Introduction

The pattern of discipleship etched in Mk. 1:16–20 – a pattern featuring both presence and practice – gains more elaborate expression as Jesus calls those whom he wishes up to the mountain and there establishes the Twelve (Mk. 3:13–19). As the second passage in Mark to feature significant direct interaction between Jesus and his followers, this detailed exposition of the group's own mission and purpose builds on their increasing narrative prominence in a way that signals their significant partnership with Jesus. An examination of the context, setting, and structure of this succinct mountaintop encounter will demonstrate that in their twofold commission to “be with” Jesus and to be “sent out” by him, the Twelve assume a vital role as divinely appointed administrators of the in-breaking kingdom of God that has been the focus of Jesus' ministry up to this point in the gospel. In other words, if Jesus has emerged in the second gospel as God's specially designated emissary, in this passage he explicitly extends his power and authority to the Twelve who surround him. For Mark's audience, the Twelve thus provide a paradigm for the practice of that divinely sanctioned role even in a post-resurrection age, perhaps particularly at a time when the cosmic showdown between the “powers that be” and the kingdom of God seems to have come to a head (see, e.g., Mk. 13:14).