Mark 9:24 (ASV)

Passage

Straightway the father of the child cried out, and said, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.

Nearby Context

Mark 9:22 And oft-times it hath cast him both into the fire and into the waters, to destroy him: but if thou canst do anything, have compassion on us, and help us.

Mark 9:23 And Jesus said unto him, If thou canst! All things are possible to him that believeth.

Mark 9:24 Straightway the father of the child cried out, and said, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.

Mark 9:25 And when Jesus saw that a multitude came running together, he rebuked the unclean spirit, saying unto him, Thou dumb and deaf spirit, I command thee, come out of him, and enter no more into him.

Mark 9:26 And having cried out, and torn him much, he came out: and [the boy] became as one dead; insomuch that the more part said, He is dead.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "straightway", "father", "child", "cried", "said", "believe", "help", and "thou". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "straightway" and "father", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 23's "And Jesus said unto him If thou..." into verse 25's "And when Jesus saw that a multitude...", so "straightway" and "father" 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 "straightway" and "father" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.