Mark 5:36-40

Mark 5:36 (KJB)
As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken, he saith unto the ruler of the synagogue, Be not afraid, only believe.

Immediately when Jesus heard these words that the girl was dead, He turned to Jairus and told him, in fact, commanded him not to fear but only believe. Belief cannot exist in an atmosphere of fear and fear cannot exist in an atmosphere of belief. It is an exchange principle, either you believe in the words of Jesus or you do not. It is always either/or. I wonder what went through the mind of Jairus when he was told to believe and not fear. What was he to believe at that moment? Or what was he not to fear? This is the essence of faith, that we trust the Lord Jesus Christ with every situation including those which seem to have no way out.

Mark 5:37 (KJB)
And he suffered no man to follow him, save Peter, and James, and John the brother of James.

Jesus then turns His attention to the daughter of Jairus. He first picks three of His disciples to be witnesses of the upcoming resurrection. They were with Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration, so Jesus had picked these three because later they would play very important roles in the early church as testimonies to the life and resurrection of Jesus. Here they were about to witness a resurrection.

Mark 5:38 (KJB)
And he cometh to the house of the ruler of the synagogue, and seeth the tumult, and them that wept and wailed greatly.

(Mat 9:23 KJV) And when Jesus came into the ruler's house, and saw the minstrels and the people making a noise, When Jesus entered into his home, He encountered the minstrels which were flute players. Even the poorest of people had at least two flute players accompanying those that mourn. The practice of mourning was a very integral part of the culture of that day. There were probably many people who were mourning because the daughter was a prominent member of the community with her father being ruler in the synagogue. It must have been some scene because the noise was so great it was causing a tumult. A tumult would be a great noise or uproar of a crowd. There would also have been much wailing. This was also being done in preparation for a funeral which would have been done very quickly according to Jewish custom.

Mark 5:39 (KJB)
And when he was come in, he saith unto them, Why make ye this ado, and weep? the damsel is not dead, but sleepeth.

It seemed that Jesus was not overly impressed with the professional mourners and that is why He asked them why make this ado and weep? The word for “ado” is the word which means “be troubled or distressed.” It is also the word in the Greek for “uproar” as found in Acts 17:5. (Acts 17:5 KJV) But the Jews which believed not, moved with envy, took unto them certain lewd fellows of the baser sort, and gathered a company, and set all the city on an uproar, and assaulted the house of Jason, and sought to bring them out to the people. So the mourners must have been making all kinds of noises which probably didn’t even harmonize with each other. Jesus then tells the people that the girl is not dead but she is only sleeping. Jesus also referred to Lazarus as sleeping. (John 11:13 KJV) Howbeit Jesus spake of his death: but they thought that he had spoken of taking of rest in sleep.

Mark 5:40 (KJB)
And they laughed him to scorn. But when he had put them all out, he taketh the father and the mother of the damsel, and them that were with him, and entereth in where the damsel was lying.

Jesus then comes to the room where the little girl is and then commands the people to leave. He then proceeds to tell them that the maid was not physically dead but she was only sleeping. Once Jesus said this, the lamenting turned into a mocking laugh along with much ridicule. It is amazing how fast the crowd went from mourning to mocking. They were ordered to leave because the Lord Jesus was not going to do any of His miracles in front of those who are mockers and scoffers. Jesus was also teaching His disciples that unbelief hinders the work of God and they are excluded from spiritual blessings. (Heb 3:18-19 KJV) And to whom sware he that they should not enter into his rest, but to them that believed not? {19} So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief. Jesus only allowed the child’s parents to remain in the room with Him and the three disciples.

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