Whose Doctrine Are You Following? (Mark 8)

Scripture reading – Mark 8; Matthew 17

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* Please note that words and phrases in brackets are the author’s amplification.

Spiritual Hunger (Mark 8:1-10)

This brief Bible study is the second of the day and is drawn from Mark 8. Mark 8:1-9 begins with the account of the Feeding of the Four Thousand. Immediately afterward, Jesus and the disciples departed by ship to an area known as “Dalmanutha,” located on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee near Magdala (Mark 8:10).

In Dalmanutha, Jesus confronted the Pharisees, the religious legalists of His day. They came to Jesus and demanded that He prove Himself by giving a “sign [i.e., a miraculous sight] from heaven” (Mark 8:11). Mark declared that their purpose was to tempt Jesus, meaning to put Him to the test in hopes of making Him fail (Mark 8:11).

Spiritual Blindness (Mark 8:11-26)

Jesus, knowing what lay in the hearts of men, rebuked the Pharisees, saying, “There shall no sign be given unto this generation” (Mark 8:12b). He and the disciples then departed and set sail for Bethsaida (Mark 8:13-22). Bethsaida was the home of Peter, Andrew, and Philip (John 1:44-45) and was located on the north shore of the Sea of Galilee.

As they crossed the sea, Jesus charged His disciples, “Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, and of the leaven of Herod” (Mark 8:15). “Leaven,” like yeast, was used in dough to make bread rise when baked. Hearing Jesus speak of leaven, the disciples assumed He meant bread, because they had neglected to bring enough bread on their journey (Mark 8:14, 16).

The irony of the moment was captured when Jesus asked His disciples, “Why reason ye, because ye have no bread? perceive ye not yet, neither understand? have ye your heart yet hardened? ¹⁸Having eyes, see ye not? and having ears, hear ye not? and do ye not remember?” (8:17-18).

What was the irony? The irony was that the disciples were concerned about what they would eat at their next meal (Mark 8:19-20)! Twice, they witnessed Jesus feed thousands. Once, He fed 5,000 men with no more than a boy’s lunch. On another occasion, He fed 4,000 men with seven loaves of bread, leaving them not only full but also with leftovers for their next meal.

Jesus then asked, “How is it that ye do not understand?” (Mark 8:21)  

Matthew summarized the same narrative and concluded that the disciples then understood “how that he bade them not beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees” (Matthew 16:12).

What was the “leaven (i.e., doctrine) of the Pharisees, and of the leaven (i.e., doctrine) of Herod?” (Mark 8:15)

The Pharisees were guilty of hypocrisy (Luke 12:1; Matthew 23:27). They also denied the Lord and spoke against Him (Luke 12:9-10). In the same setting, Matthew recorded Christ’s warning about the doctrine, or “the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees” (Matthew 16:6). Mark introduced “the leaven of Herod,” perhaps indicative of that king’s openly immoral and idolatrous ways and influence (Mark 8:15).

Though those parties differed greatly, they were united in one thing—their determination to kill Jesus.