Introductory remarks:
In this chapter Jesus continues His ministry. This chapter may be outlined as follows: some women accompany Jesus vv. 1-3; the parable of the sower vv. 4-8; the purpose of the parables vv. 9-10; the parable of the sower explained vv. 11-15; a light under a bushel vv. 16-18; the mother and brothers of Jesus vv. 19-21; the calming of a storm vv. 22-25; the healing of the Gerasene demoniac vv. 26-39; Jairus' daughter and the woman who touched Jesus' garment vv. 40-56.
Some Women Accompany Jesus
Verse 1, "And it came to pass afterward, that he went throughout every city and village, preaching and showing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God: and the twelve were with him,"
LGT "And it came to pass soon afterwards, that He went about by city and village preaching and proclaiming the glad tidings of the kingdom of God, and the twelve [were] with Him."
This verse connects this chapter with chapter seven. Jesus continues His itinerate ministry, teaching and proclaiming the glad tidings of the coming Messianic Kingdom.
Verses 2, 3, "And certain women, which had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities, Mary called Magdalene, out of whom went seven devils, and Joanna the wife of Chuza Herod's steward, and Susanna, and many others, which ministered unto him of their substance."
LGT "And certain women, the ones who had been cured from evil spirits, and infirmities, Mary, who is called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out, and Joanna, wife of Chuza, a steward of Herod, and Susanna, and many others, who ministering to Him of their property."
These women followed Jesus to minister to His and the needs of the twelve out of gratitude for their being healed; they were women of means and were anxious to serve Him with all their substance. Robertson calls these women the first "women's missionary society."
Pentecost notes:
"Christ now embarked on another tour of the region of Galilee. He was accompanied by the twelve, who ministered the message of the kingdom along with Him. They were joined by some women of means who had been brought to faith in the person of Christ and who supported Him and His disciples during their itinerate ministry. These women not only supported Christ materially but could be called on as witnesses. They could testify that when they took Christ's yoke on themselves, they did find their burden of sin had been lifted, for they had been delivered from bondage into glorious liberty."
The Parable of the Sower
(Matt. 13:1-9; Mark 4:1-9)
Verse 4, "And when much people were gathered together, and were come to him out of every city, he spake by a parable:"
LGT "And a great crowd assembling, and the ones from each city were coming to Him, He spoke by a parable;"
As we noted in the other synoptic Gospels Jesus used these parables to explain a spiritual principle, by using earthly illustrations that the people were familiar; to put it another way, Jesus used "earthly stories with heavenly meanings,"
Pentecost explains the difference between an allegory and a parable:
"A parable is a literary device and is used to teach by means of transference. In order to make it possible to discover truth in an unknown realm, something familiar is transferred from the known realm to the unknown realm. A simple figure of speech in the form of a metaphor may be used: I am the gate (John 10:9). The figure may be a simile such as Be shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves (Matt. 10:16). The figure may be more complex, consisting of a parable which is a narrative and which conveys one principal point of parallelism even though there may be other incidental parallelisms. Sometimes there is an allegory, which is a narrative in which there are many intended parallelisms. Our Lord used parables frequently, but employed allegories only on rare occasions (such as in John 10 where He used the whole analogy of the relationship between a shepherd and sheep). While an allegory may or may not be true to life, a parable is always true to life. Transference in an allegory is in ideas, whereas in parables transference is always through a historical reality. In order to interpret any figure, the Bible student must first clearly discern what is true in the antecedent [what came before]. Having done so, he then may transfer the truth of the antecedent to the truth to be learned in the unknown realm. For instance, before one can learn any truth about Christ from His statement, I am the gate (John 10), one must understand the nature, function, and purpose of a gate. What a gate provides in the real realm is what Christ will provide in the spiritual realm. Facts from the known realm must be learned before they can be transferred to gain knowledge in the unknown realm."
I will give the parable in full and then let Jesus explain the meaning, beginning at verse ten.
Verse 5, "A sower went out to sow his seed: and as he sowed, some fell by the way side; and it was trodden down, and the fowls of the air devoured it."
LGT "The sower went out to sow his seed. And as he sowed, some fell by the way, and it was trampled upon, and the birds of the heavens devoured it."
Verse 6, "And some fell upon a rock; and as soon as it sprung up, it withered away, because it lacked moisture."
LGT "And other fell down upon the rock, and having sprung up it withered, because it had no moisture."
