Jesus Heals a Paralytic
(Mark 2:1–12; Luke 5:17–26)
1 Jesus got into a boat, crossed over, and came to His own town. 2 Just then some men broughta to Him a paralytic lying on a mat. When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, “Take courage, son; your sins are forgiven.”
3 On seeing this, some of the scribes said to themselves, “This man is blaspheming!”
4 But Jesus knewb what they were thinking and said, “Why do you harbor evil in your hearts? 5 Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? 6 But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins...” Then He said to the paralytic, “Get up, pick up your mat, and go home.” 7 And the man got up and went home.
8 When the crowds saw this, they were filled with awe and glorified God, who had given such authority to men.
Jesus Calls Matthew
(Mark 2:13–17; Luke 5:27–32)
9 As Jesus went on from there, He saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax booth. “Follow Me,” He told him, and Matthew got up and followed Him.
10 Later, as Jesus was dining at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners came and ate with Him and His disciples. 11 When the Pharisees saw this, they asked His disciples, “Why does your Teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”
12 On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. 13 But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’c For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.d ”
Questions about Fasting
(Mark 2:18–20; Luke 5:33–35)
14 Then John’s disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Why is it that we and the Pharisees fast so often,e but Your disciples do not fast?”
15 Jesus replied, “How can the guests of the bridegroom mourn while He is with them? But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast.
The Patches and the Wineskins
(Mark 2:21–22; Luke 5:36–39)
16 No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. For the patch will pull away from the garment, and a worse tear will result.
17 Neither do men pour new wine into old wineskins. If they do, the skins will burst, the wine will spill, and the wineskins will be ruined. Instead, they pour new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved.”
The Healing Touch of Jesus
(Mark 5:21–43; Luke 8:40–56)
18 While Jesus was saying these things, a synagogue leader came and knelt before Him. “My daughter has just died,” he said. “But come and place Your hand on her, and she will live.”
19 So Jesus got up and went with him, along with His disciples. 20 Suddenly a woman who had suffered from bleeding for twelve years came up behind Him and touched the fringe of His cloak. 21 She said to herself, “If only I touch His cloak, I will be healed.”
22 Jesus turned and saw her. “Take courage, daughter,” He said, “your faith has healed you.” And the woman was healed from that very hour.
23 When Jesus entered the house of the synagogue leader, He saw the flute players and the noisy crowd. 24 “Go away,” He told them. “The girl is not dead, but asleep.” And they laughed at Him.
25 After the crowd had been put outside, Jesus went in and took the girl by the hand, and she got up. 26 And the news about this spread throughout that region.
Jesus Heals the Blind and Mute
(Mark 7:31–37)
27 As Jesus went on from there, two blind men followed Him, crying out, “Have mercy on us, Son of David!”
28 After Jesus had entered the house, the blind men came to Him. “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” He asked.
29 Then He touched their eyes and said, “According to your faith will it be done to you.” 30 And their eyes were opened. Jesus warned them sternly, “See that no one finds out about this!” 31 But they went out and spread the news about Him throughout the land.
32 As they were leaving, a demon-possessed man who was mute was brought to Jesus. 33 And when the demon had been driven out, the man began to speak. The crowds were amazed and said, “Nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel!”
34 But the Pharisees said, “It is by the prince of demons that He drives out demons.”
The Lord of the Harvest
(Luke 10:1–12)
35 Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness. 36 When He saw the crowds, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.
37 Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. 38 Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into His harvest.”
Verses 1–8 – Forgiveness and Healing of a Paralytic
Jesus returns to Capernaum, is confronted with a paralyzed man lowered before Him, and declares, “Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven.” When the scribes silently accuse Him of blasphemy, He reads their thoughts, poses a question about which is easier—healing or forgiving—and then heals the man to prove His right to pardon sin. The crowds praise God “who had given such authority to men.”
Verses 9–13 – Matthew’s Call and the Physician for Sinners
Passing the tax booth, Jesus says, “Follow Me,” and Matthew rises at once. That evening Matthew hosts a dinner packed with tax collectors and other outcasts. Challenged by Pharisees, Jesus replies, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick,” quoting Hosea 6:6: “I desire mercy, not sacrifice.”
