“For he had healed many; insomuch that they pressed upon him for to touch him, as many as had plagues.”
For he had healed many, so that those with diseases were pushing forward to touch him — the many healings that have preceded this summary have created a pushing crowd of the sick, each trying to make physical contact with Jesus. The touching motif will recur throughout Mark: the woman with the bleeding (5:27), the request from Gennesaret (6:56), the deaf man (7:33). Physical contact with Jesus produces healing — not as magic but as the medium through which the kingdom's power is transmitted through faith. The pushing crowd is both the testimony to Jesus' healing ministry and the logistical problem that the boat was meant to solve.
COMMUNITY REFLECTIONS
Publish a note on this verse
0/2000
No notes on this verse yet. Be the first to write one!