Mark 10:35 (ASV)

Passage

And there come near unto him James and John, the sons of Zebedee, saying unto him, Teacher, we would that thou shouldest do for us whatsoever we shall ask of thee.

Nearby Context

Mark 10:33 [saying], Behold, we go up to Jerusalem; and the Son of man shall be delivered unto the chief priests and the scribes; and they shall condemn him to death, and shall deliver him unto the Gentiles:

Mark 10:34 and they shall mock him, and shall spit upon him, and shall scourge him, and shall kill him; and after three days he shall rise again.

Mark 10:35 And there come near unto him James and John, the sons of Zebedee, saying unto him, Teacher, we would that thou shouldest do for us whatsoever we shall ask of thee.

Mark 10:36 And he said unto them, What would ye that I should do for you?

Mark 10:37 And they said unto him, Grant unto us that we may sit, one on thy right hand, and one on [thy] left hand, in thy glory.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "come", "near", "james", "john", "sons", "zebedee", "saying", and "teacher". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "come" and "near", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 34's "and they shall mock him and shall..." into verse 36's "And he said unto them What would...", so "come" and "near" belong inside that flow. In Mark context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "come" and "near" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.