“Now when Jesus had come into Peter’s house, He saw his wife’s mother lying sick with a fever. So He touched her hand, and the fever left her. And she arose and served them. When evening had come, they brought to Him many who were demon-possessed. And He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were sick, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: “He Himself took our infirmities And bore our sicknesses.”
8:14
Now when Jesus had come into Peter’s house, He saw his wife’s mother lying sick with a fever.
Upon coming into Peter’s house in Capernaum, Jesus saw Peter’s mother-in-law sick with fever and healed her.
Peter was obviously married.
Do we have no right to take along a believing wife, as do also the other apostles, the brothers of the Lord, and Cephas [Peter]? (1 Co 9:5)
8:15
So He touched her hand, and the fever left her. And she arose and served them.
Peter’s mother-in-law’s healing was instant and complete. She immediately prepared and served dinner for them.
8:16
When evening had come, they brought to Him many who were demon-possessed. And He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were sick,
Jesus continued a ministry of healing after the healing of Peter’s mother-in-law that evening. He exorcised demons verbally and healed all, not most, who came to Him.
8:17
that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying:
Matthew quoted from Isaiah 53:4. The passage in Isaiah says that God heals transgressions and iniquities. Peter quoted Isaiah to show God heals sins.
. . . who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness— by whose stripes you were healed. 1 Pe 2:24
Isaiah says that Jesus bore our “iniquity.”
All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all. Is 53:6
“He Himself took our infirmities And bore our sicknesses.”
This quote does not teach healing in the atonement because this passage has to do with Jesus’ healing ministry during His public ministry and not His work on the cross. Not disease but the penalty of sin was transferred to Christ.
PRINCIPLE:
There will come a day when we are totally healed by resurrection and restoration of our bodies.
APPLICATION:
Sin and sickness are indeed connected. Sickness is a result of sin. Jesus’ healing ministry was a foretaste of the coming kingdom. Christians will receive complete physical healing when we receive our resurrection bodies.
1 Peter 2:24 applies Isaiah 53:4 to the healing of our sins. God does not guarantee healing in time but in the kingdom and in eternity. Specific healings in our time is the down payment of ultimate healing where all will be fully healed. Ultimately, Jesus will heal not only sins but the effect of sin—sickness and death. He redeemed us from the curse of the law on the cross and will one day redeem us from the effects of sin in the kingdom and eternity.
Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”), (Ga 3:13)
