Church Fathers Commentary Mark 11:19-26

"And every evening he went forth out of the city. And as they passed by in the morning, they saw the fig tree withered away from the roots. And Peter calling to remembrance saith unto him, Rabbi, behold, the fig tree which thou cursedst is withered away. And Jesus answering saith unto them, Have faith in God. Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou taken up and cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that what he saith cometh to pass; he shall have it. Therefore I say unto you, All things whatsoever ye pray and ask for, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them. And whensoever ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have aught against any one; that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses. [But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father who is in heaven forgive your trespasses.]" — Mark 11:19-26 (ASV)

Pseudo-Jerome: The Lord, leaving darkness behind Him in the hearts of the Jews, went out like the sun from that city to another which was well-disposed and obedient. This is what is meant when it is said, And when evening had come, He went out of the city.

But the sun sets in one place and rises in another, for the light, taken from the Scribes, now shines in the Apostles. Therefore, He returns to the city. For this reason, it is added, And in the morning, as they passed by, (that is, going into the city,) they saw the fig tree dried up from the root.

Theophylact of Ohrid: The greatness of the miracle is apparent in the drying up of such a juicy and green tree. Although Matthew says that the fig tree was immediately dried up and that the disciples wondered when they saw it, we should not be perplexed that Mark now says the disciples saw it dried up the next day. What Matthew says must be understood to mean that they did not see it immediately, but on the following day.

St. Augustine of Hippo: The meaning is not that the tree dried up at the moment they saw it, but immediately after the Lord spoke His word. They saw it not beginning to dry up, but completely dried up, and from this they understood that it had withered instantly after our Lord spoke. ¹

Pseudo-Jerome: The fig tree withered from the roots represents the synagogue, which has been withered since the time of Cain and the others from whom all the blood from Abel to Zechariah is required.

The Venerable Bede: Furthermore, the fig tree was dried up from the roots to show that the nation was not just impious for a time or in part. It was to be struck forever, not merely to be afflicted by attacks from outside nations and then set free, as had often happened before.

Alternatively, it was dried up from the roots to show that the nation was stripped not only of the external favor of man but entirely of the favor of heaven within it, for it lost both its life in heaven and its country on earth.

Pseudo-Jerome: Peter perceives the dry root that was cut off and has been replaced by the beautiful and fruitful olive tree, called by the Lord. Therefore, the text continues: And Peter, calling to remembrance, says to Him, "Master, behold, the fig tree which you cursed is withered away."

St. John Chrysostom: The disciples’ wonder was a consequence of their imperfect faith, for this was not a great thing for God to do. Since they did not yet clearly know His power, their ignorance caused them to express their amazement. Therefore, it is added, And Jesus answering says to them, "Have faith in God. For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain..." and so on. This means that you will not only be able to dry up a tree, but also to move a mountain by your command and order.

Theophylact of Ohrid: Consider the divine mercy, which confers on us—if we approach Him in faith—the power of miracles that He Himself possesses by nature, so that we might even be able to move mountains.

The Venerable Bede: The Gentiles who attack the Church often object that we have never had full faith in God, because we have never been able to move mountains. It could be done, however, if necessity required it. We read that it was once done through the prayers of the blessed Father Gregory of Neocaesarea, Bishop of Pontus, by which a mountain moved to provide as much space as the inhabitants of a city needed.

St. John Chrysostom: Alternatively, just as He did not dry up the fig tree for its own sake but as a sign that Jerusalem would be destroyed and to show His power, so also must we understand the promise concerning the mountain—although such a removal is not impossible for God.

Pseudo-Jerome: Christ, then, who is the mountain that grew from the stone cut out without hands, is taken up and cast into the sea when the Apostles rightly say, Let us turn to other nations, since you judged yourselves unworthy of hearing the word of God (Acts 13:46).

The Venerable Bede: Alternatively, because the devil is often called a mountain on account of his pride, this mountain is taken up from the earth and cast into the sea at the command of those who are strong in faith. This happens whenever, through the preaching of the word of God by holy teachers, the unclean spirit is expelled from the hearts of those foreordained to life and is then allowed to exert his tyrannical power over the troubled and embittered souls of the faithless.

At such a time, he rages all the more fiercely, the more he grieves at being prevented from harming the faithful.

The passage continues: Therefore I say to you, whatever things you desire when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.

Theophylact of Ohrid: For whoever sincerely believes evidently lifts up his heart to God and is joined to Him. His burning heart feels sure that he has received what he asked for—a feeling that anyone who has experienced it will understand. It seems to me that those who experience this are people who pay close attention to the measure and manner of their prayers. For this reason, the Lord says, You will receive whatever you ask in faith. For the one who believes he is entirely in God's hands, and who intercedes with tears, feels as if he has hold of the Lord's feet in prayer; he will receive what he has rightly asked for.

Do you want to receive what you ask for in another way? Forgive your brother if he has sinned against you in any way. This is what is added next: And when you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.

Pseudo-Jerome: Mark has, as is his custom, expressed seven verses of the Lord's Prayer in this one passage. But what more can a person whose sins are all forgiven require, except to persevere in what has been granted to him?

The Venerable Bede: We must observe that there is a difference among those who pray. The one who has perfect faith, which works by love, can by his prayer or even his command remove spiritual mountains, as Paul did with Elymas the sorcerer. But let those who are unable to reach such a height of perfection pray that their sins may be forgiven them, and they will obtain what they pray for, provided that they first forgive those who have sinned against them.

If, however, they disdain to do this, not only will they be unable to perform miracles by their prayers, but they will not even be able to obtain pardon for their sins. This is implied in what follows: But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father who is in heaven forgive your trespasses.

1. de Con. Evan, ii, 68