Tour of Galilee, Matthew 4:23-25; Mark 1:35-39; Luke 4:42-44

Matthew 4:23 Jesus was going throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the [a]gospel of the kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness among the people. 24 The news about Him spread throughout all Syria; and they brought to Him all who were ill, those suffering with various diseases and pains, demoniacs, [b]epileptics, paralytics; and He healed them. 25 Large crowds followed Him from Galilee and the Decapolis and Jerusalem and Judea and from beyond the Jordan.

Mark 1:35 In the early morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house, and went away to a secluded place, and was praying there. 36 Simon and his companions searched for Him; 37 they found Him, and *said to Him, “Everyone is looking for You.” 38 He *said to them, “Let us go somewhere else to the towns nearby, so that I may [a]preach there also; for that is what I came for.” 39 And He went into their synagogues throughout all Galilee, [b]preaching and casting out the demons.

Luke 4:42 When day came, Jesus left and went to a secluded place; and the crowds were searching for Him, and came to Him and tried to keep Him from going away from them. 43 But He said to them, “I must preach the kingdom of God to the other cities also, for I was sent for this purpose.” 44 So He kept on preaching in the synagogues of [a]Judea.

Footnotes (Matthew)

a. Matthew 4:23 Or good news

b. Matthew 4:24 Lit moonstruck

Footnotes (Mark)

a. Mark 1:38 Or proclaim

b. Mark 1:39 Or proclaiming

Footnotes (Luke)

a. Luke 4:44 e. the country of the Jews (including Galilee)

Commentary

Though Jesus was touring from town to town, He was also followed by people from many of the surrounding areas, as we see in Matthew 4:25. We have taken some time studying the geography of Galilee and Judea, but since the Decapolis may be unfamiliar, I wanted to touch on that briefly. The term Decapolis is used in Matthew and Mark, as well as the writings of the historians Pliny and Josephus, and it indicates an area of ten cities, which included Damascus, Raphana, Hippos, Kanatha, Dion, Gadara, Scythopolis, Pella, Gerasa, and Philadelphia (The Zondervan Pictorial Encyclopedia of the Bible, Vol 2 pg. 81). Here’s a helpful map to show how widespread the area of the Decapolis was, especially in comparison to the region where Jesus was travelling, which was primarily along the shores of the Sea of Galilee, as well as to the North and West (https://atlastours.net/jordan/the-decapolis/). In that map, you can also see Judea to the Southwest, and you can start to understand how far people came to see Jesus, remembering, for example, that the royal official whose son was healed took more than one day to travel back from Cana to Capernaum (see a close-up of the Sea of Galilee for a view of those two cities https://www.jesus-story.net/the-miracle-at-cana/). Jesus’s supernatural power must have been compelling and credible because some of the Syrian people who were seeking healing traveled for weeks to find Him.

We see some new vocabulary regarding their ailments in Matthew. Per the footnotes from Matthew, the original word used for epilepsy was “moonstruck”, and that is the first time we’ve seen reference to this type of illness in the gospel accounts. At the time, the prevailing assumption about epilepsy was that it had to do with the cycles of the moon. The word used by Matthew in the original text is unique in its application, in that it is not found in any other writings of the day, except Matthew’s, and then only twice. Bible translators have used the description of symptoms in Matthew 17:15 and Mark 9:18 to translate the moonstruck condition to epilepsy (in the NASB, the translation in 17:15 is lunacy, luna being the root of lunar). There is some debate about whether Matthew was separating demonic influence and epilepsy as two separate types of affliction in 4:24, since the original syntax may or may not have implied the conjunction ‘and’. However, since in other cases the gospel writers do not feel the need to qualify or append the concept of demon possession, it seems reasonable that Matthew is indicating an understanding of the idea that epilepsy is not always demon possession, but (as we see later in chapter 17) that demon possession can sometimes result in epileptic symptoms (http://moments.nbseminary.com/archives/moonstruck/).

One of the things that continues to set Jesus’s ministry apart is His power over dark forces, and in Mark 9:29, following the episode recorded in verses 18-27, as well as Matthew chapter 17, we see that Jesus attributes His power to prayer. According to this week’s study passage from Mark 1:35, Jesus’s prayer time was spent in the early morning, while it was still dark, before any distractions could get in the way, and it was private. His prayer time was not only important for His self-care and relationship with God the Father, but it was also prerequisite for an effective ministry.

