The copies

Witness

Matthew jumps a verse. The prayer stops. Two strokes decide God or He.

Walk the copies. KJV often keeps the longer reading. BSB follows the older books. When a post says theft, we show you the page. A missing verse is often still in Mark. This is not a decoder ring for villains.

The gaps

A line sits in the KJV and not in the oldest copy. It is often still in Mark or Luke.

01Fasting02Lost03Widows04Ears05Worm06Forgive07Numbered08Fire09Field10Barabbas11Angel12I believe13Goads14Silas15Grace

The joins

An Amen was added. A hard stop was kept. Sweat like blood is argued. A woman the church would not lose.

01Amen02Ending03Sweat04Woman

The words

The copies disagree on God or He, on blood, on three that testify, and on God or Son.

01Comma02Blood03God or He04Son of God05God or Son

The joins · 02 of 04 · A hard stop

The longer ending of Mark

The oldest Mark stops with the women running, afraid. The church could not leave Him in the tomb of a sentence.

King James (1611)
Now when Jesus was risen early the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene… And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them.
Berean Standard Bible
BSB, WEB, KJV, and ASV all print 16:9–20. The earliest copies of Mark end at 16:8: the women flee, and say nothing, for they were afraid.

How it sat

  1. 01They were afraid

    Mark 16:8

    The women flee the tomb. They say nothing to anyone. For they were afraid. Two of the oldest big copies stop the Gospel on that word.

  2. 02He appeared first to Mary

    Mark 16:9

    The longer ending begins in another voice. Mary Magdalene is named, and then a list of appearances. Appearances the other Gospels already walk, gathered here so Mark would not end in fear.

  3. 03They went out and preached

    Mark 16:20

    The Lord working with them. Most later copies, and every Bible here, print the commission. Irenaeus already knew some form of this ending.

  4. 04Paul, already

    1 Corinthians 15:4

    He was raised on the third day. He appeared to Cephas, then to the Twelve. Easter does not wait on whether Mark wrote past 16:8.

In these copies

  • A, C, D, K, majority of later copies
  • Irenaeus (2nd c.) knows a longer ending

Not in these copies

  • Sinaiticus
  • Vaticanus
  • some Armenian and Georgian copies
  • Eusebius and Jerome note copies that stop at 16:8

Read it this way

Mark 16:8 is a hard stop. They leave in trembling and astonishment. They said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid. Sinaiticus ends there. Vaticanus ends there. Eusebius and Jerome both knew copies that stopped. It is a real ending, or a real tearing-off. Honest rooms say they do not know which.

Verses 9–20 read like a short list of resurrection appearances from the other Gospels, in a different style — He appeared first to Mary, then two on a road, then the Eleven, then up. Irenaeus, in the second century, already knows a longer ending. The church could not leave the women in the tomb of a sentence. Most later copies, and every Bible on this shelf, print 9–20.

The risen Christ is not in doubt. Matthew, Luke, John, and Paul stand. What is in doubt is whether Mark himself wrote past 16:8. That is a question about a copy, not about Easter. We print the verses. We tell you the two oldest big copies do not have them.

Some sayThey want Mark to end in fear, so they doubt the resurrection appearances.

The risen Christ is not in doubt — Matthew, Luke, John, and Paul stand. What is in doubt is whether Mark himself wrote past 16:8. That is a question about a copy, not about Easter.

  • KJV

    on the page

  • WEB

    on the page

  • BSB

    on the page

  • ASV

    on the page

Open Mark 16Open Mark 16

The line the text already walks — that is Foretold. Words you already say out loud sit in Words with weight. Witness is when the copies do not match.