Mark 8:35

For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and for the gospel will save it.

Berean Standard Bible

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Study note

Setting — Jesus speaks this to the gathered crowd and His disciples immediately after commanding them to deny themselves and take up their cross to follow Him. The words — The text centers on ὃς (hos, "Whoever") and ψυχὴν (psuchēn, "life") to establish the conditional exchange between self-preservation and surrender. The thread — The same loss-and-saves-life formulation appears in Matthew 16:25, while the gospel-centered sacrifice connects to 1 Corinthians 9:23 and the union with Christ in 2 Timothy 2:11. Why it lands — The verse states that preserving one's life leads to its loss, while surrendering it for Christ and the gospel results in preservation, demanding a direct reversal of self-protective instinct.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.

The Greek words

King James Version

For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel’s, the same shall save it.

Cross-references

2 Timothy 2:11 This is a trustworthy saying: If we died with Him, we will also live with Him;
1 Corinthians 9:23 I do all this for the sake of the gospel, so that I may share in its blessings.
Matthew 16:25 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.
Luke 17:33 Whoever tries to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will preserve it.
2 Timothy 1:8 So do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, or of me, His prisoner. Instead, join me in suffering for the gospel by the power of God.
Matthew 10:39 Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.
John 12:25 Whoever loves his life will lose it, but whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.
Matthew 19:29 And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or fields for the sake of My name will receive a hundredfold and will inherit eternal life.
Luke 9:24 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it.
2 Corinthians 12:10 That is why, for the sake of Christ, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.