Blind Bartimaeus sees

Jesus came to Jericho. As he went out of the city with his disciples and many other people, a blind man named Bartimaeus sat beside the highway begging. Bartimaeus was the son of Timaeus.

When he heard that Jesus of Nazareth was passing by, Bartimaeus began to cry out to him. He called Jesus the Son of David and asked for mercy.

Many people told Bartimaeus to be quiet. He did not stop. Instead, he cried out even more.

Jesus stood still and told the people to call him. They called Bartimaeus and told him to rise because Jesus was calling for him. Bartimaeus threw off his garment, rose, and came to Jesus.

Jesus asked what he wanted Jesus to do for him. Bartimaeus answered that he wanted to receive his sight.

Jesus told him to go his way and said that his faith had made him whole. Immediately Bartimaeus received his sight.

The account does not end with Bartimaeus simply walking away. After he could see, he followed Jesus in the way. The man who had been sitting beside the highway begging was now walking after Jesus with his sight restored.

Jesus and his disciples came to Jericho. As Jesus went out of the city, a great number of people were with him. Beside the highway sat Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus. He was blind and made his living by begging.

Bartimaeus could not watch Jesus pass, but he heard who was coming. When he learned that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out. He called Jesus the Son of David and asked him for mercy.

Many people charged Bartimaeus to be quiet. Their pressure did not silence him. Mark says he cried out even more, again calling Jesus the Son of David and asking for mercy.

Then Jesus stood still. In a moving crowd, that small action changes the whole scene. Jesus commanded that Bartimaeus be called. The same crowd that had been telling him to be quiet now told him to rise because Jesus was calling him.

Bartimaeus cast away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus. Jesus asked him directly what he wanted Jesus to do for him. Bartimaeus answered plainly that he wanted to receive his sight.

Jesus told Bartimaeus to go his way and said that his faith had made him whole. Immediately Bartimaeus received his sight. Mark then adds one final detail: Bartimaeus followed Jesus in the way.

The account matters because Bartimaeus had very little control over the crowd around him. He could not make them give him a better place, and he could not stop them from telling him to be quiet. What he could do was call out, and he did. Jesus did not let the crowd's judgment settle the matter. He stopped, called Bartimaeus forward, listened to his request, and restored his sight.

The title Bartimaeus used, Son of David, also matters. It was not simply another way to say Jesus' name. It connected Jesus with David's royal line, a major hope running through the Scriptures.

Mark's order is worth noticing. Bartimaeus hears about Jesus before he can see him, calls out while others oppose him, comes when Jesus calls, asks for sight, receives it immediately, and then follows Jesus. The account moves from a man sitting beside the way to that same man following Jesus in the way.