Mark 5:27

The Healing Touch of Jesus · Mark 5:21–43
Read Mark 5

Translations

Modern
When the woman heard about Jesus, she came up through the crowd behind Him and touched His cloak.
Traditional
When she had heard of Jesus, came in the press behind, and touched his garment.
Literal
…having heard about Jesus, having come in the crowd behind, she touched His garment.
Latin
…cum audisset de Jesu, venit in turba retro, et tetigit vestimentum ejus:

Interlinear

Greek
English
When the woman heard about Jesus, she came up through the crowd behind Him and touched His cloak.

Notes

The woman's faith led her to believe that touching the clothing that Jesus was wearing would heal her, and it happened right away (5:34).

As Jesus heads to Jairus's home, followed by a large crowd, Mark introduces a woman in the crowd who suffers from constant bleeding. This condition not only harms her health but also makes her ceremonially unclean. This prevents her from participating in normal community life (see Leviticus 15:25–27). She is an example of the faith that Jairus should have.

Two healing miracles are connected by the need for faith (5:34, 36). The story of Jairus’s daughter begins, then the account of the woman with constant bleeding comes in the middle (5:25–34), and then the story of Jairus’s daughter continues. This pattern places the two stories together and connects them (see Mark Book Introduction, “Literary Features”). During the delay caused by the woman’s healing, Jairus’s daughter died (5:35–43).

The three miracle stories in this section are connected by:

  • a shared location (the Sea of Galilee),

  • the presence of the disciples,

  • the use of a boat, and

  • a common theme, "Who is this" (4:41).

Theme notes and profiles

Elisha

Events

Parallels

Matthew 9:18–26 Luke 8:40–56

People

Jesus: The Son of God and Savior of the world

Glossary

Bible, Manuscripts and Text of the (New Testament) Blood, Flow of Heal, Healing Hemorrhage Jairus Life Mark, Gospel of Miracle Ruler of the Synagogue

Topics

Hemorrhage: A Woman Suffers for Twelve Years Jairus: Daughter of, Restored to Life Jesus, the Christ: Miracles of Heals the Woman with the Issue of Blood Jesus, the Christ: Raises to Life the Daughter of Jairus Miracles of Jesus, in Chronological Order: Cures the Woman with the Issue of Blood Sickness: Christ Healed: Through the Touch of his Garment