CRITICAL NOTES
Matthew 9:18. A certain ruler.—The president of a synagogue. His name was Jairus (see Mark 5:22; Luke 8:41). Every synagogue had its president, who superintended and directed the services. The ruler of a synagogue was at the same time president of its college of elders (Lange). My daughter.— Mark 5:23, τὸ θυγάτριον = the “little thing.” Luke says she was about twelve years of age. Is even now dead.—But see Mark 5:23; Luke 8:42. It is probable that he would employ various expressions in representing the case; and very likely, indeed, the case itself was such that he would be fairly puzzled to determine precisely whether she were dead or alive (Morison).
Matthew 9:19. And Jesus arose, etc.—It thus happened that Jesus could prove to the objectors (Matthew 9:11; Matthew 9:14) that He was able and willing to rise from the feast and to sympathise with the deepest suffering, nay, to enter the valley of death itself. This constituted both the fasting of Jesus and His mission to relieve the sick (Lange).
Matthew 9:20. A woman.—Tradition makes her a resident, not at Capernaum, but at Paneas or Cæsarea Philippi, who had wandered to Galilee, seeking relief from her trouble. A group of two statues, supposed to commemorate the miracle, existed at that place in the time of Eusebius (fourth century), and one was seen by him as he records (Eccles. Hist., vii. 18). Another church historian (Sozomen), a century later, describes the destruction of the same monument by order of the Emperor Julian (Laidlaw). An issue of blood.—See Leviticus 15:19 seq. Hem of His garment.—The border or fringe of the loose outer garment, probably of a bright blue mingled with white (see Numbers 15:38; Matthew 23:5).
Matthew 9:21. She said.—The imperfect tense of the original denotes intensity of feeling. “She kept saying over and over to herself” (Carr).
Matthew 9:22. Daughter.—A pure and affectionate, yet masterful name (Chadwick). Thy faith.—Not thy touch merely.
Matthew 9:23. Minstrels.—Flute-players (R.V.). Their presence indicated that the preparations for the funeral ceremonies had commenced.
Matthew 9:24. Not dead, but sleepeth.—Christ used the same expression afterwards of Lazarus; and when misunderstood He put it plainly, “Lazarus is dead” (Laidlaw).
MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.— Matthew 9:18-26
A succession of answers.—In these “interlaced stories,” as they have been called, there seems some confusion at first. The way out of it seems to be that of recognising the Saviour as the centre of all. If so regarded, we shall here see presented to us His manner of dealing:
1. With outspoken request.
2. With tacit desire.
3. With insult and scorn.
I. With open request.—Openness, first in action. A man “enters in” (so some) in such a way as to cause men to “behold,” and so ask, we suppose, why he has come? The same man next acts in such a manner as to show why He has come. He worships Jesus—he casts himself at His feet (Mark 5:22)—he is in the position of a suppliant—evidently he has something of moment to ask Openness of speech, in the next place. How fearfully plain are his words. His daughter—his “little” daughter (Mark 5:23)—is “even now dead”; or, if not quite dead, as near to death as she can be (ibid.); as a matter of fact, in his anguish, he hardly knows which. Nor does it, from one point, signify much. Only let Jesus touch her, and whatever is wrong will be right. That is, therefore, what he now asks for, in so many words. To this open request the Saviour replies in as open a way, though not as express. “He rises up” to show He is ready. He does that, in fact, which is the beginning of “coming.” The action is so understood by the ruler, who, therefore, leads the way home, and is confirmed by Jesus, who “follows him,” and by the disciples, who follow both. All things, in short, signify hope!
