Mark 5 - Jairus' Daughter and The Woman Who Touched Jesus' Garment

Jairus' Daughter and The Woman Who Touched Jesus' Garment

On the other side of the lake Jesus is met by a man named Jairus, a Synagogue Ruler (a rich patron of the local house of worship (Miller 24), who begs Jesus to heal his sick, twelve year old girl. Jesus takes only Peter, James, and John. This story does not occur in the Gospel of John. On the way there, a woman who suffers from chronic "bleeding", perhaps menorrhagia or bleeding from fibroids. (Brown et al. 608) She sneaks up to Jesus and touches his garment, according to Matt 9:20-22 and Luke 8:43-48 (see also Mark 6:53-56, Mark 6#Healing of the sick of Gennesaret) the "fringe of his cloak" (Matt 9:20NRSV), by which she is healed. He turns to see who and she fearfully confesses. He says "Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering."

Men arrive and tell Jairus that his daughter is dead. Jesus brushes them off and says "Don't be afraid; just believe." They arrive at the house and everyone is crying loudly. Jesus assures everyone she is just asleep, goes inside and tells her to get up and she does. Unlike the demon possessed man he tells them not to tell people of these events.

This is also in Matthew 9:18-26 and Luke 8:40-56. Luke keeps the stories of the possessed man and the two women together but Matthew inserts the story of the paralyzed man, calling of Matthew, and the parable of the wineskins found in Mark 2 between these two stories.