21 And when Jesus had crossed again in the boat to the other side, a great crowd gathered about him, and he was beside the sea. 22 Then came one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name, and seeing him, he fell at his feet 23 and implored him earnestly, saying, “My little daughter is at the point of death. Come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be made well and live.” 24 And he went with him.
And a great crowd followed him and thronged about him. 25 And there was a woman who had had a discharge of blood for twelve years, 26 and who had suffered much under many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was no better but rather grew worse. 27 She had heard the reports about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his garment. 28 For she said, “If I touch even his garments, I will be made well.” 29 And immediately the flow of blood dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease. 30 And Jesus, perceiving in himself that power had gone out from him, immediately turned about in the crowd and said, “Who touched my garments?” 31 And his disciples said to him, “You see the crowd pressing around you, and yet you say, ‘Who touched me?’” 32 And he looked around to see who had done it. 33 But the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came in fear and trembling 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 healed of your disease.” – Mark 5:21-34 ESV
The disciples sailed back to the opposite shore with their minds filled with the images of the herd of demon-possessed swine plummeting over the cliff into the sea and the former demoniac sitting calmly at the feet of Jesus. It had been a whirlwind 24 hours. They had witnessed Jesus calm a violent storm and restore a demon-possessed man to sanity. In addition, they had heard those demons refer to their master as the “Jesus, Son of the Most High God” (Mark 5:7 ESV). With the demons' testimony still ringing in their ears, they had unknowingly received the answer to the question they had posed earlier. After witnessing the miracle of Jesus calming the storm, they asked, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?” (Mark 4:41 ESV).
They had their answer, but Jesus was not done revealing His true identity. More God-ordained encounters in the days ahead would provide further proof that Jesus was who He claimed to be and who the demons confessed Him to be.
Having returned from their brief but eventful trip to the region of Decapolis, Jesus and His disciples found themselves immediately surrounded by a large crowd. Mark gives the impression that, before Jesus could even disembark from the boat, the masses had lined the shoreline. Luke supports that idea by adding, “they were all waiting for him” (Luke 8:40 ESV).
Still standing by the sea and surrounded by a crowd, Jesus was approached by a man named Jairus, a ruler in the local synagogue. This man was not a professional priest, but a layman responsible for conducting Sabbath services and overseeing the synagogue's ongoing care. His role would have made him a recognized and well-respected member of the local community. His high-visibility position likely gave him familiarity with the Pharisees and other religious rulers of Israel. So, when he kneeled at the feet of Jesus before a large gathering of his own neighbors and friends, he was taking a great risk, not only personally but professionally.
We know from John’s gospel that the religious leaders of Israel were intensifying their efforts to discredit Jesus and prevent the people from following Him. John records an occasion when Jesus healed a man who had been blind from birth. The Pharisees interrogated the man’s parents, questioning whether their son had really been blind at all. Racked with fear, they responded, “We know that this is our son and that he was born blind. But how he now sees we do not know, nor do we know who opened his eyes. Ask him; he is of age. He will speak for himself” (John 9:20-21 ESV). John provides color commentary that explains their cautious response.
His parents said these things because they feared the Jews, for the Jews had already agreed that if anyone should confess Jesus to be Christ, he was to be put out of the synagogue. – John 9:22 ESV
The religious leaders refused to believe that Jesus was the Christ, yet Jairus, a ruler in the local synagogue, knelt before Jesus and begged Him to heal His daughter.
“My little daughter is at the point of death. Come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be made well and live.” – Mark 5:23 ESV
Mark conveys the intensity of the man’s desperation when he writes, “he fell at his feet and implored him earnestly” (Mark 5:22-23 ESV). Mark uses the Greek word parakaleō, the same one he used to describe how the demons begged Jesus not to torment them, but to cast them into the swine. He used the same word to describe the fearful townspeople begging Jesus to leave their community. It is an emotionally intense word that conveys earnest begging or beseeching.