Verses 14–17 – Question about Fasting and New Wine
Disciples of John ask why Jesus’ disciples do not fast. He answers with wedding imagery: while the bridegroom is present, feasting is appropriate; the days of fasting will come. He adds two short parables—new cloth on an old garment and new wine in fresh wineskins—pointing to a fresh, expansive work of God.
Verses 18–26 – Raising Jairus’s Daughter and Healing the Bleeding Woman
A synagogue ruler kneels, begging Jesus to raise his dead daughter. On the way, a woman hemorrhaging for twelve years touches the fringe of His cloak; He turns, calls her “daughter,” and she is instantly healed. Arriving at the ruler’s house, Jesus sends out the mourners, takes the girl’s hand, and life returns to her. News races through the region.
Verses 27–31 – Two Blind Men Receive Sight
Two blind men trail Jesus, crying, “Son of David, have mercy on us!” Inside a house He asks if they believe He can do this. “Yes, Lord,” they say. He touches their eyes: “According to your faith be it done to you,” and sight floods in. Though He warns them to keep quiet, they spread the account everywhere.
Verses 32–34 – Deliverance of a Mute Demoniac
A demon-possessed man, unable to speak, is brought to Jesus. The demon is cast out, and the man speaks. Amazed crowds marvel, “Nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel,” while Pharisees mutter that Jesus works by the prince of demons.
Verses 35–38 – The Compassionate Shepherd and the Plentiful Harvest
Jesus continues through towns and villages “teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every disease.” Seeing the people harassed and helpless, He is moved with compassion and urges His disciples, “Ask the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest field.”
Historical Setting
Galilee lay under Roman rule, its roads patrolled by soldiers and its economy taxed to support the empire. Capernaum, a bustling fishing center on the northwestern shore of the Sea of Galilee, served as Jesus’ ministry base (Matthew 4:13). Archaeological digs reveal first-century basalt houses clustered along narrow lanes, one larger compound traditionally linked to Peter’s family. These houses were often topped with mud roofs—easily dismantled for the paralytic’s friends to lower him (cf. Mark 2:4).
Authority to Forgive Sins
Only God claimed the right to blot out transgressions (Isaiah 43:25; Psalm 103:3). By proclaiming forgiveness, Jesus openly assumed divine prerogative. His immediate healing of the man’s paralysis served as visible evidence backing the invisible grace. This same link appears later in 1 Peter 2:24, where the wounds of Christ bring both spiritual and physical healing.
“Son of Man” and Messianic Identity
While Matthew 9 records Jesus calling Himself “the Son of Man,” two blind men hail Him as “Son of David,” a royal, messianic title promised in 2 Samuel 7 and echoed in Isaiah 9:7. These dual titles highlight both His humble humanity and His promised kingship.
Tax Collectors and Roman Occupation
Tax collectors like Matthew leased territory from Rome and could charge extra to profit personally. They were despised as collaborators with the occupying force. Jesus’ choice of a tax collector for His inner circle shows His mission reaching beyond respectable religious circles (see Luke 19:1-10 for a similar case with Zacchaeus).
“I Desire Mercy, Not Sacrifice”
Quoting Hosea places Jesus firmly within prophetic tradition that prized loving devotion over hollow ritual (Micah 6:6-8). The phrase challenges religious leaders to value people over mere rule-keeping.
Fasting, Weddings, and New Wineskins
Jewish piety encouraged fasting on the Day of Atonement and often twice weekly among Pharisees (Luke 18:12). Jesus likens His presence to a wedding feast—an atmosphere of joy. The new wine illustration hints at the coming new covenant (Jeremiah 31:31-34) that would burst old forms if forced into them.
Women in a Patriarchal World
The hemorrhaging woman was ceremonially unclean (Leviticus 15:25-27), excluded from worship and social touch. Jesus reverses this: rather than becoming unclean Himself, He makes her whole. Likewise, He touches Jairus’s dead daughter, overriding the purity laws linked to corpses (Numbers 19:11-13). These acts underscore His authority over both physical and ceremonial realms.
Faith on Display
• Friends of the paralytic: their determined action mirrors Proverbs 17:17—“a friend loves at all times.”
• The bleeding woman: believes without speaking (Mark 5:28 adds her inner reasoning).
• Blind men: persist in calling out until granted an audience.
• Jairus: risks ridicule by trusting Jesus’ word over mourning custom.
