Messiah in Yom HaBikkurim Chapter 99
Miracle #29. Healing a multitude of people.
- The Twenty-ninth Miracle of Messiah
- Seventh Corporate Miracle
- At the feet of the Rabbi
- Posture of Discipleship and Submission
- Proximity to Power and the Tzitzit
- Bikkur Cholim
- Three Points
The Twenty-ninth Miracle of Messiah:
Mattai 15:29-31
וַיַּעֲבֹר יֵשׁוּעַ מִשָׁם וַיָּבֹא אֶל־יָם הַגָּלִיל וַיַּעַל הָהָרָה וַיֵּשֶׁב שָׁם׃ וַיָּבֹאוּ אֵלָיו הֲמוֹן עַם רָב וְעִמָּהֶם פִּסְחִים עִוְרִים אִלְּמִים קִטְּעִים וְרַבִּים כָּהֵמָּה וַיַּפִּילוּם לְרַגְלֵי יֵשׁוּעַ וַיִּרְפָּאֵם׃ וַיִּתְמְהוּ הָעָם בִּרְאוֹתָם אֶת־הָאִלְּמִים מְדַבְּרִים וְהַקִּטְּעִים בְּרִיאִים וְהַפִּסְחִים מְהַלְּכִים וְהַעִוְרִים רֹאִים וַיְשַׁבְּחוּ אֶת־אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל׃
יֵשׁוּעַ עָזַב אֶת הַמָּקוֹם, וּלְאַחַר שֶׁעָבַר לְיַד יָם הַגָּלִיל עָלָה לָהָר וְיָשַׁב שָׁם. בָּאוּ אֵלָיו הֲמוֹן עַם רַב וְאִתָּם פִּסְחִים, נָכִים, עִוְרִים, אִלְּמִים וְרַבִּים אֲחֵרִים שֶׁהֻנְּחוּ לְרַגְלָיו, וְהוּא רִפֵּא אוֹתָם. כִּרְאוֹת הָעָם אִלְּמִים מְדַבְּרִים, נָכִים בְּרִיאִים, פִּסְחִים מְהַלְּכִים וְעִוְרִים רוֹאִים, נִתְמַלְּאוּ פְּלִיאָה וְשִׁבְּחוּ אֶת אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל. פ
Yeshua passed on from there and came to the Sea of Galil, and he went up the mountain and sat there. A great crowd of people came to hIm, and among them those who were lame, blind, mute, and crippled, and many more like these. They laid them down at the feet of Yeshua, and he healed them. The people were amazed and filled with wonder when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled in good health, the lame walking, and the blind seeing, and they praised the God of Yisra’el.
Seventh Corporate Miracle:
Today’s *corporate miracle of “Healing a multitude of people,” is the Seventh corporate miracle of Twelve corporate miracle events that occur in the testimony and witness of the Seven Signs and Fifty Miracles of Messiah.
*There are Twelve recorded corporate miracles of the Messiah (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12).
At the feet of the Rabbi:
Yeshua returns to the Sea of Kinnerot (Galilee), climbs a mountain and heals a massive crowd. People brought the lame, blind, crippled, and mute to be healed. They were laid at the feet of Rabbi Yeshua. He healed them all, causing the crowd to marvel and praise the God of Israel. This miraculous event is immediately followed by the “Feeding of the 4,000,” where Yeshua miraculously multiplies seven loaves of bread and a few fish to feed the hungry multitudes over 4,000 persons after they had been with him for three days.
In ancient Jerusalem falling or placing requests at the feet of a prophet, king, or rabbi was a way to beg for an intervention or request redemption. By placing the sick at Yeshua’s feet, the people were asking the Rabbi of all Rabbis to release these persons from their spiritual and medical bondage.
Posture of Discipleship and Submission:
Sitting at the feet of a rabbi was the standard posture of a talmid (student, disciple) receiving formal instruction and submitting to their rabbi’s authority. Bringing the helpless and placing them at Rabbi Yeshua’s feet was a physical extension of this mindset. It symbolized absolute submission to the teacher’s spiritual authority, acknowledging he was chosen of God to dispense His mercy.
Proximity to Power and the Tzitzit:
It was believed that God’s power poured through His chosen messengers or prophets from the head down to the hem of their garments. According to the Torah (Numbers 15:37-40), Jewish men wore tzitzit (fringes or tassels) on the corners of their cloaks. In the ancient Jewish mind, laying a sick person on the ground near the rabbi’s feet put them in immediate, effortless reach of the hem and tassels of the garment—which people tried to touch to receive healing.
Bikkur Cholim:
Laying someone flat on the ground at a rabbi’s feet was the ultimate non-verbal plea for Bikkur Cholim, visiting and caring for the sick and divine intervention. It visually demonstrated that the sick person had “no legs to stand on” and was completely dependent on the rabbi to spiritually or physically lift them up.
When Rabbi Yeshua entered a region, massive, chaotic multitudes would rush to see him. Because it was physically impossible for Yeshua to individually greet or touch hundreds of incoming people, the community would lay their crippled, blind, and diseased relatives in orderly rows on the ground where The Rabbi walked.
Three points:
Fulfillment of Prophecy: The specific ailments Yeshua cures—the blind, mute, and lame—directly fulfill prophecies in the Tanakh about the Messianic age (Isaiah 35:5-6). This serves as concrete proof of Yeshua’s identity as the Messiah.
“New Moses:” Mattai frequently portrays Yeshua as the “New Moses.” Just as Mosheh Ben Levi ascended a mountain to deliver God’s Torah, Yeshua Ben David ascends the mountain to bring God’s ultimate mercy, feeding the multitude and liberating those suffering from physical and spiritual bondage
Expansion to the Gentiles: Geographically, this event takes place in or near the Decapolis, a predominantly Gentile region. The presence and healing of non-Jews, among the crowds following God’s Messiah, demonstrates that the grace and salvation of God was now being expanded to include the Gentiles.