Cornelius a Lapide
Table of Contents
Synopsis of the Chapter
First, Christ casts a legion of demons out of a man possessed, which, with Christ permitting, entering into swine, hurl them headlong into the sea. Secondly, at verse 25, He heals the woman with the issue of blood from her flow. Thirdly, at verse 35, He calls back the daughter of Jairus from death to life.
Vulgate Text: Mark 5:1-43
1. And they came over the strait of the sea into the country of the Gerasenes. 2. And when He was come out of the ship, immediately there met Him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit, 3. who had his dwelling in the tombs, and no one could any longer bind him even with chains: 4. for he had been often bound with fetters and chains, and he had burst the chains, and broken the fetters in pieces, and no man could tame him; 5. and always, night and day, in the tombs and on the mountains, he was crying, and cutting himself with stones. 6. But seeing Jesus afar off, he ran and adored Him; 7. and crying with a loud voice, he said: What have I to do with Thee, Jesus, Son of the most high God? I adjure Thee by God that Thou torment me not. 8. For He said unto him: Go out of the man, thou unclean spirit. 9. And He asked him: What is thy name? And he saith unto Him: My name is Legion, for we are many. 10. And he besought Him much that He would not drive him away out of the country. 11. And there was there near the mountain a great herd of swine feeding. 12. And the spirits besought Him, saying: Send us into the swine, that we may enter into them. 13. And Jesus immediately gave them leave. And the unclean spirits going out, entered into the swine; and the herd with great violence was rushed down into the sea, being about two thousand, and were stifled in the sea. 14. And they that fed them fled, and told it in the city and in the fields. And they went out to see what was done; 15. and they came to Jesus, and they see him who had been troubled with the devil, sitting, clothed, and well in his wits, and they were afraid. 16. And they that had seen it, told them in what manner he had been dealt with who had had the devil, and concerning the swine. 17. And they began to pray Him that He would depart from their coasts. 18. And when He went up into the ship, he that had been troubled with the devil began to beseech Him that he might be with Him; 19. and He admitted him not, but said unto him: Go into thy house to thy friends, and tell them how great things the Lord hath done for thee, and hath had mercy on thee. 20. And he went his way, and began to publish in Decapolis how great things Jesus had done for him; and all men wondered. 21. And when Jesus had passed again in the ship over the strait, a great multitude assembled together unto Him, and He was near the sea. 22. And there cometh one of the rulers of the synagogue named Jairus; and seeing Him, falleth down at His feet, 23. and besought Him much, saying: My daughter is at the point of death; come, lay Thy hand upon her, that she may be safe, and may live. 24. And He went with him, and a great multitude followed Him, and they thronged Him. 25. And a woman who was under an issue of blood twelve years, 26. and had suffered many things from many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was nothing the better, but rather worse: 27. when she had heard of Jesus, came in the crowd behind Him, and touched His garment; 28. for she said: If I shall but touch His garment, I shall be whole. 29. And forthwith the fountain of her blood was dried up; and she felt in her body that she was healed of the plague. 30. And immediately Jesus, knowing in Himself the virtue that had proceeded from Him, turning to the multitude, said: Who hath touched My garments? 31. And His disciples said unto Him: Thou seest the multitude thronging Thee, and sayest Thou: Who hath touched Me? 32. And He looked about to see her who had done this. 33. But the woman, fearing and trembling, knowing what was done in her, came and fell down before Him, and told Him all the truth. 34. And He said unto her: Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole: go in peace, and be thou whole of thy disease. 35. While He was yet speaking, some come from the ruler of the synagogue's house, saying: Thy daughter is dead: why dost thou trouble the Master any further? 36. But Jesus, having heard the word that was spoken, said to the ruler of the synagogue: Fear not, only believe. 37. And He suffered not any man to follow Him but Peter, and James, and John the brother of James. 38. And they come to the house of the ruler of the synagogue, and He seeth a tumult, and people weeping and wailing much. 39. And going in, He saith unto them: Why make ye this ado, and weep? the damsel is not dead, but sleepeth. 40. And they laughed Him to scorn. But He, having put them all out, taketh the father and the mother of the damsel, and those who were with Him, and entereth in where the damsel was lying. 41. And taking the damsel by the hand, He saith unto her: Talitha cumi, which is, being interpreted: Damsel (I say to thee), arise. 42. And immediately the damsel arose, and walked: and she was of the age of twelve years; and they were astonished with a great astonishment. 43. And He charged them straitly that no man should know it; and commanded that something should be given her to eat.
