Euthus: Was Jesus in a Hurry?

Word of the Week

January 10, 2026

Euthus: Was Jesus in a Hurry?

 

Immediately they left their nets and followed Him. . .

Immediately He called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat . . . and went away to follow Him.

They went into Capernaum; and immediately on the Sabbath, Jesus entered the synagogue and began to teach.

Mark 1:18, 20, 21 NASB2020

 

Are you in a hurry today?

I have the distinct impression that most of us are rushing from one thing to another, sprinting to keep up with the demands of a to-do list.

A recent book titled The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry reminds me of the way that hurry drains our energy.  Wouldn’t it be nice to live without the constant push to move faster?

In this, as in every other area, Jesus Christ sets the example for us.  So let’s ask: Was Jesus in a hurry?

My first instinct is to say, “No!  He never got ruffled by the clock, never worried about a deadline.”

But before I leap to that conclusion, there is a Greek word that I should consider, one that helps me go deeper in understanding how Jesus lived.

The Greek word is euthus [yew-THUSS], which means “immediately.”  It appears over 50 times in the New Testament – and over 40 are in the Gospel of Mark.  In fact, you can easily take this as one of the key concepts in Mark’s portrait of Jesus.

Mark, you see, portrays Jesus as the perfect Servant.  As He Himself said, “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45).  The book of Isaiah foretold the coming of such a Servant of Jehovah, and Jesus spent His time doing the will of His Father.

Mark doesn’t focus on Christ’s sermons as much as he recounts His deeds.  And he loves to use the word euthus to tell the story.  The Lord does one thing and then moves immediately to the next.  No wasted time, no wasted effort.

Watch how it plays out in just the first chapter of the book:

• When Jesus was baptized by John, the heavens immediately opened for the descent of the Holy Spirit and the voice of the Father (1:10)
• After the baptism, He immediately left for the wilderness for His encounter with Satan (1:12)
• He summoned Peter and Andrew to follow Him and they immediately left their nets to go after Him (1:18).
• Then He immediately issued a similar call to James and John, who deserted their boat and trailed after Him (1:20)
• The little group entered Capernaum and Jesus immediately went to the synagogue (1:21)
• A demon-possessed man immediately disrupted the synagogue service – and Jesus cast out the demon (1:23)
• News of this miracle immediately started spreading across Galilee (1:28)
• Jesus left the synagogue and immediately went to Peter’s home (1:29)
• As He walked in the door, they immediately told him that Peter’s mother-in-law was sick with a high fever (1:30). Naturally, He healed her and she got up right away and started fixing a meal.
• When He encountered a leper, He said the word and the leprosy immediately disappeared (1:42)
• After he cured the leper, he immediately told him to see the priests and go through the prescribed ritual for reentering society (1:43).

Here is a portrait of a man in motion, going without delay from one thing to the next.  When you read this account, you might think that Jesus was living in a whirlwind of constant, churning activity.

However, let’s step back and reflect on the bigger picture of His life.

Yes, Jesus moves briskly from one thing to the next.  A long line of needy people clamor for His healing touch.  He is in pursuit of His mission.

But Jesus is never flustered. Even when events are hectic, he exudes peace.  In the Upper Room, He told His followers, “Peace I leave you. My peace I give you” (John 14:27).

Jesus is not in perpetual motion.  Look what He does in the middle of this jam-packed chapter:

After spending the day healing diseases and expelling demons for the entire town of Capernaum, “In the early morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house, and went away to a secluded place, and prayed there for a time” (Mark 1:35).  He often stepped away from the crowds for solitary fellowship with His Father.

Jesus doesn’t waste time.  He relentlessly carries out every part of the divine agenda, completing every item on the heavenly to-do list.  At the end of His ministry, He can say, “I glorified You on the earth by accomplishing the work which You have given Me to do” (John 17:4).

Jesus never procrastinates.  He was aware that His path would soon lead to the cross.  There was no time to delay.  After all, delayed obedience is a form of disobedience.

When I look at Christ’s example, I learn that you can be purposeful without being harried or hurried.  Your life is not a race on the treadmill of a to-do list.  It is a loving relationship with the Lord of the universe.  When He says, “I’d like you to do something for me,” I can simply say, “Sure!  Right away!”

 

Study Hint:

Our word euthus sometimes appears with an alternate spelling: eutheōs.  Both words occur mostly in the Gospels and for practical purposes they are interchangeable.  Their most common translation is “immediately,” although some Bibles render them as “straightway” or “forthwith.”  They are related to another adjective eutheia, which means “straight,” as in a straight road (see Mark 1:2).  That gives us a useful word picture – a person who takes the most direct path to the goal, rather than meandering around en route.

 

Coming Up

We are currently doing a series that takes a key word from each book of the New Testament, and next week we will look at Luke’s favorite description of Jesus:  “the Son of Man.”  It’s a clue to the purpose of the entire Gospel.

 

©Ezra Project 2026