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BIBLE STUDY MATTHEW 8:1-34 REVIEW: Chapter seven was the final chapter of Jesus’ “Sermon on the Mount” – a collection of teachings by Jesus on “The Law (Torah) of the Kingdom”. If there is an overall theme of this chapter, it is Jesus warning his disciples not to judge others with a critical spirit. We are to be loving and merciful toward others, as God is towards us. We should be especially careful about judging others who will not be open to our advice - even if it is good (“Do not give what is holy to dogs…”) – because that will only create conflict with them. Perhaps the “highlight” of this chapter is the so-called “Golden Rule” (vs. 12), where Jesus bids us to “do to others as you would have them do to you.” If we take this seriously, we will always be striving to do more than the Law requires in showing love to our neighbors. The final part of chapter seven emphasizes the commitment that is necessary for being Jesus’ disciples. Jesus never suggests that discipleship will be easy. It is like entering through the narrow gate; it means being constantly aware that there are “false prophets” who would lead us astray by false teachings and unloving attitudes; and demands much more than mere “lip service” to the lordship of Jesus in our lives. Commitment to living by Jesus’ teachings, however, is like building our lives upon a foundation of rock – which will stand us in good stead when the storms and trials of life assail us. Finally, the chapter concludes by emphasizing the authority of Jesus’ teaching – he did not appeal to the teachings of previous rabbis, as was the custom of his day. Jesus’ source of authority for his teaching was HIMSELF – and this is what astounded the crowds who were listening to him! Jesus is presented not as being just another prophet or teacher building upon the prophecies and teachings of others in the past or present – he is rather shown as being the NEW MOSES who gave new and fulfilled meaning to the Torah. CHAPTER 8:1-17 “Jesus The Healer” Introduction: As mentioned previously, Matthew organizes his material very systematically. In the “Sermon on the Mount”, Matthew took various teachings of Jesus from the “Q” tradition that are scattered all over in Luke’s gospel and editorially organized them into a single section dealing with his new “Torah” about the “Law of the Kingdom”. Now Matthew does the same in presenting Jesus as a HEALER – with three healing miracle stories: the healing of a leper, the healing of a centurion’s servant, and Peter’s mother-in-law – as well as casting out demons and healing the sick of many people at Capernaum. The purpose is to show that through the ministry of Jesus, God’s kingdom is indeed breaking into our world. CHAPTER 8:1-4 “Jesus Heals a Leper” “When Jesus had come down from the mountain, great crowds followed him; and there was a leper who came to him and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, if you choose, you can make me clean.” He stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, “I do choose. Be made clean!” Immediately his leprosy was cleansed. Then Jesus said to him, “See that you say nothing to anyone; but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.” Leprosy was viewed as an especially terrible disease. The biblical law concerning a leper is found in Leviticus 13-14 and Deuteronomy 24:8. People were not only afraid of a leper being physically contagious, but also of them polluting their spiritual holiness as well. Contact with a leper would make them “unclean” and therefore ineligible to participate in worship. Lepers were absolutely and completely banished from human society. According to William Barclay in his Daily Study Bible commentary; “The leper had to go with rent clothes, disheveled hair, with a covering upon his upper lip, and, as he went, he had to cry: “Unclean, unclean.” (Leviticus 13:45) For all practical purposes, a leper was treated as a dead person. Indeed, most rabbis of Jesus’ day regarded leprosy as being a direct punishment from God for various sins – and, although the Law supposed that it could be curable, any possible healing from this disease to be as difficult as the raising of the dead. In this healing story, we note three things about the leper that are important for us when we ask God to heal us or others:
We also note Jesus’ compassion. He immediately healed the leper, and did so by touching him – even though that would, as mentioned above, render him ritually unclean. The touching was at least as much needed by the leper as the physical healing – it showed him that he was no longer separated from human society. Finally, we note that Jesus commanded him “to say nothing to anyone” and to go to the priest and offer the required offering prescribed in the Law. The “secrecy” order is from Mark’s gospel – Jesus did not want his messiah-ship to be based upon crowds looking to him for miracles. The order that the leper should show himself to the priest shows that Jesus fulfills rather than abolishes the Jewish Law (see Matthew 5:17-19). CHAPTER 8:5-13 “Jesus Heals a Centurion’s Servant” “When he entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him, appealing to him and saying, “Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, in terrible distress.” And he said to him, “I will come and cure him.” The centurion answered, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof; but only speak the word, and my servant will be healed. For I also am a man under authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes, and to another ‘Come,’ and he comes, and to my slave, ‘Do this,’ and the slave does it.” When Jesus heard him, he was amazed