Matthew 9:18-26
18 While he was saying these things to them, see, a ruler came in and knelt before him, saying, “My daughter has just died, but come and lay your hand on her, and she will live.”
19 And Jesus, together with his disciples, got up and started following him.
20 But see, a woman who had suffered for twelve years from constant bleeding came up behind him and touched the fringe of his robe,
21 because she said to herself, “If I only touch his robe, I will be made well.”
22 Jesus turned, and after seeing her, he said, “Take heart, daughter; your faith has made you well.” And instantly the woman was made well.
23 And when Jesus came to the ruler’s house and saw the flute players and the crowd making a disturbance,
24 he said, “Go away, because the girl is not dead but is sleeping.” And they laughed at him.
25 But after the crowd had been put outside, he went in and took her by the hand, and the girl got up.
26 And the he was a celebrity because of this event through all that district.
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His touch of life
Paul’s brief counsel to the Corinthians—“it is good for a man not to touch a woman”—likely echoed a Pharisaic maxim meant to promote caution, purity, and self‑control in a culture filled with moral pressures. In Corinth, a city known for its sexual looseness, such advice had practical value. It encouraged believers to avoid situations that could easily lead to temptation or compromise. Yet it was also advice that many in that church probably struggled to apply, given their background and the environment surrounding them.
Jesus, however, did not operate within the boundaries of that Pharisaic caution. His mission required entering the brokenness of human life, and that meant touching and being touched. In Matthew’s narrative, two women—one older, one young—stand as vivid examples of people whose lives were slipping away. Both needed more than moral restraint; both needed the life‑giving power that flowed from Christ.
The woman with the hemorrhage had endured twelve years of decline. Every remedy failed. Every hope had dried up. Her condition isolated her socially and spiritually, leaving her exhausted in body and spirit. Yet when she saw Jesus, something awakened. She dared to believe that His presence meant possibility. Her act of reaching for the fringe of His garment was bold, even risky. She pushed through a crowd that considered her unclean. But desperation and faith combined into a single moment of courage. Her touch was not casual—it was a plea for life. And Jesus responded with healing that restored her physically and publicly, reversing years of loss.
The ruler’s daughter had already crossed the threshold of death. No remedy remained. No physician could help. Yet her father approached Jesus with a confidence that defied the finality of death. He asked Jesus to lay His hand upon her, convinced that even death must yield to His authority. His request was simple but profound: one touch from Jesus would restore life. And Jesus granted it, taking the girl by the hand and raising her from death’s grip.
These stories reveal a pattern: where human strength ends, divine compassion begins. The touch of Christ brings restoration to those drained by long suffering and resurrection to those overtaken by death. His hands carry the power of life.
LORD, daughters and sons still need that life‑giving touch. Lay Your hands upon them, and they will live.
[1] 1 Corinthians 7:1.
