Introduction
This work will begin with an examination of the biblical data from a biblical theology framework. Thus, it will start with the earliest revelation recorded in the Bible and proceed through the most recent revelation in the Bible demonstrating the development of the view of the biblical writers regarding healing. After the examination of the biblical data, some doctrinal implications will be offered, and some alternative approaches to the topic will receive consideration. This study will be split into three parts. In the first part, we delved into the biblical data regarding the manner by which sickness entered into the world and what the Bible says about healing. In this article we will discuss the biblical data regarding our hope for a future without sickness. In the final article we will look at the implications of the biblical data regarding healing.
Future Hope
The prophets codified the relationships between sin and sickness, forgiveness and healing, while also introducing a future without sickness. Hosea (6:1; c.f., 7:1; 11:3) focused on the metaphor relating healing to forgiveness of sin, typified by his exhortation, “Come, let us return to the LORD; for he has torn us, that he may heal us; he has struck us down, and he will bind us up.” Hosea (14:4) explained the metaphor when he wrote of God, “I will heal their apostasy.” At this point in the biblical revelation, the link between forgiveness of sin and healing of physical ailments has become indissoluble. Subsequent writers would use healing to mean physical health or forgiveness of sin or both without any clarifying remarks, especially Isaiah and Jeremiah.
Isaiah expressed the double meaning of healing, associated with a future hope of healing through the Messiah. According to Graeme Goldsworthy (2002, 191), Isaiah focused primarily on the messianic future in what became known as chapters 40 through 66, especially in his writings about the “suffering servant” (Isa. 42:1–4; 49:1–6; 50:4–9; 52:13–53:12). Isaiah (53:4–5) wrote of the Messiah, “Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.” In the New Testament (NT), Matthew (8:17) alluded to this passage in a reference to Jesus’ healing ministry, which “was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah: ‘He took our illnesses and bore our diseases.’” Peter (1 Pet. 2:24) referenced the same passage in his first letter but focused on the salvation aspect. Both NT writers confirmed that Isaiah prophesied about the messianic age.
The prophets also connected total healing to the restoration of the world that would occur in the End Times, while preserving the dual meaning of health. Isaiah (33:34) rejoiced that “no inhabitant will say, ‘I am sick’; the people who dwell there will be forgiven their iniquity.” The prophet linked physical healing to forgiveness of sin and explained that neither will be necessary during the end times. God will have forgiven everyone of their sins and will have healed both their physical illnesses and their sin nature. Also regarding the end times, Jeremiah (33:6) quoted God, “Behold, I will bring to it health and healing, and I will heal them and reveal to them abundance of prosperity and security.” In a reversal of the Edenic curse, Ezekiel (47:12) wrote of “leaves for healing” in the new paradise that God will create.
The prophets did not discount the existence of sickness and suffering in this world; however, “suffering was always to be viewed in the context of a future hope” (Warrington 2006, 156). Isaiah (33:5–6) rejoiced, “Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped; then shall the lame man leap like a deer, and the tongue of the mute sing for joy.” When asked about his messiahship, Jesus compared his ministry to this passage from Isaiah (Luke 7:22). Jesus claimed that he fulfilled this prediction by Isaiah.
Jesus Heals
The NT begins with the Gospels, which were “written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name” (John 20:31). John wrote the last Gospel, but his approach applies to all four Gospels (Keener 2014, 41). The Gospel writers wrote about Jesus from a historical perspective (Keener 2014, 38). Jesus was born into first-century Judea, which had recently been conquered by Rome. Hence, the cultural context represented a mix of Judaism and the Greco-Roman influence. Pertinent to the topic of Jesus’ healing ministry is the fact that both Jewish and Greco-Roman culture had a tradition of professional faith healers (Alana 2000, 106). Both contexts required faith in the healer in order for the healing to happen (Alana 2000, 106). Rudolf Bultmann (1963, 179–180) suggested that Jesus required the same type of faith; however, the Gospel writers presented a more nuanced understanding.
On some occasions, faith in his ability to heal preceded Jesus’ miracles (e.g., Matt. 9:20–22, 27–31; Mark 1:40; Luke 7:1–10; 8:40–56; 18:35–43; John 4:50). However, on other occasions, Jesus performed healing without anyone expressing faith (e.g., Matt. 8:28–34; Luke 7:11–16; John 5:5–6). Olu Alana (2000, 108) termed these non-faith healings as “Jesus’ use of His Messianic prerogative.” Jesus was born for a specific purpose, of which His healing was a part.
The Gospel writers depicted Jesus as the Messiah who came to proclaim the victory of the kingdom of God over the kingdom of Satan (Williams 2022, 132). Matthew employed an inclusio to demonstrate the link between Jesus’ healing ministry and His proclamation of the kingdom of God (Williams 2022, 132). Matthew (4:23) introduced Jesus’ ministry with a summary: “And he went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction among the people” (italics added). Then, Matthew (9:23) recorded preaching and healing by Jesus throughout Judea, the documentation of which he closed with another summary statement: “And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction (italics added).”
