And a certain woman, which had an issue of blood twelve years,
Mark 5:25 tells of a woman worn down by twelve years of bleeding that made her life a burden of pain and weakness. She had spent all she had on physicians and remedies to no avail, growing worse rather than better until she was judged incurable and near death, yet hearing of Jesus' cures revived her hope that He would pity and heal her. Pressing through the throng on His way to Jairus's dying daughter, she touched the hem of His garment believing that touch alone would make her whole, and she was instantly healed. The cure came not from the clothing itself but from firm faith laying hold of Christ's divine power, distinguished from the casual press of the crowd about Him whose mere contact received nothing. Her act pictures true Christian faith as a quiet, personal reaching out to take God at His word, which Christ recognizes and answers both in bodily infirmity and in pardon for the sin-burdened soul that calls on Him.
Narrative Context
Mark 5:25 belongs just after the return from across the sea where the demoniacs at Gadara had been healed, when Jairus, one of the rulers of the synagogue, fell at Jesus' feet and begged Him greatly to come and lay His hands on his little daughter who lay at the point of death and had been given up to die by the most learned physicians, and Jesus went with him toward his home. The verse falls on that way to Jairus's home, where Jesus paused to relieve suffering and comfort the troubled, and then urged Jairus to believe even after word came that his daughter had died, before He restored her to life.
Progress on that way was very slow because the people pressed forward on every side, eager to see the great Teacher and begging His attention and aid, while the anxious father urged through the crowd fearful of being too late, yet Jesus stopped to minister to their spiritual darkness and physical maladies. The suffering woman had come in pain and weakness to the seaside where He was teaching, seeking to press through the crowd that encompassed Him, but her way was continually hedged up by the dense throng. In timid waiting she watched for her opportunity, beginning at one point to despair of approaching Him, until as Jesus urged His way through the multitude He came within her reach. Then she silently put forth her finger to touch the hem of His garment.
The Woman's Suffering
The verse presents a woman afflicted with a discharge of blood involving bleeding that had continued for twelve long years. That grievous malady made her life a burden of pain and weakness. She had spent all her substance and means and money upon physicians and remedies in seeking a cure, but it was all in vain without relief. Her disease resisted treatment and no earthly physician's power could help her, and she was pronounced incurable, judged to be left to die, given up to die and near death.
Despite many treatments she had not improved but had grown worse and worse. She had become poor and impoverished, and her need was desperate and hopeless. She was timid and was brought near death, in part through the doctors' treatment.
When she heard of the wonderful cures effected by Jesus and saw Him healing the sick, her hope revived. She believed that if she could come into His presence He would take pity on her and heal her. She hoped to reach Christ the Healer who could help her.
Healing Through Faith
Her growing confidence that Jesus could heal her led her to believe that even touching His garment — the hem and border and edge of His clothing — would make her whole and relieve her long illness, and she improved her first opportunity to press through the multitude to reach Him. When she reached out and touched Him she was instantly relieved that moment, immediately made whole and restored to health. Unable to approach Him openly through the crowd while He was on His way to Jairus's daughter, she waited her opportunity in the dense throng until she could come within reach and put forth her finger to touch the hem. Jesus knew her need and helped her exercise that faith.
The healing came not from outward contact with the clothes, which had no healing power or virtue in themselves, but from firm and strong faith reaching out for His divine help and taking hold of Christ's divine power and of Christ Himself who wore the garment. It was faith in Christ, the One who wore it, that restored her to health, showing Him as the Mighty One and Restorer. The wondering crowd pressed close about Him with casual contact and realized no vital power from the contact, which shows that merely being near Him or coming into contact with Him is not the same as living faith. Living faith closely connects a person with Him, trusts His power to bless and heal and save, relies on His power, and opens the divine treasure-house of power and wisdom, and her purposeful touch of faith was distinguished from their casual touch.
Christ recognized that touch and knew virtue had gone out of Him, understanding the longing of her heart. Though teaching and healing with all energies of body and soul taxed to the utmost and with the great work of redemption weighing upon His soul, He was awake to the afflicted woman's least touch of faith. His ear hears every needy cry and He does not overlook the needs of the humblest of His servants, His divine nature combined with the human so finely wrought that even the slightest touch received a response. He turned in the throng to ask who touched Him and brought her forward, for He knows each person who comes to Him in faith.
He wanted her to acknowledge the blessing publicly and tell all the truth, so that her healing would not be received in secret but her grateful confession would glorify God and become a testimony to His power and grace. He brought her forward so she would know that He understood her suffering, loved her, and approved her faith, and He welcomes those who come to Him for salvation.
