JJohn Chrysostom
4th centuryChurch Father
Or, for a testimony against them, i. e. as a reproof of them, and a testimony that I respect the law. For now too that I have cured thee, I send thee for the examination of the priests, that thou shouldest bear me witness that I have not played false to the law. And although the Lord in giving out remedies advised telling them to no one, instructing us to avoid pride; yet His fame flew about every where, instilling the miracle into the ears of every one, as it follows, But so much the more went there a fame abroad of him.
And since frequently men, when they are sick, remember God, but when they recover, wax dull, He bids him to always keep God before his eyes, giving glory to God. Hence it follows, But go and shew thyself to the Priest, in order that the leprous man being cleansed might submit himself to the inspection of the Priest, and so by his sanction be counted as healed.
For His sacred flesh has a healing, and life-giving power, as being indeed the flesh of the Word of God.
But mark, that after a man has been cleansed he is then worthy to offer this gift, namely, the body and blood of the Lord, which is united to the Divine nature.
Cyrill of Alexandria
5th centuryChurch Father
He says then, for a testimony unto them, because this deed makes manifest that Christ in His incomparable excellence is far above Moses. For when Moses could not rid his sister of the leprosy, he prayed the Lord to deliver her. But the Saviour, in His divine power, declared, I will, be thou clean. (Numb. 12:13.)
For he knew that leprosy yields not to the skill of physicians, but he saw the devils cast out by the Divine authority, and multitudes cured of divers diseases, all which he conceived was the work of the Divine arm.
From majesty alone proceeds the royal command, how then is the Only-begotten counted among the servants, who by His mere will can do all things? We read of God the Father, that He hath done all things whatsoever He pleased. (Ps. 115:3; 135:6.) But He who exercises the power of His Father, how can He differ from Him in nature? Besides, whatsoever things are of the same power, are wont to be of the same substance. Again; let us then admire in these things Christ working both divinely and bodily. For it is of God so to will that all things are done accordingly, but of man to stretch forth the hand. From two natures therefore is perfected one Christ, for that the Word was made flesh.
Though the leper was silent, the voice of the transaction itself was sufficient to publish it to all who acknowledged through him the power of the Curer.
Gregory of Nyssa
4th centuryChurch Father
And because the Deity is united with each portion of man, i. e. both soul and body, in each are evident the signs of a heavenly nature. For the body declared the Deity hidden in it, when by touching it afforded a remedy, but the soul, by the mighty power of its will, marked the Divine strength. For as the sense of touch is the property of the body, so the motion of the will of the soul. The soul wills, the body touches.
Gregory the Theologian
4th centuryChurch Father
And His works He indeed performed among the people, but He prayed for the most part in the wilderness, sanctioning the liberty of resting a while from labour to hold converse with God with a pure heart. For He needed no change or retirement, since there was nothing which could be relaxed in Him, nor any place in which He might confine Himself, for He was God, but it was that we might clearly know that there is a time for action, a time for each higher occupation.
Ambrose of Milan
4th centuryChurch Father
Or because the law is spiritual He seems to have commanded a spiritual sacrifice. Hence he said, As Moses commanded. Lastly, he adds, for a testimony unto them. The heretics understand this erroneously, saying, that it was meant as a reproach to the law. But how would he order an offering for cleansing, according to Moses’ commandments, if he meant this against the law?
The fourth miracle after Jesus came to Capernaum was the healing of a leprous man. But since He illumined the fourth day with the sun, and made it more glorious than the rest, we ought to think this work more glorious than those that went before; of which it is said, And it came to pass, when he was in a certain city, behold a man full of leprosy. Rightly no definite place is mentioned where the leprous man was healed, to signify that not one people of any particular city, but all nations were healed.
In falling upon his face he marked his humility and modesty, for every one should blush at the stains of his life, but his reverence kept not back his confession, he shews his wound, and asks for a remedy, saying, If thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. Of the will of the Lord he doubted, not from distrust of His mercy, but checked by the consciousness of his own unworthiness. But the confession is one full of devotion and faith, placing all power in the will of the Lord.
He heals in the same manner in which He had been entreated to heal, as it follows, And Jesus put forth his hand, and touched him, &c. The law forbids to touch the leprous man, but He who is the Lord of the law submits not to the law, but makes the law; He did not touch because without touching He was unable to make him clean, but to shew that he was neither subject to the law, nor feared the contagion as man; for He could not be contaminated Who delivered others from the pollution. On the other hand, He touched also, that the leprosy might be expelled by the touch of the Lord, which was wont to contaminate him that touched.
In the words which follow, I will, be thou clean, you have the will, you have also the result of His mercy.