Verse 2: A Man With an Unclean Spirit
2. A MAN WITH AN UNCLEAN SPIRIT. — That is, a man of an unclean spirit, or one having an unclean spirit, namely one possessed by a demon. See what was said on chapter 1, verse 23.
Verse 7: I Adjure Thee by God That Thou Torment Me Not
7. I ADJURE THEE BY GOD THAT THOU TORMENT ME NOT. — Because the demon knew that nothing would be granted by Christ to his own merits and prayers; hence he interposes the name of God, which he knew Christ to reverence in the highest degree — as though to say: By the interposed and invoked authority of the divine Name (which I know to be sacred and holy to Thee) I ask, I beseech, and as far as I can, I bind Thee, that Thou cast me not out of this body and send me away into hell; for this is the highest torment for a demon.
Verse 9: My Name Is Legion
9. MY NAME IS LEGION (Syriac: Our name is Legion — as though to say: We are a legion of demons; hence, explaining, he adds), FOR WE ARE MANY. — A legion properly contained 6666 soldiers. See what was said on Matth. xxvi, 53; but here a definite number is set down for an indefinite. Note: The demon is the ape of God, and hence imitates God, who is the Lord of hosts, namely of the angelic hosts. For in like manner the demon calls himself a legion, because he leads out very many associates from his flock into battle array, that he may attack God and the faithful of God. Therefore men ought rightly to fear him, knowing that their struggle is not with men — however many — conspiring to their destruction, and that therefore they must implore and obtain the help of God and of the holy Angels, as Elisha obtained it (4 Kings VI, 17). The rest I have said on Matth. VIII, 28.
Verse 21: And When Jesus Had Passed Over in the Ship
21. AND WHEN JESUS HAD PASSED OVER IN THE SHIP. — In Greek, διαπεράσαντος, that is, when He had crossed over by ship to the further and opposite shore of the Sea of Galilee.
Verse 25: And a Woman Who Had Been Under an Issue of Blood for Twelve Years
25. AND A WOMAN WHO HAD BEEN UNDER AN ISSUE OF BLOOD FOR TWELVE YEARS. AND SHE TOUCHED HIS GARMENT. — The "woman" was from Caesarea Philippi, which was first called Dan, then Paneas, and finally Caesarea. This is that famous haemorrhoïssa who, when she had been cured by Christ of her flow of blood, in memory of so great a benefit erected at Caesarea a statue pointing to Christ; and from the base of this statue a herb sprung up which, when it touched the fringe of Christ's garment, healed any kind of sickness — as is testified by Eusebius, book VII of the History, chapter xiv; Sozomen, book V, chapter xxi; and Theophylact here. Julian the Apostate, enemy of Christ, cast this statue down and set up his own effigy in its place; but this was struck by lightning and shattered, as Sozomen and the Tripartite History, book VI, chapter xix, testify.
Our Novelists (the Reformers) imitate Julian, who cast down, drown and burn the relics of the Saints, while secretly they preserve and venerate relics of their own. For the heart of Zwingli, when he had been burnt, was found among his ashes; and the followers of Zwingli keep it with great reverence, as Capito says in the Life of Zwingli.
Hence it is not plausible that this haemorrhoïssa was Martha, the sister of Magdalene, as S. Ambrose supposes in his book On Solomon, chapter v; for Martha dwelt at Bethany near Jerusalem, not at Caesarea in Phoenicia. The Gospel of Nicodemus calls this haemorrhoïssa Veronica, who offered Christ, as He went to the cross, a veil for the wiping of the sweat, on which Christ left the image of His face. But that Gospel is apocryphal and of uncertain authority.
