Luke 18:43 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him, glorifying God. And all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God.

NIV: Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus, praising God. When all the people saw it, they also praised God.

NASB: And immediately he regained his sight and began following Him, glorifying God; and when all the people saw it, they gave praise to God.

CSB: Instantly he could see, and he began to follow him, glorifying God. All the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God.

NLT: Instantly the man could see, and he followed Jesus, praising God. And all who saw it praised God, too.

KJV: And immediately he received his sight, and followed him, glorifying God: and all the people, when they saw it, gave praise unto God.

NKJV: And immediately he received his sight, and followed Him, glorifying God. And all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God.

The journey to the cross is almost over, but Jesus enters the territory of Judea with a happy event. While walking through Jericho, surrounded by a crowd on their way to celebrate Passover, He hears a man calling out, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!" He stops and has the crowd bring the man to him. It's Bartimaeus, a blind beggar (Mark 10:46), and he wishes to see. Jesus obliges, and the people immediately start praising God (Luke 18:35–42).

This is not the last time a crowd will glorify God because of what Jesus does. Undoubtedly, when He raises Lazarus from the dead, there is great celebration, although it isn't recorded (John 11:38–44). When Jesus rides a donkey up to the temple mount, the people cry out, "Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!" (Luke 19:28–38). They may not fully know what they are saying, but God receives their praise. Some cries will not be worshipful. When the Sanhedrin questions—and tortures—Jesus, they cry out that He is a blasphemer (Luke 22:63–71). The Jewish leaders then rile up a mob to cry out that Pilate should crucify Him (Luke 23:18–25).

Today, it is our turn to take up the cry. Like formerly-blind Bartimaeus, we need to proclaim what Jesus has done for us and praise God.

The story of Bartimaeus begins the last section (Luke 18:35—19:27) of the "Travelogue of Jesus" (Luke 9:51—19:27). In the final two stories, Jesus will meet Zaccheaus and tell the parable of the ten minas. Then Jesus will enter Jerusalem, presenting Himself to the Jewish leaders to give them one more opportunity to lead the nation into following their Messiah (Luke 19:28—21:38).

Luke 18:35–43 records Jesus healing a blind beggar in Jericho. The trusting man believes the plain meaning of what he's heard about Jesus, in contrast to the disciples (Luke 18:31–34). This story is the beginning of the last of four sets of stories that begin with a miracle and go on to explain truths about God's kingdom. After meeting Zacchaeus (Luke 19:1–10) and telling a parable about faithfulness in the kingdom (Luke 19:11–27), the "Travelogue to Jerusalem" will end and Jesus will triumphally enter the city. Mark 10:46–52 identifies the blind man as Bartimaeus. Matthew 20:29–34 says Jesus heals two blind men.

Luke continues to arrange Jesus' teachings by their topic. Here, he includes two parables: the persistent widow and the Pharisee and the tax collector. Jesus encourages children to approach Him. He interacts with a moral, wealthy man who can't bear to follow Jesus if it means giving up wealth. After another prediction of His death, Jesus encounters and heals a blind man on His way to Jerusalem.

Luke 18 approaches the end of Jesus' "travelogue" to Jerusalem (Luke 9:51—19:27). Luke has selected miracles, teachings, and events to show how Jesus trained His disciples. His emphasis was explaining the kingdom of God in preparation for their work to build the church. Luke 18 includes several contrasts between those who understand God's kingdom and those who don't. Luke 19 includes the story of Zacchaeus and another parable before Jesus' triumphal entry and the Passion Week. These stories are also found primarily in Matthew 19—20 and Mark 10.

Luke was a traveling companion of Paul (Acts 16:10) and a physician (Colossians 4:14). Unlike Matthew, Mark, and John, Luke writes his gospel as an historian, rather than as a first-hand eyewitness. His extensive writings also include the book of Acts (Acts 1:1–3). These are deliberately organized, carefully researched accounts of those events. The gospel of Luke focuses on the earthly ministry of Jesus Christ. Luke's Gentile perspective presents Christ as a Savior for all people, offering both forgiveness and direction to those who follow Him.