Section 8:40–56
Jesus healed a sick woman and caused a dead girl to live again
This section tells about two miracles that Jesus did. He healed a woman who had a sickness that caused her to have chronic menstrual bleeding. The story about this woman is told in the middle of the story about a dead girl whom Jesus caused to live again. The situation was hopeless for both until Jesus miraculously helped them. His miracles showed the special power and authority that God had given to him as the Messiah.
These stories include the concept of uncleanness, just as in the story of the healing of the man with a “legion” of unclean spirits. Here, the woman was unclean according to the law of Moses because of the bleeding that was caused by her sickness. The dead body of Jairus’ daughter was also ritually unclean. But in spite of this, Jesus touched both of them. Jesus did not become unclean himself when he touched them. Instead, he made them ritually clean by making them well.
Another important theme in this section is faith. Jesus said that the woman who was bleeding was healed because she believed that Jesus could heal her. Then he encouraged Jairus to keep believing that God could make his daughter well, even after she had died.
It is good to translate this section before you decide on a heading for it. Some other possible headings for this section are:
Jesus cured a woman with chronic bleeding and gave life to a dead girl
-or-
The child of Jairus and the woman who touched the border/edge of Jesus’ clothing
-or-
A Dead Girl and a Sick Woman (New International Version)
There are parallel passages for this section in Matthew 9:18–26 and Mark 5:21–43.
Paragraph 8:40–42a
8:40a
When Jesus returned:
The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as When here introduces the next events that Luke wanted to write about. See the note on “Then” at 8:19a. These events happened after Jesus returned to the other side of the lake from the place where he freed the man from demons in 8:26–39. He may have returned later that same day or the next day. Indicate this in a natural way in your language.
It may be natural in your language to indicate where Jesus returned or that he traveled by boat. For example:
When Jesus returned to the other side of the lake… (Good News Translation)
-or-
When Jesus got back to Galilee… (New Century Version)
-or-
When Jesus returned ⌊by boat⌋ ⌊from the region of Gerasa⌋…
In some languages it may be most natural to make this statement a complete sentence. For example:
Then Jesus returned to the other side of the lake.
When Jesus returned: Jesus traveled back to Galilee from the region of Gerasa where he had been in 8:26–39. Luke implied that he returned to the northwest side of Lake Galilee. He probably arrived at or near the place where he had sailed from in Luke 8:22, possibly to the town of Capernaum.
Jesus: The context implies that Jesus’ disciples also went with him to the other side of the lake. Luke does not mention them here, because Jesus is in focus. However, in some languages it may be confusing not to include the disciples at this point in the story. (The first mention of any of the disciples in the story is at 8:45.) If that is true in your language, you may want to mention them. For example:
When Jesus ⌊and the disciples⌋ returned
-or-
When Jesus returned ⌊with the disciples⌋
8:40b
the crowd welcomed Him: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates literally as the crowd implies that many people had been expecting Jesus to return. They were waiting there to welcome him. Many of these people may have often followed Jesus from place to place to listen to him.
In some languages it may be confusing to refer back to a specific crowd or group of people. If that is true in your language, you may translate in a more general way. For example:
a crowd (New International Version, New Century Version)
-or-
many people
8:40c
for they had all been waiting for Him: The Greek conjunction that the Berean Standard Bible translates as for indicates that this clause explains the reason for 8:40b. The crowd was ready to welcome Jesus as he arrived because they had been watching and waiting for his return. Another way to translate this is:
because they had been waiting for him (New Living Translation (2004))
Indicate this connection in a natural way in your language. In some languages a conjunction may not be needed. See the General Comment on 8:40a–c below for a suggestion about reordering.
had…been waiting for Him: The Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as had…been waiting for probably means here that the crowd was watching and waiting eagerly for Jesus to return. The people did not know when Jesus was coming, and they may not have been certain that he would return to that place. However, they hoped that he would return, so they waited for him at the side of the lake. Some other ways to translate this are:
were…expecting him (New International Version)
-or-
had…been looking for him (Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English)
General Comment on 8:40a–c
In some languages it may be helpful to reorder this verse to say at the beginning that the people were watching and waiting for Jesus. For example:
40bThe people/crowd ⌊back on the other side of the lake⌋ were waiting/looking for Jesus, 40aso, when he returned, they all welcomed him.
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