Spiritual Healing, No. 1 in a series

Bible readings for 2/20/2005, on spiritual healing

James 5:13-16
Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry? let him sing psalms. [14] Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: [15] And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.
[16] Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

1 Corinthians 12:6-11
And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all. [7] But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal.
[8] For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; [9] To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit; [10] To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues: [11] But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.

1 Corinthians 12:27, 30-31a
Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular....[30] Have all the gifts of healing? do all speak with tongues? do all interpret? [31] But covet earnestly the best gifts....

[There follow readings relevant to the subject of spiritual healing from every part of the Bible but the Gospels and the Acts, which are so rich in relevant material that I hope to make a separate selection of readings from them for next week. I make two exceptional inclusions from them here because of the important points they make. – JJE]

Jeremiah 17:14
Heal me, O LORD, and I shall be healed; save me, and I shall be saved: for thou art my praise.

Deuteronomy 32:39 (from the Song of Moses)
See now that I, even I, am he, and there is no god with me: I kill, and I make alive; I wound, and I heal: neither is there any that can deliver out of my hand.

Psalm 6:2
Have mercy upon me, O LORD; for I am weak: O LORD, heal me; for my bones are vexed.

Psalm 30:1-4
I will extol thee, O LORD; for thou hast lifted me up, and hast not made my foes to rejoice over me.
[2] O LORD my God, I cried unto thee, and thou hast healed me.
[3] O LORD, thou hast brought up my soul from the grave: thou hast kept me alive, that I should not go down to the pit.
[4] Sing unto the LORD, O ye saints of his, and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness.

Psalm 41:1-4
Blessed is he that considereth the poor: the LORD will deliver him in time of trouble.
[2] The LORD will preserve him, and keep him alive; and he shall be blessed upon the earth: and thou wilt not deliver him unto the will of his enemies.
[3] The LORD will strengthen him upon the bed of languishing: thou wilt make all his bed in his sickness.
[4] I said, LORD, be merciful unto me: heal my soul; for I have sinned against thee.

Psalm 107:17-21
Fools because of their transgression, and because of their iniquities, are afflicted.
[18] Their soul abhorreth all manner of meat; and they draw near unto the gates of death.
[19] Then they cry unto the LORD in their trouble, and he saveth them out of their distresses.
[20] He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions.
[21] Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!

Isaiah 19:22
And the LORD shall smite Egypt: he shall smite and heal it: and they shall return even to the LORD, and he shall be intreated of them, and shall heal them.

Isaiah 57:17-21
For the iniquity of his covetousness was I wroth, and smote him: I hid me, and was wroth, and he went on frowardly in the way of his heart. [18] I have seen his ways, and will heal him: I will lead him also, and restore comforts unto him and to his mourners. [19] I create the fruit of the lips; Peace, peace to him that is far off, and to him that is near, saith the LORD; and I will heal him. [20] But the wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt. [21] There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked.

Hosea 14:4 [here the Hebrew raphah, to heal, mend, repair, invigorate, make whole, etc., is used of a moral injury:]
I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely: for mine anger is turned away from him.

Job 5:17-18 [Eliphaz the Temanite is speaking:]
Behold, happy is the man whom God correcteth: therefore despise not thou the chastening of the Almighty: [18] For he maketh sore, and bindeth up: he woundeth, and his hands make whole.

Hosea 6:1-2
Come, and let us return unto the LORD: for he hath torn, and he will heal us; he hath smitten, and he will bind us up. [2] After two days will he revive us: in the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight.

Isaiah 53:4-5
Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. [5] But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.

1 Peter 2:20-24
For what glory is it, if, when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take it patiently? but if, when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with God. [21] For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps: [22] Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth: [23] Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously: [24] Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.

Psalm 38:5
My wounds stink and are corrupt because of my foolishness.
[This quotation may serve as an example of the common belief that afflictions all come as punishments for sin. But note how, in the quotation following, Jesus challenges that understanding:]

John 9:1-3
And as Jesus passed by, he saw a man which was blind from his birth. [2] And his disciples asked him, saying, Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind? [3] Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him.

