Mark 1:44

1:40-45 We have here Christ's cleansing of a leper. It teaches us to apply to the Saviour with great humility, and with full submission to his will, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, without any doubt of Christ's readiness to help the distressed. See also what to expect from Christ; that according to our faith it shall be to us. The poor leper said, If thou wilt. Christ readily wills favours to those who readily refer themselves to his will. Christ would have nothing done that looked like seeking praise of the people. But no reasons now exist why we should hesitate to spread the praises of Christ.

And saith unto him, see thou say nothing to any man,.... By the way, till he came to the priest; but go thy way, show thyself to the priest: the Syriac and Persic versions read, "to the priests"; and the Vulgate Latin renders it, "to the chief priest"; but any priest might judge of the cleansing of a leper; and offer for thy cleansing those things which Moses commanded for a testimony unto them; See Gill on Matthew 8:4.

44 . shew thyself to the priest ] that he may attest the reality of thy cure ( Leviticus 14:3 ). those things which Moses commanded ] viz. (1) two birds, “alive and clean,” Leviticus 14:4 , (2) cedar wood, (3) scarlet, and (4) hyssop; this was for the preliminary ceremony ( Leviticus 14:4-7 ). On the eighth day further offerings were to be made, (1) two he lambs without blemish, (2) one ewe lamb, (3) three tenth deals of fine flour, (4) one log of oil. If the leper was poor, he was permitted to offer one lamb and two turtledoves or two young pigeons, with one tenth deal of fine flour. for a testimony unto them ] Rather, for a testimony against them , i. e. against their unbelief in refusing to acknowledge our Lord to be all He claimed to be in spite of His mighty works. Comp. Mark 6:11 with Luke 9:5 .

Verse 44. - See thou say nothing to any man . St. Chrysostom says that our Lord gave him this charge, "to shun ostentation, and to teach us not to boast of our virtues, but to hide them." It is evident that he wished to draw the thoughts of men away from his miracles, and to fix them upon his doctrine. Go thy way, show thyself to the priest ; the priest who in the order of his course presided over the rest. Our Lord sent him to the priest, that he might be seen to recognize their special office in cases of leprosy; and further, that the priest himself might have clear evidence that this leper was cleansed, not after the custom of the Law, but by the operation of grace. Mark 1:44

{13} And saith unto him, See thou say nothing to any man: but go thy way, shew thyself to the {u} priest, and offer for thy cleansing those things which Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them. (13) He shows that he was not motivated by ambition, but only by the desire for his Father's glory, and by his love towards poor sinners. (u) All the posterity of Aaron had the authority to judge a leper.

And there came a leper ... - See the notes at Matthew 8:1-4 . Kneeling down to him - He kneeled and inclined his face to the ground, in token of deep humiliation and earnest entreaty. Compare Luke 5:12. If thou wilt - This was an acknowledgment of the almighty power of Jesus, and an appeal to his benevolence. Make me clean - You (Jesus) can heal me of this loathsome and offensive disease, in the eye of the law justly regarded as "unclean," and render me "legally" clean, and restore me to the privileges of the congregation. And Jesus ...touched him - It was by the law considered as unclean to touch a leprous man. See Numbers 5:2. The fact that Jesus touched him was evidence that the requisite power had been already put forth to heal him; that Jesus regarded him as already clean. I will - Here was a most manifest proof of his divine power. None but God can work a miracle; yet Jesus does it by his "own will" - by an exertion of his own power. Therefore, Jesus is divine. See thou say nothing to any man - The law of Moses required that a man who was healed of the leprosy should be pronounced clean by the priest before he could be admitted again to the privileges of the congregation, Leviticus 14. Christ, though he had cleansed him, yet required him to be obedient to the law of the land - to go at once to the priest, and not to make delay by stopping to converse about his being healed.

It was also possible that, if he did not go at once, evil-minded men would go before him and prejudice the priest, and prevent his declaring the healing to be thorough because it was done by Jesus. It was of further importance that "the priest" should pronounce it to be a genuine cure, that there might be no cavils among the Jews against its being a real miracle. Offer for thy cleansing those things ... - Two birds, and cedar-wood, and scarlet, and hyssop; and after eight days, two he-lambs, without blemish, and one ewe-lamb, and fine flour, and oil, Leviticus 14:4, Leviticus 14:10. For a testimony unto them - Not to the priest, but to the people, that they may have evidence that it is a real cure. The testimony of the priest on the subject would be decisive.

[Bible] 1:28. And the fame of him was spread forthwith into all the country of Galilee. 1:29. And immediately going out of the synagogue they came into the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John 1:30. And Simon's wife's mother lay in a fit of a fever: and forthwith they tell him of her. 1:31. And coming to her, he lifted her up, taking her by the hand; and immediately the fever left her, and she ministered unto them. 1:32. And when it was evening, after sunset, they brought to him all that were ill and that were possessed with devils. 1:33. And all the city was gathered together at the door. 1:34. And he healed many that were troubled with divers diseases. And he cast out many devils: and he suffered them not to speak, because they knew him. 1:35. And rising very early, going out, he went into a desert place: and there he prayed. 1:36. And Simon and they that were with him followed after him. 1:37. And when they had found him, they said to him: All seek for thee. 1:38. And he saith to them: Let us go into the neighbouring towns and cities, that I may preach there also; for to this purpose am I come. 1:39. And he was preaching in their synagogues and in all Galilee and casting out devils. 1:40. And there came a leper to him, beseeching him and kneeling down, said to him: If thou wilt thou canst make me clean. 1:41. And Jesus, having compassion on him, stretched forth his hand and touching him saith to him: I will. Be thou made clean. 1:42. And when he had spoken, immediately the leprosy departed from him: and he was made clean. 1:43. And he strictly charged him and forthwith sent him away. 1:44. And he saith to him: See thou tell no one; but go, shew thyself to the high priest and offer for thy cleansing the things that Moses commanded, for a testimony to them. 1:45. But he being gone out, began to publish and to blaze abroad the word: so that he could not openly go into the city, but was without in desert places. And they flocked to him from all sides. Mark Chapter 2

[Reformed Biblical] "While Matthew's narrative conchidcs with Christ's command, Mark goes on to tell how it was obeyed, or rather disobeyed in one point, namely, the suppression of the fact until attested by tlie priest. Instead of attending to tin's first, as he had been directed, gohtg out (from the house or from the presence of tlic Saviour), he J>e'jan (nt once, and as his way of heralding his cure, and to report (circulate, or publish) the irord, not the thing or matter, a meaning now rejected by the best philologists, but the story or report of it. Some understand it still niore strictly, of the word by which the miracle was wrought (/cn^.i/u'tr^^n) he cleansed! The singular translation hhized /(hrocd, is borrowed from the llhemish version. Whether the cleansed leper went to the pi-icsts at all is not recorded, being a matter of small historical importance in comparison with the effect of his disoljcdience on our Lord's own movements, for the sake of which it is in.scrted in the narrative. This effect was to prevent his coming into totcn. (i. c. any town, not the toicn, i. e Capernaum), at least publicly and openly. lie could not, i. e. in a moral.sense, without defeating his own purpose by exciting tumult in the towns through which he passed, and where the premature announcement of his miracles had predisposed the people to undue excitement. To avoid this risk he now chose for his stations unfrequented places, such as John had occupied, but not for the same reason