Each account illustrates Hebrews 11:6: “without faith it is impossible to please God.”
Blindness, Deafness, and Isaiah’s Vision
Isaiah 35:5-6 predicted that in the days of salvation “the eyes of the blind will be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped.” Matthew stacks these miracles to signal messianic fulfillment. Even deliverance of the mute demoniac echoes Isaiah 61:1, “He has sent Me… to release the oppressed.”
Accusation of Demonic Power
Pharisees claim Jesus casts out demons by Beelzebul. This foreshadows the sharper clash in Matthew 12:24-32, where Jesus warns of blaspheming the Spirit. Their charge mirrors Exodus 8:19, where Egyptian magicians, failing to match a plague, call it “the finger of God.”
Compassion and Shepherd Imagery
Ezekiel 34 condemns faithless shepherds who neglect the flock. Jesus, seeing scattered crowds, embodies the true Shepherd promised in that chapter and in Psalm 23. The “harvest” metaphor also ties to Joel 3:13 and John 4:35, emphasizing urgency.
Archaeological Insights
• First-century synagogues: basalt foundations found beneath later white-limestone ruins at Capernaum align with Matthew’s mention of Jesus teaching there (Matthew 4:13; 9:35).
• Magdala’s 2009 discovery of a synagogue with a carved stone depicting the temple shows how Galilean Jews, even far from Jerusalem, centered life on Scripture and worship.
• Ossuaries (stone bone boxes) found around the region testify to burial customs consistent with the mourning scene at Jairus’s house.
Links across the Gospels
• Mark 2:1-22 and Luke 5:17-39 parallel the paralytic, Matthew’s call, and the fasting question, adding vivid details like roof removal.
• Mark 5 and Luke 8 recount Jairus’s daughter and the bleeding woman, noting her 12-year suffering and the girl’s age of 12—two lives intertwined by a number signaling completeness.
Harmonizing these accounts enriches appreciation for each writer’s emphases: Matthew spotlights authority; Mark accentuates immediacy; Luke underscores compassion.
Echoes in Acts and the Epistles
• Acts 3:1-10: Peter heals a lame man “in the name of Jesus,” mirroring His Master’s pattern.
• James 5:14-15: elders pray and anoint the sick, believing “the prayer offered in faith will restore.”
• 1 Timothy 1:15: “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners”—a direct echo of Jesus’ words in Matthew 9:13.
Practical Takeaways
• Jesus’ authority covers both soul and body; no area of life lies outside His reach.
• Mercy outranks ritual; people matter more than polished appearances.
• Faith persists—whether tearing open a roof, pressing through a crowd, or crying out despite opposition.
• The harvest is still plentiful; prayerful availability positions believers as modern laborers.
Today’s Landscape
Hospitals, missions, and even the very term “pastoral care” trace roots to scenes like Matthew 9. Wherever followers of Jesus pair compassionate eyes with willing hands, the kingdom continues to break in—new wine still expanding its skins.
1. Faith Moves Mountains
In Matthew 9, we see the power of faith in action. When Jesus heals the paralytic, He first addresses the man's spiritual need by forgiving his sins, saying, "Take courage, son; your sins are forgiven" (Matthew 9:2). This teaches us that faith is not just about believing in miracles but trusting in Jesus for our ultimate healing—spiritual restoration. Faith is the key that unlocks the door to God's grace and power in our lives.
2. Jesus, the Friend of Sinners
Jesus' choice to dine with tax collectors and sinners in Matthew 9:10-11 shows us His heart for the lost. He declares, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick" (Matthew 9:12). This reminds us that no one is beyond the reach of God's love. We are called to follow His example by reaching out to those who are marginalized and sharing the hope of the Gospel with them.
3. The Power of Compassion
Compassion is a recurring theme in Matthew 9. When Jesus sees the crowds, He is moved with compassion because they are "harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd" (Matthew 9:36). This compassion drives Him to action, healing the sick and teaching the people. We are encouraged to let compassion guide our actions, seeing others through the eyes of Christ and responding to their needs with love.
4. The Call to Follow
Matthew 9:9 recounts the calling of Matthew, the tax collector. Jesus simply says, "Follow Me," and Matthew leaves everything behind to do so. This illustrates the transformative power of Jesus' call. When He calls us, it requires a response of total commitment and willingness to leave our old ways behind. Following Jesus is a journey of faith that leads to a life of purpose and fulfillment.
