He said to them, “Is a lamp brought in to be placed under a bushel basket or under a bed, and not to be placed on a lampstand? 22 For there is nothing hidden except to be made visible; nothing is secret except to come to light. 23 Anyone who has ears to hear ought to hear.” 24 He also told them, “Take care what you hear. The measure with which you measure will be measured out to you, and still more will be given to you. 25 To the one who has, more will be given; from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.”
Jesus continues His teaching with three short sayings that belong together. He speaks about light, about what is hidden, and about hearing. Each saying presses the same point: what God is doing in and through Jesus is not meant to remain covered up, and the way a person receives His word will shape what follows.
Jesus begins with a plain picture. A lamp is brought in so it can do what a lamp is for. It is not meant to be tucked away under something that blocks its light. It belongs on a lampstand, in a place where it can be seen and where it can give light to others. Jesus uses the image to make a spiritual point: His teaching is not a private message for a tiny circle. It is meant to be known, and it is meant to spread. The same basic image appears elsewhere in the Gospels: a lamp is not lit only to be hidden, but to shine out in a house.
He then says that hidden things are meant to be brought into the open. In Mark’s Gospel, this fits the way Jesus’ identity and the kingdom He proclaims are not fully grasped at first. There is a real “hiddenness” during His ministry. Many people see His works and hear His words, but they do not yet understand what they are seeing and hearing. Even so, concealment is not the goal. What God is doing will be made visible. What is now “secret” will “come to light.” Luke speaks in the same direction when Jesus says that what is covered will be uncovered and what is concealed will be known.
That is why Jesus adds the sharp refrain: “Anyone who has ears to hear ought to hear.” This is more than a comment about good hearing. He is calling those who hear His words to accept them as God’s truth, and to let them form their minds and guide their lives. Not everyone who hears with the ear hears with the heart. Mark has already shown this difference in the parable of the sower: the same word is sown widely, but it is received in different ways. Jesus is now warning His listeners not to treat His teaching as one more voice among many.
So He says plainly, “Take care what you hear.” The point is not only to listen, but to listen rightly. What a person welcomes shapes the person. The “measure” saying makes the same point in another image. A measure is a standard used to give out something. Jesus says that the measure you use will be used for you, and even more will be added. In other words, a person’s response to His word is not neutral. A receptive listener is given more. A listener who refuses the word loses even what he has. This is not about money or social advantage. It is about spiritual receptivity. If someone receives what Jesus teaches and stays with Him, understanding grows and the gift becomes richer. If someone turns away, the light that was offered does not remain. It fades because it was not welcomed.
These sayings also keep the larger story of salvation in view. God’s light has never been meant for one corner of the world. Israel was chosen so that God’s truth and worship would be known, and the prophets often speak of God’s light reaching beyond Israel to the nations. In Jesus, that purpose is moving toward its fulfillment. The light is not being lit to be covered. It is being set on a lampstand so it can be seen, so that what God is doing can be recognized, received, and carried forward.
Lord Jesus, give me ears that truly hear. Let Your word take root in me, and let the light You give be seen in the way I live. Amen.
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Sources and References
- The Holy Bible, New American Bible, Revised Edition (2011).
- Ignatius Catholic Study Bible: The Gospel of Mark, commentary on Mark 4:21-25, p. 73.
- Raymond E. Brown et al., The New Jerome Biblical Commentary (1990), commentary on Mark 4:21-25, p. 606 (para. 29).
- Faculty of the University of Navarre, The Navarre Bible: Mark, commentary on Mark 4:21-25, p. 177.
- José Enrique Aguilar Chiu et al., eds., The Paulist Biblical Commentary (2018), commentary on Mark 4:21-25, p. 988.
- The New Jerome Biblical Commentary for the Twenty-First Century, commentary on Mark 4:21-25, p. 1251.
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