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Matthew 8:1-4

In the eighth and ninth chapters of his gospel, Matthew records a series of miraculous works that were
accomplished by Jesus during His ministry. In order for us to begin with the right perspective on this
section of Matthew, we need to refresh our memories on some things we have learned, concerning this
gospel.

First of all, who did Matthew write his gospel for - what people were the immediate intended audience?
The Jews; especially, the Hellenist Jews born throughout the Roman Empire.

So Matthew’s perspective in his gospel is upon Jesus as Israel’s Messiah - their long-awaited Deliverer -
their King. His record would serve to strengthen the faith of those Jews who had already believed, as well
as to convince those Jews who had not yet heard the truth concerning Jesus of Nazareth.

But Matthew’s gospel was also intended to show that Jesus is not just the Messiah of Israel; He is the
Savior of - what? The whole world. Matthew will bring out how the gospel was to be extended to the
Gentiles, also - so that they might be included as the people of God.

Because Matthew was intending his account for a principally Jewish audience, he begins with the
genealogy of Jesus. This is His legal line of descent as the adopted son of Joseph, which gave Him a
legitimate claim to the royal throne of David - something Israel’s Messiah must have.

Matthew next lays out that the conception, birth and early life of Jesus fulfilled the OT prophecies
concerning Messiah.

Then Matthew advances to the baptism of Jesus, showing it to be the anointing of God for His ministry - as
the Sin Bearer, for mankind. The temptation by the devil reveals the Anointed Sin-Bearer to be without sin
- and therefore to be the acceptable sacrifice, for the sin of the world.

Turn to Matthew chapter 4. After the calling of several disciples, Jesus then began His ministry. Where
does Matthew show to be the setting for the ministry of Jesus; what region of Israel? Galilee - sometimes
called Galilee of the Gentiles, both because of its mixture of peoples, as well as its proximity to purely
Gentile regions.

You might remember that in general, Matthew arranged his gospel to show a geographical progression -
with Jesus growing up and coming into His ministry in Galilee, and continuing to minister there, far from
the religious heart of Israel, Jerusalem.

Matthew portrays Jesus as an outsider to the religious establishment, emerging out of obscurity, but then
coming into full view as Israel’s Messiah, for those who are willing to see.

The movement of Jesus toward Jerusalem parallels the increasing hostility toward Him by the religious
rulers. This culminates in their rejection of Him, as they orchestrate His death. God is then seen to
overrule their judgment of Jesus through raising Him from the dead, followed by the extension of Jesus’
mission beyond Israel to the Gentiles.

At the end of chapter 4, Matthew provides a summary statement concerning the ministry of Jesus, in
Galilee. Let’s read this again.
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[Matthew 4:23-24] Summing this up even further, we could say the ministry of Jesus was teaching,
preaching, and healing.

Matthew then gave a sampling of the preaching and teaching of Jesus - in what is called the “Sermon on the
Mount” - the words of Jesus to a multitude of those following Him. We have seen in this the wisdom of
God, as Jesus showed the unbelieving Jews what it would actually take for them to keep the Law - which
they would have to do perfectly, in order to enter the kingdom of God.

Interspersed throughout the discourse are numerous exhortations made by Jesus for the Jews to instead
repent of their sins, and cast themselves upon Him to save them - the Rock of their Salvation.

Now turn to the end of chapter 7. This was the response of the Jews, listening that day to Jesus.

[Matthew 7:28-29] Well, the people recognized the authority of Jesus - the wisdom of the teaching,
reflecting the absolute truth of God. And they were astonished by this - because it was so unlike what they
were used to hearing from their religious teachers, who just based their rulings subjectively on traditions of
the elders - interpretations of interpretations.

But does this mean that they put their faith in Jesus? No; believing is more than an intellectual assent, more
than an emotional reaction. Believing is a decision of the will, by which each of them would entrust their
lives to Jesus, as their Savior - their Rock. We are left without knowing what they chose to do.

But what we are left with is another confirmation by Matthew of Jesus as the Messiah - based on the
amazing wisdom and authority of His words. And that brings us to chapter 8 and 9, with the understanding
that now, Matthew intends to further establish the identity of Jesus as Messiah - this time, on the basis of
His miraculous works.

Now at first glance, it might seem that Matthew has just compiled various miracles that Jesus did during
His ministry, in no particular order. But there is an organization to how Matthew arranged them - although
it is not chronological. Instead, we’ll see that the miracles are grouped as displays of specific powers of
Jesus - and that the miracles reflect a certain spiritual significance.

Perhaps the easiest way to see that they have spiritual significance is to consider verse 17 of chapter 8.
There Matthew indicates that the casting out of demons and the healings which Jesus performed were a
fulfillment of a prophecy of Isaiah. I’ll go ahead and read from verse 16.

