God’s Story of Disability: The Unfolding Plan from Genesis to Revelation
God’s Story of Disability
The Unfolding Plan from Genesis to Revelation
God has a story. From Genesis to Revelation, God displays the plans of his heart—his mission to bring people to himself. As surprising as it might be to some readers, the reality is that this story includes disability. People with disabilities play pivotal roles in God’s salvation mission. Entire books have been written on small details of disability in Scripture, but the significance of disability in the whole story, which stretches from creation to eternity, is worth considering. At its heart, the gospel of Jesus Christ is a story of restoration and reconciliation, and it is rooted in a surprising biblical perspective on disability.
Although references to disability are scattered throughout Scripture, the topic is not a prominent one. In fact, when compared with many other matters, the Bible has little to say directly about disability. One explanation for this is that God wove his heart’s concern and tender care for those with disabilities into the fabric of society. God’s compassion for those with disabilities did not stand out because it was already a part of God’s plan for his people. But Scripture gives us encouraging insight into God’s provision for and protection of people with disabilities. From beginning to end, it is God’s story of disability.
God Gave Us a Beginning without Disability (Genesis—Exodus)
In the beginning, there were no disabilities. It all began in a beautiful garden paradise where God enjoyed fellowship with Adam and Eve, his image-bearers. But when the first couple willfully disobeyed God, sin entered the world, bringing pain, suffering, disability, and even death (). Scripture calls this painful reality “a curse” (). It is important to remember that people have disabilities because of the curse on all Creation. Even the animal kingdom is affected by disabilities.
As Creator, God assumes responsibility for disabilities. God is not just the cause, but the upholder, enabler, and final rescuer of people with disabilities. To say that God is responsible for disability is considerably different from the serious mistake of blaming God for disability. When Moses explained to God why he was incapable of serving him due to some inability in his speech, the Lord said to him, “Who makes a person’s mouth? Who decides whether people speak or do not speak, hear or do not hear, see or do not see? Is it not I, the LORD?” (). What we learn from this verse illuminates God’s role in disabilities, but it also demonstrates that he will provide for the needs of his people as he provided for Moses through his brother Aaron.
In order to put the biblical texts into context, it is important to survey perspectives of people in the ancient world regarding disability before focusing on God’s people. Among Israel’s neighbors, views on disabilities varied considerably. Rejection and mistreatment of people with disabilities was depressingly normal in the ancient world. Many babies with disabilities were left to die by exposure shortly after birth. If they survived, they were treated as outcasts and consigned to a miserable life of begging, abuse, and sometimes even prostitution. Usually they suffered a premature death. On the other extreme, people born with a disability were sometimes worshiped as supernatural beings due primarily to their abnormal behavior or appearance. One Egyptian king with a disability was worshiped for having a condition that left him disfigured. Instead of living as a poverty-stricken social outcast, he lived a pampered life—but he was still marginalized from normal human interaction and lived as a different kind of outcast.
Whether rejected completely or worshiped, people with disabilities were not accepted as persons. Both extremes grew out of a misunderstanding of what causes disabilities. On the one hand, the ancients typically blamed disabilities on sins or offenses against their gods. They understood people with disabilities to be suffering due to something they (or their parents) had done wrong. On the other hand, they saw the disability as evidence that the person had been touched by the gods in some way and worthy of worship.
God’s people differed from their contemporaries in their understanding of both the causes of disability and the treatment of persons with disabilities. Although they did not understand disabilities in scientific terms any more than their neighbors did, they reasoned that since God cared about all people, disabled or not, God’s people should too. In fact, God was so concerned about people with disabilities that he asked his people Israel to help those who were not able to help themselves. From the earliest days of forming his people, God’s focus was on growing the entire community spiritually so they would become committed worshipers.
As God’s creatures, we groan with pain and sadness for disability to be healed. Disability is a very difficult life in a sin-cursed world. Paul reminds us that all creation, including people with disabilities, “groan” in suffering as we wait for perfect redemption (). Regardless of how blessed we appear, we are all still in pain this side of heaven. But we know that “God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them” ().
God’s Gracious Law Makes Provision for Disability (Exodus—Deuteronomy)
God protects people with his law. People with disabilities were considered part of the larger group Scripture identifies as needy or afflicted and are often linked with vulnerability and poverty. This also included people with mental illness, who were judged for their loss of self-control. Individuals might pass in and out of this group several times during their lives, though everyone would eventually enter this category if they lived into old age.
God’s law tells his people to care for those with disabilities. This included punishing those who oppress people with disabilities and rewarding those who rescue and assist them. God’s Word inscribes compassion for people with disabilities within the charter of Israel. For example, “Do not insult the deaf or cause the blind to stumble. You must fear your God; I am the LORD” (). Notice that obeying this command is an expression of fearing God. Similarly, “Cursed is anyone who leads a blind person astray on the road” (). Mistreating people with disabilities brought severe punishment because God loves and cares for people affected by disability.