Verse 7, "And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprang up with it, and choked it."
LGT "And other fell among [the] midst of the thorns, and having sprung up together the thorns choked it."
Verse 8, "And other fell on good ground, and sprang up, and bare fruit an hundred fold. And when he had said these things, he cried, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear."
LGT "And other fell upon the good ground, and having sprung up, it produced fruit an hundredfold. Saying these things He cried [out], The one who has ears to hear let him hear."
The Purpose of the Parables
(Matt. 13:10-17; Mark 4:10-12)
Verse 9, "And his disciples asked him, saying, What might this parable be?"
LGT "And His disciples asked Him, What may this parable be?"
The disciples ask the Lord to explain to them the meaning of the parable of the sower.
Verse 10, "And he said, Unto you it is given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God: but to others in parables; that seeing they might not see, and hearing they might not understand."
LGT "And He said, To you it has been given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God, but to the rest in parables, in order that seeing, they may not see, and hearing, they may not understand."
Christ explains to His disciples that He is using parables to teach the mysteries of His coming kingdom. Those who would believe will understand, and those who believe not, all these truths will be hidden from them; it is of no use to cast pearls before swine. It must be remembered that these parables were given to Israel and are to be interpreted in the light of Israel's rejection of the Messiah while He still remained on the earth; it continues through Pentecost, through the age of grace, that is, for Israel during the Church age, until after the rapture, when Christ will return to this earth and set up His Millennial Kingdom.
Pentecost notes:
"In response to the disciples' questions as to why He spoke in parables, Christ replied that He used parables first to reveal truth to some men and, second, to hide truth from other men. Christ's answer would be unintelligible if one did not recall the historical situation. Christ through the course of His ministry had offered Himself to the nation as Savior and Sovereign. The nation had had that offer authenticated before them by the miracles, which Christ performed. The nation was called on to respond to the evidence presented. The leaders had already indicated their purpose to reject the person of Christ and to discount His miracles because they believed His miracles were done by Satan's power. Christ had no further word for those who had rejected and spurned Him and persisted in their unbelief. On the other hand, some had believed His word and accepted His person, and these needed instruction. Christ was confronted by a mixed multitude comprised of both believers and unbelievers - those who had received and those who had rejected Him. Christ did not attempt to separate the unbelievers from the believers and then instruct only the believers. Rather, He constructed His teaching in such a way that those who had believed would understand, and those who had rejected, even though they heard, would not understand. Believers have the key to knowledge and can interpret His teaching. Unbelievers do not possess that key and, therefore, cannot understand His Word. The one who has the key of knowledge will use that key to gain more knowledge, but the one who does not have that key will lose such knowledge as he once possessed."
The Parable of the Sower Explained
(Matt. 13:18-23; Mark 4:13-20)
Verse 11, "Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God."
LGT "Now the parable is this: The Seed is the Word of God."
The article before each substantive and connected with a subjective compliment [is] means that the Seed is the Word of God and the Word of God is the Seed.
Verse 12, "Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved."
LGT "And those by the way are the ones who hear; then comes the devil and takes away the Word from their heart, lest, having believed, they should be saved."
"The devil is a subtle and spiteful enemy, that makes it his business to hinder our profiting by the Word of God. He takes the Word out of the hearts of careless hearers, lest they should believe and be saved. This is added to teach us, [1.] That we cannot be saved unless we believe. The Word of the gospel will not be a saving Word to us, unless it be mixed with faith. [2.] That therefore the devil does all he can to keep us from believing, to make us not believe the Word when we read and hear it; or, if we heed it for the present, to make us forget it again, and let it slip (Heb. 2:1); or, if we remember it, to create prejudice in our minds against it, or divert our minds from it to something else; and all is lest we believe and be saved, lest we should believe and rejoice, while he believes and trembles. Where the Word of God is heard carelessly there is commonly a contempt put upon it too. It is added here in the parable that the seed which fell by the way side was trodden down, v.5. They that willfully shut their ears against the Word do in effect trample it under their feet; they despise the Word of God" (Matthew Henry).
Verse 13, "They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away."
LGT "And those upon the rock, the ones when they hear, with joy receive the Word, and those have not root, who for a time believe, and in time of trial fall away."
These hearers show some signs of acceptance, but have no root, that is, they are strictly emotional, and fall away, as soon as there is any sign of trouble. These hearers are the ones who join the physical church before they become members of the true spiritual church.
