The first person Jesus raised from the dead
Introduction: Jesus had already performed a number of miracles such as the overwhelming load of fish for Peter’s boat (Luke 5) and the healing of a paralytic (Luke 5:17-26). The miracles weren’t limited to men, only, as He had healed Peter’s own mother-in-law (4:36-39). Now He was going to demonstrate His power over death itself. He was going to bring a young man back to life, after the young man had died!
1 The Journey towards Nain
Text: Luke 7:11, KJV: 11 And it came to pass the day after, that he went into a city called Nain; and many of his disciples went with him, and much people.
Jesus had just left Capernaum after healing a servant of a Roman centurion (7:1-10). Nain is only mentioned once in the Bible, and it’s in this passage. Nain was maybe 20 miles south-east of Capernaum, and seemed to be built on top of a hill or foothill in the Valley of Jezreel (see the online map at https://bibleatlas.org/full/capernaum.htm), Even though, as mentioned, the city was never spoken of again in Scripture, the city has a special place. That’s because one of the Lord’s greatest miracles was performed there.
To be honest, I’ve never really understood why the Lord chose that particular route or why He and the others chose to enter that city. The map (see link above) shows what looks to be a road or trail heading basically south and my guess (it’s only that) is the end-of-that-line would be Jerusalem. Every male Jew was supposed to go to Jerusalem three times a year so it’s my guess that these roads or trails were designed to assist the travelers. Or, maybe, so many feet had traveled for so many years that the path was already there!
Yet, oddly, the road on that map seems to lead towards Samaria, the land on the west side of the Jordan River, located between Judea and Galilee. I haven’t found any reason why the Lord would choose that direction but then, some things are not for us to be concerned with. Something very important was about to happen, though, and we have the record right here in the text.
Verse 11 says Jesus and those with Him went into the city of Nain. The next verses tell us why.
2 The Tragedy inside Nain
Text, Luke 7:12, KJV: 12 Now when he came nigh to the gate of the city, behold, there was a dead man carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow: and much people of the city was with her.
There’s no contradiction between the Lord and His followers coming into the city of Nain and them coming nigh to the gate of the city. Jerusalem had several gates (Nehemiah’s book mentions a number of these) and it’s possible that Jesus would be traveling through from, say, east to west or north to south. Another possible solution is that the group was going into the city to purchase food (like they did is Samaria, see John 4) and would exit from the nearest gate. No need to retrace the steps all the way back through the city to the original gate or entry point
Even though we’re not told the specific reason why Jesus and the others came into Nain, we can see it in this verse. Luke records here that there was a funeral procession heading out of the city. It’s important to remember that in Bible times, few people were buried inside a city.
There were exceptions, of course, such as the tombs of the various kings of Judah as listed in the books of Kings and Chronicles but for most people, their bodies were taken outside the city, usually on the same day the person died. Even as late as the days of the apostles, when Ananias and Sapphira lied to Peter and died on the spot, their bodies were carried out of Jerusalem that same day (Acts 5).
Further, we’re not told the age of the deceased here. The King James Version translates the word as “man”, maybe a generic term for one who died (see Dr. A. T. Robertson’s notes online at https://godrules.net/library/robert/robertluk7.htm). The deceased here is not called any of the usual words for man, youth, elder (aner, anthropos, pais, brephos, etc.). Luke does say that the deceased was the only son of a widow, much like the widow of Zarephath in 1 Kings 17. Reading some of the commentators, I found that this, the death of an only son, was one of the worst things for any widow to have to endure. She had no husband, and the son was apparently supposed to help his mother (actually seems like a reasonable request). But now that the son is gone, hope is gone, and she’s probably wondering what next to do.
Luke also says there were “much people” of the city with her. At the least she wasn’t alone in her grief as there were those who showed how much they cared. We have to recall that life was not easy in those days (is it ever easy?) and, as is true for all of us, we are each one only one breath away from eternity.
Reader, are you ready to meet God when your life is over?
3 The Miracle performed in Nain
Text, Luke 7:13-17, KJV: 13 And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her, and said unto her, Weep not. 14 And he came and touched the bier: and they that bare him stood still. And he said, Young man, I say unto thee, Arise. 15 And he that was dead sat up, and began to speak. And he delivered him to his mother. 16 And there came a fear on all: and they glorified God, saying, That a great prophet is risen up among us; and, That God hath visited his people. 17 And this rumour of him went forth throughout all Judaea, and throughout all the region round about.
The first thing said of Jesus is that He “saw” her, the mother of the deceased male. Isn’t that just like our Lord, knowing exactly what’s needed and when? He knew this mother needed comfort—and who doesn’t, when a loved one dies—and compassion. He provided both!
He then told the mother to, literally, “stop weeping (per Robertson above)”. Weeping is a normal part of any grieving process and I’ve seen many tears shed at viewings. For some, the deceased was not a believer in Jesus and the separation is forever, as it was for the rich man in Luke 16. But for believers, and I believe that includes infants and children who die before the “age of accountability”, the separation won’t be forever. They’re safe in the arms of Jesus Himself these days, just like the son of David and Bathsheba in 2 Samuel 12. David knew that this particular son would never come back to life with David, but David knew he would go to that child when David’s own life was over.
Note that the body is being carried on a “bier”, a word used only here in the Bible (per Robertson). Luke does not give the age of the deceased but Dr. John Gill has a very interesting comment (https://biblehub.com/commentaries/gill/luke/7.htm) that there were different ways of carrying the deceased to the burial site. A “bier” was used if the deceased was three years of age or older. So we can guess this son was rather young. No wonder there was so much grief—who wouldn’t be hurt to know a toddler or preschooler had died?
Jesus had apparently walked up to the bier, and probably got the attention of the pallbearers. I can guess they were thinking, “Who is this?” when He walked up to them. And I’m sure He caused a lot of them to wonder, “What is He doing?” when He actually touched the bier!
Then I believe all of them were amazed when Jesus spoke, “Young man, I say to you, ARISE!” This was not a wish, not a suggestion, but a divine command! Remember the young man’s body was in a bier or bed so the shape of the body was still visible. Luke adds, “He that was dead sat up and—get this—began to speak! I wonder what his first words might have been!
But Jesus wasn’t done yet. No, He gave the young man back to his mother. We’re never told anything more about either one, but I don’t believe either one of them, or most of the crowd, would ever forget what they had seen.
The last few verses relate how news of this spread all over Judea but that’s likely a reference to the entire nation of Israel. In sum, Jesus had performed any number of miracles to prove His deity, but He had never done anything like this. When He brought a dead man back to life, He proved beyond doubt He had the power over life and death!
May I ask again, dear reader, are YOU ready to meet God? If not, accept His gift of salvation today! You’ll never be sorry if you do—but you’ll always be sorry, forever, if you don’t.
Do it today!
Scripture quotations taken from the King James Version of the Bible (KJV)
