Vers. 46—52. Parallel passages: Matt. xx. 29—34; Luke xvili. 35—43.— he cure of two blind men at Jericho. I. Burp Bartmmxus. 1. His condition. He was blind; he was deprived of that most valuable sense of sight. He was a stranger to the beauties of nature. “The light is sweet, and a pleasant thing it is for the eyes to see the sun;” but that sun, that light, those beauties, those bright colours of sky or earth or sea; those lovely forms that appear in the heaven above, the earth beneath, and the waters round the earth—all, all were to him @ blank. We know nothing of this blind man’s family or friends, but from the patronymic, “Son of Timsus,” we may infer that his father or family had been of some note; but the former had gone the way of all the earth and the latter had fallen into decay. That morning, however, whether by relative or friend or neighbourly hand, he was led forth to his accustomed seat by the wayside. He could hear the sound of the voices round him, but he could not see the persons who spoke; he could feel them if they came in contact with him, but could not behold them. Of all that passed by that way he could only judge by the voice or sound, The expression of their countenance, their form or figure, their smiles or tears, their bright eyes or sad looks, their faces sweet or sullen, were to him unknown and by him unseen. Our Lord, having con- tinued his journey through Perma, crossed the Jordan opposite Jericho, and arrived at that once famous city, upwards of five or six miles to the west of the river, and fifteen miles in a direct line eastward of Jerusalem. This ancient place, round which so many associations gather—such as its conquest by Joshua, its rebuilding by Hiel the Bethelite in the reign of Ahab, notwithstanding the curse; its mention in the history of the
112 THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO 8T. MARK. [cnx 1—54.
prophets Elijah and Elisha, its close connection at an early period with our Lord’s own
ancestry—was celebrated for its palms and balsams, Its fertilizing spring contributed
to its wealth and importance. It was beautified by Herod_the Great; subsequently
destroyed, but rebuilt by Archelaus ; celebrated by the historian Josephus ag a populous
and_prosperons-place in _his cay: But its glory long ago passed away. Ui is now a amlet called Rtha. i
miserable At the time of our Lord’s visit, however, was
it
ancient designation of the * alm. ‘City of fragrance,” as the name derived from tne verb rwach imports. @ragrant flowers and aromatic shrube pettumed ¥e alt 1 aromatic shrubs perfumed the air; the scenery around was fresh and lovely; while every prospect was pleasing, and “ man alone was vile.” On the morning of the day that our Lord arrived at Jericho the gardens round the town bloomed in ae as usual, and char e of the beholder; the a palm sifted high ite nea in Sir or waved in the morning bieezs; the Jordan valley stretehed sway into the distatoe It_was springtime, moreover, for_multitades were oF pet ey oe oe g festival of-the-Fassover at Jeruslem, sd spring had clot 6 pe with vernal beauties. Over all the loveliness of earth was spread the clear blue of a
Judean sky, while down on _all“the glorious sun s_shedding his bright be lighting up the whole with brillianey and beauty. (But what were all these beautiful sights and bright scenes to the blind Bartimaeus? As far as he was concerned, they i as well have been dark and dismal, blank and black, like & moonless, starless night, with its darkness thick as in the land of Egypt, even “darkness that might be felt.” 2. His circumstances. He was poor. Incapable of any worldly calling, he was a dependant on the charity of others; he was reduced to solicit alms of the passing traveller. Thus he was not sty blind, but @ beggar. Troubles love as train: one trouble seldom comes alone. The blindness of Bartimmus was agcravated by his poverty, and his poverty had no relief nor remedy but begging. His blind- ness had been the visitation of God; his poverty and beggary were misfortunes consequent thereon. For both he was to be pitied, for neither to be blamed. There was no special sin in his blindness, and therefore none in his begging. What a complication of misery had fallen to this poor man’s lot in life! One almost fancies he sees Bartimasus as he sat that day by the wayside, with face pale, his head bare, perhaps bald from age; while those placid features—as the features of the blind always are—and those sightless eyes might well move the hardest heart to pity. The blind man hears the footsteps of travellers going on their way: he hears the earnest conversation of passers-by, eagerly bent on business or pleasure. Many a time the roud priest has gone that way, but ever passed by on the other side; or the haughty vite has only cast a glance of curiosity at the blind man; sanctimonious Pharisees, with broad phylacteries, have looked with scorn on the poor mendicant. Many a time the cheerful voices of men and women have sounded in his ears, and many a time he has listened to the sound of childhood’s fun and frolic. Day by day, as such sounds were repeated in his hearing and close at hand, all must have seemed to him lively, all cheerful, and all happy save himself, the poor blind beggar, doomed to melancholy darkness. This day, however, he hears the rush of many feet, the tread as of a numerous crowd, the shouts as of a mighty multitude. He wonders what the sound of those many footsteps means, what the swell of those voices can be. He listens till the crowd comes nearer, and he hears them speak in praise, a few, perhaps, in blame, of the Prophet of Nazareth. 3. The corresponding state of the unconverted. Many in the state of their soul resemble that poor blind beggar. The Scriptures speak of blind people that have eyes—“ they have eyes, but see not;” their understanding is dark- ened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them because of the blindness of their heart. Satan, the prince of darkness, blinds the minds of them that believe not. His followers are of the night and of darkness, and at last, if they follow him to the end, they shall be cast into outer darkness. By nature men are spiritually blind. They are face to face with great realities—God and heaven and eternity—but they do not see them. They are on the brink of a great precipice, they are close to great peril, but they do not see it. Like a blind man on the edge of ¢ frightful abyss, and yet seemingly secure just because he is blind to the danger. They are side by side with great truths, but, not seeing them, they deny their existence, as if a blind man denied the exsstence of mountains and rivers, the great sea and the bright
es sHDEe0nCING
oH. x. 1—52.} THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ST. MARK. 118