XLIII.
Healing the Centurion's Servant.
(at Capernaum.)
A Matt. VIII. 1, 5–13; C Luke VII.
1–10.
c 1 After he had ended all his sayings in the ears of
the people, a 1 And when he was come down from the
mountain, great multitudes followed him. c he entered
into Capernaum. [Jesus proceeded from the mountain to Capernaum, which was
now his home, or headquarters. The multitudes which are now mentioned for the
third time were not wearied by his sermon, and so continued to follow him.
Their presence showed the popularity of Jesus, and also emphasized the fact
that the miracles which followed the sermon were wrought in the presence of the
vast throngs of people.] a 5 And when he was entered
into Capernaum, there came unto him a centurion [The context shows that
this centurion or captain of a hundred men was a Gentile, but whether he was in
the employ of Herod Antipas, tetrarch of Galilee, or an officer in the Roman
army, is
271not clear, neither is very important. The army of
Antipas, like that of other petty kings, was modeled after that of Rome],
c 2 And a certain centurion's servant [slave
boy], who was dear unto him, was sick, and at the point of death.
3 And when he heard concerning Jesus [The sequel shows that the
centurion had probably heard how Jesus had healed the son of his
fellow-townsman—John iv.
46–54], he sent unto him elders of the Jews [To
reconcile Matthew and Luke, we have only to conceive of the centurion as coming
to the edge of the crowd about Jesus, but modestly refraining from coming into
the Lord's immediate presence.] asking him that he would come and save his
servant. a beseeching him, 6 and saying,
Lord, my servant lieth in the house sick of the palsy, grievously tormented.
[Because palsy is not usually accompanied with suffering, some think that in
this case it was combined with tetanus or lockjaw, a combination not infrequent
in hot climates. But Sir R. Bennet, M.D., speaks thus: “In this instance
we have probably a case of progressive paralysis, attended by muscular spasms,
and involving the respiratory movements, where death is manifestly imminent and
inevitable. In such a case there would be symptoms indicative of great
distress, as well as immediate danger to life.” As to palsy generally,
see pp. 175, 183.] c 4 And they, when they came to
Jesus, besought him earnestly, saying, He is worthy that thou shouldest do this
for him; 5 for he loveth our nation, and himself built us our
synagogue. [The centurion evidently believed in and worshiped God, but,
influenced probably by his profession, did not become a proselyte by being
circumcised and conforming entirely to the Mosaic law. He was what later Jews
would have termed a Proselyte at the Gate, and not a full-fledged Proselyte of
Righteousness. The ruins of Capernaum show the ruins of a synagogue. It was a
beautiful structure, built of white limestone, shows by its architectural
features that it was built in the time of the Herods, and there is little doubt
that it is the one which this pious Gentile erected, and in which Jesus taught
272and healed.] a 7 And he saith to him
[i. e., answering him as represented by his friends], I will
come and heal him. c 6 And Jesus went with
them. And when he was now not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to
him, a 8 And the centurion answered and
said, { c saying unto him,} Lord, trouble not thyself:
for I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof [not because his
house was a poor one, for he was evidently well to do]: 7 wherefore
neither thought I myself worthy to come unto thee: a but
only say the word, and my servant shall be healed. [The centurion, well
knowing that it was unlawful for Jews to go into the houses of the Gentiles,
lest they should sully the sanctity which they desired to maintain, wished to
spare Jesus any embarrassment. Whatever he may have thought of this custom with
regard to the Pharisees, he attributed to Jesus so high a degree of sanctity
that he accepted the doctrine as true in reference to him. The centurion showed
his great faith partly by believing that Jesus could heal by a word, but
chiefly in his lofty conception of Jesus as compared with himself. The less
faith we have, the less we esteem Jesus, and the more faith we have, the less
we esteem ourselves. As Jesus rises, we sink in the scale of our estimation.
