Mark 5:22
And, behold,
there cometh one of the rulers
of the synagogue,
Jairus by name;
and when he saw him,
he fell at his feet,
Other translations:
Then one of the rulers of the synagogue came up, Jairus by name; and seeing Him, he prostrated himself at His feet [AMP] Then came one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name, and seeing him, he fell at his feet [ESV] One of the meeting-place leaders named Jairus came. When he saw Jesus, he fell to his knees, [MSB] And, behold, there cometh one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name; and when he saw him, he fell at his feet, [KJV] Then one of the synagogue rulers, named Jairus, came there. Seeing Jesus, he fell at his feet [NIV] A leader of the local synagogue, whose name was Jairus, came and fell down before him, [NLT] And behold, one of the rulers of the synagogue came, Jairus by name. And when he saw Him, he fell at His feet [NKJV]
Some further information:
And, behold, there cometh one of the rulers of the synagogue of which there were only a few who believed in Jesus (John 7:48).
One could suppose from this that the ruler had been with the multitude on the shore, anxiously awaiting the return of Jesus, and immediately on His arrival had accosted Him as here related.
But Matthew (Matthew 9:18) tells us that the ruler came to Him while He was in the act of speaking on the subject of fasting; and as we must suppose that this converted publican ought to know what took place on that occasion, we conclude that here the right order is indicated by Matthew.
Ruler of the synagogue.
The office of ruler in the synagogue was somewhat similar to that of elder in a Christian congregation.
It was his duty to select the readers or teachers in the synagogue, to examine the discourses of the public speakers, and to see that all things were done with decency and in accordance with ancestral usage.
Jairus by name
The meaning of the name Jairus is “whom God enlightens”
Jairus was a ruler of a synagogue, probably near the western shore of the Sea of Galilee.
Jairus or Jaeirus is the same name as Jair, in the Old Testament ( Numbers 32:41 , Judges 10:3 , Esther 2:5 ). Jair means “he enlightens” or “enlightener”
He fell at his feet
In Matthew 9:18 it says, “worshipped Him.” The meaning of both is the same.
Fell at His feet
To prostrate one’s self, also to lose authority, or no longer have force.
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Among the many that applied themselves to him, here is now one, that comes openly to beg a cure for a sick child; and it is no less a person than one of the rulers of the synagogue, one that presided in the synagogue-worship or, as some think, one of the judges of the consistory court, which was in every city, consisting of twenty-three.
He was not named in Matthew, he is here, Jairus, or Jair, (Judges 10:3).
He addressed himself to Christ, though a ruler, with great humility and reverence.
When he saw him, he fell at his feet, giving honour to him as one really greater than he himself appeared to be; and he besought him greatly, as one in earnest need, as one that not only valued the mercy he came for, but who also knew that he could obtain it no where else.
Now let us reflect on this
The Lord Jesus hardly returned, when there is someone who urgently calls for His help.
It is one of the leading members, one of the rulers, of the synagogue called Jairus. He is pushed to Jesus by a special need. His daughter, a twelve year old child, is very seriously ill. She’s even dying. That distress drove the father out of the house as soon as he heard that Jesus was near.
Jairus sees an opportunity to push through the crowd and get close to Jesus. There he falls on his knees before Him and makes an urgent request.
Why does he come to Jesus?
Where else should he go? Who else can help him in this great need?
Only Jesus is able to do that. Jairus deduces this from the things that were told about Jesus and from what he heard about Him.
If there is anyone who can help, it is Jesus.
Hence he flees to Him.
The attitude that Jairus takes is a testimony to deep reverence and awe. He highly values Jesus. Even though he himself has a high position in the synagogue, Jesus is his superior.
These are beautiful features.
▪︎ Do you also have the confidence that Jesus can, and is willing to help you in all your needs?
▪︎ Does your life also show that you have reverence and awe for Him?
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