Daughter of the King
I’m still very much on the women’s month tip, so I’m relooking into female characters of the Bible. I was reading through Luke 8 and was struck by the sharp contrast between the two women it deals with near its end. We have the twelve year old dying girl, and the woman who’s been bleeding non-stop for twelve years. I’ve always read of these two women, but never reading their story side by side.
The twelve year old girl is introduced to us by her father Jairus, who was a synagogue ruler. Firstly, the girl has someone, her sweet daddy, who was pleading with Jesus on her behalf. We know that she’s his only daughter, so she is daddy’s little princess and he wants absolutely no harm to befall her. Secondly, her dad is a man of power, a religious ruler of high status in that day, so she probably had rights and privileges, including an unearned honour and respect from the town’s people. We can tell by the amount of people that filled the house by the time Jesus got there.
We later in the chapter learn of the girl’s mother, so she comes from a stable home. We can also assume that since her dad held such a position, she had access to the greatest medical facilities, money not a problem, anything to get her feeling better.
Then we have the older women. Firstly, her story intrudes into the little girl’s story. This really isn’t about her, it’s about Jairus and his dying daughter, but she was just smart and brave enough to not waste an opportunity. This woman had no one and nothing. We don’t hear of a friend, a relative or a neighbour accompanying her to Jesus. Forget a husband, or any male figure, not in her condition and their religious beliefs. If she had a husband, she had lost him at this point; holding off two weeks in a month was bad enough, twelve years would be asking for too much from men who had the right to divorce you simply because they no longer liked you.
You see, your period wasn’t just something to be embarrassed about in her time, it was something to be ashamed of. You were defiled, ceremonially unclean, and everything and everyone you touched became unclean. It was so intense that you were only considered cleansed a week after your period, and that wasn’t the end of it. You also had to go to the priest to offer an offering (see Leviticus 15:19-30). Thank God for the liberating gospel of the cross!
So her condition isolated her, it forced her to go through it all by herself. She had to make her own means to get to Jesus, her own way of receiving from Him, in the most subtle way because she couldn’t afford being caught.
Another thing about this woman: she was all out of money. She had been to numerous doctors and had spent her all. Mark 5 goes further as to tell us that, instead of getting better, her condition grew worse. Imagine the misery. I just can’t, my feeble heart can’t imagine going through so much for so long with no one by your side.
Both these women of different ages, from different walks of life, were in desperate need of Jesus’ help. And to both Jesus responded with the gentlest compassion.
After having been touched, Jesus felt that power had gone out from Him and sought to find out who had touched Him. The woman tried to go unnoticed, tried to hide, but she finally had to admit to what she had done. The Bible says she was trembling. This because she knew what she had done was punishable, Jesus was a Rabbi after all.
“Then he said to her, ‘Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace.” (verse 48)
What struck me most about this verse is how Jesus refers to her as her daughter. She who had no one and nothing now has everything because she has come to know of her worth, the daughter of the King.
When we get back to the girl’s story, we learn she has died in the process of Jesus coming to her. Jesus could have walked away, there was nothing to save now. But not King Jesus when it comes to his precious daughters.
“But he took her by the hand and said, ‘My child, get up!” (verse 54)
The one they had pretty much buried was still of value to Him, worth His time, worth His life-giving Word, still His child.
So to you my sister, whatever walk of life you come from, regardless of who and what you have, or don’t have; regardless of what you’ve done or failed to do, listen today to the gentle voice of your Father. You are His daughter and you are loved, you are worthy and precious in His eyes. Reach out to Him, take His hand, don’t say it’s too late, He will crown you with beauty instead of ashes and clothe you with a garment of praise in exchange for your despair. He will speak calm over your storm and usher you into a new season of life.
The twelve year old girl is introduced to us by her father Jairus, who was a synagogue ruler. Firstly, the girl has someone, her sweet daddy, who was pleading with Jesus on her behalf. We know that she’s his only daughter, so she is daddy’s little princess and he wants absolutely no harm to befall her. Secondly, her dad is a man of power, a religious ruler of high status in that day, so she probably had rights and privileges, including an unearned honour and respect from the town’s people. We can tell by the amount of people that filled the house by the time Jesus got there.
We later in the chapter learn of the girl’s mother, so she comes from a stable home. We can also assume that since her dad held such a position, she had access to the greatest medical facilities, money not a problem, anything to get her feeling better.
Then we have the older women. Firstly, her story intrudes into the little girl’s story. This really isn’t about her, it’s about Jairus and his dying daughter, but she was just smart and brave enough to not waste an opportunity. This woman had no one and nothing. We don’t hear of a friend, a relative or a neighbour accompanying her to Jesus. Forget a husband, or any male figure, not in her condition and their religious beliefs. If she had a husband, she had lost him at this point; holding off two weeks in a month was bad enough, twelve years would be asking for too much from men who had the right to divorce you simply because they no longer liked you.
You see, your period wasn’t just something to be embarrassed about in her time, it was something to be ashamed of. You were defiled, ceremonially unclean, and everything and everyone you touched became unclean. It was so intense that you were only considered cleansed a week after your period, and that wasn’t the end of it. You also had to go to the priest to offer an offering (see Leviticus 15:19-30). Thank God for the liberating gospel of the cross!
So her condition isolated her, it forced her to go through it all by herself. She had to make her own means to get to Jesus, her own way of receiving from Him, in the most subtle way because she couldn’t afford being caught.
Another thing about this woman: she was all out of money. She had been to numerous doctors and had spent her all. Mark 5 goes further as to tell us that, instead of getting better, her condition grew worse. Imagine the misery. I just can’t, my feeble heart can’t imagine going through so much for so long with no one by your side.
Both these women of different ages, from different walks of life, were in desperate need of Jesus’ help. And to both Jesus responded with the gentlest compassion.
After having been touched, Jesus felt that power had gone out from Him and sought to find out who had touched Him. The woman tried to go unnoticed, tried to hide, but she finally had to admit to what she had done. The Bible says she was trembling. This because she knew what she had done was punishable, Jesus was a Rabbi after all.
“Then he said to her, ‘Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace.” (verse 48)
What struck me most about this verse is how Jesus refers to her as her daughter. She who had no one and nothing now has everything because she has come to know of her worth, the daughter of the King.
When we get back to the girl’s story, we learn she has died in the process of Jesus coming to her. Jesus could have walked away, there was nothing to save now. But not King Jesus when it comes to his precious daughters.
“But he took her by the hand and said, ‘My child, get up!” (verse 54)
The one they had pretty much buried was still of value to Him, worth His time, worth His life-giving Word, still His child.
So to you my sister, whatever walk of life you come from, regardless of who and what you have, or don’t have; regardless of what you’ve done or failed to do, listen today to the gentle voice of your Father. You are His daughter and you are loved, you are worthy and precious in His eyes. Reach out to Him, take His hand, don’t say it’s too late, He will crown you with beauty instead of ashes and clothe you with a garment of praise in exchange for your despair. He will speak calm over your storm and usher you into a new season of life.
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