Ezekiel 47: 1-12 [from Ezekiel’s vision of the new temple, Ezekiel 40-48]
Afterward he brought me again unto the door of the house; and, behold, waters issued out from under the threshold of the house eastward: for the forefront of the house stood toward the east, and the waters came down from under from the right side of the house, at the south side of the altar....
[8] Then said he unto me, These waters issue out toward the east country, and go down into the desert, and go into the sea: which being brought forth into the sea, the waters shall be healed. [9] And it shall come to pass, that every thing that liveth, which moveth, whithersoever the rivers shall come, shall live: and there shall be a very great multitude of fish, because these waters shall come thither: for they shall be healed; and every thing shall live whither the river cometh....
[12] And by the river upon the bank thereof, on this side and on that side, shall grow all trees for meat, whose leaf shall not fade, neither shall the fruit thereof be consumed: it shall bring forth new fruit according to his months, because their waters they issued out of the sanctuary: and the fruit thereof shall be for meat, and the leaf thereof for medicine.

Revelation 22:2 [in imagery reminiscent of Ezekiel’s vision]
In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.

Malachi 4:2 [of the “day that shall burn as an oven:”]
But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-3
To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:
[2] A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;
[3] A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up…

Genesis 20:17-18
So Abraham prayed unto God: and God healed Abimelech, and his wife, and his maidservants; and they bare children.
[18] For the LORD had fast closed up all the wombs of the house of Abimelech, because of Sarah Abraham's wife.

2 Kings 20:1-7
In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death. And the prophet Isaiah the son of Amoz came to him, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Set thine house in order; for thou shalt die, and not live.
[2] Then he turned his face to the wall, and prayed unto the LORD, saying, [3] I beseech thee, O LORD, remember now how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart, and have done that which is good in thy sight. And Hezekiah wept sore.
[4] And it came to pass, afore Isaiah was gone out into the middle court, that the word of the LORD came to him, saying, [5] Turn again, and tell Hezekiah the captain of my people, Thus saith the LORD, the God of David thy father, I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears: behold, I will heal thee: on the third day thou shalt go up unto the house of the LORD. [6] And I will add unto thy days fifteen years; and I will deliver thee and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria; and I will defend this city for mine own sake, and for my servant David's sake.
[7] And Isaiah said, Take a lump of figs. And they took and laid it on the boil, and he recovered.
[There follows the account of the Miracle of the Sundial, 2 Kings 20:8-11.]

2 Chronicles 30:18-20 [From the story of Hezekiah’s revival of the observance of Passover at Jerusalem:]
…But Hezekiah prayed for them, saying, The good LORD pardon every one [19] That prepareth his heart to seek God, the LORD God of his fathers, though he be not cleansed according to the purification of the sanctuary. [20] And the LORD hearkened to Hezekiah, and healed the people.

Jeremiah 6:13-14 [Line 6:14 is repeated at Jeremiah 8:11]
For from the least of them even unto the greatest of them every one is given to covetousness; and from the prophet even unto the priest every one dealeth falsely. [14] They have healed also the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace.

[Paul was made to understand from the first that his ministry was to involve suffering, and taught his flock to understand that he was “appointed thereunto.” Nonetheless he prayed for relief for the “thorn in his flesh,” whose nature we are not told, until God gave him understanding of its purpose:]

Acts 9:15-16 [The Lord is speaking to Ananias of Damascus about Paul:]
But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel: [16] For I will shew him how great things he must suffer for my name's sake.

2 Corinthians 12:7-10
And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. [8] For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me.
[9] And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. [10] Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.

1 Thessalonians 3:1-3
Wherefore when we could no longer forbear, we thought it good to be left at Athens alone; [2] And sent Timotheus, our brother, and minister of God, and our fellowlabourer in the gospel of Christ, to establish you, and to comfort you concerning your faith: [3] That no man should be moved by these afflictions: for yourselves know that we are appointed thereunto.