[Matthew 8:16-17] Now, that verse is from Isaiah 53. The prophecy speaks of Messiah being the Servant
of Jehovah as the Sin-Bearer in the stead of men.

So in Isaiah’s context, the infirmities and sicknesses are metaphorical for the sins of people, which Messiah
would take upon Himself. Matthew was inspired by the Holy Spirit to apply this quite literally to Jesus
taking the infirmities and sicknesses from people, as He miraculously healed them.

This implies that the miracles which Matthew presents have a spiritual dimension to be considered, by
those who are looking to see it. So this will be something we will be looking to see, as we consider these
miracles, selected from the many, many miracles done by Jesus that Matthew was privileged to witness.
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Between his accounts of the miracles, Matthew shows the reactions of different individuals and groups to
Jesus - the crowd, the disciples, the scribes, the Pharisees. And in those reactions, we begin to see the
development of some opposition, to Jesus. Many are following Jesus; but few actually continue as His
followers.

Matthew records ten specific miracles, in these chapters. The first three relate to the power of Jesus to heal
- a leper, a centurion’s servant, and the mother of Peter’s wife. We’ll be considering just the leper today.

[Matthew 8:1-4]

We have the sense from Matthew’s account that the great multitudes following Jesus were those who had
been listening to His teaching, in the hill country near the Sea of Galilee. But it could have been some other
occasion of teaching, for crowds had begun to routinely gather around Jesus. By now, Jesus had gained a
reputation and a following - those who were listening and watching Him - at least they were, for now.

We can assume that Jesus had outpaced the crowd to some extent, because otherwise the leper could not
have gotten near Him. If a leper presumed to approach any of the general public, it would never have been
tolerated. Likewise, no leper would be found in a town or village. Lepers were to keep their distance, from
other people; they were outcasts, from society.

Leprosy is spoken of in both the OT and the NT. It appears from the usage of the word in both the Hebrew
and the Greek languages that Biblical “leprosy” referred to a broad scope of debilitating skin diseases.
Leprosy as we know it today - called Hansen’s disease - was certainly intended and included within this
category of diseases.

In the Hebrew, the word translated “leprosy” is derived from a word that means “smitten”. The idea is that
this disease came to be viewed like a plague, inflicted by the LORD; and occasionally, it was (Num 12:10, 2
Chr 26:19). In the Greek, the word is derived from one that means “scaly”, which describes the quality of
the skin lesions that it causes.

These ulcerous skin lesions are not the extent of Hansen’s disease, however. They are just the outward
manifestation of it.

Hansen’s disease - commonly called leprosy - also affects the peripheral nervous system. It eventually
spreads throughout the body, becoming established particularly in the extremities - hands, feet, face, and
earlobes. There, it disfigures the skin and bones, twists limbs, and causes the fingers to form a
characteristic claw hand.

Because leprosy damages the nerves, the affected areas develop an insensitivity to pain, which can result in
self-injury - and the loss of fingers and toes, hands and feet - even the ears and nose.

Leprosy generally progresses very slowly; people can live with the disease for several decades. Today, a
powerful and lengthy antibiotic regimen can arrest the disease, if it hasn’t progressed too far. But in ancient
times, leprosy was considered incurable, other than by an act of God.

It was a disease of indescribable misery. Dying was piecemeal, but when it came in full, death no doubt
brought relief, to the leper. You can see why leprosy was considered to be the most dreaded and terrifying
disease of ancient times.
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Because more than one person in a family could contract the disease, leprosy was thought by many to be
hereditary. But in modern times, it has been demonstrated that leprosy is caused by a bacterium - and it is
somewhat contagious, through inhalation of nasal droplets.

Of course, the LORD always knew that leprosy is contagious - and so we are not surprised to learn that the
LORD instituted regulations in the Law given to Israel to monitor and detect this disease, as well as to
protect His people from contracting it. We find this in the book of Leviticus, in chapter 13. Let’s turn back
there, and look at a few highlights.

This chapter contains what is known as the law of leprosy. How many verses are in it? Fifty-nine!

Remember that the word for “leprosy” actually encompasses many debilitating skin conditions. This law
appointed the priests as the ones to determine if the skin condition was a malignant one - that is, one which
could infect other people with a serious disease - such as the Hansen’s leprosy.

The appearance of various lesions are described in detail - would you like to read about them? I didn’t
think so; I’ll just sum it up for us, okay?

Because of the nature of Hansen’s leprosy, with the body essentially rotting away, it was characterized by
the LORD not as a disease, but as an uncleanness; something defiling to oneself and to others - similar to the
defilement caused by a corpse.

