…there were two blind men sitting by the roadside…they cried out, “Lord, have mercy on us… Jesus, in pity, touched their eyes…they…followed Him.
Matthew 20:29-34
As Jesus and His Disciples, followed by a great crowd, departed Jericho, there were two blind men, on the road side, who heard Jesus was coming. In Mark 10, the story is of a blind beggar named Bartimaeus. This could be another encounter Jesus had with a blind person. But, neither account, in Mark nor in Matthew, assert that there was only one blind man, or there were only two blind men, thus making the Holy Scriptures errant and/or fallible. Certainly, a large crowd of people would produce a noise ahead of them so that anyone on the road ahead would know a throng of people were on their way somewhere. We do not know how these blind men knew it was Jesus leading this large group along the road but, possibly, their heightened sense of hearing (often, when one sense is lost, another sense(s) is more acute) enabled them to hear the name of Jesus coming from the people. The blind men must have heard of Jesus before now because they call Him, “Son of David.” This, also, tells us that someone had previously told the blind men who this Jesus was. Being the “Son of David” would alert any Jew to the Messiah of the Holy Scriptures of the day and those promises and prophecies of a son of David to sit on David’s throne forever and of His being the long awaited Messiah of the Jews. So, these blind men were seeking this “messiah” because they believed Him to be the “Son of David” promised from of old. Their call to Jesus was “to have mercy on us.” This call caused Jesus to stop, on the road, and ask them, “What do you want Me to do for you?” The response by the blind men caused Jesus to have “pity” for them and He touched their blind eyes, immediately giving them their sight. But, we, also, learn that, in healing the blind men, Jesus converted their souls for Scripture tells us they “followed Him.” The full meaning of the Greek, here, means more than just to walk behind a leader. These men, once blind physically and spiritually, have been given the sight to see in this world and to see the Messiah as their Savior and Lord. That is how the Holy Spirit regenerates a sinful human to be a child of the Living God. These men had their rock hard hearts changed to know their Savior, Jesus, and to live a new life, in Christ, until the day God called them into His presence. Now, they have a “sight” unknown by us humans, both physically and spiritually! If one is not a Christian, he/she is spiritually blind, just as these men were, though one may see physically. Come to Jesus! He can give you the sight to see Him for who He really is and give you a peace beyond understanding with eternal life in His presence!
Source: S C Ball March 15, 2023
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