and said to those who followed him, “Truly I tell you, in no one in Israel have I found such faith. I tell you, many will come from east and west and will eat with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven, while the heirs of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” And to the centurion Jesus said, “Go; let it be done for you according to your faith.” And the servant was healed in that hour.” Unlike the healing of the leper, this healing was done by “long distance”. Jesus does not touch or even see the centurion’s servant, and yet heals him instantly. Be that as it may, the main emphasis in this story is not the healing itself, but the centurion’s faith. He was a Gentile, and yet had extraordinary faith, compassion, and sensitivity that impressed Jesus. When Jesus offered to go to the centurion’s house, the centurion very politely declines the offer (“Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof.”) – probably because he was aware that Jesus would have rendered himself ritually unclean by doing so. Instead, he invites Jesus to just “say the word” to heal his servant. Just as HE had received authority from the Emperor to command his soldiers and slaves, so he believes that Jesus had authority from God to command healing. In response, Jesus praised the centurion’s faith – and makes it clear that this faith (rather than one’s physical descent from Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob) is what will make people worthy to share in the heavenly banquet. Even Gentiles of faith will be welcome, while unbelieving Jews (“heirs of the kingdom”) will be thrown into the outer darkness. Finally, Jesus makes it clear that the servant is healed because of the centurion’s FAITH. CHAPTER 8:14-17 “The Healing of Peter’s Mother-in-Law and Others”“When Jesus entered Peter’s house, he saw his mother-in-law lying in bed with a fever; he touched her hand and the fever left her, and she got up and began to serve him. That evening they brought to him many who were possessed with demons; and he cast out the spirits with a word, and cured all who were sick. This was to fulfill what had been spoken through the prophet Isaiah, “He took our infirmities and bore our diseases.” Some commentators believe that Peter himself told the story of the healing of his mother-in-law. It was a strictly private thing – and shows an intimate look about Jesus’ compassion even when there wasn’t any publicity. Most likely, she was suffering from malaria – a very common disease. The mention of her “serving him (Jesus)” after being healed is significant. In other words, she was healed so that she could then serve Jesus! Perhaps we need to reflect upon how this understanding might apply to our lives! “That evening” (that is, after sundown and the official end of the Sabbath), many possessed and sick people were brought to Jesus. He had the authority and the power to cure both spiritual and physical illnesses. Matthew sees this as being a fulfillment of Isaiah 53:4 – “He took our infirmities and bore our diseases” - not in a “messianic atonement” kind of way (as later Christians would identify the “Suffering Servant”), but simply as a statement of fact that he took infirmities and diseases away from people. CHAPTER 8:18-22 “Teachings About Discipleship” This section serves as a brief interlude between the previous section showing Jesus’ power over physical diseases (three miracles of healing), and the following section showing Jesus’ power over spiritual afflictions of fear, demonic possession, and guilt. The purpose is to show that being a disciple of Jesus demands total – not just “half-hearted” – commitment from us. “Now when Jesus saw great crowds around him, he gave orders to go over to the other side. A scribe then approached and said, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” “I will follow you” is the equivalent of “I wish to become your disciple.” It is noteworthy that Matthew identifies this man as being “a SCRIBE” – an interpreter of the Law (Luke simply identifies him as “a man”). A scribe was firmly rooted in his understanding of tradition and the requirements of the Law in various situations – even as foxes and birds instinctively knew what their “homes” were. If the scribe was to become a disciple of Jesus, however, he would have to give up his “home” of being secure and comfortable in his previous understandings of tradition and Law. (For example, Jesus would sometimes heal on the Sabbath – he had just done so in the previous section – even though that technically was not supposed to be done.) As disciples of Jesus, we must be willing to grow and receive new insights that may challenge our traditional “comfort levels” as to what religion is all about (especially the insight that people and relationships are even more important than ritual prohibitions or requirements). Also, perhaps Matthew’s original Jewish Christian readers would also have a special understanding of what it meant to be “homeless” as disciples of Jesus – since they had been “cast out of the synagogue” by the Pharisees and scribes of their day. “Another of his disciples said to him, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.” But Jesus said to him, “Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead.” This person, in contrast to the scribe, apparently was already a disciple. The issue here is an obstacle that might keep him from continuing as a faithful disciple – namely, that of family relationships. The phrase “let me go and bury my father” actually meant “let me wait until my father dies.” In other words, this disciple wanted to put off giving total commitment to Jesus until sometime in the future when his family