Maybe you didn鈥檛 know that he was gone. He was. The prophet Ezekiel saw it all in a vision. God abandoned his temple during the Babylonian Exile in the sixth-century BC:

Ezekiel 10:18 鈥� Then the glory of the LORD went out from the threshold of the house, and stood over the cherubim.

Ezekiel 11:22鈥�23 鈥� Then the cherubim lifted up their wings, with the wheels beside them, and the glory of the God of Israel was over them. And the glory of the LORD went up from the midst of the city and stood on the mountain that is on the east side of the city.

God left. But now God is back. And his name is Jesus.

Several Sundays ago I read Mark 1:14-15 to my congregation:

Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel, and saying, 鈥淭he time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.鈥�

I then asked:

鈥淲hat does Jesus mean here by 鈥�the gospel鈥�鈥�?

Audience participation is not uncommon at Oceanside Christian Fellowship, and, when all was said and done, we unpacked 鈥渢he gospel鈥� in Mark 1:14-15 as follows:

鈥淕od is holy. We are sinful. God sent Jesus to die for our sins, so that we can be reconciled to God and be with him for all eternity.鈥�

This is all very orthodox. And it is completely biblical. But this definition of 鈥渢he gospel鈥� makes little sense in the context of Mark 1.

Imagine that you are living in Galilee when Jesus begins his public ministry with the proclamation cited in Mark 1:14-15, above. He has said nothing about the cross. He is still very much alive. Jesus has yet to die for anyone鈥檚 sins.

Could Jesus really have expected his early Galilean audience to understand 鈥済ospel鈥� in the ways it was understood by his inspired interpreters (Paul, Peter, John, etc.) after his death, burial, and resurrection? I think not.

What, then, does Jesus mean by 鈥渢he gospel鈥�?

Simple! The 鈥済ood news鈥� in Mark 1:14-15 is that God is back!

We saw in Ezekiel that Yahweh had left Jerusalem during the Babylonian captivity. Sadly, he did not return when the Jews rebuilt their temple upon return from exile.

Back in Exodus the Bible informs us that 鈥淭he glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle鈥� that the Israelites built in the wilderness (40:33). God鈥檚 glory also 鈥渇illed the house of the LORD鈥濃€攖he first temple鈥攖hat Solomon later built in Jerusalem (1 Kings 8:10). We read of no such manifestation of the presence of God鈥檚 glory when the second temple was dedicated in 516 B.C. (Ezra 6:15-16).

If the story of God and his people had ended there, it would have been real bad news. But the prophet Ezekiel had another vision. He saw a future day when God would return to his people:

鈥渢he glory of the God of Israel was coming from the east 鈥� the glory of the LORD entered the temple by the gate facing east 鈥� and behold, the glory of the LORD filled the temple鈥� (Ezekiel 43:2-5).

God is gone. But he鈥檒l be back. Someday Yahweh will return to Zion.

Do you think this qualifies as 鈥済ood news鈥�? The prophet Isaiah certainly thought so:

How beautiful upon the mountains

听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听 are the feet of him who brings good news,

聽聽聽聽聽聽 聽who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness,

听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听 who publishes salvation,

听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听 who says to Zion, 鈥�Your God reigns.鈥�

聽聽聽聽聽聽 The voice of your watchmen鈥攖hey lift up their voice;

听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听 together they sing for joy;

聽聽聽聽聽聽 聽for eye to eye they see

听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听 the return of the LORD to Zion.

(Isaiah 52:7-8)

聽鈥淭he gospel according to Isaiah鈥� is that Yahweh will return to reign from Zion. And this is exactly what Jesus is describing in Mark 1:15:

鈥淭he time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.鈥�

First, it is important to know that the word translated 鈥渒ingdom鈥� is a dynamic expression referring to the exercise of God鈥檚 royal authority鈥攏ot a static term referring to a realm (or a people) over which a king rules. 鈥淜ingdom of God鈥� would be better rendered 鈥渞eign/rule of God.鈥�

What Jesus is proclaiming in Mark 1:15 is that Yahweh has now returned to Zion to reign over his people鈥攋ust as he had promised through the prophet Isaiah.