What Faith Means
Her reaching out pictures true Christian faith in its simple working and powerful result, a quiet taking of God at His word and reaching out to connect with the Saviour that brings blessing in return. It does not require feelings wrought up to excitement or intense emotion, nor noisy petitions, nor physical exercise and display. Jesus answers the silent prayer of faith with the peculiar touch that draws healing virtue to the soul. Even when doubt and temptation bring involuntary cries and tears, or guilt brings anguish, He hears with compassion. Cold doubt destroys confidence, and waiting for entire knowledge before believing leaves a person unblessed.
Living, personal faith that lays hold on Jesus in felt need is different from nominal faith that merely crowds about Him without connection. That nominal nearness is only casual contact, casual talk of religious things, or intellectual agreement with the Gospel without connection. Faith that brings healing to the soul is personal trust in Christ that receives Him as Saviour, relies on His merits, joins a person to God in covenant commitment, and gives the soul renewed strength.
As He deals with bodily infirmity He deals with the soul defiled by sin. The repentant soul burdened by sin that calls on Him receives pardon through the touch of faith, illustrating looking to Jesus in faith for healing from sin and receiving the life and blessing He gives. That pardon fills the soul with gratitude and joy. Every longing soul that reaches out to Him for help no one else can give will be responded to, healed and made whole, for He welcomes those who come to Him for salvation and knows each person who comes in faith.
Testimony and Christian Life
Knowing what had been done in her, she came trembling, filled with fear mingled with great joy and wondering if she had overstepped duty, fell at His feet and told all the truth. He did not reproach her but sent her away in peace and whole of her plague.
Her personal contact with Christ brought His virtue to her, and that contact prepares people for His service and kingdom. Her healing shows humanity connected with divinity receiving its blessing, because He came to bring divinity to humanity, which young and old need. Jesus knew her as He knows each person who comes to Him in faith, and though the crowd did not know she had been restored, she experienced the blessing.
He turned in the throng to give a lesson for all His followers to the close of time. Talking of religious things in a casual way, praying for spiritual blessings without real soul-hunger, and preaching without the exercise of living faith avail little and are in vain, while the touch of faith opens the divine treasure-house of power and wisdom. Living faith that knows Jesus as one's own, whose Spirit purifies and refines the heart, accomplishes through instruments of clay the wonders of His grace. This is the great need today, especially for ministers, whose work with meekness and love would bear fruit to the glory of God.
Her healing calls every helpless and dependent person to take hold of Christ by living, active faith, coming to Him just as they are and seeking that divine power for a consistent life. Her reaching for His garment remains an example of seeking help from Jesus by faith.
Mark 5:25 tells of a woman worn down by twelve years of bleeding that made her life a burden of pain and weakness. She had spent all she had on physicians and remedies to no avail, growing worse rather than better until she was judged incurable and near death, yet hearing of Jesus' cures revived her hope that He would pity and heal her. Pressing through the throng on His way to Jairus's dying daughter, she touched the hem of His garment believing that touch alone would make her whole, and she was instantly healed. The cure came not from the clothing itself but from firm faith laying hold of Christ's divine power, distinguished from the casual press of the crowd about Him whose mere contact received nothing. Her act pictures true Christian faith as a quiet, personal reaching out to take God at His word, which Christ recognizes and answers both in bodily infirmity and in pardon for the sin-burdened soul that calls on Him.
Narrative Context
Mark 5:25 belongs just after the return from across the sea where the demoniacs at Gadara had been healed, when Jairus, one of the rulers of the synagogue, fell at Jesus' feet and begged Him greatly to come and lay His hands on his little daughter who lay at the point of death and had been given up to die by the most learned physicians, and Jesus went with him toward his home. The verse falls on that way to Jairus's home, where Jesus paused to relieve suffering and comfort the troubled, and then urged Jairus to believe even after word came that his daughter had died, before He restored her to life.
Progress on that way was very slow because the people pressed forward on every side, eager to see the great Teacher and begging His attention and aid, while the anxious father urged through the crowd fearful of being too late, yet Jesus stopped to minister to their spiritual darkness and physical maladies. The suffering woman had come in pain and weakness to the seaside where He was teaching, seeking to press through the crowd that encompassed Him, but her way was continually hedged up by the dense throng. In timid waiting she watched for her opportunity, beginning at one point to despair of approaching Him, until as Jesus urged His way through the multitude He came within her reach. Then she silently put forth her finger to touch the hem of His garment.
The Woman's Suffering
The verse presents a woman afflicted with a discharge of blood involving bleeding that had continued for twelve long years. That grievous malady made her life a burden of pain and weakness. She had spent all her substance and means and money upon physicians and remedies in seeking a cure, but it was all in vain without relief. Her disease resisted treatment and no earthly physician's power could help her, and she was pronounced incurable, judged to be left to die, given up to die and near death.
Despite many treatments she had not improved but had grown worse and worse. She had become poor and impoverished, and her need was desperate and hopeless. She was timid and was brought near death, in part through the doctors' treatment.