The History of God’s People Shows Compassion for Persons with Disabilities (Joshua—Ecclesiastes)
Job and David are examples of people who followed the law by caring for those with disabilities. Scripture presents them as righteous for their faithfulness. In declaring his innocence before his accusers, Job explained to them that he had kept God’s law, which required compassionate treatment toward people affected by disability. Job helped those who were sight-impaired and those unable to walk without difficulty due to their disabilities (). In so doing, he compassionately participated in God’s plan, as did others like him. Similarly, King David assisted Mephibosheth, a young man who was unable to walk because of an injury he suffered as a child (). His father, Jonathan, was David’s best friend whom David had pledged his faithfulness to. David kept his commitment by showing compassion and caring for this young man, even going as far as allowing Mephibosheth to eat at David’s table every day (). David treated Mephibosheth as if he was a part of his natural family. This was more than kindness or pity—it was a picture of inclusion, with hope for the future.
God’s Prophets Describe Future Hope for Disability (Isaiah—Malachi)
When we look at passages that deal with future things, we again find that people with disabilities become recipients of God’s healing—in part because God demonstrates his greatness through healing them. “‘In that coming day,’ says the LORD, ‘I will gather together those who are lame, those who have been exiles, and those whom I have filled with grief’” (). This passage not only reminds us that God assumes responsibility for disability but also assures us that he will heal them. God’s hand of kindness is revealed in restoring persons with disabilities: “The LORD opens the eyes of the blind” ().
Some passages look forward to a great, future day when God will right all wrongs and reverse the effects of the Curse (). This includes restoration of sight and hearing () as well as restoring the ability to walk and speak once again (; ). Confidence in God’s future plans for persons with disabilities offers present healing and comfort.
God will one day deliver persons with disabilities from oppression. In his justice, God seeks retribution for violating his laws. He promises to rescue people who are disabled from those who abuse and take advantage of them. God warns that he will punish those who reject and mistreat people with disabilities ().
Jesus Offers Hope and a Way for Disability (Matthew—Revelation)
When Jesus came to earth, his mission was to repair the effects of the Curse and fulfill the law, and in the process he offered hope to people with disabilities. Jesus revealed what wisdom prescribed and the prophets had predicted for persons with disabilities. As his commissioned agents, we continue his work. Yet many are surprised to discover God’s plan for people with disabilities was not only to glorify Jesus through miraculous healings but also that they would minister to others—not just in their disabilities but because of them. People affected by disability serve others in many ways, but the most prominent way is through their obvious need of support from others. Seems ironic, doesn’t it? The needs of people with disabilities provide opportunities for individuals or groups to serve God by caring for them. How does this work?
People with disabilities allow Jesus to show compassion, bring God glory, and demonstrate his place as God’s Son, the Messiah. For example, Jesus responds with compassion for two blind men (). Similarly, Jesus shows compassion and heals a man with a skin disease (). When questioned about why a man was born blind, Jesus said, “This happened so the power of God could be seen in him” (). In Jesus’ healings, God’s mighty acts of compassion are personalized and displayed for all to see.
When Jesus healed people with disabilities, it brought glory to God. In response to Jesus’ exercising compassion by healing people with disabilities, the multitudes praised God. They glorified God because this compassion was the Father’s will. After a “vast crowd” brought many to Jesus to be healed, “the crowd was amazed” and “praised the God of Israel” because “those who hadn’t been able to speak were talking, the crippled were made well, the lame were walking, and the blind could see again!” ().
Finally, by healing people with disabilities, Jesus demonstrated that he is God. When John the Baptist sent messengers to ask Jesus if he was the Messiah, Jesus pointed to his miracles: “Go back to John and tell him what you have seen and heard—the blind see, the lame walk, those with leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised to life, and the Good News is being preached to the poor” (). The fact that disabilities are included with diseases and poverty demonstrates that Jesus, as God, desires to restore those affected by disability and all the devastating effects of the Curse.
People with disabilities give Jesus an opportunity to correct a number of wrong ideas about God’s love and about human suffering. One misconception is that God does not love people with disabilities. This is a carryover from pagan beliefs. The Bible makes it clear that a disability is not a sign of God’s disapproval or punishment. Another misconception is that disability is caused by sin. Jesus made it clear that the disability was there so that he could heal the man (). He allows disabilities for his good purposes: to bring glory to himself, spiritual growth in people with disabilities, and ministry opportunity and blessings for believers who serve the disability community. Another misconception is that people with disabilities simply don’t have enough faith to be healed and that a person with enough faith would be healed. This is based on an improper reading of and . However, in the greater context of the Bible, it teaches that we should pray according to God’s will and God will do what he has planned, which may or may not include healing. When Jesus returns at his second coming, he will bring justice to those who have disabilities, activate hope, and reward the faithful.
Our hope is the confident expectation that God has defeated disability once and for all time—it is his promise to believers with disabilities and their families. Through Jesus’ death on the cross, God will lift the Curse that brought disability. People with disabilities will no longer need a law to protect them, prophecy to offer them hope, or instruction to correct misunderstandings about disability. For now, we eagerly await our assured deliverance from the suffering associated with disability. Creation still groans, waiting for redemption. To help us see with spiritual foresight, God gave the apostle John a vision of returning to the beautiful garden paradise in Genesis to enjoy uninterrupted fellowship with God and to eat from the once forbidden tree of life (). In John’s vision, the nightmare of our present reality is transformed by the power of God into a hope-filled future. The end of God’s story of disability will be a new beginning—perfect bodies, perfect minds, and perfect praise for our God, whose story has always included disability. No wonder John tells us that God will wipe every tear from our eyes and we will sing a new song. No wonder he concludes with a prayer: “Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!” ().