II - The Twelve-source

Summary

With the next section of Mark (iii. 7 ff.) we come to a crucial passage for the understanding of Mark's methods of compilation and the nature of the material at his disposal. As Meyer rightly saw the clumsiness of the repeated ‘And he appointed (the) Twelve’ in 14 and 16 is unthinkable even in the most artless of writers (Urspr. u. Anf. 1, 136). Such clumsiness, however, is common in far more pretentious writers when they are inserting from sources.

On the other hand Meyer's suggestion that the new source (the ‘Twelve-source’) begins at 15 seems mistaken; his objection that the story is inconsistent since the Twelve are appointed in 14 to be with Jesus and in 15 to be sent on missions is hardly serious. There seems no reason why Mark's source should not quite simply have stated the fact that Jesus' appointment of the Twelve was intended for the double purpose, while it must be remembered that the preaching mission is only represented as a single event. Moreover the section Mark iii. 7—15, as will be seen, harmonizes in character with the rest of the Twelve-source, while it is most unlikely that the appointment of the Twelve would be mentioned in 14 if it is not part of the Twelve-source, since it is only in this source that they appear.