He says then, I will, for Photinus, He commands, for Arius, He touches, for Manichæus. But there is nothing intervening between God’s work and His command, that we may see in the inclination of the healer the power of the work. Hence it follows, And immediately the leprosy departed from him. But lest leprosy should become rife among us, let each avoid boasting after the example of our Lord’s humility. For it follows, And he commanded him that he should tell it to no one, that in truth he might teach us that our good deeds are not to be made public, but to be rather concealed, that we should abstain not only from gaining money, but even favour. Or perhaps the cause of His commanding silence was that He thought those to be preferred, who had rather believed of their own accord than from the hope of benefit.
And that the Priest also should know that not by the order of the law, but by the grace of God above the law, he was cured. And since a sacrifice is commanded by the regulation of Moses, the Lord shews that He does not abrogate the law, but fulfil it. As it follows, And offer for thy cleansing according as Moses commanded.
But if the word is the healing of leprosy, the contempt of the word is the leprosy of the mind.
Cyprian of Carthage
3rd centuryChurch Father
Prayers are not limited to spoken words; they are also expressed through our actions. The Lord has shown us how to pray, regularly engaging in prayer Himself and demonstrating through His example that we ought to follow what is stated: He withdrew to solitary places for prayer. Furthermore, He ascended the mountain to pray, spending the entire night in communion with God (Luke 6:12). If He, who was without sin, devoted Himself to prayer, how much more should those who are sinful turn to prayer? If He prayed throughout the night, persistently seeking God, how much more should we dedicate our nights to fervent prayer?
Gregory the Great
6th centuryChurch Father
Our Redeemer performs His miracles by day, and passes the night in prayer, as it follows, And he withdrew himself into the wilderness, and prayed, hinting, as it were, to perfect preachers, that as neither they should entirely desert the active life from love of contemplation, so neither should they despise the joys of contemplation from an excess of activity, but in silent thought imbibe that which they might afterwards give back in words to their neighbours.
Beda Venerabilis
8th centuryChurch Father
Now that He retired to pray, you would not ascribe to that nature which says, I will, be thou clean, but to that which putting forth the hand touched the leprous man, not that according to Nestorius there is a double person of the Son, but of the same person, as there are two natures, so are there two operations.
Now the perfect healing of one brings many multitudes to the Lord, as it follows, And great multitudes came together that they should be healed. For the leprous man that he might shew both his outward and inward cure, even though forbid ceases not, as Mark says, to tell of the benefit ho had received.
How typically the leprous man represents the whole race of man, languishing with sins full of leprosy, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; (Rom. 3:23.) that so by the hand put forth, i. e. the word of God partaking of human nature, they might be cleansed from the vanity of their old errors, and offer for cleansing their bodies as a living sacrifice.
When the Lord addressed His disciples, saying, "If two of you consult on earth about any thing that you ask, it will come from My Father who is in heaven: where there are two or three gathered together in My name, there I am in the midst of them" (Matthew 18:19-20), He illustrated the significance and advantages of communal prayer, emphasizing how the unity of many enhances the strength of all. Yet, amid His profound mission for humanity's salvation, He at times paused His preaching and miracles to say, "went into the wilderness and prayed" (Lk. 5:16).
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As He approached the culmination of His earthly ministry, He withdrew first with three selected disciples from the larger group and then stepped away alone to pray, indicating a prayer that was both crucial and mysterious in its matter and challenging in its context. He instructed, "Sit there, until I come to pray there," thereby revealing the necessity and value of solitary prayer, which requires complete detachment from all worldly distractions, allowing the soul to dwell exclusively in the presence of God. Dear brethren, with hope let us engage in communal prayer, blessed by the promise of Christ, and with love let us partake in solitary prayer, sanctified by Christ's own example.
Bogolepow D.P.
19th centuryCommentator
Luke provides additional details regarding the healing of the leper. He notes that despite Jesus instructing the healed individuals to remain silent about their miraculous experiences, news of Him spread rapidly, attracting "a great multitude of people" seeking healing and teaching. Yet, Jesus chose to retreat to lonely places for prayer. In Mark’s account, it is at this moment that the leper, disregarding the Lord's command to keep silent, began to share his story widely, leading to a situation where "Jesus could no longer openly enter the city, but was in deserted areas. And people came to Him from all directions." While both Evangelists convey the same event, they interpret it through different lenses.
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Luke views the Lord’s command for silence as an expression of His humility, and His withdrawal to solitary locations as a means of seeking communion with God the Father amidst the distractions of the crowd. Conversely, Mark highlights that by this time, Jesus’ ministry had already created a significant impact on society. His actions had garnered such attention in Galilee that it became impossible for Him to enter the cities publicly without risking disorder under His reign as King of Israel.
THEOSIS