The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1894-10-18
SUNDAY MEDITATION.
A Study of the International Sunday
School Lesson Appointed for Oct.
%, 1894

%, 1894
Subject: The ParaIyuc Brought by Four
and Cured by Christ. st. Mark, 2: liz.
lone reading these notes should first carefully
study tile paragraph from the Holy Scriptures as
indicated above.l
1. Data.
We have three accounts of this miracle, to
wit, st. Matt, 9:2-S; st. Mark, 2: 1-12 ST.
Luke, 5: 1925 The second one is appointed
for our study, but we should critically read
the other two. Though ST. Matthew was
most likely witness, he writes the briefest
account. If he were not actually present
when the miracle was performed, he must
have heard all about it, seeing that he lived
in the city where it was wrought and was
a man in public life. st. Marks account is
fullest He mentions several particulars
for which, as students, we are very grateful
to him. To men writing under the guidance
and suggestions of the Holy Spirit personal
knowledge as to events reported Is not
necessary. 2 Pet, i 81. And to such the
interval of 30 years between events and the
written history is of no consequence so far
rs respects accuracy.
2. Time
This miracle was effected we may say, in
March, A. D. 81, or 1867 years ago. We
find that Christ went to Capernaum, re-
manned awhile, and then set out on a sort of
circuit through some of the towns of Galilee.
st. Mark, l 81, 49, SO. st. Mark, q 1, states
He returned. We do not know how long
he was absent. The some days" ST. Nix,
9 IL seem to be covered by St. Mark, 1 80.
st. Lu., 5 II, gives the definite day.
3. Where.
This miracle was wrought at Capernaum.
st. Mark, 2:1. That was Christ's "own
city" st. Matt, 8: compare II %. The
cure took place in house. We are prob
ably to understand ST. Peters residence.
st. Matt, 8: Ia, 20; pa, %; St. Mark, L
%; ST. Luke, a: 80. We are informed that
the miracle was performed in probably the
court of the house.
Eastern houses were made with fat roofs.
In the center of the roof square, large
aperture was left, which went down through
the entire house. From the bottom or floor
of this aperture inmates could look up
through the open center of the dwelling to
the sky. The base was generally solid
pavement. Persons were prevented fro
falling through this aperture to the pave
ment below by railing, having such names
as balustrade, balcony, breastwork, parapet.
All the rooms of the house opened IN the
rear into this central court. We may say
that each house was a square, built around
a middle, central court. There was o single
front door, opening into a hall, running
through to the central court. In the hall
stairs led to the roof La thickly-settled
places houses were built in long rows, their
roofs connecting, so that one could 90 long
distance on said roofs, Over the aperture
into The roof an awning was often drawn,
to keep out the heat and rain. The roofs
were often made of burnt clay, formed into
tiles or slabs, and hence the aperture in the
roof might be called an opening through
the thing. ST. Luke, $40. They let the
man down through, The opening in the tiled
roof. To uncover the roof (St. Mark, 2: d
may mean to remove the canvas which ex-
tended over the opening of the roof sit"
(St. Mark, "a, is not in she original Greek,
and we may understand by that prenoun
the railing around thee central opening of
the roof. 1t would make it difficult TO get
the man up over that. To make it easier
for the four men, and specially for the
patient, they may have broken away por-
tion of the balustrade. To get the man
upon the roof of ST. Peters house was i'm
practicable on account of the crowd. The
four probably went to the porch of a neigh
boring residence, assembled the stairs to the
roof, and then passed over the several con-
nected roofs until they reached the opening
down into the court where Jesus was. Into
the midst" (St. Luke, $40 means into the
middle of the house, to wit, through the
Central opening. Or the idea may be that
they let the man down into the very presence
OF Christ-into, as it were, his very arms
between him and the surging masses. We
remember the hight of the room was not
great. We may therefore suppose, as art
has generally pictured in representing the
scene, that they tied ropes to the four cor
ners of the pallet, letting the man down
into The court.
1t seems, from st. Matt, 9:7 that the
sick man had house. Perhaps, however,
the reference is not to ownership. The resi-
dence was probably at Capernaum. A man
so utterly helpless could not have been
brought on mat from far.
L. The Patient
We do not know the name of the sick
man. He was probably an adult, and yet a
youth Christ, though himself not much
over 30 years of age, called the patient
"son" (St. Matt, 9:2), or child. But st.
Luke, 5 20, has the title "man." We may
infer that he was full-grown from the tact
that it took four men to carry him. The
extreme heiplessness Of the person, and
possibly the great pain from any jolting,
may have required four men rather for the
comfort of the sick person than because of
actual weight and size. We do not know
how long the man had suffered. We are
not probably to understand st. Mark, l SO,
and st. Luke, A: 40, as absolutely universal,
and so infer the man of the palsy contract
ed the disease since that curing of all per-
sons sick in Capernaun.
Being an adult, it is quite likely the patient
was married person, since the almost uni
versal Jewish custom was to wed, and to
wed early in life. He had friends We
cannot state whether the idea of cure, through
Christ, originated with the four with
the patient. 1t became known that Jesus
was performing wonderful cures. The
palsjed man could not go to Christ. Hence,
four friends interested for the sick man
went to his home and offered assistance in
getting him to Jesus. The patient was a
sinner. We would think he had been rather
noted for evil; at any rate, his sin was the
feature which first of all attracted the at
tention of the Savior. 1T is possible the idea
of his sinfulness was uppermost in the mind
of the sick man; that Christ recognized that
fact and wanted at once to relieve the sut-
ferer of said burden, lit was quite possible
the mans disease wasdns to somewell-known