Verse 14, "And that which fell among the thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection."
LGT "And that which among the thorns fell, these are the ones who having heard, and under cares and riches and pleasures of the life, moving along are choked and bring [no fruit] to perfection."
Riches are as dangerous to the hearer for the first time, in that, they do not want to give up what the world has to offer. I have known Christians, including myself, that have sought riches to the detriment of their spiritual growth; we grow for a season and then the difficulty of making a choice enters the stage of life to spoil everything that has been built; however, this parable is about the Word of God not taking root in the soul at the beginning.
Verse 15, "But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience."
LGT "But that in the good ground, these are they who in a heart honest and good, having heard the Word hold it down, and bring forth fruit with endurance."
These last are in opposition to all the ones that went before; they have sincere hearts ready to receive the Word of God; and the last phrase they bring forth fruit with endurance is proof of their true belief; of course, this is only known by God Himself. We are able to tell if a person is a true Christian by how we are received by them, and not by what we see them do.
A Light Under a Vessel
(Mark 4:21-25)
Verse 16, "No man, when he hath lighted a candle, covereth it with a vessel, or putteth it under a bed; but setteth it on a candlestick, that they which enter in may see the light."
LGT "And no one, having lighted a lamp, covers it with a container, or puts [it] under a couch, but on a lamp-stand, in order that they who enter in may see the light."
I gave an example of the purpose of the lamp stand in my exposition on Matthew 5:15 explaining that this lamp was put in a place that illuminated the room where it stood; it was not to be put in a place that would not serve its purpose. "The parable of the lamp throws light on the parable of the sower" (Robertson). The mysteries of the kingdom were veiled to those without, but to the believers it was radiant.
Verse 17, "For nothing is secret, that shall not be made manifest; neither any thing hid, that shall not be known and come abroad."
LGT "For not [anything] is hidden which shall not become manifest, nor secret which shall not be known, and come to light."
Jesus explains that nothing regarding the mysteries of the kingdom will be hidden to the extent that someday it will not be revealed; now that we have the full Revelation [the Word of God] we may study and learn these truths; in my case I not only search the Scriptures, but I rely on the studies of Christian men who have gone on before, and pick their brains to make sure I am not going too far astray; this does not mean that I believe that the Holy Spirit is not my personal Teacher, but that the Word of God is not left to private interpretation. The Lord does not leave the Word to be studied with caprice, and that we are at liberty to spout off our own whims concerning this wonderful Revelation. Today in most evangelical churches all that is spouted off from the pulpits is this contemporary gospel that makes everyone feel good about themselves, and that God wants you just the way you are. This is obvious by the crap they call music [Christian Contemporary Music] they screech out every Sunday. As I noted before, the Jesus freaks [dope addicted draft dodging cowards] in the sixties paved the way for the CCM of the seventies to bring in their worldly "Christian Rock" and now even "Christian Rap" with all the worldly paraphernalia [guitars, drums, synthesizers and anything worldly] to make the church imitate the world, in order, as they say, to reach the lost [they obviously have no clue that Romans 12:1,2 is even in the Bible]. As soon as the Church began to organize in the second century on, the Word of God has suffered. My, not so humble opinion is, that God intended the Church to be His family on earth, and the Light that He gave us is the immutable Word of God, and nothing on earth can salvage a lost world but the Bible. All the contrivances of men will do nothing but salve consciences, and make people feel good about themselves; people like Rick Warren at Saddleback Church and his 'Purpose Driven Church" drivel, are the front runners in leading the protestant movement into full blown apostasy. We are on the threshold, I believe, to the last days, when Christ will return and judge the world, and much to the chagrin of this social church [organized church - both Catholic and Protestant] the Light of the Glorious Gospel will shine unto them and reveal all this nonsense in the name of evangelism, or as "slick Rick" puts it, his "user friendly" gospel. We who have not bought into this "social gospel" are labeled "Traditionalists;" we are so stubborn that we cannot accept change, so we are labeled troublemakers to this CCM [contemporary Christian music ministry] movement. This new wave movement is a perfect setting, it seems to me, for the world-wide one world religion that offends no one, but leaves everyone ignorant and sitting around stroking each other and giving hugs all around, so everyone can feel warm and fuzzy. My button has been pushed, and I have vented my spleen [ill-temper], so now I will continue with the exposition.
