Mark 12:29 (GNV)

Passage

Iesus answered him, The first of all the commandements is, Heare, Israel, The Lord our God is the onely Lord.

Nearby Context

Mark 12:27 God is not ye God of the dead, but the God of the liuing. Ye are therefore greatly deceiued.

Mark 12:28 Then came one of the Scribes that had heard them disputing together, and perceiuing that he had answered them well, he asked him, Which is the first commandement of all?

Mark 12:29 Iesus answered him, The first of all the commandements is, Heare, Israel, The Lord our God is the onely Lord.

Mark 12:30 Thou shalt therefore loue the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soule, and with all thy minde, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandement.

Mark 12:31 And the second is like, that is, Thou shalt loue thy neighbour as thy selfe. There is none other commandement greater then these.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "iesus", "answered", "first", "commandements", "heare", "israel", "lord", and "onely". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "iesus" and "answered", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 28's "Then came one of the Scribes that..." into verse 30's "Thou shalt therefore loue the Lord thy...", so "iesus" and "answered" 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 "iesus" and "answered" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.