37 And it came to pass, on the next day, when they were come down
from the mountain, a great multitude met him. 38 And behold, a man
from the multitude cried, saying, Teacher, I beseech thee to look
upon my son; for he is mine only child: 39 and behold, a spirit
taketh him, and he suddenly crieth out; and it teareth him that he
foameth, and it hardly departeth from him, bruising him sorely. 40
And I besought thy disciples to cast it out; and they could not.
41 And Jesus answered and said, O faithless and perverse
generation, how long shall I be with you, and bear with you? bring
hither thy son. 42 And as he was yet a coming, the demon dashed
him down, and tare _him_ grievously. But Jesus rebuked the unclean
spirit, and healed the boy, and gave him back to his father. 43
And they were all astonished at the majesty of God.
But while all were marvelling at all the things which he did, he
said unto his disciples, 44 Let these words sink into your ears:
for the Son of man shall be delivered up into the hands of men. 45
But they understood not this saying, and it was concealed from
them, that they should not perceive it; and they were afraid to
ask him about this saying.
It is not strange that artists love to paint the contrast between the
picture of Jesus on the mountain encompassed by glory and of the demoniac
boy surrounded by the multitudes on the plain; yet it requires no canvas
or artificial color to heighten the contrast presented by the historian in
his simple story. Jesus long before had learned what it was to exchange
the glories of heaven for the shadows and sufferings of earth and the
compassion which drew him from the skies was never withheld, even at times
when he naturally might have been absorbed in thoughts concerning his
coming suffering and redeeming work. He was instantly moved with tender
pity as he heard the agonizing words of the father and saw the distress of
the son. However, he was even more moved by the unbelief and sin and
anguish and godlessness of the world which he had come to save, and of
which this scene was but a symbol and a picture. “O faithless and perverse
generation,” he cried, “how long shall I be with you, and bear with you?”
Can it not be said reverently that the contrasted experiences of the
mountain and the plain made Jesus for the moment homesick for heaven? Yet
Jesus neither hesitated nor delayed in the path of duty or in the presence
of human need. He “rebuked the unclean spirit, and healed the boy, and
gave him back to his father.”
While all were wondering and astonished at his divine power and marvelous
works, he turned to his disciples to impress upon them the dark secret
which was resting on his soul. He told them that the time was near when he
was to be given up to suffer and to die; “But they understood not this
saying.” Here was a Man whose sympathy was tender toward all; but who
sympathized with him? How often some one of his followers has borne a
burden of hidden sorrow, even in the company of friends and when
surrounded by admiring throngs!