One event, four witnesses
Healing Blind Bartimaeus
As Jesus passes near Jericho, a blind beggar, or two, cries out for mercy and receives his sight. Matthew, Mark, and Luke all record it, with real differences over the number of men and whether Jesus was entering or leaving Jericho.
“And as they departed from Jericho, a great multitude followed him.”Matthew 20:29
“And they came to Jericho: and as he went out of Jericho with his disciples and a great number of people, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the highway side begging.”Mark 10:46
“And it came to pass, that as he was come nigh unto Jericho, a certain blind man sat by the way side begging:”Luke 18:35
The event
The event. Near Jericho, on the road toward Jerusalem, Jesus passes by, and a blind beggar hears that He is near. In Mark the man is named, Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sitting by the wayside begging. He cries out, "Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me," and though the crowd rebukes him and tells him to be quiet, he cries all the more. Jesus stands still and commands him to be called; casting away his garment, the man springs up and comes. Jesus asks what he wants, and he answers that he wishes to receive his sight. Jesus tells him his faith has made him whole, and immediately he sees and follows Jesus in the way, glorifying God. Matthew records two blind men making the same cry and receiving the same mercy, with Jesus moved with compassion touching their eyes. Luke tells the story with a single beggar as well, healed as Jesus draws near the city. The persistent cry of the blind, addressing Jesus by the messianic title Son of David just before the triumphal entry, marks him as seeing more truly than the sighted crowd.
Read side by side: what is the same, what differs
Read side by side: what is the same, what differs. All three agree that near Jericho a blind beggar cried out to Jesus as Son of David for mercy, was told to be silent by the crowd, persisted, was called, asked what he wanted, requested his sight, was healed, and followed Jesus glorifying God. Two real differences are long noted. First, the number: Matthew records two blind men; Mark and Luke tell of one, and Mark names him Bartimaeus. As with the Gadarene account, the narrower focus on the named and prominent man is not a denial that a second was present; Matthew records both. Second, and this is the well-known crux, Mark says the healing happened as Jesus "went out of Jericho," and Luke says it happened as He "was come nigh unto Jericho," that is, approaching the city. This is a genuine tension in the wording. Several honest explanations have been offered: that there was an old Jericho and a newer Roman Jericho nearby, so Jesus could be leaving one while approaching the other; that Luke, who tells of Zacchaeus in Jericho next, arranges his material by theme rather than strict sequence; or that the beggar first cried out as Jesus approached and was healed as He left. Faithful readers hold that the underlying event is one and that the difference reflects the ordinary freedom of the accounts, not a proven contradiction, while candidly admitting this remains a debated detail.
What it shows of Christ
What it shows of Christ. Jesus is the Son of David, the Messiah, and it is a blind beggar who sees this most clearly while the crowd still walks in the dark. He does not brush past the cry of the lowly but stands still, calls, and heals. Mark's naming of Bartimaeus and his casting away his garment to spring up captures the servant Christ's personal attention to one despised man. Luke, the Gospel of compassion for the outsider and the poor, sets the healing on the doorstep of Jericho and joins it to the salvation of Zacchaeus, showing mercy reaching the marginal. Matthew, ever mindful of the King and of pairs of witnesses, records the two men and Jesus' compassion touching their eyes. That the healing comes just before the triumphal entry, with the cry "Son of David" ringing out, frames Jesus as the promised King about to enter His city. Christ gives sight to those who confess Him in their blindness, and they follow Him in the way.
Questions people ask
Was there one blind man or two?
Matthew records two blind men; Mark and Luke focus on one, whom Mark names Bartimaeus. As elsewhere, telling of the one prominent, named man is not a denial that a second was present. Matthew gives the fuller count, while Mark and Luke concentrate on the central figure whose cry and healing they narrate in detail.
Did the healing happen as Jesus entered Jericho or as He left?
This is a genuinely debated detail. Mark says as Jesus left Jericho; Luke says as He approached it. Honest explanations include an old and a new Jericho close together, so He could leave one while nearing the other; Luke's arrangement of his material by theme rather than strict order; or the cry beginning on approach and the healing coming as He departed. Faithful readers hold the event is one and the difference is the ordinary freedom of testimony, while admitting the point remains discussed.