Verse 18, "Take heed therefore how ye hear: for whosoever hath, to him shall be given; and whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken even that which he seemeth to have."
LGT "Take heed therefore what you all hear: for whoever may have, to him shall be given; and whoever may not have, even what he seems to have, shall be taken from him."
The first phrase is literally what you hear. This verse explains exactly what I was commenting on in the last verse; we will be accountable for who we listen to, and what we allow ourselves to be duped by so called "pastors;" they enjoy calling themselves "shepherds." First of all we are not "sheep", and secondly, they aren't shepherds. We are all joint-heirs with the Lord Jesus Christ, and we all belong to the same family, that is, those of us who have put our trust in the Lord Jesus Christ, even if some attend Saddleback church. Christ is Israel's Shepherd and Israel is the Lord's sheep; someday the Lord will return and set up His Millennial reign on this earth, and all Israel will then be saved. Here is the part that will make the apostate church cringe. Anyone who does not trust Christ as his or her Savior will be "turned into hell, where the fire is not quenched and the worm dies not". This social gospel that ignores the fact that all our righteousness are as filthy rags, and that we must depend wholly on Christ's imputed righteousness, will lead to destruction; There is a way that seems right unto man, but the ends of those ways is eternal death. Yes, I say, we must be careful what we hear.
The Mother and Brothers of Jesus
(Matt. 12:46-50; Mark 3:31-35)
Verses 19, 20, "Then came to him his mother and his brethren, and could not come at him for the press. And it was told him by certain which said, Thy mother and thy brethren stand without, desiring to see thee."
LGT "And His mother and brothers came to Him, and were not able to get to Him because of the crowd. And it was told Him, Your mother and Your brothers are standing without, wishing to see You."
Jesus was lost in the crowd so that His friends were not able to reach Him.
Robertson writes:
"At first the brothers of Jesus (younger sons of Joseph and Mary, I take the words to mean, there being sisters also) were not unfriendly to the work of Jesus as seen in John 2:12 when they with the mother of Jesus are with Him and the small group (half dozen) disciples in Capernaum after the wedding in Cana. But as Jesus went on with His work and was rejected at Nazareth (Luke 4:16-31), there developed an evident disbelief in His claims on the part of the brothers who ridiculed Him six months before the end (John 7:5). At this stage they have apparently come with Mary to take Jesus home out of the excitement of the crowds, perhaps thinking that He is beside Himself (Mark 3:21). They hardly believed the charge of the rabbis that Jesus was in league with Beelzebub. Certainly the mother of Jesus could give no credence to that slander. But she herself was deeply concerned and wanted to help Him if possible."
Verse 21, "And he answered and said unto them, My mother and my brethren are these which hear the word of God, and do it."
LGT "And He answering said to them, My mother and My brothers are the ones hearing and believing the Word of God."
Jesus makes reference to those who were identified in the parable of the sower as the good soil that received the Word of God. Human relationships are shown here, by our Lord, as incidental to our spiritual relationship to Him. It is fantastic to ever keep in mind that we are joint-heirs with our big brother, the Lord Jesus Christ.
The Calming of a Storm
(Matt. 8:23-27; Mark 4:35-41)
Verse 22, "Now it came to pass on a certain day, that he went into a ship with his disciples: and he said unto them, Let us go over unto the other side of the lake. And they launched forth."
LGT "And it came to pass on one of the days, that He entered into a ship, and His disciples, and He said to them, Let us pass over to the other side of the lake, and they cast off."
Jesus gives the command to His disciples to put out to sea that they might go to the other side of the lake. "They started out from Capernaum, probably expecting to land somewhere in the vicinity of Bethsaida-Julias on the north side of the lake. There they could seek out some quiet nook in the hills near enough to the town to get food, and spend some hours in complete repose" (Shepherd)."
Verse 23, "But as they sailed he fell asleep: and there came down a storm of wind on the lake; and they were filled with water, and were in jeopardy."
LGT "And as they sailed He fell asleep. And a storm of wind came down on the lake, and they were filling with water, and were beginning to be in danger."
Jesus falls off to sleep. This is the only passage in the NT that speaks of Jesus sleeping, not that He didn't sleep. A hurricane size wind came down upon the lake, and their ship was filling with water. "These wind storms rushed from Mount Hermon down through the Jordan gorge upon the Sea of Galilee and shook it like a tempest. These sudden squalls were dangerous on this small lake" (Robertson)." The boat began to fill with water, so these fisherman were beginning to be in danger.
