Now a certain young man followed Him, having a linen cloth thrown around his naked body. And the young men laid hold of him,
Parallel translations
- WEB A certain young man followed him, having a linen cloth thrown around himself, over his naked body. The young men grabbed him,
- KJV And there followed him a certain young man, having a linen cloth cast about his naked body; and the young men laid hold on him:
- BSB One young man who had been following Jesus was wearing a linen cloth around his body. They caught hold of him,
- NASB A young man was following Him, wearing nothing but a linen sheet over his naked body; and they *seized him.
- NLT One young man following behind was clothed only in a long linen shirt. When the mob tried to grab him,
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
A young man following Jesus flees when grabbed. The detail underscores the total abandonment of Jesus.
Overview
This brief, vivid note, found only in Mark, has often been thought to be the author's own modest self-reference, though Scripture does not say so. Whoever he was, his panicked flight illustrates how completely Jesus was forsaken. The image reinforces that Jesus stood alone as everyone fled.
Cross-references & the web
No cross-references recorded for this verse.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Mark drives urgently to the cross, showing Jesus the Son of God as the suffering Servant who 'came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.'
How Mark 14:51 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.