Bible Study series: Matthew 9:27-31. The two men cried out for mercy. Jesus asked them what they wanted. They had to say it. This took place near the Lake of Galilee, up north.
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In the next link to the original chapter, I comment more and offer the Greek text. At the bottom you will find a “Summary and Conclusion” section geared toward discipleship. Check it out!
In this post, links are provided for further study.
Let’s begin.
Scripture: Matthew 9:27-31
27 Then Jesus went on from there, and two blind men followed him, crying out and saying, “Have mercy on us, son of David!” 28 As he went into the house, the blind men came up, and Jesus said to them, “Do you believe that I can do this?” They said, “Yes, Lord.” 29 Then he touched their eyes, saying, “According to your faith, let it be done for you!” 30 Then their eyes were opened. And Jesus warned them sternly, saying, “See to it that no one finds out!” 31 But they left and spread the news about him throughout the entire land. (Matt. 9:27-31)
Comments:
This is not the same story of healing a blind man or men in Matt. 20:29-34 (two blind men) and Mark 10:46-52 (Bartimaeus) and Luke 18:35-43 (one blind man).
27:
These men were desperate, and they showed it by making a scene. It’s not accurate to say they were pestering him, but they wanted their healing, and they went for it. They cried out or shouted their need for mercy, which meant their healing. In Greek the word mercy can be a verb, so it could be translated as “Pity us!” Or we could invent a verb: “mercify us!” But that translation is too awkward, so let’s not do that.
Son of David was a popular Messianic title; it reflects the future age when the eyes of the blind would be opened and the ears of the deaf would be unstopped and the lame would leap like a deer (Is. 35:5:5-6). Jesus was ushering it in right now, in part. Later in his ministry he will correct the popular view and say that if the Messiah really was David’s son, then why does David call him Lord (Matt. 22:41-46)?
3. Titles of Jesus: The Son of David and the Messiah
28:
“Yes, Lord”: The two men have already affirmed him to be the son of David, so the title cannot be weakened to “Yes, sir,” though they do not full grasp—and no one did at this point in time—what his Lordship means. But we have high Christology here (Osborne, comment on 9:28). .
Jesus is about to commend them for their faith. Sometimes you have get so desperate that you have to the socially unaccepted thing, like the woman with the issue of blood for twelve years. She touched the tassel of his garment.
Sometimes Jesus could ignore people—seemingly ignore—or remain silent, in order to find out what is in the person requesting the answer. He did this to the Canaanite woman, who pushed into God’s kingdom just before the right time, and she insisted on getting some crumbs falling from the kingdom citizens’ table. Jesus really liked her penetrating insight and verbal wit and honored her request (Matt. 15:21-28). Her daughter was healed. “Just before the right time?” What does that mean? It means that during his earthly ministry he was reaching out to Israel, and then after his resurrection and ascension he would go global. The Canaanite woman knew nothing about this, so she desperately made her request.
Then Jesus asked the blind men a direct question. Faith really is the language of the kingdom. Not whining. Not complaining. Not begging and pleading from unbelief, but a strong confidence, directed to the Lord. Their answer “Yes, Lord” was easy and true for them because they would not let go of their demand for healing. They really did believe he could do this.
“believe”: see v. 2 for more comments.
29:
He touched them and spoke a word of encouragement. Yes, our answer is in accordance with our faith. It could be translated as “in response to your faith,” not “in proportion to your faith” (Blomberg’s comment on 9:29-31). Either way, if you don’t have faith, build it up. First, do you believe miracles are for today, or have they ceased? If you believe they have ceased, then your chance for a healing is virtually nil. But if you believe they are for today because God’s character does not change (Heb. 13:8), then the door is open to getting your miracle. Now we move on to the second point. Second, you build your faith by reading the Word. Third, you build your faith by coming to believe that your loving Father wants to heal you. Do you have the revelation of his love deep in your heart and soul? If you do, then rest as you pray. “Loving Father, I believe you love me and want me well. I trust you to heal me.” Internal rest is a sign that you have faith in your loving Father. The two blind men did not have assurance that their Father was loving, but they went right for his representative: Son of David.
They got their healing miracle.
A commentator whom Osborne quotes translates the Greek “according to your faith let it be done for you” simply as “You believe it, you have it” (comment on 9:29-30). Excellent. Osborne adds: “There is no meritorious aspect to faith; rather, it allows one to participate in the God-given blessing” (Osborne, comment on 9:29-30). In other words, be careful of turning faith into a work or exalting it to an extra-high status. Don’t put your faith in your faith. It simply opens the heart to receive.
30-31:
Jesus warned them not to spread the news around, because he did not want to reveal his Messiahship just yet. He wanted to keep it hidden, so people would push in and see it by faith and by his teaching. They should have been wise enough to see it by his own person and teaching. Also, I’m sure he knew that national Israel represented by the Jerusalem establishment was going to reject him, and he intended that their rejection would bring judgment down on the old system represented by the temple. It was going to be destroyed. He wanted the priestly establishment to be a victim of irony; that is, they thought they knew the way of the Lord and what the Messiah would look like, but they miscalculated. He was standing right in front of them, but their “wisdom” and “knowledge” of the law blinded them. That’s irony. You think that you know, but you do not; you are actually ignorant.
But of course, how do you keep something like that silent? They did not.
GrowApp for Matt. 9:27-31
1. How desperate and faith-filled are you for the Lord? If you are desperate, please be sure that you have as much confidence as the two blind men did. Their faith propelled them forward to act.
RELATED
9. Authoritative Testimony in Matthew’s Gospel
1. Church Fathers and Matthew’s Gospel
2. Archaeology and the Synoptic Gospels
14. Similarities among John’s Gospel and the Synoptic Gospels
1. The Historical Reliability of the Gospels: Introduction to Series
SOURCES
To see the bibliography, please click on this link and scroll down to the bottom.
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