Verses 1-2 And he entered into a ship, and passed over, and came into his own city. 2 And, behold, they brought to him a man sick of the palsy, lying on a bed: and Jesus seeing their faith said unto the sick of the palsy; Son, be of good cheer; thy sins be forgiven thee.
Jesus and his disciples traveled across the Sea of Galilee (or the Lake of Gennesaret as it was also called), in a storm, only to be rejected by the people living on the other side of the lake because He set some men free from the bondage of devils so that they could resume a decent life, and so that the locals would not be terrorized by them and therefore also be free from these devils. So Jesus left.
Application: In the lives of each individual, the LORD is working in some way, and far too often He is rejected. Jesus will not stay where He is not wanted. The people of Gergesenes rejected Jesus, sent Him away, and missed out on a wonderful blessing; the presence of God Almighty among them performing miracles and teaching truths unto salvation and eternal life. If you, the reader, do not have a personal relationship with Jesus, do not send Him away. Repent of all the wrong you have done and are doing, ask for His help, submit yourself to His lordship, and watch the blessings flow!
The Greek word translated as “palsy” is “paralutikos” and it means a paralytic, disabled, or weak of limb. This person may have had a stroke or a back injury or any number of diseases that prevented him from moving on his own and therefore necessitating being transported by others. Notice who has the faith that Jesus will perform a healing. If appears that it was the people carrying the sick man. Scripture does not reveal if the sick man believed Jesus could heal him, but his friends did or they would not have taken him to Jesus.
Many times a healing occurs because of the prayers and interventions of others. In the case of the man sick of the palsy, he received his healing from Jesus because others cared enough about him to seek out the LORD’s help. Never stop praying for a person’s healing. Prayers are answered in the LORD’s time and His timing is always perfect.
Jesus told the man sick of the palsy to be of good cheer because his sins were forgiven. Jesus had healed others and not commented on their sins. So His statement cannot mean that to receive a healing, a person must first be forgiven of their sins, a teaching that can be found in some evangelical churches today. So why did Jesus say this? Perhaps the sick man’s palsy was a result of sin in his life and he knew it and was remorseful. Perhaps the sick man’s need to be spiritually healed was greater than his need for physical healing. Perhaps Jesus was making a point because of the religious men following His every move and looking for something to criticize Him for. This writer does not have the answer, but it led to a confrontation and accusations from the legal religious men, the scribes.
Verses 3-8 And, behold, certain of the scribes said within themselves, This man blasphemeth. 4 And Jesus knowing their thoughts said, Wherefore think ye evil in your hearts? 5 For whether is easier, to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Arise, and walk? 6 But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, (then saith he to the sick of the palsy,) Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto thine house. 7 And he arose, and departed to his house. 8 But when the multitudes saw it, they marvelled, and glorified God, which had given such power unto men.
The scribes were learned men familiar with the Mosaic law and the other sacred writings who interpreted or taught. They were part of the Sanhedrin and looked up to by the uneducated masses or what were/are often referred to as the common people. So as these scribes were watching Jesus, they determined in their minds that He was speaking evil as they believed that only God could forgive sins. They did not entertain the thought in their minds that Jesus was God and so He could make the statement He did to the man sick with the palsy. But since Jesus was/is God, He knew what they were thinking and confronted them. As He often did, Jesus asked them questions which would make them think. And of course, it was much easier to make a statement than to heal a paralytic. So this healing was not only beneficial to the sick man, but it was beneficial in that it taught these scribes a lesson and demonstrated to the multitude that Jesus was indeed the Son of God.
Verse 9 And as Jesus passed forth from thence, he saw a man, named Matthew, sitting at the receipt of custom: and he saith unto him, Follow me. And he arose, and followed him.
The name Matthew means gift of Jehovah. Matthew was the son of a man named Alphaeus and one of the original 12 disciples. Remember that the number 12 in Scripture is representative of Godly government. Matthew was a tax collector and the “receipt of custom” was the place in which the tax collector sat to collect the taxes. He would not have been the Jews most favorite person. So basically, Matthew left a government job that was oppressive to the people to follow Jesus who was setting people free from the bondage of sin, death and hell, sickness and hopelessness. And Matthew eventually wrote this book that is being studied now.
Verses 10-13 And it came to pass, as Jesus sat at meat in the house, behold, many publicans and sinners came and sat down with him and his disciples. 11 And when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto his disciples, Why eateth your Master with publicans and sinners? 12 But when Jesus heard that, he said unto them, They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick. 13 But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.
To sit at meat just means to eat a meal, meat not referring to animal muscles/organs but to food in general. Publicans collected taxes. Perhaps Matthew invited his co-workers to sit and eat with Jesus. Publicans were detested by the Jews and often the publicans were harsh and greedy when doing their job, exploiting the people and lining their own pockets. They were in need of salvation, so the perfect place for them was with Jesus. But the religious spies and conspirators, the Pharisees, were critical of Jesus and his diner guests. Jesus responded to them by simply pointing out the difference between mercy and sacrifice. They did not need to go and learn the meanings of these words. They were fully aware of the Mosaic system of animal sacrifice and they knew what mercy meant. But Jesus was gently chastising them for failing to show mercy to the sinners. They were arrogant Jewish leaders who were part of the elite establishment, and mingling with those that they looked down upon was socially not acceptable to them.
