Jesus heals Malchus

Jesus interacted with many people during his three years of ministry.

Large crowds that gathered to hear him speak, people in the Synagogue when he was there to teach, his followers that journeyed with him; but there were many individuals who met with Jesus, and were transformed by their encounter with him, one-to-one.

Many of these individuals had a disability, a health condition, or some other difference, that in their culture made life very hard for them.

Bartimaeus who was blind, an unnamed woman had a condition that made her bleed, a boy is described as having a demon but probably had epilepsy; there are many of these encounters in the Gospels.

All four of the Gospels tell the story, with John’s Gospel naming the man as Malchus (meaning ‘ruler’, ‘king’, ‘judge’, or ‘counsellor’), as well as naming Simon Peter as the one who cut Malchus’ ear off.

Luke, as we have come to expect, gives a fuller account of this medical incident, including the restoration of Malchus’ ear. Here is the passage from Luke 22, using the NIrV version:

‘One of them struck the servant of the High Priest and cut off his right ear. But Jesus answered, “Stop this!” And he touched the man’s ear and healed him.’ (Luke 22:50-51)

We don’t hear much about Malchus after this incident, other than the account of one of his relatives during Peter’s denial of Jesus (John 18:26), but it has been speculated that as all four Gospel writers mentioned the incident, and at least Luke knew him by name, that Malchus was possibly known to them at some point, perhaps even as a member of the early church.

What we do know is that Malchus was the last person that we have record of that Jesus physically healed during his ministry on earth, and in this act of healing he taught us much that is relevant to us today (as many of Jesus’ healing encounters do!)

Here are just some of the things that this brief encounter teach us:

1. Respond in love: Jesus was being arrested, there was hatred surrounding him, he knew what was to come, but he chose to respond in love, instinctively caring for the needs of another.

2. Everyone is important: Malchus was a lowly servant, but he was important to Jesus. Everyone is important to Jesus, whoever they are, whatever their circumstances. Jesus wants us to treat everyone equally too (Mark 12:30-31)

3. Practical concerns: Malchus was the servant of Caiaphas, the High Priest; if he had not had his ear restored by Jesus, he may not have been able to continue in his role as his ‘defect’ may have barred him from entering the temple (see Leviticus 21:16-23, especially v18). Jesus helped Malchus to continue to serve and earn a livelihood.

4. A living parable: Malchus had his ear cut off yet had it restored by Jesus. I wonder how many of those who witnessed this scene recalled one of Jesus favourite sayings when he was teaching: “Whoever has ears should listen.” (Mark 4:23, Matthew 11:15, et al) Caiaphas, his servants including Malchus, and many others that were there to arrest Jesus, would have heard Jesus say those words before and yet had ignored them. Malchus was given a final chance to think on those words again!

5. Healing: ‘Healing’ can be different things to different people. Malchus was physically healed, but cannot help but to have been mentally changed too. His wound was dealt with, but every time he looked at his reflection, or touched his ear, or heard the name of Jesus mentioned, he would have paused to think about that incredible night. Healing isn’t always just about the physical, it can be about the mental and emotional too.

Let us remember Malchus and what his story teaches us, and dig deeper into some more of those one-to-one encounters that Jesus had with people.

Mark Arnold, Director of Additional Needs Ministry at Urban Saints. Arnold blogs at The Additional Needs Blogfather. This article was re-published with permission.