Jesus Heals a Man of the Dropsy

Dropsy. An old term for the swelling of soft tissues due to the accumulation of excess water. In years gone by, a person might have been said to have dropsy. Today one would be more descriptive and specify the cause. Thus the person might have edema due to congestive heart failure.

Edema is often more prominent in the lower legs and feet toward the end of the day as a result of pooling of fluid from the upright position usually maintained during the day. Upon awakening from sleeping, people can have swelling around the eyes referred to as periorbital edema. The Middle English dropsy came through the Old French hydropsie from the Greek hydrops which in turn came from the Greek hydor meaning water.

www.medterms.com

A strange meeting place.

“And it came to pass, as he [Jesus] went into the house of one of the chief Pharisees to eat bread on the sabbath day, that they watched him. And, behold, there was a certain man before him which had the dropsy” Luke 14:1-2.

Why would the Pharisees, (one of the chief Pharisees) invite Jesus to his house to break bread on the sabbath? Jesus, the friend of sinners? Jesus, whom they hated? “And it came to pass. . .that they watched him.” Would they come seeking Jesus; to know Him? No, they would come that they might find fault; that they might have ought in which to accuse Him. This man claims to be the Son of God - away with Him!

Why was the poor man with dropsy there? He was certainly no friend of the Pharisees. He surely was not there at their invitation! (unless he was brought there as a snare in an attempt to entrap the Lord.) This diseased creature should be cast out! He has no place here! Jesus went into the house and found a man before Him. Why had the man come; to be abused, scorned, by the Pharisees - or did he come to see Jesus?

And why was Jesus there? Because he had much in common with His ’Pharisee brethren’? Because He wanted to fellowship with them? Or was it because He knew that the man with the dropsy was there, waiting on His arrival? Again we ask, by whose invitation was the man there? “All that the Father giveth me shall come to me: and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out” John 6:37.

The speechless Pharisees.

And Jesus answering [answering what?] spake unto the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath day?” Whatever question they would have asked was answered with yet another question! (But we know! The Lord knew their thoughts!) A houseful of Pharisees and lawyers must have had the answer to that question: after all it pertained to the Law: they knew the law - didn’t they?

“And they held their peace” [hesuchazo, to keep still; to refrain from meddlesomeness or speech.]. Verse six ends, “And they could not answer him again to these things.”

Another thought: this eating of bread on the Sabbath was confined to the house of a chief Pharisee and his brethren. On almost all other occasions there was a crowd of ‘sinners’ in the midst. The Pharisees, actors, players as they were, would take this opportunity to perform. They would show (or think so in their folly) to show themselves superior, and Jesus inferior. In their despise and jealousy of Him would they think to catch Him as a fish in a net: it was a battle of the minds! They apparently did not have sense enough to know when to quit!

And he [Christ] took him, [the man with the dropsy] and healed him, and let him go;” vs.4. “And answered them.” But they have yet to say anything! Strangely enough, the man whom Jesus would heal didn’t speak either. At least there is no recorded conversation between them. Normally a person would cry out unto the Lord: or He would ask him of the desire of his heart: “Lord, that I might receive my sight; Lord, that I might be healed!” Never mind. Christ has read the minds of all those Pharisees; He knew their thoughts; why not also the thoughts (and heart) of the man with the dropsy?

“And answered them, saying, Which of you shall have an ass or an ox fallen into a pit, and will not straightway pull him out on the sabbath day?” Now who’s caught in the net? If they would say, ‘We would, of course, pull him out!’ Then why have you violated the command of the law? If they would say, No, we would leave the animal in the pit, perchance to die, as he may be wounded or become prey to a predator. Either answer would be unacceptable in their depraved mentality.

So - what have we here? a pit, a pit into which a creature has fallen and cannot free himself. We have One who will take him, pull him up, out. One who will heal him; One who will wash him with water; who will pour in wine for disinfecting; who will pour in oil for his healing; One who will let him go. . .But will the One who has shown such care not keep His eye upon him; continue to care for him?

“I waited patiently for the Lord: and he inclined unto me and heard my cry. He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings” Psalm 40:1-2.

This pitiable fellow with the dropsy was doubtlessly weak and without strength in his legs and feet. He was as one who had fallen into miry clay, quick sand. Did he wait patiently for the Lord? Did the Lord incline unto him; hearing his cry? (if not audibly, surely from his heart.) “And he took him,” brought him up and out of the miry clay of the pit. “And healed him;” “set his feet upon a rock. He is separated, delivered from the pit, from his dropsy. He is healed physically, he is healed spiritually. (Does the Lord work any other way?) His feet are now upon the Rock! He stands in the strength of the Lord!

“And let him go.” Is he healed? Has he received strength? Then ‘let him go.’ He’s made whole; now just turn him loose; he’s on his own?

There was another fellow who lay dead in a pit (the grave). Jesus called, “Lazarus come forth!” “And He brought him up out of the pit; set his feet on the Rock. Jesus saith unto them, loose him and let him go” John 11:44. Let him go? Isn’t that the same thing our Lord said about the man with the dropsy: ‘let him go?’ Let him go; release him from the grave clothes? Or could it mean more: let him go that Christ might ‘establish his goings?’

“And established my goings” Psalm 40:2b. Is Christ the Way, the Truth, the Life? Then let Him establish my goings! Let me go follow Him!

Of course we must take this personally. We were as the man with the dropsy; which is a far worse ‘congestive heart failure’ than he had; we were “without strength.” Rom. 5:6.

He [Christ] inclined unto me; heard my cry: lifted me up out of the horrible pit called Sin: up and out of the miry clay of which I could never free myself; set my feet on the Solid Rock, established my goings. And His watch care: “for He hath said, I will never leave thee nor forsake thee!” Heb. 13:5.