Mark 14:56 kjv
For many bare false witness against him, but their witness agreed not together.
Mark 14:56 nkjv
For many bore false witness against Him, but their testimonies did not agree.
Mark 14:56 niv
Many testified falsely against him, but their statements did not agree.
Mark 14:56 esv
For many bore false witness against him, but their testimony did not agree.
Mark 14:56 nlt
Many false witnesses spoke against him, but they contradicted each other.
Mark 14 56 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Deut 19:15 | "One witness shall not suffice... by the mouth of two or three witnesses..." | Requirement of two or more agreeing witnesses for conviction. |
| Num 35:30 | "Whoever kills any person... by the mouth of two witnesses or more witnesses..." | Principle of multiple witnesses in capital cases. |
| Exod 20:16 | "You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor." | Ninth Commandment forbidding false testimony. |
| Deut 5:20 | "Neither shall you bear false witness against your neighbor." | Restatement of the Ninth Commandment. |
| Prov 19:5 | "A false witness will not go unpunished, and he who breathes out lies will not escape." | Consequences for false witnesses. |
| Prov 19:9 | "A false witness will not go unpunished, and he who breathes out lies will perish." | Divine judgment against those who lie under oath. |
| Ps 27:12 | "For false witnesses have risen against me, and such as breathe out violence." | Foreshadows unjust accusations against God's chosen. |
| Ps 35:11 | "Malicious witnesses rise up; they ask me of things that I do not know." | Description of hostile, untruthful accusers. |
| Isa 53:7 | "He was oppressed and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth..." | Prophecy of the Messiah's silence during His trial. |
| Matt 26:59 | "Now the chief priests and the whole council were seeking false testimony..." | Parallel account showing intent to find false witnesses. |
| Matt 26:60 | "...but they found none, though many false witnesses came forward..." | Direct parallel to Mark 14:56, noting the lack of consistent testimony. |
| Mark 14:55 | "Now the chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were seeking testimony..." | Immediate preceding verse; sets the stage for seeking testimony against Jesus. |
| Luke 23:1 | "Then the whole company of them arose and brought him before Pilate." | Though before Pilate, it continues the pattern of accusations. |
| John 18:38 | "Pilate said to him, 'What is truth?'" | Reflects the disinterest in truth amidst the accusations. |
| Acts 6:13 | "And they set up false witnesses who said, 'This man never ceases to speak words..." | Stephen, like Jesus, faced false accusations and testimony. |
| Acts 24:5 | "For we have found this man to be a plague, one who stirs up riots..." | Paul also encountered false, politically motivated accusations. |
| 1 Pet 2:22 | "He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth." | Jesus' sinless nature contrasts with the deceit of His accusers. |
| John 8:44 | "...he is a liar and the father of lies." | Character of the Devil, the ultimate source of falsehood. |
| Rom 3:4 | "By no means! Let God be true though every human being is a liar..." | Upholds God's truthfulness against human falsehood. |
| Eph 4:25 | "Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth..." | Christian directive to embrace truth and reject falsehood. |
| Titus 1:10 | "For there are many who are insubordinate, empty talkers and deceivers..." | Warning against those who speak untruth. |
| Rev 12:10 | "...for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down..." | Satan, the ultimate accuser, operates through lies. |
Mark 14 verses
Mark 14 56 Meaning
Mark 14:56 describes the legal proceedings against Jesus during His trial before the Jewish Sanhedrin. It highlights the concerted effort of many individuals who bore false testimony against Him. However, a crucial point of their testimony was its failure to be consistent or in agreement. This inconsistency, by Jewish legal standards, rendered their accusations invalid and demonstrated the corrupt and unjust nature of the trial, where truth was not sought, but rather a pretext for condemnation.
Mark 14 56 Context
Mark 14:56 is set during the hurried, nocturnal trial of Jesus before the Sanhedrin, the highest Jewish religious court, shortly after His arrest in Gethsemane. The preceding verse (Mk 14:55) explicitly states that the chief priests and the entire council "were seeking testimony against Jesus to put him to death." This context immediately reveals the malicious intent of the court; they were not seeking justice but a pre-determined guilty verdict. This was a judicial mockery, driven by fear of Jesus' growing influence and claims. Historically, the Jewish Law required valid, consistent testimony from at least two witnesses for a capital conviction, a principle derived from Deuteronomy 19:15. Mark 14:56 directly addresses this legal requirement, highlighting the court's utter failure to meet even its own standards, thus rendering their eventual condemnation illegitimate in both human and divine eyes.
