1. Mark 10:14 (ESV)
  2. Exposition

What significance is there to the word, “hinder”?

Mark 10:14 (ESV)

14 But when Jesus saw it, he was indignant and said to them, “Let the children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God.

The Greek verb translated in this verse as “hinder” is also found in a number of other places in the New Testament. On four occasions it appears in baptismal contexts (e.g., Matthew 3:14; Acts 8:36; Acts 10:47; Acts 11:17). It is interesting that the Lord Jesus, when speaking of infant children, makes use of a phrase that the Holy Spirit would later also connect with baptism.