Mark 10:35 (WEB)

Passage

James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came near to him, saying, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we will ask.”

Nearby Context

Mark 10:33 “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem. The Son of Man will be delivered to the chief priests and the scribes. They will condemn him to death, and will deliver him to the Gentiles.

Mark 10:34 They will mock him, spit on him, scourge him, and kill him. On the third day he will rise again.”

Mark 10:35 James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came near to him, saying, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we will ask.”

Mark 10:36 He said to them, “What do you want me to do for you?”

Mark 10:37 They said to him, “Grant to us that we may sit, one at your right hand, and one at your left hand, in your glory.”

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "james", "john", "sons", "zebedee", "came", "near", "saying", and "teacher". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "james" and "john", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 34's "They will mock him spit on him..." into verse 36's "He said to them What do you...", so "james" and "john" 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 "james" and "john" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.