Matthew 9:26-38

9:26 And the news of this spread throughout that region. ¹ 

Healing the Blind and Mute

9:27 As Jesus went on from there, two blind men followed him, shouting, ²  “Have mercy ³  on us, Son of David!” ⁴  9:28 When ⁵  he went into the house, the blind men came to him. Jesus ⁶  said to them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” They said to him, “Yes, Lord.” 9:29 Then he touched their eyes saying, “Let it be done for you according to your faith.” 9:30 And their eyes were opened. Then Jesus sternly warned them, “See that no one knows about this.” 9:31 But they went out and spread the news about him throughout that entire region. ⁷ 

9:32 As ⁸  they were going away, ⁹  a man who could not talk and was demon-possessed was brought to him. 9:33 After the demon was cast out, the man who had been mute spoke. The crowds were amazed and said, “Never has anything like this been seen in Israel!” 9:34 But the Pharisees ¹⁰  said, “By the ruler ¹¹  of demons he casts out demons.” ¹² 

Workers for the Harvest

9:35 Then Jesus went throughout all the towns ¹³  and villages, teaching in their synagogues, ¹⁴  preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and sickness. ¹⁵  9:36 When ¹⁶  he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them because they were bewildered and helpless, ¹⁷  like sheep without a shepherd. 9:37 Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. 9:38 Therefore ask the Lord of the harvest ¹⁸  to send out ¹⁹  workers into his harvest.”

[9:26]  ¹ tn For the translation of τὴν γῆν ἐκείνην (thn ghn ekeinhn) as “that region,” see L&N 1.79.

[9:27]  ² tn Grk “shouting, saying.” The participle λέγοντες (legontes) is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.

[9:27]  ³ sn Have mercy on us is a request for healing. It is not owed to the men. They simply ask for God’s kind grace.

[9:27]  ⁴ sn There was a tradition in Judaism that the Son of David (Solomon) had great powers of healing (Josephus, Ant. 8.2.5 [8.42-49]).

[9:28]  ⁵ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[9:28]  ⁶ tn Grk “to him, and Jesus.” This is a continuation of the previous sentence in Greek, but a new sentence was started here in the translation.

[9:31]  ⁷ tn For the translation of τὴν γῆν ἐκείνην (thn ghn ekeinhn) as “that region,” see L&N 1.79.

[9:32]  ⁸ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[9:32]  ⁹ tn Grk “away, behold, they brought a man to him.” The Greek word ἰδού (idou) has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1).

[9:34]  ¹⁰ sn See the note on Pharisees in 3:7.

[9:34]  ¹¹ tn Or “prince.”

[9:34]  ¹² tc Although codex Cantabrigiensis (D), along with a few other Western versional and patristic witnesses, lacks this verse, virtually all other witnesses have it. The Western text’s reputation for free alterations as well as the heightened climax if v. 33 concludes this pericope explains why these witnesses omitted the verse.

[9:35]  ¹³ tn Or “cities.”

[9:35]  ¹⁴ sn See the note on synagogues in 4:23.

[9:35]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “and every [kind of] sickness.” Here “every” was not repeated in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[9:36]  ¹⁶ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[9:36]  ¹⁷ tn Or “because they had been bewildered and helpless.” The translational issue is whether the perfect participles are predicate (as in the text) or are pluperfect periphrastic (the alternate translation). If the latter, the implication would seem to be that the crowds had been in such a state until the Great Shepherd arrived.

[9:38]  ¹⁸ sn The phrase Lord of the harvest recognizes God’s sovereignty over the harvest process.

[9:38]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “to thrust out.”