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For he knew that the chief priests had handed Him over because of envy.
Mark 15:10 · New King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB For he perceived that for envy the chief priests had delivered him up.
  • KJV For he knew that the chief priests had delivered him for envy.
  • BSB For he knew it was out of envy that the chief priests had handed Jesus over.
  • NASB For he was aware that the chief priests had handed Him over because of envy.
  • NLT (For he realized by now that the leading priests had arrested Jesus out of envy.)

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

Pilate realizes the priests handed Jesus over out of envy. He sees through their motives.

Overview

Mark reveals that envy of Jesus' popularity and authority drove the leaders' hostility. Pilate perceives that the charges are not about justice but jealousy. Yet his awareness of their malice does not lead him to do what is right, exposing the failure of compromised authority.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 11

  • Prov 27:4Wrath is cruel, and anger is overwhelming; but who is able to stand before jealousy?
  • 1 Sam 18:8–9Saul was very angry, and this saying displeased him. He said, “They have ascribed to David ten thousands, and to me they have ascribed only thousands. What can he have more but the kingdom?”
  • Matt 27:18For he knew that because of envy they had delivered him up.
  • Titus 3:3For we were also once foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving various lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another.
  • Gen 4:4–6Abel also brought some of the firstborn of his flock and of its fat. Yahweh respected Abel and his offering,
  • Gen 37:11His brothers envied him, but his father kept this saying in mind.
  • Jas 4:5Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, “The Spirit who lives in us yearns jealously”?
  • Eccl 4:4Then I saw all the labor and achievement that is the envy of a man’s neighbor. This also is vanity and a striving after wind.
  • Jas 3:14–16But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your heart, don’t boast and don’t lie against the truth.
  • Acts 13:45But when the Jews saw the multitudes, they were filled with jealousy, and contradicted the things which were spoken by Paul, and blasphemed.
  • 1 Jn 3:12unlike Cain, who was of the evil one, and killed his brother. Why did he kill him? Because his deeds were evil, and his brother’s righteous.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (5)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Mark videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Mark 15:10YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on MarkMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    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 15:10 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.