Mark: A Walk With Our Savior (Day 45)

Read Mark 10:46-52
 
JESUS HEALS A BLIND BEGGAR
 
   Jericho was a popular resort city rebuilt by Herod the Great in the Judean desert, not far from the Jordan River crossing. Jesus was on His way to Jerusalem, and, after crossing over from Perea, He would naturally enter Jericho. 
Beggars were a common sight in most towns. Because most occupations of that day required physical labor, anyone with a crippling disease or disability was at a severe disadvantage and was usually forced to beg, even though God’s laws commanded care for such needy people (Leviticus 25). Blindness was considered a curse from God for sin (John 9), but Jesus refuted this idea when He reached out to heal the blind. 
 
   “Son of David” was a popular way of addressing Jesus as the Messiah, because it was known that the Messiah would be a descendant of King David (Isaiah 9). The fact that Bartimaeus called Jesus the Son of David shows that he recognized Jesus as the Messiah. His faith in Jesus as the Messiah brought about his healing.