They that be whole need not a physician, Matthew 9

KJV Matthew 9:12-13
12. But when Jesus heard that, he said unto them, They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick.
13. But go ye and learn what that meant, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.

Most people have to be very sick before they will see a doctor. Is Jesus using this parable to point out how serious the problem is? Jesus must be providing an important message. This is one of the few parables in which He challenges the listeners to learn the meaning. Jesus explains a portion of the parable, but does He supply the complete answer? Jesus would not have challenged His listeners if He had supplied the entire answer. To find the answers to this parable, we need to study the key words. This study will look at the word sick. The spiritual interpretation will reveal another dimension of the parable.

KJV Exodus 23:24. Thou shalt not bow down to their gods, nor serve them, nor do after their works: but thou shalt utterly overthrow them, and quite break down their images. 25. And ye shall serve the Lord your God, and He shall bless thy bread, and thy water; and I will take sickness away from the midst of thee.

KJV Deuteronomy 7:11. Thou shalt therefore keep the commandments, and the statutes, and the judgments, which I command thee this day, to do them. 12. Wherefore it shall come to pass, if ye hearken to these judgments, and keep, and do them, that the Lord thy God shall keep unto thee the covenant and the mercy which he sware unto thy fathers: 13. And he will love thee, and bless thee, and multiply thee: he will also bless the fruit of thy womb, and the fruit of thy land, thy corn, and thy wine, and thine oil, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep, in the land which he sware unto thy fathers to give thee. 14. Thou shalt be blessed above all people: there shall not be male or female barren among you, or among your cattle. 15. And the Lord will take away from thee all sickness, and will put none of the evil diseases of Egypt, which thou knowest, upon thee; but will lay them upon all them that hate thee.

KJV Deuteronomy 28:58. If thou wilt not observe to do all the words of this law that are written in this book, that thou mayest fear this glorious and fearful name, The Lord Thy God; 59. Then the Lord will make thy plagues wonderful, and the plagues of thy seed, even great plagues, and of long continuance, and sore sicknesses, and of long continuance. 60. Moreover he will bring upon thee all the diseases of Egypt, which thou wast afraid of; and they shall cleave unto thee. 61. Also every sickness, and every plague, which is not written in the book of this law, them will the Lord bring upon thee, until thou be destroyed.

KJV Micah 6:12. For the rich men thereof are full of violence, and the inhabitants thereof have spoken lies, and their tongue is deceitful in their mouth. 13. Therefore also will I make thee sick in smiting thee, in making thee desolate because of thy sins.

The Bible clearly states there is a choice. Following God’s laws and commandments will bring God’s blessing, and God will fulfill His promise to heal all types of sickness. If God’s laws are not kept sickness, disease, and plagues will follow.

A complete study of the word sick reveals a surprising amount of detail on the subject of sin and its connection with sickness. Only a small amount of proof texts are covered in this lesson. Additional texts will supply further details explaining how a separation from God will increase the possibility of sickness. Through this parable Jesus wanted to teach another important lesson. His challenge was made in the hopes His listeners would study the scriptures to find the answer. The other lesson deals with the subjects mercy and sacrifice, which have an unusual spiritual connection with sickness.

KJV Ezekiel 34:3. Ye eat the fat, and ye clothe you with the wool, ye kill them that are fed: but ye feed not the flock. 4. The diseased have ye not strengthened, neither have ye healed that which was sick, neither have ye bound up that which was broken, neither have ye brought again that which was driven away, neither have ye sought that which was lost; but with force and with cruelty have ye ruled them. 5. And they were scattered, because there is no shepherd: and they became meat to all the beasts of the field, when they were scattered.

KJV Ezekiel 34:15. I will feed my flock, and I will cause them to lie down, saith the Lord God. 16. I will seek that which was lost, and bring again that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick: but I will destroy the fat and the strong; I will feed them with judgment.

The word sick also leads to the book of Ezekiel. This passage is a prophecy showing the conditions Jesus would face. The priests took advantage of the people while showing little concern for their well being. This is one of the injustices Jesus came to expose and correct.

KJV Malachi 1:8. And if ye offer the blind for sacrifice, is it not evil? and if ye offer the lame and sick, is it not evil? offer it now unto thy governor; will he be pleased with thee, or accept thy person? saith the Lord of hosts.

The word sick also shows the lack of respect the priests had towards God. In an effort to incise profits, the priests took the best of the flock brought by the people and replaced them with sick, diseased, and defective offerings. They were instructed to offer the best of the flock. If his offering be a burnt sacrifice of the herd, let him offer a male without blemish: he shall offer it of his own voluntary will at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation before the Lord. KJV Leviticus 1:3. Instead the priest developed a corrupt system designed to put money in their purses. They worked out a system built not in respect for God, and fulfilling the responsibilities of the office they occupied, but on profit. The priests would buy the lame, diseased, blind, and sick members of the flock. They would house these defective animals in the temple court yard. Israelites would bring the best of their flocks as offerings to God. When the priests would inspect the offering they would most certainly find a defect in the animal. The priests would offer an exchange. The person the offering brought plus a service charge to exchange the animal for one from the priests stock. For additional profit the priests could later sell the spotless animal on the open market.

It’s amazing to consider the fact, the word sickness leads you to the same thought pattern as the words mercy and sacrifice. Jesus had constructed a parable with a message that could not be missed when properly studied. This is an example showing the many ways God will provide a message.

KJV Hosea 6:5. Therefore have I hewed them by the prophets; I have slain them by the words of my mouth: and thy judgments are as the light that goeth forth. 6. For I desired mercy, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings. 7. But they like men have transgressed the covenant: there have they dealt treacherously against me.