The LORD indicated in this law which lesions were clean, and which were unclean - such as the plague of
leprosy, the dreaded Hansen’s disease. At times, the lesion was not definitive; in that case, the LORD had the
person quarantined by the priest, until the matter was clear.

But if the determination was made, immediately or eventually, that the person did indeed have the plague of
leprosy (Hansen’s disease), he was declared unclean; defiled; and he could no longer dwell with the people
of God. In verse 45, we learn of how the leper was to live, after that.

[Leviticus 13:45-46]

You can see how the LORD in His wisdom protected His people. Because Hansen’s leprosy was infectious,
and because it was such a devastating disease, the LORD had the leper isolated from society - so that others
would not contract it.

In addition, the LORD had the leper wear distinguishing clothing - it was torn, reflecting his compromised,
ulcerated skin. And his head was not bare, as translated here, but neglected - that is, he did not cut or groom
his hair, but left it disheveled - much as someone in mourning would do.

And in a sense, the leper was in perpetual mourning - for himself, as the living dead. The torn clothing and
unkempt hair marked the leper out, so that people would stay away from him.

Notice also that the leper was to cover his mustache - that would cover his nose and mouth, by which the
disease was spread - which of course only the LORD knew, at that time. And finally, in case someone didn’t
observe those distinguishing markers, the LORD had the leper cry out, as well - that he was unclean, unclean.
You can see that the LORD had a heart for His people, to keep them safe.

But what about the poor leper? Well, as long as he had leprosy, he was considered unclean; and would his
leprosy go away? It was incurable, in that day.
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The leper was a permanent outcast, from the people of God; so unless there was a miracle, he could never
reenter society. Sometimes lepers dwelt alone, sometimes in colonies, living in tents or caves. There was
no other disease that resulted in this permanent separation from normal, healthy people. The leper was in a
continual state of suffering and shame. No wonder the disease was regarded with such horror.

Now, the Law made no provision for the cleansing of a leper, but only to declare him unclean. On the other
hand, the Law did declare someone clean whose skin disease proved not to be Hansen’s leprosy, or
someone who was perhaps miraculously healed of it. We’ll see that as we look into Leviticus chapter 14.

The curious thing about this passage in Leviticus 13 is that it also describes the leprous plague of a garment
- or of a house. Now, the bacterium that causes actual leprosy as we know it - Hansen’s disease - needs a
living host. It cannot “infect” inanimate objects, such as these. The more likely agent here was some kind
of mold.

So what is the significance of the priest declaring such things as houses and garments unclean? Here we
see the Law is taking on ceremonial significance. Molds can infect dwelling places and garments. Leprosy
infects the dwelling place of man - his body - the garment of his soul. The common idea is of things that
infect from the outside, and then defile what is within.

This gives a hint as to a deeper, spiritual significance to leprosy. It is a powerful symbol of sin - of its
destructive power.

Who is infected with the sickness of sin? Every man born into this world. Like leprosy, sin starts small,
but then tends to spread, leading to other sins; uncleanness; lawlessness, leading to more lawlessness (Rm
6:19).

Now, the Law will detect sin-sickness; but does the Law contain any power to cleanse from it? None. The
Law just condemns the one who is sin-sick - judges them unfit to be one of God’s people - like the leper.

Sin-sickness brings defilement, and shame, and the corruption of death - that slow but inexorable process,
as the body ages and decays - our dwelling, ever so temporary; our garment, dissolving a bit more every
day.

Remember also that leprosy affects the nerves, rendering parts of the body insensitive, so that the person
winds up harming himself. Likewise, the sinner becomes increasingly insensitive to his sin, as he
continues in it - searing his conscience (1 Tim 4:2).

And the sinner does continue in it, because that how he serves himself; his selfish desires. But as he
continues, he is storing up for himself wrath in the day of wrath (Rm 2:5) - great harm. Sin sickness is an
incurable disease - apart from an act of God.

But God did act, didn’t He? God so loved this sin-sick world, that He sent His one and only Son - so that
men might be cleansed of their sin-sickness. And that’s what we’ll see in the cleansing of the leper, as we
return now to Matthew chapter 8.

[Return to Matthew 8]

So we have seen that Jesus would have been ahead of the crowd following Him, in order for this leper to
come up to Him. No doubt, the crowd would have shooed the leper away; but not Jesus.
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Matthew marks the outcast’s arrival: “Behold, a leper” - giving us the sense of surprise and wonder, that a
leper would have approached Jesus - the One who knew no sin (2 Cor 5:21); the spotless Lamb of God,
approached by arguably the most unclean living member of society.

