “Marcus my son”; A. C. McGiffert (1890); Smith (1884); Easton (1897); MacRory (1910), who says the identity “is not questioned by any ancient writer of note”

The Mark of Colossians is Barnabas's relative, and Acts ties John Mark closely to Barnabas; the Mark Peter calls his son fits the son of Mary, at whose house Peter took refuge. Colossians 4:10 Acts 15:37–39 Acts 12:12 1 Peter 5:13 [1][3][2][16][15][19]

Several men

The list “On the Seventy Apostles” among the doubtful works of Hippolytus (date unknown, “Probably spurious, but yet antique”); the Greek church's calendar, which MacRory notes keeps a feast of Mark the evangelist on 25 April and of John Mark on 27 September

That list names three: “Mark the evangelist, bishop of Alexandria”, “Mark, cousin to Barnabas, bishop of Apollonia”, and “Mark, who is also John, bishop of Bibloupolis”.[11][19]

IN SCRIPTURE

Every passage

CHAPTERS · 7

Acts 12 Acts 13 Acts 15 Colossians 4 Philemon 1 2 Timothy 4 1 Peter 5

PASSAGES · 8

Acts 12:12–17 Acts 12:25 Acts 13:4–13 Acts 15:36–39 Colossians 4:10–11 Philemon 1:23–24 2 Timothy 4:9–11 1 Peter 5:12–13

WHAT SCRIPTURE DOES NOT SAY

  • Scripture never names Mark's father, says how he came to believe, or says why he left at Perga.
  • The Gospel of Mark does not name its writer; the link to this Mark comes from Papias and later writers.
  • Scripture does not say where Paul was imprisoned when he wrote of Mark in Colossians and Philemon, or record how or where Mark died.

IDENTIFICATIONS THIS PAGE RELIES ON

  • From the textActs calls him “John, whose surname was Mark” (12:12, 25; 15:37), then just “John” (13:5, 13), then “Mark” (15:39); Paul and Peter write “Marcus” or “Mark” (Colossians 4:10; Philemon 24; 2 Timothy 4:11; 1 Peter 5:13). Our person data holds all of these as one man; whether they are is a question below. Acts 12:12 Acts 12:25 Acts 15:37 Acts 13:5 Acts 13:13 Acts 15:39 +4 more
  • Early church · Eusebius (trans. A. C. McGiffert, Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 2, vol. 1), 1890Papias, early in the 2nd century, passes on from “the presbyter” that Mark became “the interpreter of Peter”. The Gospel that bears his name does not name its writer.[1]
  • Early church · Hippolytus (trans. J. H. MacMahon and S. D. F. Salmond, Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 5), 1886Hippolytus, early in the 3rd century, calls him “Mark, he of the maimed finger”. MacRory (1910) lists the explanations later offered: that he cut off his thumb to unfit himself for the priesthood, that his fingers were naturally short, or that the word is a figure for “deserted”.[11][19]
  • Later tradition · Joseph MacRory, 1910The preface to his Gospel in manuscripts of the Latin Vulgate calls him a Levite who had served as a priest in Israel. MacRory notes that early writers are silent and that it may be “only an inference from his relation to Barnabas the Levite”. Our person data also gives him the tribe of Levi. Acts 4:36 Colossians 4:10 [19]

