Mark 1:40

Cleansing a Leper

40 Then a man with a serious skin disease came to Him and, on his knees,^[a] begged Him: "If You are willing, You can make me clean."^[b]

Mark 1:40 Meaning and Commentary

Mark 1:40

And there came a leper to him
After he was come down from a certain mountain, in Galilee, where he had been preaching to the people, ( Matthew 8:1 ) , and when be was in a certain city, ( Luke 5:12 ) , either Capernaum, or some other city of Galilee. This man was full of leprosy, as Luke says, and very probably deemed incurable; of the nature and symptoms of the leprosy, (See Gill on Luke 5:12),

beseeching him;
to cure him of his leprosy:

and kneeling down to him;
in token of submission, respect, and reverence, and to worship him:

and saying unto him, if thou wilt thou canst make me clean;
(See Gill on Matthew 8:2). Mark omits the word "Lord".

Mark 1:40 In-Context

38 And He said to them, "Let's go on to the neighboring villages so that I may preach there too. This is why I have come."

39 So He went into all of Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and driving out demons.

40 Then a man with a serious skin disease came to Him and, on his knees, begged Him: "If You are willing, You can make me clean."

41 Moved with compassion, Jesus reached out His hand and touched him. "I am willing," He told him. "Be made clean."

42 Immediately the disease left him, and he was healed.

Footnotes

• [a]. Other mss omit on his knees
• [b]. In these vv., clean includes healing, ceremonial purification, return to fellowship with people, and worship in the temple; Lv 14:1-32.