obligations would be ended. Jesus in his reply challenged this disciple to make following him his top priority NOW! Being a disciple of Jesus transcends even family (or any!) obligations, and is an immediate priority. CHAPTER 8:23 – 9:8 “Three More Deeds of Power” This section continues Matthew’s portrayal of Jesus as one who has authority over things that oppress us. The first section (Mt. 8:1-17) had three miracles of healing – showing Jesus’ authority over diseases. Now this section has three more miracles – Jesus’ stilling a storm, his casting out demons, and healing a paralyzed mean. The emphasis in this section is Jesus’ authority over the spiritual forces that oppress us – such as the fear that the disciples had during the storm; the demons that afflict us; and the guilt of sin that the paralyzed man had. CHAPTER 8:23-27 “Jesus Stills a Storm” “And when he got into the boat, his disciples followed him. A windstorm arose on the sea, so great that the boat was being swamped by the waves; but he was asleep. And they went and woke him up, saying, “Lord, save us! We are perishing!” And he said to them, “Why are you afraid, you of little faith?” Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a dead calm. They were amazed, saying, “What sort of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him?” In one sense this was a natural occurrence – sudden windstorms often arose on the Sea of Galilee. It is a body of water 13 miles long from north to south and 8 miles wide from east to west, and lies 680 feet below sea level. Winds coming from the north would be “funneled” through the canyon-like cleft of the Jordan River on the north side of the sea, and greatly amplify their speed. In a matter of minutes, conditions could shift from calm to gale force winds – and then back to calm again. In a deeper sense, however, this was not just any natural occurrence. Matthew uses the Greek word seismos (literally: “earthquake”) to describe the storm – giving it an almost apocalyptic quality. Perhaps he had Psalm 107:23-30 in mind: Some went down to the sea in ships, doing business on mighty waters; they saw the deeds of the LORD, his wondrous deeds in the deep. For he commanded and raised the stormy wind, which lifted up the waves of the sea. They mounted up to heaven, they went down to the depths; their courage melted away in their calamity; they reeled and staggered like drunkards, and were at their wits; end. Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, and he brought them out from their distress; he made the storm be still, and the waves of the sea were hushed. Then they were glad because they had quiet, and he brought them to their desired haven.” The point is that Jesus is portrayed as having all of the power and authority of the LORD over the chaos of the sea. Not only is that, in a deeper sense Jesus also shown as being able to still all the “storms” that we go through in life – especially the “storm” of FEAR. Whenever we feel like we are about to be overwhelmed, we can call to him and he will give us calm and peace within. CHAPTER 8:28-24 “Jesus’ Power Over Demons” “When he came to the other side, to the country of the Gadarenes, two demoniacs coming out of the tombs met him. They were so fierce that no one could pass that way. Suddenly they shouted, “What have you to do with us, Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?” Now a large herd of swine was feeding at some distance from them. The demons begged him, “If you cast us out, send us into the herd of swine.” And he said to them, “Go!” So they came out and entered the swine; and suddenly, the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea and perished in the water. The swineherds ran off, and on going into the town, they told the whole story about what had happened to the demoniacs. Then the whole town came out to meet Jesus; and when they saw him, they begged him to leave their neighborhood.” This story is similar and yet different from the parallel ones in the gospels of Mark and Luke. First, Matthew has it taking place in the country of the Gadarenes, whereas Mark and Luke locate this in the country of the Gerasenes. Matthew’s location is probably correct, because Gerasa was more than thirty miles to the southeast of Galilee, whereas Gadara was only about six miles from the lake. Secondly, Matthew has two demon-possessed men rather than just the one in the other gospels. Be that as it may, the overall theme is the same – showing Jesus’ authority over demons. They recognize his power, and seem to be surprised that he has come to cast them out before the end of the Age. However, this shows that the kingdom of heaven is indeed “has come near” (Mt. 4:17). With a single word, “Go!”, he commands them to do his bidding. Swine were viewed as “unclean” animals by the Jews, and as such were ideal for demons to be cast out into. Water also was understood by people of that time as being deadly to demons (think of the Wicked Witch of the West in the Wizard of Oz); they preferred to inhabit dry and desert places. So Jesus casts out the demons into swine, and then they rush down and drown in the water of the sea. It is interesting to note the reaction of the people of the town – they begged him to leave their neighborhood! Why? Matthew, unlike the other gospel writers, does NOT say that the people were afraid. He rather implies that it was because they did not want to have their way of life disturbed. Sometimes people would rather keep the life they have (even if bad or incomplete) rather than face change. -------------------- George R. Karres, Pella Lutheran Church 418 W. Main Street Sidney, MT 59270
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