Verse 24, "And they came to him, and awoke him, saying, Master, master, we perish. Then he arose, and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water: and they ceased, and there was a calm."
LGT "And having come to [Him] they aroused Him saying, Master, Master, we are perishing. And having been awakened thoroughly, He raising up rebuked the wind and the raging of the water: and they ceased and there was a calm."
The disciples showed their anxiety when they repeated Master, Master we are perishing. The disciples wake Jesus up from His slumber from exhaustion, because of their peril. Jesus rebukes the wind, and immediately the wind and the waves obey His voice, and there was a great calm on the sea.
Verse 25, "And he said unto them, Where is your faith? And they being afraid wondered, saying one to another, What manner of man is this! For he commandeth even the winds and water, and they obey him."
LGT "And He said to them, Where is your faith? And being afraid they wondered, saying, Who then is this, that even the winds and the water He commands, and they obey Him?"
Anyone would be afraid in this situation if they were caught in the middle of a storm; however, the disciples had the Master of the universe on board, that even the winds and the waves obey Him; this is why Jesus rebukes them for their lack of faith. The fact that they wondered to themselves Who then is this? Shows that they had not yet fully accepted Christ as their Messiah.
The Healing of the Gerasene Demoniac
(Matt. 8:28-34; Mark 5:1-20)
Verse 26, "And they arrived at the country of the Gadarenes, which is over against Galilee."
LGT "And they sailed down into the country of the Garasenes, which is over against Galilee."
"In the quietness that followed the storm, Jesus and His disciples came into what Mark and Luke call the region of the Gerasenes. Gerasa was a large territory in Perea in which was located Gerash, one of the cities of Decapolis. Matthew states that He came into the region of the Gadarenes. Gadara was a town in Gerasa some six miles southeast of the Sea of Galilee. Therefore there is no contradiction in the accounts. One speaks of the general locality and the other of a more specific portion of the territory to which they came" (Pentecost)."
Verse 27, "And when he went forth to land, there met him out of the city a certain man, which had devils long time, and ware no clothes, neither abode in any house, but in the tombs."
LGT "And on His having gone forth upon the land, a certain man met Him out of the city, having demons, and for a long time did not put on himself clothing, and did not abide in a house, but in the tombs."
As soon as Christ set foot on the land, a naked demoniac met Him, who did not live as normal people in a house, but in the tombs among the dead.
Farrar describes the scene:
"He was met by an exhibition of human fury, and madness, and degradation, even more terrible and startling than the rage of the troubled sea. Barely had He landed when, from among the rocky cavern-tombs there burst into His presence a man troubled with the most exaggerated form of that raging madness which was universally attributed to demoniacal possession. Amid all the basted civilization of antiquity, there existed no hospitals, no penitentiaries, no asylums; and unfortunates of this class, being too dangerous and desperate for human intercourse, could only be driven forth from among their fellow-men, and restrained from mischief by measures at once inadequate and cruel. Under such circumstances they could, if irreclaimable, only take refuge in those holes along the rocky hill-sides which abound in Palestine, and which were used by the Jews as tombs. It is clear that the foul and polluted nature of such dwelling-places, with all their associations of ghastliness and terror, would tend to aggravate the nature of the malady; and this man, who had been long afflicted, was beyond even the possibility of control. Attempts had been made to bind him, but in the paroxysms [convulsions] of his mania [obsession] he had exerted that apparently supernatural strength which is often noticed in such forms of mental excitement, and had always succeeded in rending off his fetters, and twisting away or shattering his chains; and now he had been abandoned to the lonely hills and unclean solitudes which, night and day, rang with his yells as he wandered among them, dangerous to himself and to others, raving, and gashing himself with stones."
Verse 28, "When he saw Jesus, he cried out, and fell down before him, and with a loud voice said, What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God most high? I beseech thee, torment me not."
LGT "But having seen Jesus, having cried out, he fell before Him, and with a loud voice said, What to me and to Thee, Jesus, Son of God Most High? I beseech of You, that You torment me not."