Verse 26: Was Rather Worse
26. WAS RATHER WORSE. — The Arabic: "had added to her pain."
Verse 27: She Came in the Crowd Behind
27. SHE CAME IN THE CROWD BEHIND. — Because she did not dare to approach Him openly in the sight of all, both out of reverence for Christ and because she was unclean from her flow of blood, says the Scholiast in S. Chrysostom. Unclean, I say, both legally — for the law of Moses decreed that those who suffered from a flow of blood should be kept from the temple as unclean — and also physically, for this disease of the flux is loathsome and defiles those who touch her.
Verse 28: If I Shall but Touch His Garment, I Shall Be Safe
28. FOR SHE SAID: IF I SHALL BUT TOUCH HIS GARMENT, I SHALL BE SAFE. — Matthew, chapter IX, 20, in place of "garment," has "the fringe of His garment." Fringes (fimbriae) are the threads woven or sewn to the outer edge of the garment, of hyacinth or violet colour, which God commanded the Jews to wear, so that by them the memory of the commandments of God, and of heaven itself, might be continually refreshed in them; which fringes Christ wore according to the law, as though they were a badge of the Jewish people and religion. See what was said on Numbers XV, 38.
Here is an example and argument for proving the power and use of the holy relics; for such was the fringe of Christ, which healed the woman with the issue of blood. Calvin replies that this woman was superstitious, and that she mixed some superstition with her own act. But this is refuted by Christ and by Mark here, who attribute this healing not to superstition, but to her own faith, and commend and confirm it. For at verse 30 it is said: "And immediately Jesus, knowing in Himself the virtue that had gone out of Him," that is, out of His fringe. And at verse 34: "Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole: go in peace." Rightly S. Hilary: "Just as," he says, "the Author of nature gives to the magnet the power of attracting iron, so Christ gave to His own garment the power of healing one who touched it in faith." If to His garment, then much more to the Eucharist. Whence S. Gorgonia was healed of a grave disease by touching the Eucharist, as Nazianzen testifies, oration 11; likewise S. Catharine of Siena and very many others. See our Salmeron, tome VI, tract 15, at the end.
Verse 29: And Forthwith the Fountain of Her Blood Was Dried Up
29. AND FORTHWITH THE FOUNTAIN OF HER BLOOD WAS DRIED UP. — That is, the flow of blood, which was continually gushing from her body as from a perennial fountain, ceased. Hence the Arabic translates: "and forthwith the course of her blood stood still."
Tropologically: the flows of blood are the pleasures of flesh and blood, says Bede — such as gluttony, luxury, and the like; these the most pure Flesh of Christ heals in the devout reception of the Eucharist.
Verse 30: And Immediately Jesus, Knowing in Himself the Virtue That Had Gone Out of Him
30. AND IMMEDIATELY JESUS, KNOWING IN HIMSELF THE VIRTUE THAT HAD GONE OUT OF HIM — and had healed the woman with the issue of blood — not as though some quality had gone out of Christ's fringe, or as though this virtue had migrated from place to place (namely, from the fringe of Christ into the haemorrhoïssa), but by reason of the effect which it caused in the woman. For the power remaining in Christ was working the effect of healing in the woman: "Just as," says Theophylact, "the teaching of doctors is said to be communicated to the disciples and poured into them," although the teaching itself remains in the doctors, and only brings over into the disciples its effect — namely, a similar knowledge.
Note: this power of healing and of working any miracle, implanted by the Word into the humanity of Christ, was not a physical quality — for such would have had to be infinite, of divine and infinite efficacy, of which the created humanity of Christ was not capable — but a moral quality, namely an instrumental power: for this humanity of Christ acted, as it were, as the instrument of the divinity. So Abulensis (Quaest. CII on chapter 9 of Matthew), and Salmeron at the place cited.
