Bartimaeus Receives His Sight

Mark 10: 46-52

* This incident is also covered in Matthew 20:29-34 and Luke 18: 35-43.

Verse 46 –
“And they came to Jericho.”  Mark suggests this miracle occurs as Jesus and the crowd approached Jericho.  This agrees with Luke but Matthew seems to place the miracles as happening when Jesus was leaving Jericho. 
A textual contradiction?  No.  The simplest explanation is that Matthew’s Jericho is a reference to the ancient city built at the pool.  This is the site of the Jericho that God destroyed in Joshua’s time – a site that was given a specific curse.  (See Joshua 6:26.)
That someone defied the curse and built upon the cursed ground is shown in I Kings 16:30-34.  That person was Hiel and, true to the prophecy, he paid for it by the loss of his first and last born sons.
However, by Jesus’ time, there had been another city built nearby.  It was built by people that had desired the water from the natural springs there yet who honored the word of God given to Joshua about the ancient site being accursed.
Both towns were called Jericho and so it is reasonable that Matthew, Mark and Luke all place the miracle as occurring at the same place – between the two Jerichos.  The former gospel writers described it in relation to the ancient city while Luke describes it in relation to the new city.
And, by the way, the present city of Jericho?  It sits on yet a third site from the other two!
Bartimaeus is named here.  That’s unusual for Mark’s recording of healings.  The case of Jarius’ daughter is the only other example where an individual is so carefully delineated.  Why?  We don’t know for sure but it could well be that Bartimaeus (or his father who is also named here) would have a special significance to certain readers of Mark’s history.
Comparing this text with that of Matthew and Luke, we learn that there was another blind man healed at this time.  Great!  The more the better! But this doesn’t create any textual problem at all.  Exclusion of details doesn’t mean an error or contradiction.  It only means Mark wanted to emphasize the healing of the man he so carefully names, Bartimaeus.

Verse 47 –
Jesus’ fame had spread so much because of His miracles and because of His revolutionary teaching that even a blind beggar, seeking alms from the people traveling between the spring of the ancient Jericho and the present city, knew about Him.
Bartimaeus apparently knew enough to believe that Jesus was the Christ, the Anointed Messiah Who had been promised through the Old Testament Scriptures.  Thus, Bartimaeus uses a title for Jesus with clear Messianic meaning.  “Jesus, Sone of David.”  (See Isaiah 11:10; Ezekiel 34: 23-4; 2 Samuel 7: 8-16 and especially Jeremiah 23: 5-6.)  This title, by the way, is only used three times in Mark’s gospel – twice in this passage and once in 12:35.)
The cry for mercy here reveals Bartimaeus’ trust in both Jesus’ healing power and His grace.  A request for healing from blindness (as we will see in verse 51 is Bartimaeus’ distinct desire) requires faith but the Object of the blind man’s faith is the Messiah, He Who is the fulfilled prophecy of Zion’s happy future. (See, for example, Isaiah 35:5).

Verse 48 –
This isn’t the only time the disciples make the error of actually impeding someone’s approach to Jesus rather than leading the way to Him.  Here they are trying to keep Bartimaeus quiet and “behaved” but you see the same kind of misplaced responsibility with moms and children (Luke 18: 15-17; Mark 10: 13-16) and with the Syrophonecian woman (Matthew 15: 21-23).  The Greek word here, by the way, means a very harsh censure that Jesus directed at the disciples.
Bartimaeus’ plight is desperate and he continues to cry out to the only One Who can meet his need.  Even when those who should have known better tried to keep him in the background, Bartimaeus did what he could to get Jesus’ attention.  Again, sometimes the “middle men” are counter-productive.  And the application of Bartimaeous’ persistence to our own needs is obvious.

Verse 49 –
The crowd finally showed a change of attitude towards Bartimaeus when they saw that Jesus desired to meet him.  As followers of Jesus, we should always strive to look in the direction that Jesus is looking and to see what He sees.  (Example: Matthew 10: 36-38)

Verse 50 –
Bartimaeus’ response is immediate, enthusiastic, almost reckless – throwing aside his cloak.  It reminds me of the disciples leaving their boats and tax office or the Samaritan woman leaving her water pot.

Verse 51 –
Jesus didn’t exercise His power impersonally.  He often made sure there was a clear understanding between Himself and the person petitioning Him for help.  Sometimes Jesus’ questions were to clarify the issues (i.e. He Who has the power to heal is the One Who has the power to forgive sin.) and sometimes those questions were for the benefit of those listening in. 
In this case, Jesus asks what at first seemed like an unnecessary question but it is one which clarifies Bartimaeus’ need and his testimony to Christ as the Messiah Who heals.  Thus, he doesn’t ask for alms or assistance; he asks to regain his sight.  (The word used here suggests that Bartimaeus may have been able to see earlier in his life.)
The title “Rabboni” is a strengthened form of the word for teacher or master.  It is used only here and in John 20:16 where Mary Magdalene uses it to address Jesus.

Verse 52 –
When you see correctly, your destination is wherever Jesus leads!  Bartimaeus’ faith in Jesus as the Son of David, the Messiah Who would save not only Israel but all nations from the scourge of sin, was what pleased Jesus.  It is important to remember that Bartimaeus’ faith didn’t “earn” him his healing – that comes as all gifts from God come to man – by His rich and gracious mercy.  Nevertheless, such faith delights the Lord and He gives us those blessings that are best for His grand purposes.
It is an eminently reasonable response of Bartimaeus to immediately begin to follow Jesus.  May we do the same.