The demoniac fell down at Jesus' feet, but it was the demon that cried out, that Jesus spares him from torment. The very presence of the Lord the Great Judge tormented this demon. Isn't it interesting that even the demons recognize Christ as the Son of God; James wrote: Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble (James 2:19). Demons are the enemies of God and they will be judged: it takes pinheads from the universities to deny that God exists; let me see; doesn't that make them the fools, for Proverbs says the fool has said in his heart there is no God.
Verse 29, "(For he had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. For oftentimes it had caught him: and he was kept bound with chains and in fetters; and he brake the bands, and was driven of the devil into the wilderness."
LGT "For He was commanding the unclean spirit to come out from the man. For many times it had seized him, and he was bound, being kept with chains and fetters, and breaking the bonds he was driven by the demon into the desert."
This man was kept under guard being chained and fettered, and even this was not sufficient to keep him, for he broke the bonds and fetters, with the aid of the demons, and they led him into the desert. Jesus broke this spell he was under by His command to the demons to come out of the man.
Verse 30, "And Jesus asked him, saying, What is thy name? And he said, Legion: because many devils were entered into him."
LGT "And Jesus asked him, What is your name? And he said, Legion, because many demons entered into him."
A Roman legion is six thousand men, so the man was seriously demon possessed. The man spoke over the demon with this reply.
Verse 31, "And he besought him that he would not command them to go into the deep."
LGT "And he besought Him that He would not command them to go away into the abyss."
These demons begged the Lord not to command them to the abyss before their time, for hell was created for the devil and his angels.
Verse 32, "And there was there an herd of many swine feeding on the mountain: and they besought him that he would suffer them to enter into them. And he suffered them."
LGT "Now there was there a herd of many swine feeding in the mountain: and they besought Him that He would allow them to enter those: and He allowed them."
In order to delay their going to the bottomless abyss, these demons sought the Lord to send them into a herd of swine that were feeding below.
Verse 33, "Then went the devils out of the man, and entered into the swine: and the herd ran violently down a steep place into the lake, and were choked."
LGT "And the demons having gone out of the man, they entered into the swine, and the herd rushed down the steep into the lake and were choked."
Mark gives the number of the swine as two thousand. McGee notes that the swine would rather drown than to have demons indwell them.
Pentecost notes:
"An objection often raised concerning this incident is that it seems as though Christ had wanton disregard for the property of others. However, it must be remembered that at this point in Christ's life the nation Israel was debating His person; the destiny of the nation depended on its decision. In the face of the opposition of the nations leaders, Christ took this occasion to demonstrate that His authority was sufficient to control the action of a large company of demons that could bring about destruction of so many swine. The leaders attributed Christ's power to Satan. However, Christ showed that by a spoken word He could command demons. Making them subject to His authority. Thus He was not controlled by Satan, but had control over Satan's host."
Verse 34, "When they that fed them saw what was done, they fled, and went and told it in the city and in the country."
LGT "And the ones who fed [them], having seen what took place, fled and reported [it] to the city and to the country."
The swine keepers ran off to tell their neighbors what had taken place with their swine.
Verse 35, "Then they went out to see what was done; and came to Jesus, and found the man, out of whom the devils were departed, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed, and in his right mind: and they were afraid."
LGT "And they went out to see what had taken place, and they came to Jesus, and found the man seated, from whom the demons went out, clothed and of a sound mind, at the feet of Jesus, and they were afraid."
Only the Lord Jesus Christ can deliver a man from the clutches of Satan; and it is only the Lord Jesus Christ that can save a sinner from hell. The people that the swine herders summoned to see what Jesus had done, instead of praising Him, they were filled with fear.
Verse 36, "They also which saw it told them by what means he that was possessed of the devils was healed."
LGT "And to the ones who also had seen [it], related how he who had been possessed by demons was made whole."
When the countrymen had come to see what Jesus had done, those who had surrounded the Lord related the wonderful thing that had taken place.
Verse 37, "Then the whole multitude of the country of the Gadarenes round about besought him to depart from them; for they were taken with great fear: and he went up into the ship, and returned back again."
LGT "And all the multitude of the country around of the Gerasenes, asked Him to go away from them, because they were overcome with great fear."
"They were surprised and amazed at it, and knew not what to say to it. They thought more of the destruction of the swine than the deliverance of their poor afflicted neighbor, and of the country from the terror of his frenzy, which was become a public nuisance; and therefore the whole multitude besought Christ to depart from them for fear He should bring some other judgment upon them; whereas indeed none need to be afraid of Christ that are willing to forsake their sins and give up themselves to Him. But Christ took them at their word: He went up into the ship, and returned back again. Those lose their Savior, and their hopes in Him, that love their swine better" (Matthew Henry).
