Mark 5:40
And they laughed him to scorn. But when he had put them all out, he taketh the father and the mother of the damsel, and them that were with him, and entereth in where the damsel was lying. And they laughed him to scorn. But when he had put them all out, he taketh the father and the mother of the damsel, and them that were with him, and entereth in where the damsel was lying.
Jesus went to the home of Jairus, a ruler of the synagogue whose little daughter lay dying after physicians had given her up, slowing His steps through the pressing crowd to minister on the way while the anxious father feared delay.
When He said she was sleeping and not dead, the mourners who had seen her die laughed Him to scorn in indignation, so He put the grieving unbelievers out and entered where she lay with only her father and mother and Peter, James, and John.
There He restored her to life at her bedside, yet to mortal life still subject to death and decay like the son of the widow of Nain and Lazarus.
This stands apart from those raised at His own resurrection to everlasting life to ascend with Him as trophies of victory over death, nevermore to see death or sorrow.
His clearing of the room teaches that prayer for the sick should be apart from unbelievers in a private place, and His care for her need for food afterward shows thoughtful attention to even the smallest bodily necessities.
Setting and Miracle Action
This moment belongs to the healing of Jairus' daughter after the return from healing the demoniacs at Gadara. Jairus, a ruler of the synagogue, fell at Jesus' feet and begged Him to come and lay hands on his little daughter who lay at the point of death after the most learned physicians had given her up to die. Jesus went with him toward his home, His progress slowed by the pressing crowd while He stopped to minister to their spiritual darkness and physical maladies as the anxious father feared being too late. It belongs to the account of raising the dead at Capernaum, one of His remarkable works that the disciples remembered when they returned to Galilee.
The mourners in the house laughed Him to scorn when He said the girl was sleeping and not dead. They did so because they had seen her die. They were indignant when He told them to stop lamenting.
Jesus cleared the house by putting them all out, ordering the grieving, laughing, unbelieving mourners to leave. He then entered in where the damsel was lying with only her father and mother and them that were with Him. That small company was her parents and a few faithful disciples, specifically Peter, James, and John. By thus limiting who witnessed the event to that small group, He approached her bedside and restored her to life, setting the scene for raising Jairus' daughter from the dead.
Mortal Return Not Immortality
The raising in this verse belongs to the ministry work of raising the ruler's daughter, Jairus' daughter, back to life. Her return was a return to mortal life, not a clothing with immortality. After being raised she was still subject to death and decay, like the son of the widow of Nain and Lazarus. This stands in contrast to those who came forth from the grave at Christ's own resurrection, who were raised to everlasting life to ascend with Him as trophies of His victory over death, redeemed from Satan's captivity to be where He is, nevermore to see death or experience sorrow.
Lessons for Prayer and Care
Jesus putting the unbelieving crowd out before entering the room where the girl lay, with her parents and those accompanying Him, is the pattern for prayer for the sick, that the elders should pray apart from unbelievers, in a private room. Even while the great work of redemption weighed constantly on His soul and taxed body and soul to the utmost in teaching and healing, He noticed the most simple things in human life, heard every needy cry, and did not overlook the needs of the humblest. His divine nature combined with the human was so finely wrought that the least touch of faith brought a response, and this teaches order and economy and attention to little things for nurses and physicians to follow. After putting the laughing mourners out and entering the room with Jairus and the girl's mother and the disciples who were with Him, His attention to the girl's ordinary need for food after raising her from the dead, reminding her parents she must have something to eat, shows careful, thoughtful concern for bodily life and even small, practical necessities.