Healing Blind Bartimaeus #10

Healing blind Bartimaeus is the account of a blind beggar who calls out to Jesus near Jericho, is told to be quiet, shouts louder, and is healed. It appears in Mark 10:46-52, Matthew 20:29-34, and Luke 18:35-43, and it is the last healing Mark records before Jesus reaches Jerusalem.

The Account

As Jesus was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a large crowd, a blind beggar, Bartimaeus, son of Timaeus, sat by the roadside. Hearing that Jesus of Nazareth was passing by, he cried out, “Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy on me.” (Mark 10:47). Many sternly told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more. Jesus stopped and called for him. The crowd’s tone changed: “Be of good comfort, rise; he calleth thee” (Mark 10:49).

Bartimaeus threw off his cloak, sprang up, and came to Jesus. Jesus asked, “What do you want me to do for you?” The man answered, “Rabbi, let me recover my sight.” Jesus said, “Go your way; your faith has made you well,” and immediately he could see and followed Jesus on the road (Mark 10:51-52).

Setting and Context

Jericho lay on the main route up to Jerusalem, so pilgrims heading up to Jerusalem passed through it in large numbers, which explains the crowd. A blind person in the ancient world depended on begging, and the roadside was the natural place to do so. A cloak was often a beggar’s only possession and was spread out to collect alms, so throwing it aside is a striking detail.

The three accounts differ in small ways. Mark and Matthew say the healing happened as Jesus left Jericho, while Luke says as he drew near it. Matthew reports two blind men, while Mark and Luke mention one, and only Mark gives a name. Interpreters have proposed several explanations, such as the old and new cities of Jericho, or Mark naming the better-known of two men, while others simply accept that the evangelists report the event differently.

What It Reveals

The title “Son of David” is significant. It names Jesus as the promised royal Messiah, and it is spoken by a blind man just before Jesus enters Jerusalem in the triumphal entry. Mark contrasts the physically blind man who sees Jesus’s identity with the disciples, who have just failed to understand him (Mark 10:35-45). The prophets had promised that in God’s coming reign the eyes of the blind would be opened (Isaiah 35:5).

Bartimaeus’s persistence has made the story a common model for prayer in many traditions. Notably, he does not go home after being healed but follows Jesus “on the way,” a phrase Mark often uses for discipleship. Eastern Orthodox Christians pray a version of his cry in the Jesus Prayer.