Jesus Christ Deaf man with impediment in his speech The multitude
Location
Near the Sea of Galilee, in the Coasts of Decapolis, departing fromthe coasts of Tyre and Sidon
When
After the healing of the Syrophenican Woman's Daughter of vexation
Before the feeding of the loaves and fishes
Type of Healing
Deaf Had an impediment in his speech
The Request
The approach was that among a multitude, the deaf man is brough to Jesus, and they beseech
Jesus for him
Mar 7:32 And they bring unto him one that was deaf, and had an impediment in his speech; and they beseech him to put his hand upon him.
Jesus' Response and Means of Healing, The Healing
1. And he took him aside from the multitude 2.And put his fingers in his ears 3. and he spit, 4. and touched his tongue 5 And looking upo to Heaven He sighed 6. and saith unto him,
[The Command] 'Ephphatha' that is, beopened. Mark 7:34.
Outcome
An immediate and complete healing:
And straightway, his ears were opened -and the string of his tongue was loosed, and he spoke plain. 7:35.
People's Reaction
The more Jesus charged them to tell no one, the more the word was spread, as in other similar circumstances...."a geat deal they published it.
They were 'astonished' beyond measure. Mark 7:37
They said,
saying, 'He hath done all things well' he maketh both the deaf tohear and the dumb to speak.'
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Jesus' or Apostle's Teaching
The Charge to tell no one. We have dealt before with Jesus' charge to tell no one. The most eminent reason
is given directly in Scripture: it is because of the fulfillment of prophecy about Messiah' voice not being raised in
the street, nor him breaking a reed. (
Isa 42:3 A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench: he shall bring forth judgment unto truth.
Mat 12:16 And charged them that they should not make him known:
Mat 12:17 That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying,
Mat 12:18 Behold my servant, whom I have chosen; my beloved, in whom my soul is well pleased: I will put my spirit upon him, and he shall shew judgment to the Gentiles.
Mat 12:19 He shall not strive, nor cry; neither shall any man hear his voice in the streets.
Mat 12:20 A bruised reed shall he not break, and smoking flax shall he not quench, till he send forth judgment unto victory.
Mat 12:21 And in his name shall the Gentiles trust
)
Implications for Faith
Note: Deaf and dumb go together most often but can be separate, and can go with blindness as well.
both may or may not be associated with demonic possession or physical impairment.
Trouble for the deaf vs. the blind is notable as to why not many deaf are healed: the deaf take on a wholenew social world when healed while
the blind only partially: further, the world becomes a 'noisy' place a radical change for input of sensation for someone
who may have been deaf since birth. Even today, there are some who would remain deaf rather than be healed.
Deafness is portrayed both as a type of being unable to hear others, and hear God. In Zc 7:11 it is equated with a refusal
to obey, and equated with rebellion. Spiritual 'deafness' is described in Isaiah 6:10, Jeremiah 6:10 and Ezekiel 12:12. In
Mark 9:25, the deaf and dumb condition is referred to as a spirit. 2 Tim 4:4 describes turning from truth to a fable as a form
of deafness, and at one point, Messiah is referred to as deaf, in the sense that he will hear only God.
It is a sin to curse the deaf: Lev 19:14 Thou shalt not curse the deaf nor put a stumbling block in thier way.
In Is 29:18 the deaf are restored whoe in the Millennium.
Cross-references & Other Critical Facts
First mention: Ex 4:11 (To Moses who says his speech is not eloquent)
Andthe Lord said untohim,
Who hath made man's mouth? orwho maketh the dumb or deaf, the seeing or blind? havenot I the Lord.
Itis a remarkable passage for it attributes deafness and the other conditions not only to random chance, but as
under the sovereignty of the Lord.
Jesus Christ the Disciples of Jesus A possessed boy's father The demoniac son with the dumb spirit
Location
Coming down from the mount of Transfiguration.
He had just been at Caesarea Philippi, and then 6 days later on a mountain in the region,
where the Transfiguration took place. The place of the healing is somewhere coming down from
the mountain, and headed for Jerusalem.
When
1. After the Jesus appears with Moses and Elijah on the Mount of Transfiguration
Right after the healing of the blind man who saw 'men walking about as trees'.
