Healings at Capernaum; Preaching in Galilee; and A Man Cleansed Gospel reading: Mark 1:29-45 Video clip: https://youtube/watch?v=H7oJ3SDmVTA Healings at Capernaum 29 As soon as they left the synagogue, they went into Simon and Andrew’s house with James and John. 30 Simon’s mother-in-law was lying in bed with a fever, and they told Him about her at once. 31 So He went to her, took her by the hand, and raised her up. The fever left her, and she began to serve them. 32 When evening came, after the sun had set, they began bringing to Him all those who were sick and those who were demon-possessed. 33 The whole town was assembled at the door, 34 and He healed many who were sick with various diseases and drove out many demons. But He would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew Him. Preaching in Galilee 35 Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, He got up, went out, and made His way to a deserted place. And He was praying there. 36 Simon and his companions went searching for Him. 37 They found Him and said, “Everyone’s looking for You!” 38 And He said to them, “Let’s go on to the neighboring villages so that I may preach there too. This is why I have come.” 39 So He went into all of Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and driving out demons. A Man Cleansed 40 Then a man with a serious skin disease came to Him and, on his knees, begged Him: “If You are willing, You can make me clean.” 41 Moved with compassion, Jesus reached out His hand and touched him. “I am willing,” He told him. “Be made clean.” 42 Immediately the disease left him, and he was healed. 43 Then He sternly warned him and sent him away at once,44 telling him, “See that you say nothing to anyone; but go and show yourself to the priest, and offer what Moses prescribed for your cleansing, as a testimony to them.” 45 Yet he went out and began to proclaim it widely and to spread the news, with the result that Jesus could no longer enter a town openly. But He was out in deserted places, and they would come to Him from everywhere. **Verses 1:29-31 ‘As soon as they left the synagogue’ verses 29-34 to the same Sabbath day as found in verses 21-28. ‘Simon and Andrew’s house’ was large enough to host Jesus and His followers. ‘Simon’s mother-in-law’ indicates that Peter was married and 1Corinthians 9:5 suggests that his wife was supportive of his ministry. Jesus did not speak any words to heal Peter’s mother-in-law, He simply ‘took her by the hand’. The phrase ‘raised her up’ is a commonly used expression for Jesus’ healings in Mark (2:9,11; 3:3; 5:41; 9:27; 10:49). **Verses 1:32-34 The expressions ‘when evening came’ and ‘after the sun had set’ emphasize that the Sabbath prohibitions against work were over since the Sabbath ended at sunset. The phrases ‘those who were sick…those who were demon-possessed’ recall the two types of healings Jesus performed earlier that day (vv. 23-26 and 30-31). Additionally, that there is a difference between disease and demon-possession is affirmed by mark’s description of Jesus’ action: He ‘healed’ the ‘sick’ but ‘drove out’ the ‘demons’ (3:10-11; 6:13). That Jesus healed ‘various diseases’ points to the comprehensive nature of His healing powers. **Verses 1:35-39 ‘Very early in the morning’ and ‘while it was still dark’ together indicate that Jesus did not rest much after the previous evening’s activity. The ‘early’ hour also explains how He was able to leave town undetected. The verbs ‘He got up, went out, and made His way’ describe Jesus search ‘a deserted place’, the same word used for the wilderness location where John preached (v. 4) and where Jesus was tempted (v. 12). ‘Simon and his companions’ refers to the four disciples Jesus called. ‘Went searching’ implies an unwelcome intrusion. Apparently everyone expected more miracles, but Jesus intended to ‘preach’, which returned to the focus of the start of His ministry (vv. 14-15). **Verses 1:40-45 Laws pertaining to ‘serious skin disease’ can be found in Lv. 13-14. This account (and parallels in Mt. 8:1-4 and Lk. 5:12-6) and that of the 10 men (Lk. 17:11-19) are the only stories of healing skin disease in the New Testament. ‘Came to Him’ shows that the afflicted man approached and initiated the action and that he broke protocol in doing so. His words ‘if You are willing, You can make me clean’ affirm both Jesus’ ability and submitting to His willingness. That Jesus was ‘moved with compassion’ is a detail that only Mark records. Old Testament law forbids touching anyone with a skin disease and violation of that law rendered one to be unclean. Nevertheless, ‘Jesus reached out His hand and touched Him,’ healing the man immediately. Jesus instructed him to follow the requirements of Lv. 13:47-14:54 ‘as a testimony’ to the priests of his cure. We do not know if he completed the prescribed rites, but we do know that he disobeyed Jesus’ command to ‘say nothing to anyone’ about his healing. HCSB Study Bible; Holman Christian Standard Bible
Posted on: Wed, 14 Jan 2015 13:21:36 +0000
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