Luke 8:40-42 meaning

The parallel Gospel accounts for Luke 8:40-42 are Matthew 9:1, 9:18-19 and Mark 5:21-24.

And as Jesus returned, the people welcomed Him, for they had all been waiting for Him (v 40).

Jesus had returned from a brief visit to the other side of the Sea of Galilee. He had been in the country of the Gerasenes (Luke 8:26), which is near the Greek Decapolis. When He arrived in that country, He healed a demon-possessed man by sending the demons into a herd of swine, which then drowned themselves in the sea (Luke 8:27, 33). The locals were fearful of Jesus and asked Him to leave (Luke 8:37). Jesus then got into a boat and returned to the predominantly Jewish district of Galilee on the other side of the sea (Luke 8:39). The parallel account in Matthew specifically tells us that Jesus arrived in His own city (Matthew 9:1), which meant the city of Capernaum, where His ministry was based (Mark 2:1) rather than Nazareth, where He grew up. Capernaum was located on the northern shore of Galilee

Unlike the Gerasenes, these people welcomed Jesus, for they had all been waiting for Him. They had witnessed many of His miracles (Luke 4:35-36, 4:40, 5:17-26) and they had been amazed at His teachings (Luke 4:31-32).

And there came a man named Jairus, and he was an official of the synagogue (v 41a).

Among the people who had been waiting for Jesus in Capernaum was a man named Jairus. The Gospel of Mark also identifies this man’s name as Jairus (Mark 5:22).

In Hebrew, the name Jairus (יָאִיר) means “he enlightens” or “he will give light.” The root of the name, “ya'ar,” is associated with the Hebrew verb “'or” (אוֹר) which means “to shine” or “to enlighten,” reflecting a sense of illumination or bringing light.

Jairus was an official of the synagogue.

Synagogues served as local meeting places where Jews gathered for community, worship, and studying God's law. The synagogues were overseen by the Pharisees. Typically, a local leader appointed an official to maintain the building and safeguard the sacred scrolls. The synagogue official was usually a respected layman in the community.

Upon seeing Jesus in Capernaum, Jairus came to Him with heart-breaking news.

and he fell at Jesus’s feet, and began to implore Him to come to his house, for he had an only daughter, about twelve years old, and she was dying (vv 41b-42a).

Luke wrote that Jairus fell at Jesus’s feet.

Jairus’s action dramatically displays both his desperation and his faith. Given the grave circumstances of his dying child, his personal dignity is of no consequence.

Falling at Jesus’s feet is also an act of worship. Matthew emphasizes this aspect of Jairus’s action when he wrote how the synagogue official “bowed down before Him” (Matthew 9:18). It is a recognition that Jesus is more than a good man or an amazing teacher. In a Jewish context, Jairus’s action is a recognition that Jesus is the Messiah. In a broader context, Jairus’s falling at Jesus’s feet is a recognition that Jesus is worthy beyond any other human.

The Gospels seem to indicate that Jairus fell at Jesus’s feet before he verbalized his request.

Jairus began to implore Jesus to come to his house. Luke’s description that Jairus then began to implore indicates that Jairus was repeatedly begging Jesus to come to his house.

According to Luke, He was imploring for his only daughter, because she was dying. Luke describes her as about twelve years old. Luke also includes the fact that she was his only daughter. Luke’s phrase—he had an only daughter—may mean that his daughter was an only child.

Mark’s account focuses on the specifics of Jairus’ desperate request:

“My little daughter is at the point of death; please come and lay Your hands on her, so that she will get well and live.”
(Mark 5:23b)

As a synagogue official in Capernaum, Jairus had likely heard of, read reports about, or perhaps even witnessed Jesus performing miracles such as healing lepers, paralytics, fevers, and casting out demons. Now that his daughter was dying, he had nowhere else to turn. Based on what he had heard, read, or seen, Jairus believed that Jesus had the power to restore her health.

The Gospels of Luke and Mark both record that Jairus believes his daughter is still living when he implores Jesus’s help. Jairus says she is dying, and “at the point of death” (Mark 5:23b).

This appears to be different from what Matthew’s Gospel says. In the Gospel of Matthew, Jairus informs Jesus: “my daughter has just died; but come and lay Your hand on her and she will live” (Matthew 9:18).

What is the reason for this difference in the Gospels’ accounts?

The likely reason is that Mark and Luke tell a fuller account of what was happening while Matthew’s account provides a brief record of these events. Mark and Luke narrate the dramatic ups and downs of this story as they unfolded. Matthew’s report consolidates it essential facts. Both methods are acceptable. And all three Gospels provide an accurate account of the same event.

For instance, Matthew edits out some specific details, including Jairus’s name, and he does not mention the arrival of the messengers who later inform Jarius that “your daughter has died” before Jesus is able to reach the house and heal her (Mark 5:39, Luke 8:49). Matthew cuts straight to this essential fact—that the daughter of the synagogue official is dead before Jesus arrives at the house. By asserting this essential fact at the outset of his account, it allows Matthew to summarize this moment and edit the extra detail of the messengers who will soon say the same thing.

Again, such summations were a valid and acceptable way to retell events in the ancient world. The Gospels of Mark and Luke include more details of this event while the Gospel of Matthew is the more concise.

Jesus agreed to help Jairus and heal his daughter. Matthew writes, “Jesus got up and began to follow him, and so did His disciples” (Matthew 9:19).

Apparently, the sight of Jesus going to heal someone caused a scene.

But as He went, the crowds were pressing against Him (v 42b).

Mark says something similar: “And He went off with him; and a large crowd was following Him and pressing in on Him” (Mark 5:24).

The crowds pressing in against Jesus indicates how the people were eager to be near Him. The crowding likely delayed Jesus from getting to Jairus’s house. The crowds possibly distressed Jairus who knew the urgency of the situation because his daughter did not have much time.

But there was someone else in the crowds who desperately needed Jesus. Her bold faith in Jesus would change her life (Luke 8:43-48).