29 Departing from there, Jesus went along by the Sea of Galilee, and having gone up on the mountain, He was sitting there. 30 And large crowds came to Him, bringing with them those who were lame, crippled, blind, mute, and many others, and they laid them down at His feet; and He healed them. 31 So the crowd marveled as they saw the mute speaking, the crippled restored, and the lame walking, and the blind seeing; and they glorified the God of Israel.
Having left the crumbs under the table, Jesus re-entered Jewish territory to serve up food, as it were, on top of the table to the children. The feeding of the 4000 in these next verses (vs. 32-38) contrasts with the Canaanite woman of Syria who asked for the crumbs, as it were. The present section serves as a summary and transition between the two events, with meager details presented. After following the coastline of the Sea of Galilee southward, Jesus found a hill, ascended it and sat down, the usual position for a rabbi when teaching, in humbleness taking that position on the ground rather than the ornate confines of the temple. Jesus’ main focus was to return to teaching about the kingdom of God after His fourth withdrawal.
Whether or not the crowds had immediately followed Him, or found Him after a period of time, the point is that they came not to hear Jesus teach, but to get healed from various kinds of physical difficulties. The large gathering was not deterred by Jesus’ sharpening criticism of the religious establishment nor by their growing hostility toward Him—the potential for physical healing outweighed the religio-political-correctness of their day.
The list of maladies is impressive: people who were maimed, who couldn’t walk, see or speak. These were brought and laid at the feet of Jesus, appealing to nothing but His compassion. All diseases and physical difficulties being under His control, Jesus graciously healed them all, even though He was concerned about more than their bodies.
We can easily infer that He cares for each Christian, at a variety of levels, despite our often mixed motives for coming to Him. He can handle it all graciously. Matthew Henry points out in his commentary that in this story we discover that “the souls of peasants are as precious with Him as the souls of princes.” All that is required is the humility to go where He is.
When Pharisees saw His works, they blasphemed. But when this crowd saw His works, they marveled and glorified God. Henry again comments, “Miracles, which are the matter of our wonder, must be the matter of our praise.”
Lord, You have taken care of many small needs in my life, even when You are concerned about far more important things. Thank You for being gracious.
0 Comments