Mark 7:24-37 (MSG) 24 From there Jesus set out for the vicinity of Tyre. He entered a house there where he didn't think he would be found, but he couldn't escape notice. 25 He was barely inside when a woman who had a disturbed daughter heard where he was. She came and knelt at his feet, 26 begging for help. The woman was Greek, Syro-Phoenician by birth. She asked him to cure her daughter. 27 He said, "Stand in line and take your turn. The children get fed first. If there's any left over, the dogs get it." 28 She said, "Of course, Master. But don't dogs under the table get scraps dropped by the children?" 29 Jesus was impressed. "You're right! On your way! Your daughter is no longer disturbed. The demonic affliction is gone." 30 She went home and found her daughter relaxed on the bed, the torment gone for good. 31 Then he left the region of Tyre, went through Sidon back to Galilee Lake and over to the district of the Ten Towns. 32 Some people brought a man who could neither hear nor speak and asked Jesus to lay a healing hand on him. 33 He took the man off by himself, put his fingers in the man's ears and some spit on the man's tongue. 34 Then Jesus looked up in prayer, groaned mightily, and commanded, "Ephphatha!—Open up!" 35 And it happened. The man's hearing was clear and his speech plain—just like that. 36 Jesus urged them to keep it quiet, but they talked it up all the more, 37 beside themselves with excitement. "He's done it all and done it well. He gives hearing to the deaf, speech to the speechless."
Sometimes we get tired (Tyred?) Jesus had retreated. Is that okay? We would like to not be subject to fatigue, and when we are fatigued, I think the gospel suffers. The good news is the coming reign of the kingdom of God. The Way is asserted and demonstrated by those who are empowered by the Spirit of God. But there are days when the Southwest Airlines commercials are our real life…we want to get away.
Is Mark producing propaganda against the synagogue in Rome? That is possibly a way that this story could be used, but I doubt that the characterization of this narrative in those terms helps our people adopt the narrative of the story of God as their own. Why could this not be a report that Peter shared with John Mark, part and parcel to the question that the disciples ask (Who is this? 4:41). Who is this that upsets the status quo?
Here Jesus has sought a quiet moment for himself, and does not get it. Ever get snippy when you are really hungry, or when you are weary? Ever say something that could be perceived as unhelpful, or even ugly. Is it permissible for Jesus to have such a moment? Does the humanity of Jesus threaten our sensibilities? Jesus does not tell this outsider, this Greek woman, no. He uses a metaphor that I don’t like, where she is a dog. Can we hear it, even? I find the distance in time and language and the culturally specific communication difficult to nuance. As I have been living in the text of the Sermon on the Mount, I know the Way would be to give to everyone who asks. Is Jesus reminding himself of his priorities? God had made some promises to Abraham and the ‘people of God’ along the way. God’s promises needed to be kept. Through a certain people would come a blessing for all people. The ‘certain people’ project is not quite over. Blessing for all people is coming. He uses a metaphor for a household animal (some people love their pets quite a bit, too!). She chooses not to be offended. Her need outstrips her pride. I think that is an amazing and helpful realization. Perhaps Jesus, as the one who knows hearts, has set this up to make that point. (Who is this who knows the hearts of human beings?)
Jesus was impressed. That is not in the text, but it is reasonable inference. Her response was so genuine that her blessing came in a very dramatic and immediate way. Sometimes that happens.
Then Jesus travels to another region where outsiders live. Any surprise that these outsiders, too, will get a hint of blessing? Would you let Jesus put his fingers in your ears? Would you let him put some spit on your tongue? That is so strange. Who is this who can make such a process function? It is relational. It is personal. It is intimate. It is supernatural. Of course, it is the type of thing that was to accompany the new alternative world (eschatological world) promised in Third Isaiah 61:1-2. It was hard to keep quiet about that. Mark’s Roman audience might think, “Jesus did this for those who were not the old insiders? Could this story be for me? Who is this who opens my hears and loosens my tongue?”
How fascinating!