And what did the leper do, when he got to Jesus (v. 2)? He worshiped Him. We might assume that in
doing this, the leper was worshiping Jesus as God; but the Greek word for “worship” can simply mean to
prostrate oneself before a superior.

The parallel accounts in Mark and Luke bear out that this is what the leper was doing; the leper knelt before
Jesus, and fell on his face (Mk 1:40; Lk 5:12). The leper was utterly humbling himself before Jesus,
pleading for His help.

Then the leper addressed Jesus as “Lord”. Again, we might think that this indicates the leper was
acknowledging Jesus as God; but “Lord” can simply be a title of respect, which one would certainly use
with a rabbi; a Jewish teacher.

Had the leper heard the teaching of Jesus? It’s very unlikely. He could never be part of a crowd listening to
Jesus, could he? Nor could he enter a town or a village where Jesus was preaching. So the leper may never
have heard Jesus teach - or seen Him heal anyone, for that matter.

But the leper would certainly have heard of Jesus; Matthew had written that the report of Jesus went
throughout the entire region. And though lepers were required to keep at least six feet away from any
person, that’s still close enough to share the local news.

This leper had not only heard of Jesus - this leper believed what he heard. He believed it so much that he
was willing to risk violating the Law and creating a public disturbance, in order to come close enough to
Jesus, to beg Him for His healing.

But is that what the leper said? No; he asked to be made clean - clean from his defiling, corrupting, rotting
disease.

Did you notice that the leper didn’t doubt that Jesus was able to do it? The leper didn’t ask, “Can You make
me clean?”; instead he said, “if You are willing - You can”. The leper knew Jesus could do it. The leper
just didn’t know if Jesus was willing.

But who can make clean of leprosy? In that day, it would take an act of God. And this is where we see that
the leper did indeed believe that Jesus was the Anointed Son of God; the Messiah of Israel (Is 61:1-3, Ps 2),
and therefore had the power to cleanse him. The leper was just hoping that Jesus was willing to cleanse
him.

Hope becomes a certainty when it is well-placed. The leper had placed his hope squarely on Jesus,
believing Him to be God; and hope would not disappoint (Rm 5:5).

I love that Mark makes mention of the fact that Jesus was moved with compassion (Mk 1:41). The leper
touched His heart of love, and so the heart of Jesus arose to meet the leper’s need, in response: “I am
willing; be cleansed”. And what did Jesus do, as He uttered this? He stretched out His hand, and touched
the leper.

The world would have been horrified. Jesus risked contracting the dread disease of leprosy.
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And imagine if there were any Pharisees present; they would have been especially horrified, those who
were so concerned over their ceremonial purity. They would view Jesus as having defiled Himself; He was
utterly unclean.

And what about the Law? The Law said that lepers were supposed to be kept separate from God’s people;
the touch of Jesus had violated the law of leprosy, separating clean from unclean.

Or had it? For the moment that Jesus touched the leper, Matthew says, immediately, his leprosy was
cleansed. The expectation was that the leper would make Jesus unclean. Instead, what happened? Jesus
made the leper clean.

And that’s a picture, isn’t it? - of what Jesus would do for every unclean sinner, on the cross. He who knew
no sin would be made sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God, in Him (2 Cor 5:21).

Through the union of faith, Jesus touched us - He took our uncleanness upon Himself, as our Sin-Bearer;
and He gave us His righteous life in exchange. That’s how Jesus made us clean - through His death - and
how we continue to be clean - through His life.

But what about the leper? He was cleansed in body - but certainly, he was also cleansed in his soul of spirit
life - cleansed of sin. It’s the complete work of God, to make men whole, complete - spirit, soul and body
(1 Thes 5:23).

Now, even in our day, if someone is cured of leprosy, the damage that their body has already incurred
cannot be reversed - such as if they have lost fingers or toes, or had developed twisted limbs.

Do you think that this leper’s disease was merely halted by Jesus? No way, right? He was made
completely well, in his body. It would have been an incredible miracle, to see - and even more, to
experience. And if you experienced it, you would just want to tell everyone what Jesus had done for you.

But what does Jesus say, in verse 4? See that you tell no one. Why not? Because according to the law of
leprosy, the leper must first undergo ceremonial cleansing, and the priest must declared him cleansed,
before he can rejoin society.

As mentioned before, the Law does not make any provision for cleansing a leper - it had no power to do
that. But the Law does command what to do if the leper has somehow been made clean - say, by an act of
God.

Leviticus chapter 14 describes the ceremonial cleansing of a leper. It is full of imagery - so full, that we
will have to spend another study, just to explore its beautiful meaning.

Reading: Matt 8:1-4; Lev 13-14; Ex 17:1-7; John 7:37-39; Heb 9:11-22.