Mark 10:38 (DBY)

Passage

And Jesus said to them, Ye do not know what ye ask. Are ye able to drink the cup which *I* drink, or be baptised with the baptism that *I* am baptised with?

Nearby Context

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

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

Mark 10:38 And Jesus said to them, Ye do not know what ye ask. Are ye able to drink the cup which *I* drink, or be baptised with the baptism that *I* am baptised with?

Mark 10:39 And they said to him, We are able. And Jesus said to them, The cup that *I* drink ye will drink and with the baptism that *I* am baptised with ye will be baptised,

Mark 10:40 but to sit on my right hand or on my left is not mine to give, but for those for whom it is prepared.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "jesus", "said", "able", "drink", "baptised", and "baptism". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "jesus" and "said", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 37's "And they said to him Give to..." into verse 39's "And they said to him We are...", so "jesus" and "said" 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 "jesus" and "said" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.