21 And they went into Capernaum; and straightway on the sabbath day he entered into the synagogue, and taught. 22 And they were astonished at his doctrine: for he taught them as one that had authority, and not as the scribes. 23 And there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit; and he cried out, 24 Saying, Let us alone; what have we to do with thee, thou Jesus of Nazareth? art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art, the Holy One of God. 25 And Jesus rebuked him, saying, Hold thy peace, and come out of him. 26 And when the unclean spirit had torn him, and cried with a loud voice, he came out of him. 27 And they were all amazed, insomuch that they questioned among themselves, saying, What thing is this? what new doctrine is this? for with authority commandeth he even the unclean spirits, and they do obey him. 28 And immediately his fame spread abroad throughout all the region round about Galilee. Compare: Luke 4:31-37
Jesus in Capernaum
Capernaum is a city in Galilee often referenced in the gospels. Jesus is described as having spent enough time in and around Capernaum that it came to be known as Jesus’ own city. There are verses referring to Jesus healing and teaching here in all four gospels. Despite all of this, however, Jesus is also depicted in Matthew and Luke as having felt rejected by the town’s inhabitants and cursing them.
Literally translated as “village of Nahum,†Capernaum is located on the northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee. Its existence is attested to by several sources outside the Bible, including Josephus and the Talmud. Archeological excavations at what is now known as Tell Hum have uncovered, among other things, a synagogue and a fifth-century church built over a fourth-century “house church†that has become to be known as “Peter’s House.â€
Jesus starts out teaching at a synagogue â€" odd, since synagogues may have been primarily a diaspora institution and didn’t become widespread until after the Roman destruction of the Jewish Temple by Titus in 70 CE. There certainly would have been meeting places in every town, but not necessarily synagogues. Mark's use of synagogues suggests that we are dealing with fictional stories: Mark is putting the figure of Jesus in places and situations that his audience would have been familiar with in order to communicate theological, social, and political messages that he wanted them to hear.
It is curious that we don’t learn anything about what Jesus teaches at this point. We don’t learn about his new ideas or radical interpretations of scriptures. Instead, we learn about the manner in which he teaches â€" as one with authority.
Either this means that he showed that he knew a great deal, which surprised people since they didn’t know him, or it means that he was incredibly arrogant, which simply managed to annoy everyone. It’s worth wondering, though, what he would have been teaching that would have been so unremarkable. One might reasonably conclude that, whatever it was, it must have been consistent with whatever else was being taught by other Jews in that place and time.
More: Jesus Casts Out His First Demon
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