5. The Authority of Jesus
Throughout Matthew 9, Jesus demonstrates His authority over sickness, sin, and even death. When He raises the synagogue leader's daughter, He shows that He has power over life itself. "The girl is not dead but asleep," He says, and then He raises her (Matthew 9:24-25). This authority reassures us that Jesus is sovereign over every aspect of our lives, and we can trust Him with our deepest fears and concerns.
6. The Importance of Persistence
The story of the woman with the issue of blood in Matthew 9:20-22 highlights the importance of persistence in faith. Despite her condition and the crowd, she reaches out to touch Jesus' cloak, believing she will be healed. Jesus acknowledges her faith, saying, "Take courage, daughter, your faith has healed you" (Matthew 9:22). Her persistence is a reminder to keep seeking Jesus, even when obstacles seem insurmountable.
7. The Harvest is Plentiful
In Matthew 9:37-38, Jesus tells His disciples, "The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into His harvest." This is a call to action for all believers. The world is ripe for the Gospel, and we are called to be laborers in God's field, sharing the message of salvation and bringing in the harvest for His kingdom.
8. The Power of Prayer
Prayer is a central theme in Matthew 9. Jesus often withdraws to pray, and He encourages His disciples to do the same. Prayer is our lifeline to God, a way to align our hearts with His will and seek His guidance. As we pray, we invite God's power into our lives and the lives of those around us, trusting that He hears and answers our prayers according to His perfect plan.
9. The Joy of New Life
When Jesus heals and forgives, He brings new life and joy. The synagogue leader's daughter is restored to life, and the woman with the issue of blood is healed. These miracles are a foretaste of the new life we receive in Christ. "I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full" (John 10:10). In Christ, we find true joy and fulfillment, a life transformed by His love and grace.
10. The Urgency of the Gospel
Matthew 9 ends with a sense of urgency. Jesus sees the crowds and is moved to action, knowing the time is short. This urgency should compel us to share the Gospel with those around us. The message of salvation is too important to keep to ourselves. As we go about our daily lives, let's be intentional in sharing the hope and love of Christ, knowing that eternity hangs in the balance.
Faith for Healing
Pray for increased faith to believe in Jesus' healing power in all areas of life.
Willingness to Follow
Ask for the courage to follow Jesus wholeheartedly, leaving behind anything that hinders your walk with Him.
Openness to Change
Pray for a receptive heart to embrace the new things God is doing in your life and community.
Laborers for the Harvest
Pray for more workers to be raised up for the harvest and for guidance on how you can participate in God's mission.
1. How does the healing of the paralytic demonstrate Jesus' authority over both physical ailment and sin?
2. What does Jesus' call of Matthew reveal about His mission and the types of people He seeks?
3. How do you understand Jesus' teaching on fasting and the metaphors He uses?
4. What does the healing of the bleeding woman teach about faith and determination?
5. How can the resurrection of Jairus' daughter inspire hope in seemingly hopeless situations?
6. What do the healings of the blind and mute men teach about faith and Jesus' power over physical and spiritual afflictions?
7. What insights can you draw from Jesus' compassion for the crowd?
8. How do you interpret Jesus' call for laborers for the harvest? How can you respond to this call?
9. How does Jesus' interaction with the Pharisees challenge traditional religious practices?
10. How does the faith of the friends of the paralytic inspire your faith actions for others?
11. How can Jesus' compassion for the spiritually lost affect your approach to evangelism?
12. How does the miracle of raising Jairus' daughter from the dead reinforce your faith in Jesus' power over death?
13. What do the various healing miracles teach you about the different ways Jesus responds to faith?
14. How does Matthew's response to Jesus' call to follow Him challenge you in your discipleship journey?
15. How can you apply Jesus' teaching about new wine in old wineskins in your spiritual life?
16. What lessons can you learn from the faith of the woman with the issue of blood?
17. How does Jesus' compassion towards the harassed and helpless crowds influence your view of His character?
18. How does the chapter's ending, with Jesus' call for workers in the harvest, apply to your life?
19. What implications does Jesus' authority to forgive sins have on your understanding of Him as the Messiah?
20. How does Jesus' mission to call not the righteous, but sinners, reflect on His grace and mercy?