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Mark 3 · a question people ask

Why did he warn the unclean spirits "that they should not make him known" (3:12)?

In the text

"The unclean spirits, whenever they saw him, fell down before him and cried, “You are the Son of God!”" (3:11). "He sternly warned them that they should not make him known" (3:12). Mark told of something like it before: "He didn’t allow the demons to speak, because they knew him" (1:34). Here Mark gives no reason; there he says only "because they knew him" (1:34). Christians read why he said it in more than one way, and chapter 8 sets out the main readings.

The verses

“The unclean spirits, whenever they saw him, fell down before him and cried, “You are the Son of God!” He sternly warned them that they should not make him known.”
Mark 3:11-12 · World English Bible
“He healed many who were sick with various diseases and cast out many demons. He didn’t allow the demons to speak, because they knew him.”
Mark 1:34 · World English Bible

From Favor's study of Mark 3

Mark 3: Whoever does the will of God

In the synagogue Jesus "looked around at them with anger, being grieved at the hardening of their hearts" (3:5): the only time Mark has the Greek word for anger. And the word behind "He is insane" (3:21) is the one Mark uses after a healing, when "they were all amazed" (2:12).

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Last reviewed October 1, 2026. Scripture quotations are from the World English Bible, which is in the public domain. Every answer cites the verses it rests on. What we believe · All Bible questions