Mark 12:40 (KJV)

Passage

Which devour widows’ houses, and for a pretence make long prayers: these shall receive greater damnation.

Nearby Context

Mark 12:38 And he said unto them in his doctrine, Beware of the scribes, which love to go in long clothing, and love salutations in the marketplaces,

Mark 12:39 And the chief seats in the synagogues, and the uppermost rooms at feasts:

Mark 12:40 Which devour widows’ houses, and for a pretence make long prayers: these shall receive greater damnation.

Mark 12:41 And Jesus sat over against the treasury, and beheld how the people cast money into the treasury: and many that were rich cast in much.

Mark 12:42 And there came a certain poor widow, and she threw in two mites, which make a farthing.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "devour", "widows", "houses", "pretence", "make", "long", "prayers", and "shall". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "devour" and "widows", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 39's "And the chief seats in the synagogues..." into verse 41's "And Jesus sat over against the treasury...", so "devour" and "widows" 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 "devour" and "widows" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.