WHO TOUCHED MY GARMENTS? — "Christ asks this," says Bede, "in order that the salvation which He had given to the woman, being declared and acknowledged, may through the power of faith profit many, and draw them on to believing in Christ." The Scholiast in Chrysostom adds, that He may proclaim and celebrate the faith of the woman; and Theophylact adds a third reason, that He may free the woman from fear.
Verse 33: But the Woman, Fearing and Trembling
33. BUT THE WOMAN, FEARING AND TREMBLING, KNOWING WHAT HAD BEEN DONE IN HER, CAME AND FELL DOWN BEFORE HIM, AND TOLD HIM ALL THE TRUTH. — "Fearing and trembling" — not because she had committed any superstition, as Calvin would have it, but because she had approached secretly, and being unclean had touched the clean Christ, and had, as it were, filched the benefit of healing without Christ's knowing it: therefore she feared lest she be rebuked by Christ, or lest Christ should ask back and recall His benefit, or punish her with a more grievous evil. Hence it is plain that she did not yet have perfect faith and hope in Christ; for she would not have supposed that Christ could be unaware of her, nor have been so afraid. Therefore Christ, encouraging her, said: "Be of good cheer, daughter," as Matthew has in chapter IX. So Chrysostom in the same place.
Verse 34: Daughter, Thy Faith Hath Made Thee Whole
34. BUT HE SAID UNTO HER: DAUGHTER, THY FAITH HATH MADE THEE WHOLE. — Christ here, to the woman who feared lest He should punish her, as being secretly healed, with a relapse of her disease or some other evil, confirms the healing she had received and bids it to stand firm — as though to say: Not the bare fringe of My garment, which thou didst touch with great faith and sure hope of obtaining healing, O woman, hath healed thee; but principally My omnipotence, and secondarily thy faith: for this, whether as a disposition or as a merit (or a meritorious cause), hath set thee free from the flow of blood; which liberation I ratify, nay, I confirm and strengthen.
GO IN PEACE. — "He sends her," says the Scholiast of Chrysostom, "unto the goal of good things; for God dwells in peace, that she may know herself to have been cleansed also from her sins." For those whom Christ healed in body, He also sanctified in soul.
Verse 39: The Damsel Is Not Dead, but Sleepeth
39. THE DAMSEL IS NOT DEAD, BUT SLEEPETH. — For although she is truly dead, yet immediately by Me she shall be roused from death as from sleep: wherefore she seems not so much dead — which always remains dead — as sleeping. Or, as the Scholiast in S. Jerome has it, as though to say: "She is dead to you, to Me she sleeps."
Verse 41: Talitha Cumi
41. TALITHA CUMI. — The Hebrews call a boy ילד ieled; for which the Syrians and Chaldeans say tali; whence in the feminine talitha, that is, a girl. Cumi means "arise" — that from the bed where thou liest dead, thou mayest rise and stand alive. Further, "that Mark might make it more ἐμφατικώτερον (that is, with greater emphasis), and express the sense of one calling and commanding, he added: 'I say to thee,'" says S. Jerome in his book On the Best Kind of Translating.
Verse 42: And Immediately the Damsel Arose, and Walked
42. AND IMMEDIATELY THE DAMSEL AROSE, AND WALKED — that she might show herself alive by her motion. Mystically: "Because," as Bede says, "the soul that has been raised from sins must not only rise from the filth of evil deeds, but also advance in good works."
Verse 43: And He Commanded That Something Should Be Given Her to Eat
43. AND HE COMMANDED THAT SOMETHING SHOULD BE GIVEN HER TO EAT. — The Arabic: "and He said: Feed her," that He might show that she had not only truly risen, but was also in health and hungry. For boys and girls are wont, when they wake from sleep, to be hungry and to ask for food; for in sleep they digest all the food of the previous day, if they are healthy and vigorous, being then endowed with a great heat of the stomach. For death had served her in place of sleep, as Christ says in verse 39.