Verses 38, 39, "Now the man out of whom the devils were departed besought him that he might be with him: but Jesus sent him away, saying, Return to thine own house, and shew how great things God hath done unto thee. And he went his way and published throughout the whole city how great things Jesus had done unto him."
LGT "And the man from whom the demons had gone out, kept begging Him to be together with Him: but He sent him away, saying, Return to your house and relate all that God has done for you. And he went through the whole of the city proclaiming all that Jesus had done for him."
How beautiful a picture this presents to us. Here we have a man that had been possessed by the demons, who now that he has been delivered wishes to stay with his Savior; here was a man that had been rudely treated all his life, and now he wants to be a special disciple of the Lord; the Lord sends him to his own home where he would be of far better use to Him than if he were to follow him with the twelve. This is a true witness to us that we should be ready always to tell others what magnificent things He has done for us; but first we must learn what those things are, and this takes serious Bible study.
Jairus' Daughter and the Woman Who
Touched Jesus' Garment
(Matt. 9:18-26; Mark 5:21-43)
Verse 40, "And it came to pass, that, when Jesus was returned, the people gladly received him: for they were all waiting for him."
LGT "And Jesus on returning, the crowd gladly welcomed Him: for they were all looking for Him."
The people of Gadara begged Christ to leave their country, but the people of Capernaum welcomed Him gladly, for they were waiting for Him. This is the way it is with all people; some want Him and others want Him to stay out of their lives.
Verses 41, 42, "And behold, there came a man named Jairus, and he was a ruler of the synagogue: and he fell down at Jesus' feet, and besought him that he would come into his house: for he had one only daughter, about twelve years of age, and she lay a-dying. But as he went the people thronged him."
LGT "And behold, a man came whose name was Jairus, and he was a ruler of the synagogue, and having fallen at the feet of Jesus, he begged Him to come to his house, because an only daughter was to him, about twelve years [old], and she was dying."
Christ was met by a ruler of the synagogue [Jewish Church] whose name was Jairus; he did not have the faith of the centurion, who asked Jesus to just speak the word, and his son would be healed; this ruler begged the Lord to come into his house to heal his only daughter. Jairus fell at Jesus' feet in reverence to one of higher authority.
Verse 43, "And a woman having an issue of blood twelve years, which had spent all her living upon physicians, neither could be healed of any,"
LGT "And a woman being with a flux [unstable] of blood since twelve years, who [spent all her living on physicians], could not be cured by no one,"
As Jesus was walking along, being thronged by the crowd, obviously on His way to Jairus' house, was approached by this pitiful woman.
Verse 44, "Came behind him, and touched the border of his garment: and immediately her issue of blood stanched."
LGT "Having come behind, touched the border of His garment, and immediately stopped the flux of her blood."
Her faith in her Messiah had made her whole; this woman had incurable disease and she bowed down behind Jesus to touch the tassel of the border of His garment and was immediately cleansed.
Edersheim notes:
"The disease from which this woman had suffered for twelve years would render Levitically 'unclean.' It must have been not infrequent in Palestine, and proved as intractable [inflexible] as modern science has found it, to judge by the number and variety of remedies prescribed, and by their character. On one leaf of the Talmud not less than eleven different remedies are proposed, of which at most only six can be regarded as astringent or tonics, while the rest are merely the outcome of superstition, to which resort is had in the absence of knowledge. But what possesses real interest is, that, in all cases where astringents or tonics are prescribed, it is ordered, that, while the woman takes the remedy, she is to be addressed in the words: 'Arise (Qum) from thy flux.' It is not only that physical means are apparently the therapeutical in this disease, but the coincidence in the command, Arise (Qum), with the words used by Christ in raising Jairus' daughter is striking. But here also we mark only contrast to the magical cures for the Rabbis. For Jesus neither used remedies, nor spoke the word Qum to her who had come 'in the press behind' to touch for her healing 'the fringe of His outer garment'."
Verse 45, "And Jesus said, Who touched me? When all denied, Peter and they that were with him said, Master, the multitude throng thee and press thee, and sayest thou, Who touched me?
LGT "And Jesus said, Who is the one touching Me? And all denying, Peter said, Master, the crowds throng and crush You."
