The gaps · 04 of 15 · Mark already said it
Ears to hear
Mark already said it twice. A copyist said it a third time.
If any man have ears to hear, let him hear.
Not in the BSB main text.
The seam
01He who has ears — the sower
He who has ears to hear, let him hear. Mark already taught the refrain on the lake, before anyone argued about 7:16.
02He who has ears — the lamp
If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear. Twice in one chapter. Mark does not lose this sentence.
03What comes out of a man
The oldest 7 ends the saying here, then goes indoors. The third “ears to hear” is a copyist ringing a bell Mark already rang.
In these copies
- Byzantine majority
- KJV, WEB
Not in these copies
- Sinaiticus
- Vaticanus
- L, Δ, 33
- BSB, ASV, NIV
Read it this way
Mark loves this refrain. He says it at 4:9, after the sower. He says it at 4:23, after the lamp. After 7:15 — what comes out of a man defiles him — a copyist who knew the line often wrote it again, the way a preacher says “he who has ears” because the room has gone quiet.
The earliest Mark 7 does not have it. Verse 15 already ends the saying. Verse 17 already has Him going indoors to explain. The call to hear was not silenced. It was not copied here in the oldest books, because Mark had already taught you to listen.
KJV prints the third ringing of the bell. BSB lets 7:15 stand, then follows Him inside. The ears are still Mark’s.
Some say“If any man have ears to hear” was removed.
The call to hear is still Mark’s. It was not silenced. It was not copied here in the oldest books.
KJV
on the page
WEB
on the page
BSB
not printed
ASV
not printed