Luke 8:55

55 She was up in an instant, up and breathing again! He told them to give her something to eat.

Luke 8:55 Meaning and Commentary

Luke 8:55

And her spirit came again
Her soul, which was departed from her, upon the all-powerful voice of Christ, returned to her body; and "re-entered", as the Ethiopic version adds: this shows that the soul is immortal, and dies not with the body; that it exists in a separate state from it after death, and will hereafter re-enter the body, and be again united to it in the resurrection, of which this instance was a kind of pledge and emblem: where her spirit was during this time of separation, is needless, and would be curious and rash to inquire; it is enough to say with the Scripture, that it had returned, to God, that gave it, ( Ecclesiastes 12:7 ) and by whom it was sent back to its body again:

and she arose straightway:
from off the bed, and as Mark says, "walked"; for she was at an age capable of it, and which actions of arising and walking, clearly proved that she was alive, and in health:

and he commanded to give her meat;
which was done, partly to show, not only that she was alive, but that her disorder was removed, and her appetite restored, and that she could eat and drink, as she had done before her illness; and partly, to observe that she was raised not to an immortal life, as none were before Christ, but to an animate life, which was to be supported by eating and drinking, and so a mortal one; (See Gill on Mark 5:43).

Luke 8:55 In-Context

53 They laughed at him. They knew she was dead.
54 Then Jesus, gripping her hand, called, "My dear child, get up."
55 She was up in an instant, up and breathing again! He told them to give her something to eat.
56 Her parents were ecstatic, but Jesus warned them to keep quiet. "Don't tell a soul what happened in this room."
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.