Mark 14 56 Word analysis
For (γὰρ - gar): This conjunction serves to introduce an explanation or reason for the preceding statement (Mk 14:55: the seeking of false testimony). It reinforces that the pursuit of false witnesses was indeed the core strategy.
many (πολλοὶ - polloi): Signifies a significant number of people stepping forward, indicating the organized effort and desperation of Jesus' accusers. It was not a random individual but a multitude.
bare false witness (ἐψευδομαρτύρουν - epseudomarturoun): This is a compound Greek verb.
ψευδο-(pseudo-): Means "false" or "lying."μαρτυρέω(martyreō): Means "to bear witness" or "to testify."- The imperfect tense denotes continuous or repeated action, emphasizing that they kept coming forward with lies. This term directly evokes the Ninth Commandment ("You shall not bear false witness" – Exod 20:16; Deut 5:20), indicating a blatant transgression of divine law by the religious leadership.
against him (κατ᾿ αὐτοῦ - kat' autou): "Him" unequivocally refers to Jesus. The preposition
κατὰ(kata) means "against," emphasizing direct opposition and hostility.but (καὶ - kai): While often translated "and," in this context, it functions adversatively, meaning "but" or "however," introducing a contrast to the expected outcome of many witnesses.
their witness (αἱ μαρτυρίαι - hai martyriai): Refers to the collective testimonies or declarations of the many false witnesses. The plural emphasizes the individual yet disunited accounts.
agreed not together (οὐκ ἦσαν ἴσαι - ouk ēsan isai): This is the crux of the verse.
οὐκ(ouk): "Not."ἦσαν(ēsan): Imperfect form of "to be," meaning "they were."ἴσαι(isai): "Equal," "matching," "consistent," "the same." In a legal context, it refers to testimonies that corroborate one another in substance and detail.- This phrase states that the testimonies, despite coming from many, lacked congruence, thereby failing the fundamental legal requirement for validity under Jewish law (Deut 19:15).
"many bare false witness": This phrase highlights the systematic effort to condemn Jesus by unlawful means. It speaks to the malice and pre-judgment of the court, indicating their primary goal was not justice but conviction.
"but their witness agreed not together": This crucial qualification exposes the fundamental flaw in the prosecution's case. It legally invalidated their attempts to condemn Jesus, emphasizing the integrity of divine law (even as the Sanhedrin violated it) and underscoring the spiritual bankruptcy of those orchestrating the trial. It portrays the chaos and desperation inherent in trying to prosecute an innocent man.
Mark 14 56 Bonus section
The inability of the false witnesses to agree further amplifies Jesus' innocence and the corruption of His accusers. This detail is crucial not just legally, but theologically, affirming that light exposes darkness and truth reveals lies. It implicitly underscores the fulfillment of prophecies where the righteous one is falsely accused (e.g., Ps 35:11). The consistency of the Gospels (Matt 26:59-60) in highlighting this failure emphasizes its significance to the early Christian understanding of Jesus' trial as unjust from start to finish, and the inherent wickedness of those who condemned Him.
Mark 14 56 Commentary
Mark 14:56 vividly portrays the moral and legal travesty of Jesus' trial before the Sanhedrin. The religious leaders, in their determination to execute Jesus, bypassed all semblance of justice. They actively sought and encouraged false testimony, violating the Ninth Commandment. The verse’s pivot point, "but their witness agreed not together," underscores their utter failure to secure even a fabricated conviction that could pass for legitimate under their own law. The Greek word isai, meaning "equal" or "consistent," points to the strict requirement of corroborated testimonies in Jewish law (Deut 19:15). This internal contradiction amongst the witnesses not only invalidated their claims but also exposed the desperate and fraudulent nature of the entire proceeding. Jesus, the embodiment of Truth, stood silently before a barrage of lies that ironically collapsed under their own weight. This verse profoundly highlights the corruption of religious authority bent on persecuting the Righteous One, demonstrating that even when man attempts to twist justice, the inherent truth eventually surfaces.