Having fans isn’t always a great thing.
Mark 3.7-12 • Matthew 4.24 - 5.1 • Luke 6.17-19
Despite the Pharisees’ frustration with Jesus curing people on Sabbath, word about Jesus spread all over the province—and to the provinces nearby. Jesus gradually found himself with loads of followers. Impractically large loads of followers. From all over.
These passages aren’t all that parallel, but they roughly cover the same ground, so you get the idea.
Mark 3.7-12 KWL - 7 Jesus went back over the lake, with his students and many groups:
- People from the Galilee, Judea, 8 Jerusalem, Idumea, beyond-Jordan, Tyre, and Sidon.
- Hearing about whatever Jesus was doing, many groups came to him.
- 9 Jesus spoke to his students so they’d have a boat nearby, because of the crowds.
- Thus they wouldn’t crush him. 10 Jesus had cured many.
- So the many plague-sufferers could touch him, they resorted to jumping him.
- 11 Whenever unclean spirits saw Jesus, they fell down before him,
- shouting out, “You’re the son of God!”— 12 and Jesus silenced them, lest they expose him.
Matthew 4.24 - 5.1 KWL - 24 The rumor of Jesus went out to all Syria.
- People brought him everyone who had all sorts of evil diseases,
- those crushed by torments, demoniacs, lunatics, the paralyzed,
- and he cured them.
- 25 Many crowds followed Jesus:
- People from the Galilee, Dekapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and beyond-Jordan.
- 1 Seeing the crowds, Jesus went up a hill.
- As he seated himself, his students came to him.
Luke 6.17-19 KWL - 17 Coming down with them, Jesus stood on level ground,
- with many crowds of his students, a plethora of people
- from all Judea, Jerusalem, the coastline of Tyre and Sidon.
- 18 They came to hear Jesus—and be cured from their diseases.
- Those tormented by unclean spirits were dealt with,
- 19 and all the crowd sought to touch Jesus, for his power came out and cured everyone.
People from everywhere were coming to Jesus. Not just fellow Jews who lived in the Galilee, Judea, and Jerusalem. Time for a mini-geography lesson.