Prayer may be a misunderstood tenet of the Christian faith, and to study Jesus’s prayer life is helpful in illuminating some of our misinterpretation of the purpose of prayer. For one thing, Jesus’s behavior demonstrates that God IS. We don’t suppose He exists or mold Him with our imagination or bend Him to our will. He is the author of our being and all the creation around us, and, like a parent who expects gratitude and relationship with a child, so He expects the same from us. We honor Him by spending time communing with Him. Jesus wasn’t always asking for things; although that is the primary reason people seem to pray today. Through our sin, the world grows daily more corrupt, but if we intercede through prayer, begging a return to God’s unwavering will, He may show us grace and redeem our circumstances. However, prayer is also a time to praise God, thank Him, report outcomes, confess, listen, and lament. “Man’s prayerful response to the living God includes: faith (in his deed/word revelation), worship, confession, adoration, praise, thanksgiving, and dedicated action” (The Zondervan Pictorial Encyclopedia of the Bible, Vol 4 pg. 838). Jesus’s commitment to spending this dedicated time engaging God shows us that prioritizing a relationship with God is as essential to a strong spirit as water is essential to a healthy body.

Finally in this study, I want to explore Jesus’s statement of purpose in Mark and Luke. He said the reason He was sent was to preach the kingdom of God to all the cities. Bear in mind, for a moment, that John called Jesus “the Word”, and take a look at this passage I found when I was studying the concept of prayer:

“In a man’s words he reveals himself. In his promises he gives himself away, he binds himself to the one who receives his promise. In his commands he sets forth his will, seeks to make himself master of him whose obedience he claims, to guide and use him as if he were a part of himself. It is through our words that spirit holds fellowship with spirit, and the spirit of one man passes over and transfers itself to another.

…when God speaks forth Himself in His words, He does indeed give Himself, His Love and His Life, His Will and His Power, to those who receive these words, in a reality passing comprehension. In every promise He puts Himself in our power to lay hold of and possess; in every command He puts Himself in our power for us to share with Him His Will, His Holiness, His Perfection. In God’s Word is nothing less than the Eternal Son, Christ Jesus. And so all Christ’s words are God’s words, full of a Divine quickening life and power. “The words that I speak unto you, they are spirit and they are life”” (The Zondervan Pictorial Encyclopedia of the Bible, Vol 4 pg. 838-839).

If you apply the same principles to the concept of Jesus’s stated ministry of preaching (or speaking), He is God’s manifest Word and thereby seals God’s oath by speaking truths aloud. He enters a covenant of reconciliation with all who hear His message, and this, more than healing or casting out demons, is His great power. “Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, and walk ‘?” (Matthew 9:5).

See the next post here https://onthepath.online/2019/10/14/a-leper-healed/

Scripture References

Matthew 4:23

Matthew 9:35 Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness.

Mark 1:14 After the arrest of John, Jesus went into Galilee and proclaimed the gospel of God.

Mark 1:21 Then Jesus and His companions went to Capernaum, and as soon as the Sabbath began, Jesus entered the synagogue and began to teach.

Luke 4:14 Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and the news about Him spread throughout the surrounding region.

Luke 4:15 He taught in their synagogues and was glorified by everyone.

Luke 4:40 At sunset, all who were ill with various diseases were brought to Jesus, and laying His hands on each one, He healed them.

Luke 6:6 On another Sabbath, Jesus entered the synagogue and was teaching, and a man was there whose right hand was withered.

Luke 7:21 At that very hour Jesus healed many people of their diseases, afflictions, and evil spirits, and He gave sight to many who were blind.

Luke 8:1 Soon afterward, Jesus traveled from one town and village to another, preaching and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve were with Him,

Luke 9:60 But Jesus told him, “Let the dead bury their own dead. You, however, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”

Luke 13:10 One Sabbath Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues,

Luke 16:16 The Law and the Prophets were proclaimed until John. Since that time, the gospel of the kingdom of God is being preached, and everyone is forcing his way into it.

John 6:59 Jesus said this while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum.

John 18:20 “I have spoken openly to the world,” Jesus answered. “I always taught in the synagogues and at the temple, where all the Jews come together. I said nothing in secret.

Acts 10:38 how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, and how Jesus went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, because God was with Him.

Acts 20:25 Now I know that none of you among whom I have preached the kingdom will see my face again.

Acts 28:31 Boldly and freely he proclaimed the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ.

Matthew 4:24

1 Chronicles 29:2 Now with all my ability I have made provision for the house of my God–gold for the gold articles, silver for the silver, bronze for the bronze, iron for the iron, and wood for the wood, as well as onyx for the settings, turquoise, stones of various colors, all kinds of precious stones, and slabs of marble–all in abundance.

