We have just seen Jesus heal the centurion’s servant in Capernaum. Now, He is going to another place called Nain. It is 25 miles southwest of Capernaum. Quite a walk! And as they are arriving there, they come upon a funeral procession. Read today’s text and compare the two miracles.
First of all, the centurion’s servant wasn’t already dead. Second, he wasn’t a relative. And finally, Jesus wasn’t present. He healed him without going there. But both of these instances showed Jesus’ great compassion. Both of these people were in great pain and Jesus, because of His great compassion, healed their loved ones. We can go to Jesus, on behalf of our loved ones, and know that He will care.
I want you also to understand some other things which were different and that was the funeral customs and situations. This was the widow’s only son. In those days, women didn’t work. They needed their men to support them. She was already a widow and now her only son has died. She is facing a bleak future. Who will care for her? Her future is grim. Hopefully, she has a brother or uncle somewhere who will take her in, but she is now in serious trouble with no one to care for her. She is sad and crying because her only son has died but also, she is afraid for her future.
Another difference would be the sound level. In our funerals today, people are generally quiet. No one makes much of any sound. But back then, the level of grieving could generally be told by the level of the wailing going on. The deeper the grief, the louder the wailing. So, here is a woman who has lost her only son, AND is facing an uncertain future, and she is probably grieving quite loudly when Jesus approaches the procession. And what is death called in 1Cor 15:26?
Her son is being carried on a funeral bier. These were flat, and more like a stretcher than a coffin of today. Touching a dead body, in those days, would make you ceremonially unclean, so anyone other than immediate family who had to prepare the dead body, would never dream of touching it. Imagine everyone’s shock when Jesus touched the young man. Jesus had ceremonially defiled Himself. There were so many religious and Temple activities He would not be able to do now until He became ceremonially clean again. But He had naturally involved Himself personally and physically in this situation due to His compassion. Jesus had even, at one time, commissioned His Apostles to raise the dead (Matt 10:8).
Unlike the centurion, the widow had not made a request of Jesus. She had not shown any faith in Him, and we don’t even know if she even knew He was there until He came up and told her not to cry. He never put any conditions on her for healing her son. He simply had compassion for her, told her not to cry, and healed her son. He could sense her intense agony and knew what she needed. He met her need. As in all the cases before her, He knew what was needed and did it. He met everyone’s needs differently.
Now, everyone here would have known about a similar case just on the other side of the hill by Nain in a town called Shechem a few centuries before. We can read this story in 2 Kings 4:8-37. A prophet named Elisha had raised another woman’s son. Read this story. It is a rather similar story, but you will see that when the prophet did it, it was a bit harder. He did not just speak and it happened, as it did when Jesus raised the widow’s son. The difference was that Elisha was just a prophet and Jesus was the Son of God.
Knowing this story that had happened right here in the area, the people would have discussed it and compared the two incidents. It seems that they concluded that Jesus must be a prophet also. They knew that a miracle of this magnitude meant that God was among them. But Jesus was more than a prophet. He was the Son of God.
Those of us who have received Jesus Christ as Savior already know this story personally. Read Eph 2:1-7.
Responding to God: Worship God for His love and compassion. Thank Him for His mercy, kindness, and understanding. Ask Him to help you have compassion for others who are suffering. Look for ways to comfort those who are grieving. Ask for help finding ways to help others in their hours of crisis.
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