Verses 14-17 Then came to him the disciples of John, saying, Why do we and the Pharisees fast oft, but thy disciples fast not? 15 And Jesus said unto them, Can the children of the bridechamber mourn, as long as the bridegroom is with them? but the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken from them, and then shall they fast. 16 No man putteth a piece of new cloth unto an old garment, for that which is put in to fill it up taketh from the garment, and the rent is made worse. 17 Neither do men put new wine into old bottles: else the bottles break, and the wine runneth out, and the bottles perish: but they put new wine into new bottles, and both are preserved.
Have you ever been in a room with believers from different churches and found that they are “comparing notes” as to what your church does versus what their church does? It seems that believers in Jesus’ day did the same thing. John the Baptist’s disciples wanted to know why Jesus’ disciples did not fast. Now fasting is not necessarily fun. To give up food and drink for any period of time is difficult for most people to do. Yet it seems the disciples of John fasted often. Jesus’ answer was a comparison to a bridegroom and his friends who would be celebrating the occasion. As long as Jesus was with His disciples, it was a time of celebration and rejoicing, not a time of sadness and self-denial. But He let them know that He (the bridegroom) was going to be taken from them and then there would be plenty of time for fasting.
Verses 18-19 While he spake these things unto them, behold, there came a certain ruler, and worshipped him, saying, My daughter is even now dead: but come and lay thy hand upon her, and she shall live. 19 And Jesus arose, and followed him, and so did his disciples.
Scripture does not explain if this ruler was Jewish or Roman. Regardless, he was someone of importance and of power and yet he humbled himself before Jesus and worshipped Him. He believed Jesus could raise his daughter from the dead. Jesus did not ask any questions, but just stopped what He was doing and followed the ruler to his house.
Application: This father loved his daughter so much that he sought out Jesus and had faith for a miracle. He was not shy in asking for help. He wanted the best for his daughter, and somehow he knew Jesus was the best physician for the situation. Notice that the ruler first worshiped Jesus. Often Christian believers take their lists of needs to the LORD in prayer but forget to worship Him.
Verses 20-22 And, behold, a woman, which was diseased with an issue of blood twelve years, came behind him, and touched the hem of his garment: 21 For she said within herself, If I may but touch his garment, I shall be whole. 22 But Jesus turned him about, and when he saw her, he said, Daughter, be of good comfort; thy faith hath made thee whole. And the woman was made whole from that hour.
This was a woman of great faith. It appears that she was also humble as she approached Jesus from behind and did not want to draw attention to herself. However, under Jewish law, a woman was not to touch a priest, especially if she had a physical malady. The people believed Jesus to be a priest and a prophet. She was taking a risk by her actions, but she was desperate enough to try.
This healing occurred when the diseased woman used her faith, overcame her fear, and reached out to Jesus and touched His garment. Jesus credited her healing to her faith which had made her whole.
Verses 23-26 And when Jesus came into the ruler’s house, and saw the minstrels and the people making a noise, 24 He said unto them, Give place: for the maid is not dead, but sleepeth. And they laughed him to scorn. 25 But when the people were put forth, he went in, and took her by the hand, and the maid arose. 26 And the fame hereof went abroad into all that land.
The Greek word translated as “give place” is “anachoreo” and it means to depart, withdraw one’s self, or leave a room. Jesus wanted space and quiet, and there was neither of these things at the ruler’s house. Jewish custom at a death was to wail and weep as loudly as possible to demonstrate severe grief. Notice the response of the mourners at Jesus’ statement that the girl was not dead: mourning to laughing. One has to wonder at the sincerity of their demonstration of grief.
Again, healing occurred with the touch of Jesus upon the girls hand. In this case, the healing was from a state of dead to a state of living.
Verses 27-31 And when Jesus departed thence, two blind men followed him, crying, and saying, Thou Son of David, have mercy on us. 28 And when he was come into the house, the blind men came to him: and Jesus saith unto them, Believe ye that I am able to do this? They said unto him, Yea, Lord. 29 Then touched he their eyes, saying, According to your faith be it unto you. 30 And their eyes were opened; and Jesus straitly charged them, saying, See that no man know it. 31 But they, when they were departed, spread abroad his fame in all that country.
In this healing, both touch and faith are demonstrated, the touch of Jesus and the faith of the blind men.
The blind men had obviously never seen Jesus or seen His ministry. They may have heard Him speak, or someone else could have told them about Jesus, but these blind men had more faith than those people with sight that could watch and see through His miracles that Jesus was indeed God. They called Him “Thou Son of David” which is a reference to the Messiah. They also could not follow him by using their sense of sight, but had to follow him using their sense of hearing. They heard His voice and His words and chose to follow Him.