God is back. And his name is Jesus.

If you remain unconvinced by the above interpretation of 鈥済ospel鈥� in Mark 1:15, consider another of Isaiah鈥檚 predictions of the return of Yahweh to Zion (Isaiah 40:3-5):

3聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 A voice cries:

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 聽鈥淚n the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD;

听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 聽make straight in the desert a highway for our God.

4 聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 聽Every valley shall be lifted up,

听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 and every mountain and hill be made low;

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 聽the uneven ground shall become level,

听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 and the rough places a plain.

5 聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 聽And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed,

听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 and all flesh shall see it together,

听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 聽for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.鈥�

Look back at Ezekiel and notice that when God left the temple he headed towards 鈥渢he east side of the city鈥� (11:23). Ezekiel saw that the glory of the Lord would one day return 鈥渇rom the east鈥� (43:2). It is not insignificant that 鈥渢he wilderness鈥�/鈥渄esert鈥� that Isaiah describes above lies east of Jerusalem. Isaiah 40:3-5 thus predicts the same event as Ezekiel 43 and Isaiah 52:7-8: Yahweh will return to Zion to reign over his people.

This is precisely what Mark鈥攚riting under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit of God鈥攗nderstood to be happening when Jesus began his public ministry in Galilee. Notice how Mark unpacks what he calls 鈥淭he beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God鈥� (1:1) as he proceeds to introduce his Gospel in the next two verses:

2 聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 As it is written in Isaiah the prophet,

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 聽鈥淏ehold, I send my messenger before your face,

听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 who will prepare your way,

3 聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 聽the voice of one crying in the wilderness:

听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 聽鈥楶repare the way of the Lord,

听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听听聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 make his paths straight,鈥欌€�

Look familiar? It should. This is the passage from Isaiah 40 that I cited above.

The 鈥済ood news鈥� in Mark 1 is that Yahweh has returned to Zion.

Perhaps you are concerned that I have essentially removed the idea of substitutionary atonement from 鈥渢he gospel鈥� in Mark 1. Well, in a sense, yes, I have. But not entirely.

One could effectively argue that the atonement is implied in the passage, since the purification of the remnant was included in the promise that Yahweh would one day return to Zion. Indeed, this very aspect of the return of Yahweh appears in the immediate context of the text from Isaiah that Mark quotes (see Isaiah 40:1-2).

But to be fair, yes, I have left the details surrounding the sin-bearing aspect of Jesus鈥� ministry elsewhere in the New Testament, where they rightly belong.

Like many words, 鈥済ospel鈥� has different nuances depending on the context in which it occurs. We set ourselves up for trouble when we assume that what Jesus meant by 鈥済ospel鈥� in 27 AD is the same as what Paul meant decades later. Reminding ourselves that 鈥済ospel鈥� is not a technical term for 鈥渟ubstitutionary atonement,鈥� but, rather, a general term meaning 鈥済ood news,鈥� helps us to see this. 鈥淕ood news鈥� comes in a variety of packages.

As it turns out, Mark 1:14-15, properly interpreted, proves to be even more theological robust than would otherwise be the case. By the way in which he frames his introduction, Mark essentially identifies the beginning of Jesus鈥� public ministry with the return of Yahweh to Zion. This 鈥淛esus=Yahweh鈥� connection constitutes a powerful argument for the deity of Christ.

God is back. And his name is Jesus.

This was real 鈥済ood news鈥� to first-century Jews.

It remains real 鈥済ood news鈥� to every one of us today who are willing to say YES to the reign of God in our lives, who 鈥渞epent and believe in the gospel鈥� (Mark 1:15).聽