Mark 10:46-52

Blind Bartimaeus Receives His Sight

46Then they came to Jericho. As Jesus and his disciples, together with a large crowd, were leaving the city, a blind man, Bartimaeus (that is, the Son of Timaeus), was sitting by the roadside begging. 47When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!"

48Many rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, "Son of David, have mercy on me!"

49Jesus stopped and said, "Call him." So they called to the blind man, "Cheer up! On your feet! He's calling you." 50Throwing his cloak aside, he jumped to his feet and came to Jesus.

51"What do you want me to do for you?" Jesus asked him.

The blind man said, "Rabbi, I want to see."

52"Go," said Jesus, "your faith has healed you." Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road.



BACKGROUND READING:


Matthew 20:29-34


Mark 10:35-45


Isaiah 35



Dig Deeper

As we have seen previously, one of the major themes that Mark has stressed throughout his book is the topic of sight. In particular, he has raised questions about seeing and understanding who Jesus is. His disciples have had difficulty in understanding who he is, and what his kingdom movement is about. When Jesus asked James and John what He could do for them, their response was to ask for favors. They were only thinking about themselves and did not yet understand what it meant to give up everything and take on a Kingdom way of thinking and viewing the world.


Now, Mark will bring all of those themes and threads together in this one, brief story about a blind man named Bartimaeus. Jesus and his disciples were leaving Jericho. It is important to note that Jericho is a usually very warm city. On their way out, they see Bartimaeus by the side of the road, begging. When he sees Jesus he begins to shout: Jesus, Son of David. The crowds react negatively to his pleading, but the question is why. "Son of David" means that this man was calling Jesus the rightful king of Israel. This is the kind of thing that could get you killed in a province that was controlled by the fearsome Roman empire. There was also a danger that they might kill several people in the crowd, thinking that this was some sort of revolutionary movement beginning. They don’t want Bartimaeus drawing any unnecessary attention to them. Bartimaeus, however, doesn’t seem to care. He realizes that this Jesus is the long-awaited Messiah. Mark’s point in conveying this story to us is that this man has the kind of faith and understanding of who Jesus is, that took his disciples so long to understand.


Jesus eventually has the man called over to him, and then Mark draws our attention to a small but remarkable detail. He says, throwing his cloak aside, he jumped to his feet and came to Jesus. Why would a man need a cloak in such a warm town? It is because he was using it to spread on the ground to collect donations. In understanding who Jesus is, Bartimaeus has demonstrated a tremendous amount of faith. He has cast aside everything he has to come to Jesus. There is no hint of clinging to his past life for security. He’s not worried about what might happen to him without his cloak, his faith has been put in Jesus. Thus, rather than picking up his cloak and bringing it with him, he has very intentionally cast it aside. He seems to know that he will no longer need it. In Mark’s eyes, Bartimaeus is showing us the kind of faith that Jesus has said is necessary to be a part of his Kingdom. Bartimaeus has truly laid aside everything he has to follow Jesus.


When he comes to Jesus, Jesus asks him a familiar question: What do you want mean to do for you? Does this question sound familiar? It is the same question that Jesus asked James and John. Their response was to ask to be honored by Jesus when he came into his glory. Mark draws a clear distinction between these men and Bartimaeus by recording his response. He does not ask to be given any position of glory, He just says, I want to see. Mark has made such a point to tie in the concept of sight to understanding the nature of Jesus as Messiah and the purpose of his Kingdom, that we can hardly miss his point. Bartimaeus is displaying the kind of faith and understanding that followers of Jesus need to. In asking Jesus for his sight, he has demonstrated that he understands more than most people who can physically see.


In the end of this passage, Jesus tells him to go, your faith has healed you. The text here, though, says that Bartimaeus follows him down the road. Did this man that just demonstrated so much faith, turn around and disobeye the Messiah? I don’t believe so. The original language actually says that "he followed Jesus in the way." In trying to make the text understandable, the NIV has actually obscured Mark’s meaning. "The Way" was the term used by the early Christians to refer to Christianity. Mark’s point is that Bartimaeus went and followed Jesus in his new Kingdom way of life. He does not mean to imply that he simply followed Jesus down the road. The meaning is much more significant and profound.



Devotional Thought

Take some time to meditate on this passage; imagine that you were one of the people in the crowd that day. What would you have thought? What would you have done? Now imagine the story from the perspective of Bartimaeus. What would that have been like? What would you have been feeling before, during and after this incident? Although Mark wants us to identify with Bartimaeus, that is not his ultimate goal. The place Mark wants to ultimately take us, takes a great deal of courage: He wants us to live out this story on a daily basis from the perspective of Jesus. What would it look like if you began to spread the Kingdom of God in your own way, just as Jesus spread it in his way?