Application: Can you, the reader, imagine what the two blind men experienced as their sight was restored? This physical healing is much like the healing of the soul that a person experiences when they give their heart and life to Jesus. All of a sudden everything looks different and things that were not clear before their conversion become clear. The new Christian believer sees the world and their role in it in a different light. “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” 2 Corinthians 5:17 The new believer has never seen Jesus, but will follow Him using His words, the Bible.
Verses 32-33 As they went out, behold, they brought to him a dumb man possessed with a devil. 33 And when the devil was cast out, the dumb spake: and the multitudes marvelled, saying, It was never so seen in Israel.
In the Old Testament there are instances of people being healed and people being raised from the dead. Skin issues such as leprosy were also healed. But this writer has not found an instance recorded of people being set free from the bondage of demon possession. Perhaps that is why the multitudes marveled and said, “It was never so seen in Israel.” Notice that the healing of the man who was unable to speak only occurred when the devil was cast out of him. Most illnesses, handicaps, and disabilities are caused by demonic spirits or devils. Even things like liver disease from alcoholism is caused by a spirit that makes the individual unable to stop drinking alcohol. When the evil spirit is cast out of the alcoholic, they are able to stop drinking.
Verse 34 But the Pharisees said, He casteth out devils through the prince of the devils.
The Devil has a hierarchy of lesser devils under him that do his bidding. Some of the devils are assigned to nations, some to the cities and towns in the nations, and some to families and/or individuals. The Devil is not omnipresent like God is omnipresent. He can only be in one place at one time and he can only inhabit one person at a time. “Then entered Satan into Judas surnamed Iscariot, being of the number of the twelve.” Luke 22:3 So the Devil (capitalized to identify him from other devils) is going to enter into someone that is very important to him. In the case of Judas Iscariot, Satan wanted and needed to have a person to assist him in trying to destroy Jesus. After Judas committed suicide, the Devil did not need him anymore and was therefore free to move on to another person. So the saying, “The Devil made me do it” is inaccurate and stupid as Satan is not going to bother with those people who are not needed to accomplish his goals. More than likely it was the sinner’s flesh or sin nature that made him/her sin against God. In the verse above, the hypocritical religious leaders attributed the miracles of God to Satan or the Devil. The Greek word translated as “prince” is “archon” and it means a ruler, commander, chief, and/or leader. This was blasphemy, the very thing that the Jewish leadership accused Jesus of doing at his phony trial and sentencing.
Verse 35 And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people.
Application: This verse sums up Jesus’ ministry on the Earth in a single sentence. He went, He taught, He preached, and He healed every sickness and disease. The Christian believer is supposed to be like Jesus. That is the meaning of the word Christian: Christ like. Ask yourself if, as a believer, you are going to the unbelievers, teaching and preaching to them, and healing their sicknesses and diseases. If not, are you truly like Jesus? To be obedient to the commandment in Matthew 10:8 to, “Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give” does not mean to abandon work, home and family. This ministry can be done in the work place, at a train or bus station, at a sports event, any place where there are lost and hurting people. Think about it.
Notice that Jesus healed every sickness and disease. He did not leave some people sick or injured while healing other people. Some churches and individual Christian believers have taught and are teaching that if a person does not receive a healing from God, they are not meant to get healed because suffering builds character. This idea or excuse for failing to see a healing after praying for a specific person or illness is not demonstrated in the New Testament Scripture. To be like Jesus means that the Christian believer, through the power of the Holy Ghost/Spirit, has the authority, the power, and the commandment to heal. If the healing does not materialize, it is not the fault of the victim of disease, of demonic possession, or of injury, but the fault of the person praying for the healing.
Verses 36-38 But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd. 37 Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few; 38 Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest. (Matthew 9)
The condition of having more needy people than Christian workers to meet the needs is the same today as it was in Jesus’ day when He was walking among mankind. It has always been so. The responsibility for the work of the kingdom belongs to the Christian believers. Jesus equipped His Church with the necessary power and authority through His Holy Spirit/Ghost to do what He did when on the Earth in bodily form, but His Church has abdicated their responsibility to others such as welfare agencies and healthcare professionals. It is time for the Church to rise up and take the position and power they have been granted, and labor together for the kingdom of the LORD and for His glory. The early Church was so successful because the Apostles and disciples of Jesus took His commandments literally and performed miracles by the power of the Holy Spirit/Ghost that met the needs of the people. So of course, the people wanted what the the Apostles and disciples had and they listened to the Gospel message and became followers of Jesus. Think about it.
Verse 36 above contains a crucial component for successful healing and deliverance ministry. Jesus had compassion. The Christian believer must have compassion for the people they are ministering to, or they are wasting their time and their effort. Jesus did not qualify a person for healing or deliverance depending on whether they deserved it or not. He healed all the people. Maybe they did stupid things and took chances and got hurt, or maybe they had poor habits and weakened their bodies by their behavior and choices, or maybe they were sexually promiscuous and contracted STDs (sexually transmitted diseases), or maybe they were into witchcraft and full of devils. It didn’t matter to Jesus. He had compassion and He healed them all.