The disciples were confused at Jesus' question who is the one touching me, but there was no confusion with Jesus, for He knew it was the touch of faith.
Verse 46, "And Jesus said, Somebody hath touched me: for I perceive that virtue is gone out of me."
LGT "And Jesus said, Someone touched Me, for I know [that] power went out from Me."
The literal Greek for the word "virtue" is dunamin, which is power. Jesus knew that when the woman touched His garment with the touch of faith some of His power left Him.
Verse 47, "And the woman saw that she was not hid, she came trembling, and falling down before him, she declared unto him before all the people for what cause she had touched him, and how she was healed immediately."
LGT "And seeing the woman that she was not hid, she came trembling, and falling down before Him, for what she touched Him, she declared to Him before all the people, and how she was healed immediately."
Here we have a woman, who was ostracized from social and religious society because of her disease, and now she had to make a public statement; it is clearly understood why she was trembling, and fell down in terror. Robertson states: "She faced the widest publicity for her secret cure."
Verse 48, "And he said unto her, Daughter, be of good comfort: thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace."
LGT "And He said to her, Daughter, your faith has cured thee: go in peace."
Had this woman been able to sneak away without being noticed, she would have missed these comforting words, Your faith has healed you, go in peace. Christ gave her the assurance that she would be whole from that time on. If we are to be comforted in this life, we must go directly to our heavenly Father in Jesus' name to receive from Him what is to be our help in time of need through His Eternal Spirit.
Verse 49, "While he yet spake, there cometh one from the ruler of the synagogue's house, saying to him, Thy daughter is dead; trouble not the Master."
LGT "As yet He was speaking, comes one from the ruler of the synagogue's [house] saying, that your daughter has died: trouble the Teacher no longer."
In the mind of Jairus' servant it was hopeless, because his daughter had already died. He gave the advice that he should not trouble the Master any longer.
Verse 50, "But when Jesus heard it, he answered him, saying, Fear not: believe only, and she shall be made whole."
LGT "But Jesus having heard answered him, Fear not, only believe, and she shall be restored."
It takes faith to be delivered from sin eternally, and faith to be delivered from physical suffering, in this case, death. I like what Jesus says here: Only believe.
Verse 51, "And when he came into the house, he suffered no man to go in, save Peter, and James, and John, and the father and the mother of the maiden."
LGT "And having entered into the house, He did not allow any one with Him except Peter, and John, and James, and the father of the maiden, and the mother."
Jesus enters the house with the father and mother, and His closest disciples.
Verse 52, "And all wept, and bewailed her; but he said, Weep not; she is not dead, but sleepeth."
LGT "And they were all weeping and bewailing her. But He said, Weep not, for she is not dead, but sleeps."
To all the people death is irreversible, so they were weeping and wailing her death. Christ assures them that she would live.
Verse 53, "And they laughed him to scorn, knowing that she was dead."
LGT "And they laughed at Him, knowing that she was dead."
The people laughed at His statement that the little girl was only asleep; only Christ knew what He was able to do.
Verse 54, "And he put them all out, and took her by the hand, and called, saying, Maid, arise."
LGT "But He, having taken hold of her hand, cried, saying, Child, arise."
Jesus calls out so all could hear. "The Lord took Peter, James, John, and the father and mother of the girl inside with Him to where the little girl lay. Dr. Luke tells us that He spoke to the little girl in this lovely fashion, Maid, arise. It could be translated Little lamb, wake up. The child arose. He brought her back to a world of suffering for the sake of her parents, not for her sake" (McGee).
Verse 55, "And her spirit came again, and she arose straightway: and He commanded to give her meat."
LGT "And her spirit returned, and she arose immediately, and He directed [that] to her [something] should be given her to eat."
Two reasons I think Christ directed them to give her something to eat, 1) she probably had been there for sometime, and He was careful for her needs, and 2) it is further proof that she was alive again.
Verse 56, "And her parents were astonished: but he charged them that they should tell no man what was done."
LGT "And her parents were amazed: and He charged them to tell to no one what had happened."
"We need not wonder to find her parents astonished; but if that implies that they only were so, and not the other by-standers, who had laughed Christ to scorn, we may well wonder at their stupidity, which perhaps was the reason why Christ would not have it proclaimed, as well as to give an instance of His humility" (Matthew Henry).
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