II. With tacit desire.—This tacit desire was on the part of a woman who is hidden in the crowd which follows the Saviour. Those who read countenances could see this desire in her looks. “Twelve years” of suffering and hope deferred had not passed over her without leaving their footprints behind them, if only in that touching and wistful expression which we so often see in like cases, saying so plainly, “Oh! what would I give to be rid of this plague!” Those who read actions would see it in hers. Coming “behind Him,” so as not to be seen—“touching His garment,” so as to be in touch with His grace—she yet touches only the “hem” of it—perhaps, so as not to be felt. All shows not only how much she desires, but how secretly too. Those who read thoughts, also, would see this desire amongst hers. “If I may but touch,” she said to herself, “I shall get all I desire.” That was the spring of the whole—that burning desire which, for all that, she could not bring herself to put into speech. The Saviour’s reply to it was, first of all, most express and direct. That it had reached Him was plain from His “turning about”; that He knew where it had come from, by His looking at her. If her “looks” had said much, so also did His. Next, it was overflowing with kindness. She had come as a stranger. He addresses her as a “daughter.” Only in fear and trembling had she ventured so far. He bids her, notwithstanding this, to “be of good cheer.” Already, therefore, if we may say so, was she mentally cured. Full of assurance and power. What you desire is now yours. It is yours by your faith. Now she is one who is “whole”—whole, too, from that hour (Matthew 9:22).
III. With insult and scorn.—Two successive “pictures” represent this. A picture of uproar and insult. The uproar is outside the house of the ruler to which he has now come with the Saviour; and is due to the fact that, meantime, his little daughter has unmistakably died; and so caused the place to be filled with the usual “minstrels” and others “making a noise” (Matthew 9:23). The insult is provoked by the request of the Saviour to be allowed to pass through (Matthew 9:24), and by the character of the reason by which He supports it. Knowing, that, with the purpose He had in view, the child was only “dead,” so to speak, for a time, He speaks of her as such. “The maid is not dead, but sleepeth.” This was beyond endurance to them. “Knowing,” as they did, “that she was dead” (Luke 8:53), knowing that they had only come there on that account, “they laughed Him to scorn” (Matthew 9:24). On the other side, in marked contrast to this, we have the picture of the Saviour’s reply, a picture of stillness and power. When the multitude were “thrust out” at last, Jesus went in. How silent the scene! How still that “little one” on the bed! How collected and quiet the Master! How markedly so after the rudeness just shown Him! How simple, also, His action—“touching her hand”! How instantly wonderful—how profound—the result! She that was prostrate is now sitting up! She that had been dead—certainly dead—so dead that it was thought madness to doubt it—is now as certainly living! More than that, more than a hundred throats are now proclaiming the news (Matthew 9:26).
See, therefore, in these consecutive answers:—
1. What encouragement there is to prayer of all sorts.—By whomsoever it is offered, whether by a ruler or by one of the crowd; in whatever way it is offered, whether openly or secretly, whether by action or speech; and in whatsoever place it is offered, whether on the highway, or in the house of the living, or in that of the dead—it is acceptable to the Saviour.
“Where’er they seek Thee Thou art found,
And every place is hallowed ground.”
2. What double encouragement to continuance in it.—The greatest blessing vouchsafed here was the longest in coming, and had most obstacles in its way. But no obstacle can remain such in the way of “continuous prayer.” No distance, no interruptions, no delay, no unbelief of others, nor any depth of need, however undoubted, or beyond hope in the eyes of men! (Zechariah 4:7) Much is meant by every word in that counsel of the Apostle—“continuing instant in prayer” (Romans 12:12).
HOMILIES ON THE VERSES
Matthew 9:18-33. The Healer and the healed.—
I. Christ’s side.—
1. The Speaker was called upon for action. It is a long way from eloquence to beneficence in the case of some speakers; in the case of Christ speech and action were convertible terms.
2. Christ will interrupt an exposition for the sake of a man who mourns a little dead girl (Luke 8:42).
3. It is more congenial to Christ to be binding up a broken heart than to be debating with factious Pharisees respecting intercourse with publicans and sinners, or even to be explaining to sectarians the conditions which make “fasting” acceptable to God and useful to man.
4. Christ was ever equal to the call of the hour. Was exposition required? The living stream flowed from His gracious lips. Was a miracle required? The same voice had but to alter its tone, and the miracle was complete.
II. The human side.—Here are four miracles, the raising of the dead; the healing of the issue of blood; the opening of the eyes of the blind; the cure of a dumb man possessed with a devil. These diversified cases reveal the human side of the transactions under several aspects:
1. The right spiritual state in which to approach Christ—the ruler “worshipped Him;” the poor woman modestly and trustfully said, “If I may but touch His garment I shall be whole;” the blind man said, “Have mercy on us;” the dumb man possessed with a devil found in his utter helplessness the best possible recommendation to Christ’s mercy.
