Matthew · chapter 9 of 28
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Matthew 9 shows Jesus forgiving the sins of a paralytic and healing him, calling the tax collector Matthew and eating with sinners. He then answers a question about fasting, heals a woman with a flow of blood, raises a ruler's daughter, gives sight to two blind men and, seeing the crowds as sheep without a shepherd, asks his disciples to pray for workers for the harvest.
After the miracles of chapter 8, Matthew 9 continues to show the authority of Jesus and adds authority to forgive sins. At the same time opposition grows, as the scribes and Pharisees question Jesus for forgiving, for eating with sinners and because his disciples do not fast. The chapter ends with the compassion of Jesus for the crowd.
Jesus returns to his own city, where people bring him a paralytic on a bed. Seeing their faith, he tells the man his sins are forgiven. Some scribes think he is blaspheming. Jesus asks which is easier, to say your sins are forgiven or to say rise and walk, and so that they may know the Son of Man has authority to forgive sins, he tells the paralytic to get up and go home. The man rises, and the crowd glorifies God.
Jesus sees Matthew sitting at the tax booth and tells him to follow him; Matthew gets up and follows. As Jesus eats with tax collectors and sinners, the Pharisees object. Jesus answers that the healthy do not need a physician but the sick do, and that he came to call not the righteous but sinners. John's disciples ask why they fast while his disciples do not; he answers that wedding guests cannot mourn while the bridegroom is with them.
A ruler kneels and says his daughter has just died. Jesus goes with him. On the way, a woman who had suffered a flow of blood for twelve years touches the fringe of his cloak; Jesus turns and tells her that her faith has made her well. At the house he says the girl is not dead but sleeping; the people laugh at him, but he takes her by the hand and she rises.
Two blind men follow him calling him Son of David, and according to their faith their eyes are opened. Then he heals a mute man possessed by a demon; the crowds marvel, but the Pharisees say he casts out demons by the prince of demons. Jesus goes through the cities and villages, and when he sees the crowds he has compassion, because they were harassed like sheep without a shepherd. He says the harvest is plentiful but the workers few, and asks them to pray the Lord of the harvest to send out workers.
References follow ESV book names and verse numbers. Read each verse in your Bible before the explanation.
Jesus heals the paralytic to show that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins. The visible healing confirms the invisible authority, and Jesus presents himself with an authority the scribes attributed to God alone.
Jesus answers that the healthy do not need a physician but the sick do, and that he came to call sinners. He quotes Hosea: I desire mercy, not sacrifice. Whoever thinks himself righteous does not hear the call, and the one who admits his need is welcome.
Jesus turns to the woman who had touched his cloak, addresses her tenderly and tells her that her faith has made her well. She sought a hidden touch and receives a personal word that restores her before the community.
Jesus has compassion on the crowd, like sheep without a shepherd, and asks his disciples to pray for workers for the harvest. The need of the people moves the heart of Jesus and calls his disciples to pray and to take part.
6 questions with answers and references, ready for Sunday school, small group or a Bible quiz night.
Answer: That his sins were forgiven. — Matthew 9:2
Answer: He rose and followed him. — Matthew 9:9
Answer: That the healthy do not need a physician but the sick do, and that he came to call sinners. — Matthew 9:11-13
Answer: Twelve years. — Matthew 9:20
Answer: That the girl was not dead but sleeping. — Matthew 9:24
Answer: Compassion, because they were helpless like sheep without a shepherd; he asked them to pray the Lord of the harvest to send out workers. — Matthew 9:36-38
Jesus begins with what is deepest: forgiveness, before physical healing. In a small group you can remember that each person's greatest need is to be reconciled to God, and that Jesus welcomes the one who admits being sick without disguising it.
The chapter ends with an uncomfortable invitation: the harvest is great and the workers few. Before asking for more, Jesus commands prayer. Ask who near you seems helpless and what you can do this week to bring them closer to Jesus, starting by praying for them.
Matthew 9 presents Jesus forgiving, calling, healing and showing compassion while the opposition of the Pharisees grows. In chapter 10 he sends out his twelve disciples with authority to announce the kingdom, as a response to the need for workers for the harvest.
Because forgiving sins was considered God's prerogative, and Jesus did it on his own authority. His hearers were right that only God forgives; what they did not see was that Jesus acted with divine authority. Matthew shows that the healing confirms that authority.
Tax collectors were despised for collaborating with Rome and often for collecting more than was due. Jesus ate with them to call them to repentance and to show that the kingdom opens to those who know their need. He did not approve of their sin; he drew near in order to heal.
Christian tradition from ancient times attributes the Gospel to Matthew, one of the twelve, and identifies him with this tax collector. The text of the Gospel itself does not name its author. If this is about his own life, it may explain the brief and sober way he narrates his call.