After leaving Bethsaida, and then Caesarea Philippi
Type of Healing
Vexation of a Devil
"and behold a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying Have mercy on me, O LORD, thou son of David; My
daughter is grieviously vexed with a devil. 15:22
The vexation in Mark 7:25 is called an "unclean spirit".
The Request
Have mercy on me, O LORD, thou son of David; 15:22
After Jesus's response to her, she worships him, shows faith and supplication:
Thencame she and worshipped him, saying Lord, Help me. 15:25
Following Jesus's admonition about the children's bread, she says:
Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their Master's table"
Jesus's Response
At first, he does not respond: "...He answered her not a word.".
Response of Disciples:
And his disciples came and besought him, saying Send
her away; For she crieth after us."
Jesus's eventual response:
"...I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel. 15:24)
One of the more troubling passages for some is Jesus's further response,:
...It is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it to dogs. (26)
It should be
noted though, that this passage refers not to bigotry, but to the characteristic of pagans of Tyre and Sidon of
perverting the right ways of God. 'Dogs' while used literally was a common term for evildoers and sorcerers (Rev 22:15). It would
have been 'unclean' and out of order to veer off his purpose, unless, by faith, it became purpose. The woman was not
only not Jewish, but her people were immersed in occult/pagan practices that grieved the Holy Spirit and were anathema to God.
Means of Healing, The Healing
The spoken word of Christ
"...O woman,great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt.
Mark 7:29 For this saying go thy way, the devil is gone out of thy daughter.
Outcome
The healing was immediate: the child was delivered
The child was made whole.
."And her daughter was made whole from that very hour. 15:28..
Mark 7:30 And when she was come to her house she found the devil gone out, and her daughter laid upon the bed.
People's Reaction
None directly mentioned, except for the disciples 'aggravation' with the woman's persistent pleading
for mercy. However, directly following multitudes are met for healng on a Mount beside Galilee. Mt 15:29-
Jesus' or Apostle's Teaching
The immediate teaching from Jesus is regarding his ministry/purpose for being here, and his showing that
faith makes whole,even before racial status or being of the bloodline of Chosen people. This is not some naive
ecumenism: He teaches that faith makes one the 'child of Abraham' eminently, even above genealogy. One cannot mistake
his disdain for those opposed to God's ways, but it is the woman's humility and faith, which is rewarded with the healing
of her daughter. His words seem harsh out of context, until one realizes that the pure love of God cannot leave
nor accept people in a dissensioned state, but must do what is necessary to bring them into wholeness.
Jesus teaches though that he is sent "first to the lost sheep of the house of Israel"---God never dissents from his
created order: to the Jew first. Jesus and the disciples when they entered a town went always first to the synagogue,
whether they were received or not, even AFTER Pentecost. Why? The Gospel was Jewish good news: their captivity had come
to an end. "Let the children be filled first" Mk 7:27 regarding the living bread, was a mark of sanctity. If God
rewards those opposed to his truth and plan, would that really be love? Would it be love if one rewarded a child
for breaking another child's arm? He had to bring the woman to a point of faith, for her and her daughter to be made whole.He also
declared that He was here before all else to heal the House of Israel, and find the wandering strays as a good shepherd
would necessarily do.
Implications for Faith
1. Faith overrides even racial boundaries: not inblind ecumenism, but in the understanding of what the Jews truly are.
2. The Jew, the House of Israel is primary always in God's work and plan.
3. Healing by Christ is imminently intertwined with faith
4. Works of darkness require rebuke
Cross-references & Other Critical Facts
Tyre and Sidon were two 'twin cities' which were rich and in need of nothing, but in which some of the worst
sin of Israel occurred and they were rebuked and cursed before the exile into Babylon for slavery and idolatry as well
as gluttonous living. The land itself was the site of the first founded Phenician city, and according to Thompson's was know for beauty, fruits, fertile
plains and may ruins. A tomb of Eshmunazar, the King of Sidonians from the 5th century was found. It was known for its worship
of Ashtoreth (Astarte), Dagon (Esmuno) of Philistine influence, and Baal of Sidon. Thompson's Chain Reference KJVThe
curse of Tyre and Sidon appears to have been fulfilled: an expedition in 1860 found very little in the region. although fragments of
mosaic pavements, and the elegant purple dyed garments of the wealthy and shells were found. Note also that the woman in Mark
is referred to as Greek, in addition, so she was the pristine 'type' of paganism.