The Gospels · Chapter 8 of 28
Matthew 8
Jesus heals a leper with a touch, then heals a centurion's servant from a distance, marveling at Gentile faith greater than any in Israel. He heals Peter's mother in law and many others, fulfilling Isaiah's word that he bore our infirmities. He warns would be followers of the cost, stills a raging storm with a word, and delivers two demon possessed men in the country of the Gergesenes.
What happens in Matthew 8
Coming down the mountain amid great crowds, Jesus touches a leper who trusts his willingness, and the man is cleansed instantly. In Capernaum a centurion asks healing for his servant, saying Jesus need only speak the word. Jesus marvels at such faith, unmatched in Israel, and the servant is healed that hour. He heals Peter's feverish mother in law, then many possessed and sick at evening, fulfilling Isaiah's word. He warns a scribe that the Son of man has nowhere to lay his head and tells another to let the dead bury their dead.
Crossing the sea, he sleeps through a tempest until the terrified disciples wake him; he rebukes their little faith, then the winds and sea, and there is a great calm. In Gergesa he casts demons out of two fierce men into a herd of swine that plunge into the sea, and the frightened townspeople beg him to leave their coasts.
Matthew 8 in context
After the Sermon on the Mount in chapters five through seven, Matthew gathers a cluster of miracles that show Jesus's authority matches his teaching. Leper, Gentile soldier, women, the demonized, and the raging sea all come under his word, one after another.
Together they demonstrate the kingdom's reach across every barrier of ritual purity, ethnicity, sickness, and the chaos of nature itself.
Main themes of Matthew 8
Matthew 8 (KJV)
1When he was come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed him. 2And, behold, there came a leper and worshipped him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. 3And Jesus put forth his hand, and touched him, saying, I will; be thou clean. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed. 4And Jesus saith unto him, See thou tell no man; but go thy way, shew thyself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them. 5And when Jesus was entered into Capernaum, there came unto him a centurion, beseeching him, 6And saying, Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented. 7And Jesus saith unto him, I will come and heal him. 8The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed. 9For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it. 10When Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel. 11And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven. 12But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 13And Jesus said unto the centurion, Go thy way; and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the selfsame hour. 14And when Jesus was come into Peter’s house, he saw his wife’s mother laid, and sick of a fever. 15And he touched her hand, and the fever left her: and she arose, and ministered unto them. 16When the even was come, they brought unto him many that were possessed with devils: and he cast out the spirits with his word, and healed all that were sick: 17That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses. 18Now when Jesus saw great multitudes about him, he gave commandment to depart unto the other side. 19And a certain scribe came, and said unto him, Master, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest. 20And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head. 21And another of his disciples said unto him, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father. 22But Jesus said unto him, Follow me; and let the dead bury their dead. 23And when he was entered into a ship, his disciples followed him. 24And, behold, there arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that the ship was covered with the waves: but he was asleep. 25And his disciples came to him, and awoke him, saying, Lord, save us: we perish. 26And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm. 27But the men marvelled, saying, What manner of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him! 28And when he was come to the other side into the country of the Gergesenes, there met him two possessed with devils, coming out of the tombs, exceeding fierce, so that no man might pass by that way. 29And, behold, they cried out, saying, What have we to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God? art thou come hither to torment us before the time? 30And there was a good way off from them an herd of many swine feeding. 31So the devils besought him, saying, If thou cast us out, suffer us to go away into the herd of swine. 32And he said unto them, Go. And when they were come out, they went into the herd of swine: and, behold, the whole herd of swine ran violently down a steep place into the sea, and perished in the waters. 33And they that kept them fled, and went their ways into the city, and told every thing, and what was befallen to the possessed of the devils. 34And, behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus: and when they saw him, they besought him that he would depart out of their coasts.
Verses to carry from Matthew 8
“And Jesus put forth his hand, and touched him, saying, I will; be thou clean. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed.”Matthew 8:3
“When Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel.”Matthew 8:10
“And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm.”Matthew 8:26
Direct words of Jesus
How Matthew 8 points to Jesus
These scenes reveal a Savior whose authority serves compassion. He does not merely command from a safe distance; he stretches out his hand and touches the untouchable leper, absorbing the man's shame rather than fearing his uncleanness. Matthew reads the healings through Isaiah: he himself took our infirmities and bare our sicknesses, pointing toward the cross where he would carry far more than disease.
He marvels at a Gentile soldier's faith, foreshadowing a kingdom gathered from every nation. Even wind and sea obey his voice, so the disciples ask what manner of man this is. The answer is the One whose word made the sea and can silence it, now among us, willing to save all who cry, Lord, save us.
Questions about Matthew 8
Why did Jesus marvel at the centurion's faith?
The centurion, a Gentile soldier, trusted that Jesus could heal by a word alone, reasoning from his own experience of giving and obeying orders. Jesus had not found such faith even in Israel. His wonder highlights that trust in his word, not ethnicity or religious standing, opens the kingdom, which he says will draw people from east and west to sit with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
What does the calming of the storm reveal about Jesus?
When Jesus rebukes the wind and sea and they instantly obey, the astonished disciples ask what manner of man this is. The scene shows his authority over creation itself, the kind of power that belongs to God alone. It also gently exposes their fear and little faith, teaching that his presence, even asleep in the boat, is reason enough not to panic in the storm.
Reflection
The same hand that touched the leper reaches toward whatever we think makes us unclean or unwelcome. Jesus is not repelled by our need. When storms rise and faith feels small, his word still carries the authority to bring calm, and his invitation to cry out, Lord, save us, remains open.
A prayer from Matthew 8
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