Matthew 8
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CHAPTER 8
The Man With Leprosy (8:1-4)
(Mark 1:40-45; Luke 5:12-16)
1-4 See Mark 1:40-45 and comment.
The Faith of the Centurion (8:5-13)
(Luke 7:1-10)
5-6 As Jesus entered Capernaum, a city on the north shore of the Sea of Galilee, a centurion in the Roman army came to Jesus to ask Him to heal his servant. According to the corresponding passage in Luke 7:3-5, the centurion first sent some elders of the Jews to Jesus. The centurion, being a Roman Gentile, was afraid to come to Jesus, who was a Jew.39 These Jewish elders told Jesus that this centurion was a worthy Gentile. “He loves our nation and has built our synagogue,” they said to Jesus (Luke 7:5).
7-9 As Jesus was going with the elders, some friends of the centurion also came with a further message for Jesus, which is recorded in Luke 7:6-8. Then the centurion himself came to Jesus and repeated the message himself.40
The centurion said to Jesus, “You don’t need to come yourself to my house. I am not worthy. I am a Gentile sinner. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed” (verse 8). The centurion recognized that Jesus had authority. The centurion himself knew about authority. Just as he had authority over the soldiers under him, so he knew that Jesus would have the authority to heal.
10 Jesus was amazed at the centurion’s faith.41 The centurion not only believed that Jesus could heal, but that He could heal at a distance. Jesus had not yet found such faith in Israel,42 that is, among the Jews.
11-12 This centurion was a forerunner of those Gentiles who would later believe in Jesus and receive salvation. Jesus said that many will come from the east and the west—that is, the Gentiles—and will be welcome in the kingdom of heaven (verse 11). Jesus described the kingdom of heaven as a feast. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the first three ancestors of the Jews, would also be there. But the Jews of Jesus’ time would not be invited, even though they were subjects of the kingdom—that is, sons of Abraham according to the flesh. They would lose their place at the feast, because they had rejected Jesus, the Messiah. They will be thrown outside, into the darkness, that is, into hell (see Luke 13:2829). Only those who believe will be invited to the feast. Only those who believe in Christ are the true subjects of the kingdom, the true sons of Abraham (see Galavians 3:7-8,29 and comment).
13 Then Jesus healed the servant from afar. He did not even lay hands on him.
Jesus Heals Many (8:14-17)
(Mark 1:29-34; Luke 4:38-41)
14-17 See Mark 1:29-34 and comment.
The Cost of Following Jesus (8:18-22)
(Luke 9:57-62)
18-20 There are many who are at first willing to follow Jesus, but who do not realize that it means walking on the “narrow road” (Matthew 7:14). The person who follows Jesus must be ready to deny himself (see Mark 8:34 and comment). He must also count the cost of being a disciple of Jesus (see Luke 14:26-32 and comment). To be a disciple one must give up everything he has (Luke 14:33). The disciple possibly may not even have a place to lay his head, much less a home to live in. The cost of following Jesus is very high.
21-22 One of Jesus’ disciples then asked permission to go and bury his father. Perhaps the father was not yet dead, and the disciple wanted to return home in order to receive his inheritance.
Jesus said, “… let the dead bury their own dead.” In other words, let the spiritually dead take care of the things of this world. Those who are spiritually alive, who have been called to be disciples, must first do the work of the kingdom of God. The work of the kingdom of God is urgent. Nothing else can come before it (see Matthew 10:37-38).
Jesus does not teach here that disciples don’t have to honor their parents. Usually it is possible to follow Jesus and also fulfill our responsibility to our family. But when we cannot do both, we must put Jesus above our family.
Then, according to Luke 9:61-62, a third man came to Jesus and said, “I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say good-bye to my family.” Jesus knew the man’s heart. He knew that the man was still greatly attached to his family. The man wanted to follow Jesus, but not with all his heart. Jesus said to him, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”
Like a farmer plowing his field, a follower of Jesus must look only ahead. He must have a single goal. He must never seek to return to his old life. Lot’s wife looked back and was turned to a pillar of salt (Genesis 19:15-17,23-26). The Jews, after escaping from Egypt, grumbled against God and desired to go back to Egypt; and so, because of their grumbling and looking back, God destroyed them (Numbers 14:1-4,26-29).
Jesus Calms the Storm (8:23-27)
(Mark 4:35-41; Luke 8:22-25)
23-27 See Mark 4:35-41 and comment.
The Healing of Two Demon-possessed Men (8:28-34)
(Mark 5:1-20; Luke 8:26-39)
28-34 See Mark 5:1-20 and comment.