This man was emotionally distraught and willing to do anything to save the life of his dying daughter. She meant far more to him than his career or reputation. If expressing faith in Jesus could preserve her life, the loss of his job was a price he was willing to pay. To his relief, Jesus agreed to go with him, but they didn’t go alone. Mark reports that “a great crowd followed him and thronged about him” (Mark 5:24 ESV). The crowd moved en masse, pressing in on Jesus and the anxious father as they made their way to the man’s home. But before they reached their destination, something else happened.
Another individual was in the crowd that day. But unlike the ruler of the synagogue, this person held no high position in the community. She was an obscure, unnamed woman who had made her way to the seashore that day, hoping to receive healing from this man named Jesus. But she was just one among many, struggling through the crowd to get close enough to touch the hem of Jesus’ garment.
This woman had what appears to be an incurable medical condition that Mark describes as “a discharge of blood” (Mark 5:25 ESV). She had suffered with it for 12 long years. Not only that, she had exhausted all her resources seeking a cure through traditional medical treatments, but nothing had worked. In fact, her condition had grown worse, leaving her in a state of desperation. But unlike Jairus, the crowd would not part and let her to Jesus. She had to fight and claw her way through the sea of humanity to get close enough to see Jesus. But what stands out is the woman’s faith. She fully believed that if she touched Jesus’ robe, she would be healed.
“If I touch even his garments, I will be made well.” – Mark 5:28 ESV
Jairus was convinced that if Jesus would only touch his daughter, she would be made well. This woman believed that if she could just touch Jesus, she would be made whole. Both believed that Jesus was the solution.
Somehow, this frail and physically weakened woman forced her way through the crowd and touched the edge of Jesus’ robe. Mark describes that “Immediately the bleeding stopped, and she could feel in her body that she had been healed of her terrible condition.” (Mark 5:29 NLT). Her healing was immediate, and she knew it. But no one else in the crowd even noticed her or realized a miracle had taken place. Yet, Jesus knew.
Jesus realized at once that healing power had gone out from him, so he turned around in the crowd and asked, “Who touched my robe?” – Mark 5:30 NLT
Luke reports that Jesus informed His disciples, “Someone touched me, for I perceive that power has gone out from me” (Luke 8:46 ESV). Jesus likely knew the woman’s identity. He could have said nothing and simply let the woman walk away unnoticed, rejoicing in her renewed health. But He wanted His disciples to know what had happened, and He was willing to postpone his trip to Jairus’ house to reveal the miracle that had just taken place.
Suddenly exposed and unable to extricate herself from the crowd, the woman timidly and guiltily stepped forward. She “came in fear and trembling and fell down before him and told him the whole truth” (Mark 5:33 ESV). Her confession was not for Jesus’ benefit; He already knew what had happened. This woman’s remarkable testimony was meant to encourage the disciples and provide them with further proof of who Jesus was. It also illustrated the kind of faith they were supposed to have. In response to her confession, Jesus said, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease” (Mark 5:34 ESV).
Jesus had not spoken a word or touched the woman, yet she stood before Him completely whole. Her faith brought about her remarkable transformation, but Jesus wanted to correct a dangerous misconception in her thinking. She had reasoned that Jesus was a powerful healer whose power was transferable. But Jesus insisted her healing resulted from faith, not superstition or some kind of supernatural force field.
As incredible as it may sound, the moment the woman touched the edge of His robe, Jesus knew she was there and why she had come, and He willingly released His power to heal her. This was not some automatic outflow of energy outside Jesus’ control or volition. Countless people touched Him that day, many of whom longed to receive healing, but only this woman received what she hoped for. Jesus described her action as an example of faith.
The author of Hebrews describes faith as “the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1 ESV). This woman hoped to be healed and was fully assured it would happen if she could only get close enough to touch the edge of Jesus’ robe. She didn’t need to talk to Him; she believed His power was so great that a simple touch of His garment could do what countless physicians had been unable to do. And her faith was rewarded.
When Jesus said, “Be healed of your disease,” He confirmed the truth of her testimony and the source of her healing; it had been Him. His words were meant to convey the reality and permanency of her healing. Her faith in Jesus had made her whole.
But before the crowds could take in what had happened or the disciples could ask any questions, the mood would take a dramatically dark turn. The focus would shift from healing to death, from joy to sorrow, and from hope to despair. But Jesus was far from done.
English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
