The Galilean Harvest Field
THE GALILEAN HARVEST FIELD
MATTHEW 9:27-38
Jesus is moved with pity as he sees lost people.
The duplication of the blind men (cf. Mark 8:22-26) probably emphasizes the note of witness (cf. Deuteronomy 19:15), as with the two demoniacs of 8:28 and the two blind men of Jericho in 20:30-34 (an incident closely similar to this). This incident also illustrates the power of faith (9:28f.). The “stern charge” of 9:30 is like that laid upon the leper (8:4a), but much more vigorously expressed (although the verb used here of the charge to the blind men is used in Mark 1:43 of the charge to the leper). The expression conveys a sense of indignation, and may combine anger at the forces which afflicted men with eager desire to prevent the misunderstanding of his real mission which could too easily arise from the blazing abroad of his acts of healing.
The exorcizing of the dumb demon and the imparting of the power of speech to its victim (9:32-34) occasions the mocking charge that one who exercised such mastery over the demons must be in league with their prince—a charge repeated in similar circumstances in 12:24, where it is refuted in detail. No silence can be imposed this time, because the cure was seen by crowds of bystanders. The two actions together represent a fulfillment of Isaiah 35:5f. “Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened and the tongue of the dumb sing for joy.”
When the crowds mentioned in the generalizing summary of 9:35f. are compared to “sheep without a shepherd,” we should remember the precedent of l Kings 22:17 and conclude that what is meant is not a congregation without a pastor but an army without a captain—“a maccabean host with no Judas Maccabaeus, a leaderless mob, a danger to themselves and everyone else” (T.W. Manson). Jesus knew very well how readily they could be led to disaster if they found the wrong kind of leader. The political unrest in Palestine in this period was due in large measure to the desperate economic plight of the population and the high level of unemployment. The majority of them refused the leadership of Jesus because he would not be the kind of leader they wanted—one who would promise them political independence and economic rehabilitation—and in due course were led to disaster by others who made these promises without being able to fulfill them. But at the moment these leaderless multitudes presented, in Jesus’ eyes, a ripe harvest-field waiting to be reaped for the kingdom of God, if only sufficient harvesters were available for the task (9:37f.).
Discuss the various manifestations of faith in the narratives of chapters 8 and 9.