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In the Gospel of Mark, (14:51-52) Jesus is being followed by a young naked man? But he ran away, naked?

It reads: "And a young man followed him, with nothing but a linen cloth about his body. And they seized him, but he left the linen cloth and ran away naked."

DON'T CARE WHO IT WAS.... Just why was he dressed with so little and was with Jesus, naked except for this linen cloth?

16 Answers

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  • Anonymous
    5 years ago

    Reading that entire passage, + the one above, and below, makes it looks rather isolated.

    The whole idea of a man not being married, and running around the Middle East with a group of other young men, has always been a curiosity to all Early Christian scholars. Even more, men were always married. It was the job of their fathers to be sure they were betrothed to a women, often before either was born. Jesus, for all we know, could have been gay, and this young men one of his "disciples".

    The scripture states that he was following Jesus with "nothing but a linen cloth around his body". This isn't any robe, if we are to believe the writer.

    So, you have several choices:

    1. This guy always wore just a linen cloth (That would be odd)

    2. It is out of context, and added by a different writer, later.

    3. Jesus was involved with him sexually.

    I'd say your choice is between either 2 or 3.

    Take your pick

  • Rick G
    Lv 7
    5 years ago

    (Mark 14:50-52) 50 And they all abandoned him and fled. 51 However, a certain young man wearing only a fine linen garment over his naked body began to follow him nearby, and they tried to seize him, 52 but he left his linen garment behind and got away naked.

    On the footnote for "naked", the other possible translation that would be valid is "lightly clad".

    In his Gospel, Mark speaks of a young man who fled on the night of Jesus’ arrest. He was evidently referring to himself, since all the other disciples had already abandoned Jesus. (Mark 14:50-52) So when Jesus and his apostles left late that night, Mark apparently threw on a garment and followed. Therefore, Mark seems to have been an early disciple, and it is possible that he was present at Pentecost.

  • 5 years ago

    People were poor back then. Poor people don't have a lot for clothing. Sometimes they only have a simple cloth to cover themselves with. Then again, at that period of time, some people really were naked when they actually had nothing. So at least he had a cloth on.

    Why was he with Jesus? Jesus was constantly followed by large crowds of people. The fact that a person was following Him doesn't mean he was WITH Him.

  • Anonymous
    5 years ago

    However, “a certain young man”—perhaps the disciple Mark—remains among the crowd so as to follow Jesus. (Mark 14:51) This young man is recognized, and the crowd attempts to seize him, which forces him to leave behind his linen garment as he gets away

    Since Mark, also known as John Mark, is the only one who records this story, the young man may have been the writer himself. If so, Mark had at least some personal contact with Jesus.

    If you read the account it says "Mark’s account draws a contrast: “But a certain young man wearing a fine linen garment over his naked body began to follow him nearby; and they tried to seize him, but he left his linen garment behind and got away naked.”—Mark 14:50-52.

    it says linen "over his naked body so obviously he had nothing on under the linen garment.

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  • 5 years ago

    It's a literary devise. The Gospels are counted among the greatest pieces of literature in the history of mankind. It isn't for nothing. You can call it poetic symbolism, but the Bible has many literary devices, including foreshadowing, metaphor, analogy, allegory, and imagery. The man represents the human race, the followers of Jesus, then and now, that in stead of standing and fighting, run off in shame and fear into the darkness. Without God, we are lost, naked and afraid.

  • 5 years ago

    Reading from today's point of view, we often find mentions of nudity in the Bible to be awkward and inappropriate, when at the time and for most of history nudity was nothing more than practical, incidental, simply descriptive, or an accepted consequence of being enslaved or merely poor. For instance, Jesus meeting Peter for the first time while Peter was fishing. Peter was fishing naked, which given how expensive and restrictive the clothing at the time was, it was merely a practical way to fish. Don't read today's weird aversion to nudity into it.

  • Ruth
    Lv 7
    5 years ago

    Minds in the gutter, huh? The young man wore a linen cloth. When young men took hold of him He ran off without the cloth. It must of come off during the struggle. Men used to wear loin clothes in Jesus time!! Do some reading!

  • Moi
    Lv 7
    5 years ago

    He was asleep in bed, likely uncovered, and he heard the commotion outside, wrapped a sheet around himself and went out to investigate. The men who had come for Jesus grabbed him, pulled off his covering, and the lad fled from them.

  • Jesus was a nut magnet. Sometimes crazies are attracted to me. I have to spray myself down with CrazyOff repellant.

  • Linda
    Lv 7
    5 years ago

    Actually it says. fine linen garment but I don't know why because the bible does not give an explanation.

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