Featured Mark 4:12 Jesus speaks in parables “‘ . . lest they should turn and be forgiven.’” ? ?

[AgnosticBoy]

The following article makes the case that the passage in question is using a figure of speech, 'irony'.

Irony: the use of words to express something other than and especially the opposite of the literal meaning
- Merriam-Webster

In Mark 4.12, Jesus expresses the reason why he chose at a certain stage in his ministry to address at least a part of his audience in terms of parables: "so that they may indeed see but not perceive, and may indeed hear but not understand; lest they should turn again and be forgiven."1 This statement is, on the face of it, incredibly harsh; Jesus seems to be trying to keep a certain class of men in ignorance, who otherwise might well have repented and received forgiveness. It is a modified quotation from Isaiah 6. 9, 10, which seems to imply much of the same harshness and is quoted with various modifications not only here but in each of the Gospels and in Acts.

It is my conviction that Isaiah 6.9,20a is a statement more about the nature of the people in Judah than about what Isaiah is to p reach, and that Isaiah 6.10b "lest they... turn and be healed" expresses again, but through the figure of speech of irony,2 that it is the people of Judah themselves who are unwilling to turn and be healed. It also expresses God's scorn for this attitude on their part. This interpretation affects the exegesis and translation of Isaiah 6.10b where it appears in the New Testament.

Isaiah 6.9,10 gives the Lord's commission to the prophet:

9 And he said, "Go, and say to this people:
'Hear and hear, but do not understand; see and see but do not perceive.' 10 Make the heart of his people fat, and their eyes heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand their hearts, and turn and be healed.

Verse 9 at first seems to be a characterization of the message Isaiah is to deliver, but it is an odd characterization, to say the least.
For one thing, nowhere in the book us such a message (a command to not understand and to not perceive) actually delivered by Isaiah to Israel. Isaiah's actual message seems to be rather an attempt through warning and appeal to convince Israel to leave off its unresponsiveness and rebellion and to return to God. From this we can conclude that this passage is not in fact telling Isaiah what to say. I suggest that it is telling him instead to be persistent and not surprised as a poor response. His preaching will affect the addressees like a command neither to understand nor perceive, not because they will be obedient to any such command, but because they are basically unresponsive and will therefore react in that way to the message he is to deliver.3

Source: Bruce Hollenbach, "Lest they should turn and be forgiven: irony," Bible Translator 34.3 (July 1983): 312-321.

I highlighted the most convincing parts to me.

Given the background information about the Pharisees and even some of Jesus's disciples, I can say that it's likely that they would have not accepted jesus's message on their own. I mean to their understanding, Jesus was going against the Law, challenging authority, and was claiming to be some sort of savior. So even if we to a literal understanding of Mark 4:12 and said Jesus was deliberately blinding someone from seeing the truth, that would have been unnecessary because several factors would've led the people to blind themselves.

 

[bbyrd009]

And this part which says, “lest they should turn and be forgiven,”

well, on its face, it sounds like it’s saying, Hey, we’re already in the club, but you other people, you ain’t in the club.

well, the fact that the apostles had to ask Him about the parable might play in there a bit too

 

[Multicolored Lemur]

Mr. Hollenbach— that it is the people of Judah themselves who are unwilling to turn and be healed.

Look, I don’t mind the parables. In fact, I kind of like the parables. They create a short, pithy, and thought-provoking in which way to teach.

But this justification is terrible. Hollenbach is basically saying— These are lousy students, the heck with them, I’m not going to try my best.

 

[AgnosticBoy]

Here's the relevant section from Hollenbach's article that gets into Mark 4:

So then, in Mark 4.12b, Jesus explains his use of parables as a device to limit the understanding of "those outside" (Mark 4.11), who have shown themselves to be at root antipathetic to his gospel of the Kingdom. This is necessary because they abhor the idea of turning and being forgiven. The more they understand his message, the more they will strengthen their resolve to neither turn nor be forgiven. These are, as it were, the "righteous persons who need no repentance" (Luke 15.7-also an ironical statement), who cause little joy in heaven.

Source: Bruce Hollenbach, "Lest they should turn and be forgiven: irony," Bible Translator 34.3 (July 1983): Pg. 317

Look, I don’t mind the parables. In fact, I kind of like the parables. They create a short, pithy, and thought-provoking in which way to teach.

But this justification is terrible. Hollenbach is basically saying— These are lousy students, the heck with them, I’m not going to try my best.

Sure Hollenbach says that Jesus was using irony in Mark 4:10-12. If that's correct, then that means that Jesus did not plan nor intend for people to not repent. It would also mean that even if Jesus told them the plain truth, that those on the "outside" would still not believe and therefore, not be forgiven. I think a supporting piece of evidence is that Jesus performed miracles and people still did not believe:

John 12:37 "Even after Jesus had performed so many signs in their presence, they still would not believe in him."

To me, it's more like, I'm not going to tell them the plain truth because it's not as if they'll believe me anyways. (They didn't even believe me after I performed miracles). Perhaps a little "don't cast pearls to swine" is going on there as well.

 

[Multicolored Lemur]

I think a supporting piece of evidence is that Jesus performed miracles and people still did not believe:

John 12:37 "Even after Jesus had performed so many signs in their presence, they still would not believe in him."

As a nonbeliever, I’m inclined to think this is one more line of evidence that the supposed miracles started from pretty modest beginnings and grew through urban legend [or I guess “rural legend” back then!]

I previously started a thread from a Youtube atheist asking, Why no big miracles today?

And I think that is a valid question.

former Christian and current you-tuber “Paulogia” asks, Why no more happenings which are obvious miracles?​

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I really think most people just aren’t that religious. Most people focus on things like—

Not cheating on their spouse. Although this can be a struggle. So maybe don’t get too down on yourself for the occasional slip. In a documentary, I can remember baseball star Pete Rose’s wife saying to him, Pete, I know things sometimes happen on the road. Just please don’t embarrass me in Cincinnati.

And people want to help others. But giving to charity is often disappointing. And/or people keenly remember the times charities are a rip-off, or the top people in a charity get exorbitant salaries, etc.