Matthew 8:6 “Lord, my servant lies at home, paralyzed and in terrible agony.”

Matthew 8:16 When evening came, many who were demon-possessed were brought to Jesus, and He drove out the spirits with a word and healed all the sick.

Matthew 8:28 When Jesus arrived on the other side in the region of the Gadarenes, He was met by two demon-possessed men coming from the tombs. They were so violent that no one could pass that way.

Matthew 8:33 Those tending the pigs ran off into the town and reported all this, including the account of the demon-possessed men.

Matthew 9:2 Just then, some men brought to Him a paralytic lying on a mat. When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, “Take courage, son; your sins are forgiven.”

Matthew 12:22 Then a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute was brought to Jesus, and He healed the man so that he could speak and see.

Matthew 17:15 “Lord, have mercy on my son,” he said. “He has seizures and is suffering terribly. He often falls into the fire or into the water.

Mark 1:32 That evening, after sunset, people brought to Jesus all who were sick and demon-possessed,

Mark 2:3 Then a paralytic was brought to Him, carried by four men.

Mark 2:4 Since they were unable to get to Jesus through the crowd, they uncovered the roof above Him, made an opening, and lowered the paralytic on his mat.

Mark 2:9 “Which is easier: to say to a paralyzed man, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, pick up your mat, and walk’?

Mark 5:15 When they came to Jesus, they saw the man who had been possessed by the legion of demons sitting there, clothed and in his right mind; and they were afraid.

Mark 5:16 Those who had seen it described what had happened to the demon-possessed man and also to the pigs.

Mark 5:18 As He was getting into the boat, the man who had been possessed by the demons begged to go with Him.

Luke 4:38 After Jesus had left the synagogue, He went to the home of Simon, whose mother-in-law was suffering from a high fever. So they appealed to Jesus on her behalf,

Luke 5:24 But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on the earth to forgive sins…” He said to the paralytic, “I tell you, get up, pick up your mat, and go home.”

Luke 8:36 Meanwhile, those who had seen it reported how the demon-possessed man had been healed.

John 10:21 But others replied, “These are not the words of a man possessed by a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?”

Acts 8:7 With loud shrieks, unclean spirits came out of many who were possessed, and many of the paralyzed and lame were healed.

Matthew 4:25

Matthew 4:15 “Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, the way to the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles–

Mark 3:7 So Jesus withdrew with His disciples to the sea, accompanied by a large crowd from Galilee, Judea,

Mark 3:8 Jerusalem, Idumea, the region beyond the Jordan, and the vicinity of Tyre and Sidon. The large crowd came to Him when they heard what great things He was doing.

Mark 5:20 So the man went away and began to proclaim throughout the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him. And everyone was amazed.

Mark 7:31 Then Jesus left the region of Tyre and went through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee and into the region of the Decapolis.

Luke 6:17 Then Jesus came down with them and stood on a level place. A large crowd of His disciples was there, along with a great number of people from all over Judea, Jerusalem, and the sea coast of Tyre and Sidon.

Mark 1:35

Matthew 14:13 When Jesus heard about John, He withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place. But the crowds found out and followed Him on foot from the towns.

Matthew 14:23 After He had sent them away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray. When evening came, He was there alone,

Luke 5:16 Yet He frequently withdrew to the wilderness to pray.

Mark 1:39

Matthew 9:35 Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness.

Mark 1:21 Then Jesus and His companions went to Capernaum, and as soon as the Sabbath began, Jesus entered the synagogue and began to teach.

Mark 1:23 Suddenly a man with an unclean spirit cried out in the synagogue:

Mark 3:1 Once again Jesus entered the synagogue, and a man with a withered hand was there.

Mark 6:6 And He was amazed at their unbelief. And He went around from village to village, teaching the people.

Luke 4:42

Matthew 14:13 When Jesus heard about John, He withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place. But the crowds found out and followed Him on foot from the towns.

Luke 4:44

Luke 5:1 On one occasion, while Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret with the crowd pressing in on Him to hear the word of God,

Commentary

Mark 9:29 And He said to them, “This kind cannot come out by anything but prayer.”

Matthew 17:15 Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is a lunatic (original word: moonstruck) and is very ill; for he often falls into the fire and often into the water.

Mark 9:18 and whenever it seizes him, it slams him to the ground and he foams at the mouth, and grinds his teeth and stiffens out. I told Your disciples to cast it out, and they could not do it.”