2. The indispensableness of faith in any transaction between the natural and the supernatural. Faith is the link; without that connection is impossible.
3. This transactional faith can operate only in connection with profound consciousness of want. “To know ourselves diseased is half the cure.”—J. Parker, D.D.
Matthew 9:20-22. The woman with an issue of blood.—I. The woman’s faith in the Saviour, its strength and its weakness.—
1. She put herself in Jesus’ way on this eventful occasion, and thus proved the strength of her faith. She had, most likely, never seen Him before, had never heard Him speak, had never beheld one of His miracles. In these circumstances it would not have been surprising after all she had suffered and spent through her wasting disease and her physicians together, had she thought of coming to the Galilean Healer as a forlorn hope. On the contrary, she not only had hope so much as led her to think it worth while to make the journey, but she had somehow gathered a strong persuasion of His ability, such that she said to her neighbours, to herself, or to both, “If I may touch but His clothes I shall be whole.” Nor was the persuasion arbitrary or fanatical. It was simple and generous, but it was thoroughly reasonable, because justified by facts. It was when she had “heard the things concerning Jesus” (Mark 5:27, R.V.), that she came to Him.
2. No doubt there were defects in this faith. Its strength and weakness lay close together. It had the defect, so to say, of its quality. Its promptness may have owed something to the mechanical or material conception of the Healer’s power, as if it were some atmosphere that surrounded Him, or some magical influence that flowed even from His garments. The swift and secret touch was directed perhaps to the sacred fringe of His Jewish robe, in which, with a superstitious fondness, the healing power was thought specially to reside. The confidence she had in Jesus was typical, in that it was strong and well-founded. That it was mixed with those other elements from which the Lord proceeds immediately to purify it may teach us a double lesson. It hints, on the one hand, how small a part of gospel truth may save the soul if there be faith to receive and love to act upon it. Yet, on the other hand, the trust which is well-founded and generous, will meet with its reward in a rapid and progressive enlightenment through Christ’s word and Spirit.
3. This faith, as it was buoyant in persuasion, was prompt and immediate in action (Matthew 9:20).
4. It was as immediate in its success (see Mark 5:29).
II. The Saviour’s action towards the woman, its wisdom and tenderness.—The critical point in this miracle is that at first sight it seems “as if it had been wrought outside the consciousness and will of Jesus” (Godet). But He was not unconscious of the virtue He put forth, nor of the faith which received it. We can see why, for His own sake, and His work’s sake, Jesus had to make this cure public. But we are also to note how good it was for the sake of herself. Reserve was her fault, a wish to hide the cure; thus at once cheating her own self of comfort, and withholding from the Lord His due honour. He corrects that fault most gently and wisely. He does not insist upon publicity till the healing had taken place, thus making confession as easy as possible for her. The object of its publication then becomes apparent.
1. To show that the medium of the cure was faith, not physical contact.
2. To confirm what she had already taken by His own pronounced bestowal of it.
3. To bring her out in grateful acknowledgment both for His glory and her good. There are Christians whose fault is reserve. They would be saved, as it were, by stealth. The Saviour will not have it so. True conversion, no doubt, is first of all a secret transaction, very close and personal, between the soul and Christ. But because it is so, it cannot remain so. A seen religion is not always real, but a real religion is always seen.—Professor Laidlaw, D.D.
The teachings of the incident.—The incident has ever been a favourite and piquant analogue for the effects of living faith in Christ as contrasted with mere professed or traditional adherence to Him. As that day in the streets of Capernaum many pressed Him, but one touched Him, so is it still. Why it is so this story may instruct us.
1. This woman came at once to the vital touch, because she was so convinced of her disease and its danger. But so many nominal followers of Christ are trying to persuade themselves that their disease is not fatal.
2. She was quite done with all other physicians, and broken off from them. But many of us have not been conclusively shut up to Christ.
3. This woman went straight to Jesus so soon as she heard that He was nigh. But so many among us are waiting for the “convenient season.”
4. She made the most inconvenient season serve her turn. The Healer was on His way elsewhere. Jairus and the disciples were hurrying Him along. It was the worst time and place for such an invalid. But it was hers, for it was given her of God; she made the best of it, and was saved.
