Mark 9:32 (ASV)

Passage

But they understood not the saying, and were afraid to ask him.

Nearby Context

Mark 9:30 And they went forth from thence, and passed through Galilee; and he would not that any man should know it.

Mark 9:31 For he taught his disciples, and said unto them, The Son of man is delivered up into the hands of men, and they shall kill him; and when he is killed, after three days he shall rise again.

Mark 9:32 But they understood not the saying, and were afraid to ask him.

Mark 9:33 And they came to Capernaum: and when he was in the house he asked them, What were ye reasoning on the way?

Mark 9:34 But they held their peace: for they had disputed one with another on the way, who [was] the greatest.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "understood", "saying", and "afraid". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "understood" and "saying", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 31's "For he taught his disciples and said..." into verse 33's "And they came to Capernaum and when...", so "understood" and "saying" 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 "understood" and "saying" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.