Judah comes before his brother Joseph and tells the family
story. He leaves out the part about the
brothers evil treatment of Joseph, instead telling only that his father Jacob
presumed that Joseph had been torn to pieces.
The deception that led him to believe such a thing is omitted as it
would have revealed that these men were not particularly trustworthy. His concern is for his father, however, and
he is willing to stand as surety and pay the price for his brother Benjamin’s
presumed sin of theft of the silver cup.
Judah shows that he has matured and become a different sort of man, no
longer driven by jealousy but motivated by love for his father. He uses the word evil twice in this speech
concerning what his father would experience if Benjamin doesn’t return. He can’t let that happen to his father, even
if dad does choose favorites among the boys.
Jairus is a ruler of the synagogue, an elder in Judaism. He had to have known that Jesus had just been
in the Decapolis, a place where most Jews would never go because it was so
pagan. Even if he didn’t know that Jesus
had been in the tombs, with a demon possessed man, and in close proximity to
pigs, he had to know that Jesus was now ritually unclean and to be
avoided. On the way to his house, a
woman with an issue of blood touches Jesus, making him further unclean, but
Jairus perseveres because he cares only about his daughter. When they arrive they are told she is dead so
there is no reason to bring Jesus into the house. In the end, of course Jesus brings her back
to life with only her mother and father there as witnesses to what happens,
only they have persevered in faith in the matter. Love for his daughter meant that everything
else was negotiable and in the end, love won.
I wonder what became of Jairus.
Paul says that time is short, “the present form of this
world is passing away.” It is now nearly
2000 years since he wrote those words and the present form of the world hasn’t
passed away. Do we pay attention to his
words since he was clearly wrong about that estimate? We pray for the kingdom of God to come but do
we really want that to happen or are we busy with our own kingdom-building
activities? Is our love for God so great
that we long for the coming of Jesus in glory and triumph, for this world to
pass away? What I love most shows in my
life and in my prayers. When I am not
praying the Lord’s Prayer I tend to focus a bit less on His kingdom and a bit
more on my own. If I truly loved my
friends, neighbors and family I would be more like Jairus, doing everything in
my power to get Jesus to them or them to Jesus.
Let your hand be on
the man of your right hand,
the son of man whom you have made strong for
yourself!
Then we shall not turn
back from you;
give us life, and we will call upon your
name!
Restore us, O LORD God
of hosts!
Let your face shine, that we may be saved!
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