Mark 14:68 But he denied it, saying, “I neither know nor understand what you are talking about.” And he went out onto the porch.

Where is Peter?

“below in the courtyard” [of the high priest] (Mark 14:66)

To whom is Peter responding?

“one of the servant-girls of the high priest” (Mark 14:66).

What had the servant-girl said when she looked at Peter?

“You also were with Jesus the Nazarene” (Mark 14:67b).

How does Peter respond to the servant-girl?

“But he denied it, saying, ‘I neither know nor understand what you are talking about.’” (Mark 14:68a).

ἠρνήσατο (ērnēsato) (“denied”) 3S Aorist Middle Indicative of ἀρνέομαι, “to disclaim association with a person or event, deny, repudiate, disown (verbally or nonverbally)” (BDAG, 132).

οἶδα (oida) (“know”) 1S Perfect Active Indicative of οἶδα, “be intimately acquainted with or stand in a close relation to, know […] To know God, i.e. not only to know theoretically of God’s existence, but to have a positive relationship with God, or not to know God, i.e. wanting to know nothing about God” (BDAG, 693-4).

ἐπίσταμαι (epistamai) 1S Present Middle/Passive Indicative of ἐπίσταμαι, “to gain a firm mental grasp of something, understand; to acquire information about something, know, be acquainted with τινά” (BDAG, 380).

What had Jesus told Peter before His arrest?

“And Jesus said to him, ‘Truly I say to you, that this very night, before a rooster crows twice, you yourself will deny Me three times” 

(Mark 14:30).

How had Peter responded to Jesus’ foretelling of his three denials of Jesus?

“But Peter kept saying insistently, ‘Even if I have to die with You, I will not deny You!’ And they all were saying the same things also” 

(Mark 14:31).

Where does Peter go after responding to the servant-girl?

“And he went out onto the porch” (Mark 14:68b).

• προαύλιον (proaulion) “place in front of a house, forecourt, gateway” (BDAG, 865).

 Father,

Abounding is Your grace to those who seek You through Your Son, through Whom You make Yourself known. In Jesus is life, and His life is the light of men. Darkness cannot overcome the light of Jesus. The light of Jesus gives light to everyone, and to all who receive Him, who believe in His Name, He gives the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of You. In Jesus is the fullness of grace and truth, and from His fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. Glory to Jesus for making You known, and glory to You through the Son forever. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.