Mark 10:47 Commentary - Dr Peter Masters

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Mark 10:47

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In Luke’s Gospel we are told that ‘hearing the multitude pass by, [Bartimaeus] asked what it meant.’ The multitude consists of those who are going to Jerusalem for the Passover, but the crowd gathered around Christ is particularly dense. What is the commotion? he asks. Who is it that is passing? And in the King James translation in Luke, we read, ‘they told him, that Jesus of Nazareth passeth by.’ Jesus of Nazareth. Well, the people were awestruck, and they wondered if there would be miracles and they were very hopeful that extraordinary things would happen, but nevertheless they were using the term for Christ that was derogatory: ‘Jesus of Nazareth’. That was a term that had been invented by Christ’s enemies to put him down, to minimise him. Jesus who comes from that down-at-heel place, that little, obscure, famous for nothing place: Nazareth. Being blind, Bartimaeus was dependent on the opinions of others. He was dependent on the crowd to pick up what was going on, and he could easily have just accepted what they said, including the derogative assessment of Christ contained in this name.But Bartimaeus does not use this term. He calls out, ‘Jesus, thou Son of David.’ It is a very religious form of address. That phrase had been rarely used up till now. ‘This is the man’, says Bartimaeus, ‘of whom David speaks.’ God had spoken to David and told him, ‘I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom. ¹³ He shall build an house for my name, and I will stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever’ (2 Samuel 7:12). He understands that Jesus was the Messiah. The crowd say, ‘Jesus of Nazareth’, but these two blind men – Bartimaeus in particular – say, ‘Son of David’, Messiah. He had reasoned to himself and concluded this was the Messiah. They understand who he is, not just a miracle worker. Whatever the crowd thought, Bartimaeus wanted to be heard by the Lord, and therefore the crowd’s disapproval of his crying out meant little to him. The only thing that mattered was that Christ heard his cry. He would understand it. He would respond to it in the right way. He would know what drove Bartimaeus to call out, and read the situation as it really was.

Application

If we listen to what the world says about Christ, God, salvation, or the afterlife, we will never learn the truth. ‘There is no God, no judgment, no sin, no soul’, they tell us. The world’s assessment of Christ lacks any true understanding. When it comes to faith and the Bible, the opinions of men are worth precious little. We have to set these aside, and be ready to listen far more carefully to what God himself says to us. We need to reason things through based on the sum total of God’s revelation in the Bible. Is it safe to set aside the thinking of the majority of human beings? In many things, no. But in matters of faith, since the world is in darkness and understanding comes from the Spirit of God, this is essential. The world has no experience of Christ’s power, and evaluates him at an entirely naturalistic level.

Bartimaeus had a window of opportunity to call on the Lord, while he was passing by. This limited opportunity galvanized him into action. He cried out above the noise of the crowd and raised his voice to gain the attention of the Lord. Calling on the Lord is not something that we can do in a relaxed, take-it-or-leave-it manner. This is life and death to us. He cried out urgently: ‘If the Lord passes by and is gone, I lose my opportunity.’ Although Christ is not physically walking past us and due to go out beyond the reach of our cry, there remain reasons why our cry must be urgent and we may only have a limited time to call out to him. If we have begun to feel the urgency of our spiritual condition, we should understand that this is the gift of God. He has enlightened us to the point that we sense our spiritual danger. He has sounded an alarm in our hearts. If we see our need, we must respond to our need, and that will show itself in the urgency of our cry to God, and our persistence until he answers us. That sense or urgency may only be given us for a time – we must act on it immediately.

He asked in the right spirit: ‘Have mercy on me.’ He didn’t start with, ‘Give me my sight’, so he got two things right. Never come to God saying, ‘I have a lot to give you.’ God doesn’t need us. Yes, once we are converted he uses us in the work of the kingdom, that is a great privilege, but come saying, ‘Lord, I am a sinner, I am proud, everything is wrong with me. Have mercy.’ And don’t ask for some earthly need when your greatest need is for forgiveness and a new heart. Ask for the things that matter most.

When you come to see you are cut off from the Lord, you must ask the right person. It may seem obvious, but many people think you just pray generally. No, you must go to Christ. You need something that only he can give you. He is your life and you must, as it were, catch his attention and ask for the gift of eternal life from him.

It is the Lord – God incarnate. He never just ‘passed by’. He never went anywhere without deep purpose. He did not just pass by this world. He came into the world with the express purpose of redeeming his people and taking them back to glory with him. He is the second person of the Trinity, yet he took human nature and dwelt among us. He worked miracles; could he healed at a distance, and he could see into hearts. He went to Calvary and there took the punishment of all his elect. This was the Son of God, who ascended into heaven. He does not just pass by, but he knows those whom he will call through the gospel when it is preached. He knows all those who will be obstinate and refuse him.

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Mark 10:47 Commentary and Bible Study