The Man Coming In From the Fields
“A certain man from Cyrene, Simon, the father of Alexander and Rufus, was passing by on his way in from the country, and they forced him to carry the cross.”
— Mark 15:21 (NIV)
Simon was walking into the city from the fields and had nothing to do with any of this. Soldiers could conscript a passer-by on the spot, and they did. Mark names his two sons, which is strange in a sentence this short. The likeliest reason is that the first readers knew Alexander and Rufus personally. So the worst interruption of Simon's life is also the reason anyone remembers his name.
It happens that a person is pulled into something that was never theirs to carry. Someone gets sick, someone leaves, and the work lands on whoever is nearest. Simon did not volunteer, and nobody in the text thanks him. What he did that day still got written down.
Carry Something Nobody Assigned You
- 1Find one job today that is not yours and that nobody will notice you doing.
- 2Do it without telling anyone you did it.
Lord, I do not like being pulled into things I did not choose. Today I am carrying something that is not mine. Please give me enough patience to carry it properly. And help me do it without needing anyone to see.
What I do unseen still counts.
Why does Mark name Simon's sons?
Most likely because his first readers knew Alexander and Rufus. The detail reads like a pointer to people they could ask.
Did Simon have a choice?
No. Soldiers could compel a passer-by to carry a load, and the text says he was forced.
Why read this on a Friday?
Friday is when the church remembers the cross. This verse is the one place where somebody else carries it.