THE GOSPELS: LESSON 33:

JESUS GIVES LIFE TO TWO

HEALING THE CENTURION’S SERVANT. RAISING THE WIDOW’S SON AT NAIN.

TEXT: MATTHEW 8: 5 - 13; LUKE 7: 1 - 17.

WE WILL CONCENTRATE ON THE ACCOUNT FROM LUKE.

LUKE 7: 1 - 10. HEALING THE CENTURION’S SERVANT AT CAPERNAUM.

          This story is told a little differently in Matthew’s account. Matthew says the centurion went to Jesus. Luke’s account says that the centurion made his pleas to Jesus through Jewish elders whom he sent as his emissaries. This is no problem, for as the Jews said, “A man’s messenger is as himself.” (From Gill’s Commentary on Matthew 8: 5.) We will speak more of this later.

Verse 1: “After he had ended all his sayings . . .” That is, after he had finished the “Sermon on the Plain,” he returned to Capernaum, which was “his city.” (As in Matt. 9: 1.)

Verse 2: A centurion had a slave who was so sick that he was dying. This slave was very dear to the centurion. The word dear means precious or valued because of reputation or honor. In other words, this was a beloved slave, not just one who was valuable as property. Be aware that the word translated servant is a slave, NOT a hired hand. The sickness was palsy, which means paralysis. It ranged from partial or temporary paralysis of a part of the body (such as a cramp) to complete paralysis such as what follows a stroke, Lou Gehrig’s disease, myasthenia gravis, polio, and many other diseases. This condition seems to have come on suddenly and severely, so it was most likely the result of a stroke.

WHAT IS A CENTURION?

          A Roman soldier elected to head a hundred soldiers. He was elected by his superiors based on his intellectual and managerial merits, not his prowess as a fighting man.

          – The Roman army was divided into LEGIONS, the number of which varied considerably (from 3000 to 6000), each under six TRIBUNES ("chief captains,") (Acts 21:31) who commanded by turns. The legion was subdivided into ten COHORTS ("band,") (Acts 10:1) the cohort into three MANIPLES, and the maniple into two CENTURIES, containing originally 100 men, as the name implies, but subsequently from 50 to 100 men, according to the strength of the legion. There were 60 centuries in a legion, each one under the command of a centurion. (Smith’s Bible Dictionary)

PS. The headquarters of the Roman army in Palestine was at Caesarea, on the Mediterranean coast. [M.S.]–

Verse 3: This centurion, a Gentile (this is assumed but undeniably true, as Jews almost never served in the Roman army, and if they did, they were never given rank), went to Jesus through some Jewish elders, who acted as his emissaries. These were most likely three rulers of the city of Capernaum (or its synagogue).

Why would he not go directly to Jesus? Jews and Gentiles (by mutual agreement) had almost no direct dealings with each other.

What did he want of Jesus? He wanted Jesus to heal his beloved slave.

Verses 4, 5: The emissaries begged Jesus to heal the slave and claimed he was worthy of such favor, “for he loves our nation, and he built us our synagogue." A very singular Gentile indeed! It seems likely that he was a convert to the Jewish religion, or he might have been married to a Jewish woman.

Verses 6 - 8: While walking to the centurion’s house (obviously in or very near Capernaum) with the elders, Jesus meets more emissaries – the centurion’s friends. They explain to Jesus about their friend. Note that they speak with his voice, not their own: “Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy to have you come under my roof; therefore I did not presume to come to you. But say the word, and let my servant be healed. For I am a man set under authority, with soldiers under me: and I say to one, 'Go,' and he goes; and to another, 'Come,' and he comes; and to my slave, 'Do this,' and he does it.”

Let’s look at what he said (through his friends) and what these words show about this remarkable centurion.

“I am not worthy to have you come under my roof . . .” He was a humble man, or at least humble enough to recognize Jesus’ obvious greatness.

“. . . say the word, and let my servant be healed.” He was so confident of Jesus’ power that he knew Jesus didn’t even have to be present to perform this great miracle.

“. . . I am a man set under authority . . .” This too is a statement of his humility. He is just a servant, the Emperor’s slave, and so is unworthy to have THE MASTER come under his roof.

“. . . with soldiers under me: and I say to one, 'Go,' and he goes; and to another, 'Come,' and he comes; and to my slave, 'Do this,' and he does it.” This man, being a slave owner and a centurion in the Roman army knows that the word of a powerful man is enough to get something done. Therefore, Jesus, the most powerful man does not need to come, but need only say the words, “Be healed,” and all nature will rush to do his bidding.

Verse 9: Jesus was amazed at this centurion’s faith. He made public acknowledgment to the whole multitude that, “I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith.” In other words, “Even among the Jews I have never seen such great faith!” This is also backhanded confirmation that this centurion was a Gentile.

Verse 10: When the centurion’s friends went back to him, they found the slave well and that the “the servant was healed at that very moment” when Jesus had spoken. (Matthew 8: 13, RSV)

LUKE 7: 11 - 17. RAISING THE WIDOW’S SON FROM THE DEAD AT NAIN.

This is the FIRST time Jesus raises someone from the dead.

Verse 11: Soon after the episode with the centurion, Jesus, his disciples, and the multitudes (multitudes were following him everywhere he went) went to Nain, a village about 25 miles southwest of Capernaum and 4 miles south of Mount Tabor (which is called by the Jews “Little Hermon”). See your map.

Verse 12: As they drew near to the city gates, they met a funeral (burial) procession coming out of the town. A man had died – the only son of a widow woman. A large crowd from town were going, implying that this man and/or his mother were held in great esteem (or pity at least) by the townspeople. Since she was both a widow and childless, she was now in dire straits, with no one to care for her. Such women invariably became beggars or prostitutes, depending upon their ages.

BURIAL CUSTOMS OF THE DAY:

          The burying places of the Jews were not near their cities, but usually a mile or more out of the city. They even had different ways of bearing the deceased to their graves, according to their ages. A child under a month old was carried out in the bosom of its mother or father. If a full month old to almost 12 months old, they were carried in a little coffin, which the father (usually) carried in this arms. One over twelve months old but less than three years was carried in a larger coffin, usually on the father’s shoulder. One of three years old or more was carried on a bier or bed born by two or more friends or family members. They were wrapped (usually) according to the Egyptian model (like mummies) with sweet spices and ointments placed in the windings of the cloths to delay the inevitable stench which soon arises in a warm climate. They were then buried in a hole in the ground or laid in a sepulcher (a mausoleum or cave) and then sealed inside. The bier in Jesus day was often of iron and shaped like a ram’s horn with birds engraved all over. The body was tied securely to this bier and it was born on the shoulders of four strong men who went barefoot.

Verse 13: Perhaps anticipating the sorrow his own mother would bear, Jesus had pity on the woman.

Verse 14: He touched the bier and it stopped. It was a violation of the law to touch a dead body, or you would be declared unclean for seven days (Numbers 19: 16). Jesus spoke, “Young man, I say to you, Arise!”

Verse 15: Immediately after Jesus spoke, the man – now alive – sat up and then spoke. These were two irrefutable proofs that he was truly alive. Jesus then gave him to his mother.

Verses 16, 17: “Fear seized them all . . .” As Gill’s Commentary says, “Not a fear of dread, and terror, and of punishment, as in devils and wicked men; but a fear and reverence of the divine majesty, whose power and presence they were sensible must be there at that time.”

          The people (a large crowd) then praised God for this great prophet which had arisen (See Deut. 18: 15 and 18) and the word of Jesus’ power over death itself spread to all the lands around the Jordan River area.

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