Luke’s (7:18–20) record of Jesus’ answer to John the Baptist regarding the messianic ministry demonstrates the link between ministry and healing in another way. Herod locked John the Baptist into prison, so John sent some of his disciples to ask Jesus if he was truly the Messiah. Jesus responded, “Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have good news preached to them. And blessed is the one who is not offended by me” (Luke 7:22). Not only did Jesus thus link His miraculous healings to His messianic ministry, but He also demonstrated awareness of the fact that He fulfilled the prophecies of Isaiah and the other OT prophets related to healing in the end times.
John developed a different (but related) theme regarding Jesus’ healing ministry in his Gospel. Jesus healed to show his authority as God in the flesh to whom people should listen. John (1:1, 14) made this point clear at the beginning of his Gospel, writing, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word as with God, and the Word was God…And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” When Jesus performed a healing miracle, He followed by calling attention to some point of doctrine about which He disagreed with the theologians. For example, one Sabbath, Jesus traveled to the pool of Bethesda and healed a man there. Jesus told the man to take his mat and go away (John 5:1–9). “And this was why the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because he was doing these things on the Sabbath. But Jesus answered them, ‘My Father is working until now, and I am working’” (John 5:16–17). Later, Jesus healed a blind man on the Sabbath, which enraged the Pharisees (John 9). Then immediately after that, he entered into a discourse regarding salvation and the true people of God (John 10). Jesus even rebuked a crowd of people because they were following Him merely to receive physical miracles (John 6:26). Thus, in John, Jesus performed miracles, including healing, to affirm His message of salvation.
Already but not Yet
Jesus also taught that the salvation of creation was not yet complete. In Luke’s (17:20–21) words, “Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he answered them, ‘The kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed, nor will they say, “Look, here it is!” or “There!” for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.” The kingdom of God had come, but suffering and sickness would remain a reality until Jesus returned in power (Luke 21:11, 25–28). The writers of the Epistles described the reality of the present kingdom of God amidst this fallen world.
The writers recommended praying to God for healing and leaning on the gifts of the Holy Spirit. James (5:15) advised his readers to pray together for healing when they get sick. John (3 John 3) prayed for the health of a letter recipient. Paul (1 Cor. 12:9) explained that the Holy Spirit imparts spiritual gifts to believers, including “gifts of healing.” Paul (1 Cor. 12:30) also cautioned that not all believers will experience the gift of physical healing. Hence, the writers commended patience during suffering. James (1:2) told his readers to “count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds.” Peter (1 Pet. 1:6–7) discussed how various trials develop Christians’ faith as fire refines gold until Jesus returns. Paul (2 Cor. 12:7–10) described his physical weakness as strength when it forces him to rely on the power of Christ.
Similar to John in his Gospel, Paul explained how physical miracles such as healing validated his message regarding the gospel of Jesus. Paul (2 Cor. 12:12) told the Corinthians that his miracles affirmed his status as “a true apostle.” Paul (Rom. 15:18) also described to the Romans how his miracles accompanied his preaching in order “to bring the Gentiles to obedience.” Luke developed this same theme in the book of Acts. Followers of Jesus performed the same types of healing miracles that Jesus performed, as they traveled throughout the Roman Empire proclaiming the kingdom of God (Warrington 2006, 159). Their miracles of healing constitute a physical illustration that the great Healer Jesus had risen from the grave and remained with them (Warrington 2006, 159).
During the generation after Jesus’ death and resurrection, His followers continued to point to the future when Jesus would return and achieve final victory over sickness and death. Paul (Rom. 8:18) summarized the view when he told the Romans, “I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.” In other words, people may suffer now, but they will experience nothing but joy after Jesus returns.
In the Revelation, John gave further details regarding the full restoration of creation when Christ returns. John (Rev. 21:3–4) related,
I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.
In an allusion to Ezekiel, John (Rev. 21:1, 2) remarked on the “leaves of the trees…for the healing of the nations” that would grow next to “the river of the water of life” after the Messiah returns. Thus, as Jon Newton (2017, 96) suggested, “Revelation promises universal healing in the future and opens up the possibility of healing (or exemption from plagues of illness) in this age… based on Jesus’ atoning work.”
Conclusion
So, from this deep dive into the biblical data regarding healing, we see three important themes. First, God is the healer. When Jesus healed by His own authority, He demonstrated His equality with God the Father. Second, a time will come when healing will no longer be required because no one will get sick anymore. Finally, although Jesus inaugurated that future perfect age, it has not yet fully arrived yet. We receive glimpses of it when people receive healing. However, even believers still get sick and die in this age. The kingdom of God is already here, but it is not yet as here as it will be when Jesus comes back. In the final article, we will discuss the implication which ensue from this biblical data.