When she heard of the wonderful cures effected by Jesus and saw Him healing the sick, her hope revived. She believed that if she could come into His presence He would take pity on her and heal her. She hoped to reach Christ the Healer who could help her.
Healing Through Faith
Her growing confidence that Jesus could heal her led her to believe that even touching His garment — the hem and border and edge of His clothing — would make her whole and relieve her long illness, and she improved her first opportunity to press through the multitude to reach Him. When she reached out and touched Him she was instantly relieved that moment, immediately made whole and restored to health. Unable to approach Him openly through the crowd while He was on His way to Jairus's daughter, she waited her opportunity in the dense throng until she could come within reach and put forth her finger to touch the hem. Jesus knew her need and helped her exercise that faith.
The healing came not from outward contact with the clothes, which had no healing power or virtue in themselves, but from firm and strong faith reaching out for His divine help and taking hold of Christ's divine power and of Christ Himself who wore the garment. It was faith in Christ, the One who wore it, that restored her to health, showing Him as the Mighty One and Restorer. The wondering crowd pressed close about Him with casual contact and realized no vital power from the contact, which shows that merely being near Him or coming into contact with Him is not the same as living faith. Living faith closely connects a person with Him, trusts His power to bless and heal and save, relies on His power, and opens the divine treasure-house of power and wisdom, and her purposeful touch of faith was distinguished from their casual touch.
Christ recognized that touch and knew virtue had gone out of Him, understanding the longing of her heart. Though teaching and healing with all energies of body and soul taxed to the utmost and with the great work of redemption weighing upon His soul, He was awake to the afflicted woman's least touch of faith. His ear hears every needy cry and He does not overlook the needs of the humblest of His servants, His divine nature combined with the human so finely wrought that even the slightest touch received a response. He turned in the throng to ask who touched Him and brought her forward, for He knows each person who comes to Him in faith.
He wanted her to acknowledge the blessing publicly and tell all the truth, so that her healing would not be received in secret but her grateful confession would glorify God and become a testimony to His power and grace. He brought her forward so she would know that He understood her suffering, loved her, and approved her faith, and He welcomes those who come to Him for salvation.
What Faith Means
Her reaching out pictures true Christian faith in its simple working and powerful result, a quiet taking of God at His word and reaching out to connect with the Saviour that brings blessing in return. It does not require feelings wrought up to excitement or intense emotion, nor noisy petitions, nor physical exercise and display. Jesus answers the silent prayer of faith with the peculiar touch that draws healing virtue to the soul. Even when doubt and temptation bring involuntary cries and tears, or guilt brings anguish, He hears with compassion. Cold doubt destroys confidence, and waiting for entire knowledge before believing leaves a person unblessed.
Living, personal faith that lays hold on Jesus in felt need is different from nominal faith that merely crowds about Him without connection. That nominal nearness is only casual contact, casual talk of religious things, or intellectual agreement with the Gospel without connection. Faith that brings healing to the soul is personal trust in Christ that receives Him as Saviour, relies on His merits, joins a person to God in covenant commitment, and gives the soul renewed strength.
As He deals with bodily infirmity He deals with the soul defiled by sin. The repentant soul burdened by sin that calls on Him receives pardon through the touch of faith, illustrating looking to Jesus in faith for healing from sin and receiving the life and blessing He gives. That pardon fills the soul with gratitude and joy. Every longing soul that reaches out to Him for help no one else can give will be responded to, healed and made whole, for He welcomes those who come to Him for salvation and knows each person who comes in faith.
Testimony and Christian Life
Knowing what had been done in her, she came trembling, filled with fear mingled with great joy and wondering if she had overstepped duty, fell at His feet and told all the truth. He did not reproach her but sent her away in peace and whole of her plague.
Her personal contact with Christ brought His virtue to her, and that contact prepares people for His service and kingdom. Her healing shows humanity connected with divinity receiving its blessing, because He came to bring divinity to humanity, which young and old need. Jesus knew her as He knows each person who comes to Him in faith, and though the crowd did not know she had been restored, she experienced the blessing.
He turned in the throng to give a lesson for all His followers to the close of time. Talking of religious things in a casual way, praying for spiritual blessings without real soul-hunger, and preaching without the exercise of living faith avail little and are in vain, while the touch of faith opens the divine treasure-house of power and wisdom. Living faith that knows Jesus as one's own, whose Spirit purifies and refines the heart, accomplishes through instruments of clay the wonders of His grace. This is the great need today, especially for ministers, whose work with meekness and love would bear fruit to the glory of God.
Her healing calls every helpless and dependent person to take hold of Christ by living, active faith, coming to Him just as they are and seeking that divine power for a consistent life. Her reaching for His garment remains an example of seeking help from Jesus by faith.