5. Some of our hearers say their difficulties are peculiar. There is nothing in ordinary preaching, in the common statements of the gospel, that meets their case, and relieves their perplexities. They are waiting for some clearer light, for some more special agency. This woman’s case was peculiar. She was by Jewish law unclean. She could not repair to the synagogue, where so many met Jesus and were healed. She could not stand up before the Healer in a public audience, and tell her case, and get His hands laid on her, as so many did. The ordinary mode of even these healing miracles would not have met her need. So she got her health in the crush of the street procession, by stealing behind Him, and pressing with the energy of hope till her fingers grasped His garment; for she was fully persuaded that, peculiar as was her case, she would find in Him an appropriate and certain cure. Those who in their soul-search for spiritual health follow her example will be as successful and as blessed as was she.—Ibid.
Matthew 9:20-21. The woman with the issue of blood.—
1. Poor and rich are alike welcome to Christ, for here, while He is going with the ruler, He neglecteth not this poor sick woman.
2. That which separates us from the society of the holy must not separate us from Christ, but rather drive us unto Him. This woman legally polluted, and so separate from the temple and all clean persons, draweth near to Christ to touch Him.
3. Though all remedies fail and our evil be of long endurance, yet Christ must be run unto.
4. Although Christ seem to take no notice of us, but to be about the helping of others only, yet must we take notice of Him and draw near to Him upon all occasions offered.
5. None can come to Christ rightly, but such as expect to be the better for coming.—David Dickson.
Matthew 9:22. The woman cured.—
1. Though modest souls resolve quietly to creep to heaven, unknown to others, yet God will have His work in them brought to light, for His own glory.
2. Faith in Christ gets a sweeter welcome than it can expect. It may come trembling, but shall find joy ere it go.
3. Our Lord will not suffer any means of our devising to take the place of means appointed by Himself. Therefore He doth not say, “touching my garment,” but “thy faith hath made thee whole.”—Ibid.
Matthew 9:24. The lowest depth.—“And they laughed Him to scorn.” These words throw light:—
I. On the nature of our Saviour’s work.—
1. How wonderfully they reveal to us the great depth of His humiliation. He was man, that is much; a poor man, that is more; more still one of the “homeless poor” (Luke 9:58); most of all a man derided and despised. So psalmists and prophets had foretold, and so Evangelists relate.
2. Notice, also, the completeness of His sorrow. “He was acquainted with grief,” with every side and shape and variety of it, even with that form which we should have expected to be the farthest of all from His lot.
3. This consideration may teach us yet further the greatness of His love. All this depth of suffering was for our sake. Like one descending a coal shaft, who does not stop short of the very lowest depth, because those he would rescue are known to be trembling there, so was it with the Lord. He endured even the scorn of contemptible man in order to save man.
II. On the right interpretation of His words.—And so, generally, of those Holy Scriptures which bear testimony of Him. The special saying which called forth this outburst of scorn was the following: “The maid is not dead, but sleepeth;” and the special ground of it was the intimate conviction of the hearers that she had actually died—“knowing that she was dead.” It is evident, therefore, that they took the words in their most ordinary and obvious sense, never stopping to search for another, and never considering whether such a Teacher and Miracle-worker could have meant anything so absurd. It was a confounding the obvious with the true—mistaking the apparent for the real—and considering “first thoughts” so much better than “second,” that no second thoughts are required. The mistake is very common. “He that believeth on Me shall never die”; “Ye must be born again”; “Destroy this temple”; “This is My body,” are all cases in point. The mistake arises from not recollecting:
1. That the true significance of a passage is not that which the hearer imagines, but which the speaker himself designed.
2. That in the sayings of the Bible where God is practically the speaker and man the hearer, these two meanings are often so far from identical that they are as wide asunder as the poles.
As a concluding thought, take notice of the profound wisdom here displayed. See how this contempt of man was made to minister to the mission of Christ. These scorners built up the very platform on which the evidence of the miracle stood. When the damsel arose and took food (Mark 5:43) there could be no doubt about life. Was it restored life? Had it really been preceded by unmistakable death? These unhappy despisers, without meaning it, had established this beyond doubt. They had shut their own mouths on this point by their scorn. They had shut the mouths of mankind. So will it be at the last of all wilful despisers of Messiah. “Every knee shall bow to Him,” etc.—Mathematicus in “Homilist.”