Mark 5:21-34
21 When Jesus had crossed over again in the boat to the other side, a large crowd gathered around Him; and He stayed by the seashore.
22 And one of the synagogue officials, named Jairus, came, and upon seeing Him, fell at His feet
23 And pleaded with Him earnestly, saying, “My little daughter is at the point of death; please come and lay Your hands on her, so that she will get well and live.”
24 And He went off with him; and a large crowd was following Him and pressing in on Him.
25 A woman who had had a hemorrhage for twelve years,
26 And had endured much at the hands of many physicians, and had spent all that she had and was not helped at all, but instead had become worse—
27 After hearing about Jesus, she came up in the crowd behind Him and touched His cloak.
28 For she had been saying to herself, “If I just touch His garments, I will get well.”
29 And immediately the flow of her blood was dried up; and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease.
30 And immediately Jesus, perceiving in Himself that power from Him had gone out, turned around in the crowd and said, “Who touched My garments?”
31 And His disciples said to Him, “You see the crowd pressing in on You, and You say, ‘Who touched Me?’”
32 And He looked around to see the woman who had done this.
33 But the woman, fearing and trembling, aware of what had happened to her, came and fell down before Him and told Him the whole truth.
34 And He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace and be cured of your disease.”
The Healing of the Hemorrhaging Woman
The faith of the hemorrhaging woman
Now, Jesus was on His way to the home of Jairus, a synagogue official, whose daughter is gravely ill and on the point of death. On the way, a woman suffering from chronic bleeding experiences healing. Let’s observe her faith. She had been suffering for a long time. (1) She was suffering with chronic bleeding for twelve years and no one was able to cure her. Furthermore, she had also suffered at the hands of many doctors, lost her wealth, and her condition only worsened. (2) Her continuous bleeding made her ritually unclean, which resulted in her social and mental isolation (ref. Levi. 15:25-30). (3) She approached Jesus from behind and touched the fringe of His cloak. Immediately, her bleeding stopped, and she was healed. The “fringe” refers to the tassels attached to the four corners of a garment, known as “tzitzit” in Hebrew. In Numbers 15:38, there is a command to attach these fringes, so by looking at them the people will remember all the commandments of the Lord and do them. Essentially, these fringes (tzitzit) symbolized the word of God. The woman, with faith, touched the fringe of Jesus’ garment (the Word of God). It is indeed through faith which one receives God’s healing power.
The goodness of Jesus
Jesus turned around and said, “Who touched My garments?” His disciples were bewildered. Of course, Jesus knew who it was that touched Him with faith. The woman, fearing and trembling, came forward. Yet, Jesus continued to speak to her. This is because Jesus wanted to give her 100% of the goodness that He had to offer. As she stepped forward trembling, Jesus said, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace and be cured of your disease.” At that moment, she was freed from the guilt of secretly touching Jesus. Also, through this, her healing was made public, allowing her to return into society. Do you ever feel afraid to publicly express your faith? Let’ s believe with confidence that Jesus only brings goodness and proclaim our faith in Him.
Today's prayer
Heavenly Father, all that You give me are good. May I receive them through faith. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen.