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Commentaries and Other Bible Study Helps - Prayer Tents - Prayer Tents
8:1-9:38 The Authoritative Power of the Messiah: Kingdom Power Demonstrated. Jesus has shown himself as the Messiah in word through his teaching (chs. 5-7) and now shows himself to be the Messiah in deed through the performance of many miracles, demonstrating that the kingdom of God truly has arrived.
8:1-9:8 Healings, Discipleship, and Overpowering Satan's Strongholds. Jesus' mission involves ministering to the marginalized (8:1-17), disappointing the messianic expectations of some who wanted to follow him (8:18-22), and overthrowing Satan's strongholds (8:23-9:8).
8:2-3 leper. The OT provided specific guidelines for the examination and treatment of those with a variety of skin diseases, generally called leprosy, many of which were highly contagious (see Leviticus 13-14). Lord (Gk. kyrios) is the title of respect (similar to "Sir") that people commonly used when they came to Jesus for aid, though in contexts that show knowledge of its OT background it can be an affirmation of deity (see note on 1 Cor. 12:4-6). make me clean. Not only was leprosy a disease, it made the leper as well as anyone who touched him ceremonially unclean (Lev. 13:45-46; Num. 5:2-4; cf. Leviticus 15). But when Jesus touched him, he was healed, and Jesus did not become unclean.
8:4 show yourself to the priest. Jesus instructs the man to do what the law required for lepers to return to society. say nothing to anyone. Jesus carefully avoids stirring up a misunderstanding of his messianic identity. Although miracles attest to the authenticity of his message concerning the kingdom's arrival, he does not want to draw crowds who come simply for the sake of miracles. For other instances of what some have called the "messianic secret," see 9:30; 12:16; 16:20; 17:9.
8:5-7 centurion. A Roman officer in charge of a hundred men. In Luke's account (Luke 7:1-5), others came to Jesus on his behalf, but Matthew does not mention them. The accounts are not contradictory; Matthew, as is often the case, simply abbreviates the story. He actually reports what the centurion said through his messengers, based on the idea that what a person does through an agent is what the person himself does (cf. note on John 3:17).
8:8 Addressing Jesus as Lord (cf. v. 2), the Roman centurion reveals a remarkable sensitivity for Jewish traditions, saying that he is unworthy of receiving Jesus into his Gentile home. A Jew who entered the home of a Gentile became ceremonially unclean (see Acts 10:28).
8:10 The centurion seems to understand what no one in Israel understands: Jesus is the long-awaited Messiah. Jesus marveled, commending the centurion for his exemplary faith and censuring Israel for lack of faith.
8:11-12 recline at table. The peoples of the earth who respond to Jesus' ministry will join the patriarchs at the end-time messianic banquet in the kingdom of heaven (Rev. 19:9), fulfilling God's promise to Abraham (Gen. 12:3). But the sons of the kingdom (a Semitic term for national Israel) will lose their claim to the kingdom unless they follow the centurion's example of faith. weeping and gnashing of teeth. This description of terrible suffering in hell appears several times in Matthew (cf. Matt. 13:42, 50; 22:13; 24:51; 25:30) and in Luke 13:28.
8:14 The home belonged to both Peter and his brother Andrew (Mark 1:29). Peter's mother-in-law was afflicted with a fever, perhaps malaria.
8:16-17 He took our illnesses and bore our diseases. A reference to Isaiah's prophecy of the servant (Isaiah 53), focusing on Jesus' messianic role as healer (see Isa. 53:5; cf. note on Matt. 11:3-5). The fact that not all sicknesses have a demonic origin is seen in the distinction between the healings of the sick and the casting out of spirits from those oppressed by demons.
8:19 scribe. An expert in handling written documents. In Israel, scribes' duties included teaching, interpretation, and regulation of the law (see note on 2:4).
8:20 Son of Man (see note on John 1:51; cf. Dan. 7:13) is Jesus' favorite self-designation, indicating the true meaning of his identity and ministry:
8:22 leave the dead to bury their own dead. While Jesus clearly upholds the biblical command to honor father and mother (see 15:1-9), the call to follow him rises above all other allegiances. Anything that hinders unqualified commitment to him and to the new covenant family of faith must be set aside.
8:23-24 great storm (Gk. seismos, "violent shaking, earthquake"). Although the Sea of Galilee is located in the earthquake-prone Jordan Rift Valley, Matthew also mentions "winds" (v. 26), which points in the direction of a powerful storm that created large waves that shook the boat. This boat may have been similar to the one discovered in Galilee in (see note on 4:21 and illustration).
8:26 Little faith (Gk. oligopistos) is not "no faith" (Gk. apistos), but "ineffective," "defective," or "deficient" faith (cf. 6:30). Jesus calls the disciples to a clearer understanding of who he is. rebuked. Jesus is able to command even the forces of nature, just as God in the OT "rebukes" the sea, showing his sovereign control over the natural world (2 Sam. 22:16; Ps. 18:15).
8:27 Marveled (Gk. thaumazō, "to wonder, be amazed") is different from the term used to describe the reaction of the crowds ("astonished," 7:28), yet even the disciples do not yet fully grasp Jesus' identity.
8:28 Other side often marks the movement from a Jewish to a Gentile territory and vice versa (e.g., 14:22; 16:5). Gadarenes refers to both the town of Gadara (modern Umm Qais), about
8:29 Son of God. The demons recognize that one of Satan's strongholds, the spirit world, is being invaded and overpowered. before the time. The demons know that they will be judged and punished at God's appointed time.
8:30-34 The herd of pigs would have been raised for food in this Gentile region on the east shore of the Sea of Galilee, and the local people were very upset (all the city . . . begged him to leave) at the loss of this large herd (about
9:1 Jesus returned to his own city, Capernaum, the home base of his ministry in Galilee. The healing probably took place in Peter's home (cf. 8:14-15).
9:2 paralytic. Jesus had already cured paralysis (4:24; 8:6), and these people had no doubt heard of his miraculous powers. Your sins are forgiven implies that in this case sin and sickness are related but also that, of the two, sin is the more fundamental problem. Though individual sin is not always the direct cause of a person's disease or illness (John 9:2-3), ultimately all corruption and death result from the entrance of sin into the world (see Gen. 2:17; 3:16-19).
9:3 blaspheming. The scribes believed Jesus was dishonoring God by taking upon himself the prerogative to forgive sins, which only God can do (cf. Mark 2:7; Luke 5:21).
9:5 which is easier. The implied answer is that it is easier to say "Your sins are forgiven," for there is no way to verify whether or not this has happened.
