Like all of the authors of the New Testament, Mark uses the language of the Old Testament to communicate the Good News of the Jesus the Messiah. The Scriptures of Israel provided the only language the early Christians had at hand to explain the meaning of Jesus of Nazareth, for themselves and for the rest of the world. The trouble is, most contemporary Christians don’t know the Scriptures of Israel. As a result, what the Evangelists present in living color, most of us receive in black and white—and pale black and white at that. So let me try to supply some of the color of the Old Testament that Mark meant for us to receive in his words.