The centurion's faith would have been wonderful enough in an Israelite, but it
was all the more wonderful when found in the bosom of a Gentile. The word
“found” suggests that Jesus came seeking faith: he will come
seeking it again (Luke xviii. 8). The
elders, little knowing the wideness of our Lord's vision and sympathy, supposed
that Jesus would look upon the splendid synagogue erected for the Jewish people
as a sufficient motive for granting their request. Even the apostles were slow
to learn that at heart Jesus knew neither Jew nor Gentile.] c
8 For I also am a man set under authority, having under myself soldiers, and
I say unto one, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to
my servant [not a soldier, but a household slave], Do this, and
he doeth it. [Having those over him, he knew how to obey, and
273
having those under him, he knew how to be obeyed. He was familiar, therefore,
with all the principles of obedience. Knowing from the healing of the
nobleman's son, or from other reports concerning Jesus, that the realm of
nature obeyed Jesus, he judged from his knowledge of earthly obedience that
Jesus had those who could come and go for him, and who could carry his messages
and enforce obedience to them. He felt that the presence of Jesus was not at
all necessary to the healing.] a 10 And when Jesus heard
it, { c these things,} he marvelled at him, and turned
and said unto a them c the
multitude that followed him, a Verily I say unto you, I
have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel. [To some it seems strange
that Jesus could marvel, but he had all the actual feelings of a man. However,
we should note that Jesus is never said to have marveled but twice. In this
case it was because of belief, and in the other (
Mark vi. 6), it was because of unbelief. Those who think that Jesus
gave or gives faith should note this fact. If Jesus had given the centurion
faith, he could not have been surprised to find that he had it; and, if he
failed to bestow it upon the people of Nazareth, it would have been
inconsistent in him to express surprise at their lack of it. It would seem,
however, irreconcilable with the character and affectionate nature of Christ,
to bestow faith in such profusion upon this Gentile stranger, and withhold
every spark of it from his near kinsmen and fellow-townsmen. Faith is no
miraculous gift. Faith means no more nor less than belief; and a man believes
the Scripture facts in the same manner and by the same processes that he
believes any other facts.] 11 And I say unto you, that many shall come from
the east and the west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob,
in the kingdom of heaven [Jesus here predicts the conversion of the
Gentiles, since that fact is suggested to him by the faith of this centurion.
The east and the west represent the extreme points of the compass in the
directions in which the world was most thickly inhabited. But Jesus refers
rather to spiritual separation than to
274geographical
distances—Mal. i. 11; Isa. xlix. 19; Jer.
xvi. 19; Zech. viii. 22.] 12 but the sons of the kingdom [The
child of anything in Hebrew phraseology expressed the idea of special property
which one has in the thing specified, as, for instance, children of
disobedience (Eph. ii. 2). Jesus here
means, then, the Jews, to whom the kingdom belonged by hereditary
descent—Rom. ix. 4] shall be
cast forth into the outer darkness: there shall be the weeping and the gnashing
of teeth. [In this paragraph Christ's kingdom is set forth under the simile
of a great feast, a familiar simile with Jesus (
Matt. xxvi. 29; Luke xxii. 30). The Jews were accustomed to speak of
the delights of the Messianic kingdom as a feast with the patriarchs (Luke xiv. 15), but lost sight of the fact that
Gentiles should share in its cheer and fellowship (
Isa. xxv. 6). Marriage feasts and other great feasts of the Jews
were usually held in the evening. Inside, therefore, there would be joy and
light and gladness, but outside there would be darkness and disappointment,
tears and bitter self-reproach (Matt. xxv.
10–13). The despised outcasts should be brought in and placed
at the festal board, while the long-invited guests—the natural and
fleshly heirs of Abraham's invitation—would be excluded (Matt. xxi. 43). Hell is absence from spiritual
light, separation from the company of the saved, lamentation and impotent
rage.] 13 And Jesus said unto the centurion, Go thy way; as thou hast
believed, so be it done unto
thee. And the servant was healed in that hour. [In the moment when Jesus
spoke, the servant was healed—not relieved, but healed.]
c 10 And they that were sent, returning to the house, found the
servant whole. [The centurion, long before this when he was building the
synagogue, had doubtless heard with delight concerning the wonderful works
wrought by the mighty prophets in the olden time; he little dreamed that his
own eyes should see them all surpassed.]
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