SOURCES

Where this page comes from

  • Eusebius (trans. A. C. McGiffert, Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 2, vol. 1), Church History (1890), 1.12.1-4; 2.1.1-5, 10-13; 2.15-16; 2.23; 2.24; 3.11; 3.19-20; 3.25.4; 3.31.2-5; 3.32.1-6; 3.37.1; 3.39.9, 15; 4.22.4; 5.8.3; 6.14.6-7; 6.25.5; 6.36.2; 7.19; 7.25.15.
  • A. C. McGiffert, Notes to Eusebius, Church History (Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 2, vol. 1) (1890), book 1 ch. 12 notes 201, 212; book 2 ch. 1 notes 235, 239, 241, 244, 246; ch. 15 notes 389-391; ch. 16 note 394; ch. 23 notes 493, 500, 516, 522, 523; book 3 ch. 20 notes 720, 724; ch. 25 note 798; ch. 31 notes 858, 866, 868; book 6 ch. 36 note 2046.
  • Jerome (trans. E. C. Richardson, Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 2, vol. 3), Lives of Illustrious Men (1892), chapters 2 (James, with Richardson's note 2343), 4 (Jude), 5 (on Hebrews), 6 (Barnabas, with note 2364), 8 (Mark).
  • Jerome (trans. W. H. Fremantle, Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 2, vol. 6), Against Helvidius; Letter 108 (to Eustochium) (1893), Against Helvidius 15 and 19 (the tract dated about AD 383 by the editor); Letter 108, section 8 (dated AD 404 by the editor).
  • Origen (trans. John Patrick, Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 9, ed. Allan Menzies), Commentary on Matthew (1896), book 10, section 17, The Brethren of Jesus; ANF vol. 9 first published Buffalo, 1896; checked against the 1903 Scribner reprint (archive.org scan antenicenefather0009unse_s0x0).
  • Alexander Walker (trans.), Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 8, Apocrypha of the New Testament: introduction; Protevangelium of James, chapter 9; The Journeyings and Martyrdom of St. Barnabas the Apostle (1886).
  • Irenaeus (Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 1), Against Heresies (1885), 3.1.1 (also in Eusebius 5.8.3); 3.12.10.
  • A. Cleveland Coxe (ed.), Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 1, Introductory Note to the Epistle of Barnabas (1885).
  • Clement of Alexandria (trans. William Wilson, Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 2), Stromata (1885), book 2, chapters 6 and 20; book 5, chapter 10.
  • Tertullian (trans. S. Thelwall, Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 4), On Modesty (1885), chapter 20; the editor's note 701 dates the work 'not earlier than a.d. 208'.
  • Hippolytus (trans. J. H. MacMahon and S. D. F. Salmond, Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 5), The Refutation of All Heresies; and, among the dubious pieces, On the Seventy Apostles (1886), Refutation book 7, chapter 18 in the ANF numbering, with note 873; On the Seventy Apostles, nos. 1, 6-7, 13-14, 24, 56, 65, with note 2027 ('Probably spurious, but yet antique').
  • John Chrysostom (Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 11), Homilies on the Acts of the Apostles (1889), Homily 14, on Acts 6 (preached AD 400, by the editor's preface).
  • J. B. Lightfoot, Saint Paul's Epistle to the Galatians, 10th edition (1890), note on 1:19, p. 84; 'The Name and Office of an Apostle', pp. 95-96; dissertation 'The Brethren of the Lord', pp. 252-291.
  • Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible, vol. 6 (Acts to Revelation) (1706-1721), on Acts 7:14-16; 13:13; 15:38.
  • M. G. Easton, Easton's Bible Dictionary (1897), entries Barnabas; Jude; Mark; Philip (2); Stephen.
  • William Smith, Smith's Bible Dictionary (1884), entry Mark.
  • Charles Souvay, St. Stephen (The Catholic Encyclopedia, vol. 14) (1912).
  • John Francis Fenlon, St. Barnabas (The Catholic Encyclopedia, vol. 2) (1907).
  • Joseph MacRory, St. Mark (The Catholic Encyclopedia, vol. 9) (1910).
  • S. F. Hunter, Philip, the Evangelist (International Standard Bible Encyclopedia) (1915), vol. 4, p. 2369; checked against the printed 1915 edition (archive.org scan internationalst00orrgoog).
  • J. H. Farmer, Mark, John (International Standard Bible Encyclopedia) (1915), vol. 3, p. 1987; checked against the printed 1915 edition (archive.org scan bibleencyclopedi03orruoft), which reads “815 AD”.
  • H. E. Jacobs, Barnabas (International Standard Bible Encyclopedia) (1915), vol. 1, pp. 405-406; checked against the printed 1915 edition (archive.org scan bibleencyclopaed01unknuoft).
  • H. E. Jacobs, Brethren of the Lord (International Standard Bible Encyclopedia) (1915), vol. 1, pp. 518-519; checked against the printed 1915 edition (archive.org scan bibleencyclopaed01unknuoft).
  • S. D. Press, Stephen (International Standard Bible Encyclopedia) (1915), vol. 5, p. 2851; checked against the printed 1915 edition (archive.org scan bibleencyclopedi05orruoft), which prints “c 36 or 37 AD”.
  • A. T. Robertson, Paul, the Apostle (International Standard Bible Encyclopedia) (1915), part 3, III. Chronology of Paul's Career, (1) The Death of Stephen; vol. 4, p. 2271; checked against the printed 1915 edition (archive.org scan internationalst00orrgoog).
  • Jacobus de Voragine (Caxton's English of 1483, ed. F. S. Ellis), The Golden Legend, vol. 6: The Lives of SS. Simon and Jude (1900).
  • C. M. Kerr, Philip (International Standard Bible Encyclopedia) (1915), vol. 4, p. 2368, the apostle's later life; read in the printed 1915 edition (archive.org scan).

Rooted in Scripture. Open for discovery.

A place to read slowly, ask deeply, and follow the connections. Scripture, study and the voices of Christian history, brought together for a lifetime of learning.

SPEND TIME IN THE WORD

  • Open the reader
  • Books & reading progress
  • Compare Scripture editions
  • Find a passage

FOLLOW YOUR QUESTIONS

  • Study collections
  • People & places
  • Faith & apologetics
  • Stories of faith

A library with a paper trail.

Meet the authors. Explore the collection. Trace each work to its source.

Download the code.

Open source on GitHub.