Read Jairus’s daughter’s story in Mark 5:21–24, 35–43; Luke 8:40–42, 49–56.
Jairus, a synagogue ruler, had a sick daughter. As a synagogue ruler, Jairus was responsible for looking after the building, conducting services, and maintaining order at the temple. He was a powerful man, but he was powerless to heal his sick daughter.
Jairus heard Jesus had the power to work miracles, and Jesus was coming to their town. While his daughter lay at home dying, Jairus left to find Jesus. When he did find Jesus, Jairus hurried into the crowd, fell at Jesus’ feet, and begged Jesus to come to his house and heal his daughter.
Jesus started to follow Jairus home, but stopped when a woman who was bleeding touched his cloak. This kept Jesus from getting to Jairus’s house immediately.
The Bible doesn’t describe Jairus’s daughter’s illness. She must have been very ill when her father left to find Jesus. Did she know her father was gone? That he’d been gone longer than expected? Did she think it would be too late for her by the time her father arrived with Jesus?
While Jesus still spoke to the woman in the crowd, someone came from Jairus’s house and told him, “Your daughter is dead. Don’t bother the teacher anymore.”
Jesus heard and said to Jairus, “Don’t be afraid. Believe, and she’ll be healed.”
When Jesus arrived at the house, mourners cried for Jairus’s daughter. Jesus only let Peter, John, James, and the girl’s father and mother inside the room with him. Perhaps because he knew they were the only people who believed he could heal her. He didn’t want them to tell anyone what he did. Meanwhile, the mourners continued to wail, and Jesus said, “Stop wailing. She’s not dead. She’s asleep.”
The mourners laughed at him. They believed the girl was permanently dead because they didn’t believe Jesus could bring her back to life.
Jesus reached out and held the girl’s hand. “My child,” he said, “get up.”
Immediately, her spirit returned to her body. Having received her miracle, the girl stood up and walked around. Do you know what Jesus did next? He told her parents to give her something to eat. Jesus made sure all of her needs were met.
Jesus wants us to trust him to do the same for us. You can give your health and your very life to Jesus. And like Jairus’s daughter, you can accept Jesus’s gift of grace. You can let him heal you. Maybe your heart has been broken by the loss of a friend who moved away or by the rejection of someone you love. Maybe you need to accept Jesus’s hand and let him help you up, out of sadness, grief, or anger.
Or maybe, like Jairus’s daughter, you’ve seen Jesus work a miracle in your life or in the life of a family member. Have you thanked Jesus for his presence in your life? Have you praised him for who he is—God’s Son and your Savior?
I have set the LORD always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.
— Psalm 16:8
I will remember that the Lord is always with me and accept his hand of love and help.
Dear God, you are my provider. You know my needs. And I’m so glad you take care of me and will never leave me. Thank you. Amen.
What kinds of things did girls do during Jesus’ time on earth?
At a young age they began to help with household chores like sweeping, fetching water, and helping take care of the animals. Jairus was a religious leader. He and his family had more money than some, so his daughter may not have done as many chores as other kids. Though most children didn’t have many toys to play with, some had toys made out of clay. Jairus’s daughter may have had a clay doll.
When someone died during Jesus’s time on earth, it was the custom to hire professional mourners. Since the time between Jairus’s daughter’s death and Jesus’s arrival at the house was short, there may not have been time to get professional mourners there. Those that Jesus told to stop wailing might’ve been other family members, family friends, or neighbors.
You wouldn’t have found any low tops, bare bellies, or short shorts on respectable girls in Jesus’s day. Their fashions included tunics in wool, cotton, or linen worn to the ankles. Because Jairus’s daughter was part of a wealthier family, she may have worn a more colorful tunic than most other girls. And her tunic may have had a V-neck with embroidery along the edges.
And forget tennies. Girls and women wore simple leather sandals, some with wooden soles.