Hello again! I hope your week has gone well, my friend. Here’s a look at pages 1 and 2 of my Scripture-study sheets after answering Questions 3, 4, and 5.
Last Week’s Work
Question 3 (Major Characters)
Focusing on characters, I found and marked just three:
He, him, Lord, I, you, and Jesus. As always, I marked each reference with a blue cross. Did you notice the first reference to Jesus in this passage is a pronoun? And here’s the thing: all the characters in this story are men. So how do I know that first he in verse 5 is Jesus? I did a quick check of other translations of this passage—of the eight translations I checked (see blueletterbible.org), six of them used Jesus instead of he in verse 5. Isn’t it awesome to have so many great resources right at our fingertips?!
In this passage, I noticed Jesus entered Capernaum (v5) and volunteered to go heal a servant in the household of someone with whom Jewish leaders wouldn’t approve of (v7). When the centurion said He didn’t need to go to the servant to heal him, Jesus declared no one in Israel (who shared his nationality and belief system) had faith like the centurion’s (v10). In fact, Jesus prophesied many Jews will be thrown out of the kingdom, while those from other locations will feast with the forefathers of Judaism (vv11-12). And—as the centurion expected—Jesus spoke, and the servant was healed (v13).
Centurion, my, him, I, manunderauthority, me, and you, marked with green and red circles. On my Question 1 summary, I marked centurion for further research. I think it’s a Roman military title. If so, it’s even more noteworthy that he called Jesus, “Lord” twice (v6, v8). That really doesn’t square with my impression of a centurion: a military leader from the occupying authority treating a Jewish rabbi with respect? His request shows he had compassion for his suffering servant (v6,8), and he declares himself unworthy to host Jesus (v8). He’s also totally convinced all Jesus has to do is speak and the servant will be healed (v8), and he was right (v13). The only part of this profile that seems congruent with what I thought of centurion is his self-description of someone who understands obedience (man under authority) in verse 9.
Servant, him, and he, marked with a yellow box. This man is described by his master as faithful (v9). He became paralyzed and suffered terribly (v6). His healing depended on his master bringing the matter to Jesus’s attention (v6), and Jesus giving permission that it be done (v13).
Question 4 (Locations)
I marked several locations. Four of these you might remember I underlined in red in my summary because I don’t know as much as I would like about them. Those are:
Capernaum (v5). I recognize the name of this location, mainly from reading (not studying) the New Testament. In fact, I’m pretty ignorant of biblical geography, and what those places might have been like at the time.
East and west (v11) where the many come from who will dine with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
Kingdom of heaven (v11) where the feast will be.
Outer darkness and place (v12), where the sons of the kingdom will be thrown.
Question 5 (Time)
Here are the time references I marked:
This story happened when [Jesus] had entered Capernaum] (v5).
When Jesus heard [the centurion’s humble statements vv8-9] (v10), he was amazed and commented about the centurion having more faith than God’s chosen people.
That very moment, (v13), when Jesus permitted it be done as the centurion believed, and the servant was healed.
I also marked the verb will in the prophecy verses (vv11-12) because I was drawn to them: Jesus spoke about the future here. Almost all the rest of the dialog is in present tense.
Isn’t this getting good? Let’s keep digging!
Dig In Challenges
For next week, let’s focus on three more questions, so open with prayer, then read through Matthew 8:5-13 again, and:
Welcome back! This week I’m writing about my answers to Question 1 and 2 in this study. Remember, if you also answered these questions and your work differs from mine, it’s not a problem! If we’re working with the Spirit and sticking closely to the actual text of the passage, we’re on the right track. Later we’ll have a chance to interpret these verses, but right now we’re just seeing what Matthew wrote—what’s there in print and nothing more.
In your study, I hope you found some things you want to dig more deeply into. Above, I marked details I want to research (double-underlined in red). I felt the Spirit moving me to learn more about them as this study unfolds. I’m interested in the location (Capernaum) and the miracle requestor (a centurion). I also want to examine the words translated marveled (not something I’ve seen Jesus do a lot in Scripture!) and outer darkness; as well as the statement Many will come from east and west to dine with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.
I also believe the Spirit has more to reveal to me about
Jesus’s willingness to go to the ailing servant (v7)
the centurion’s statement of faith in Jesus (v8)
Jesus’ observation that no one in Israel had such faith (v10)
Jesus’ statement, “let it be done… as you have believed” (v13)
I’m really looking forward to this dig into Scripture!
Question 2 (Types of Writing?)
True to the other studies in this series, the overall writing type here is also biographical narrative. I also found what I think is prophecy in vv11-12, since it’s set in the future and talks about what sounds like punishment to me… More to come on that for sure!
Dig In Challenges
This week, let’s examine the next three questions. Don’t forget to pray first, and then
Next, respond to Question 4 Where does the action happen? by triple-underlining the location(s) with a brown pen, pencil, or crayon on your Scripture-study sheets.
And finally, consider Question 5 When does the action happen? and record these answers on your study sheets by marking phrases indicating time, date, sequence, or circumstances with a light brown clockface and underline.
I can’t wait to share my findings—I hope you’ll check back in with me next week!
If this is your first DISO study, let me extend a special welcome! When you’re done, you’ll have a new perspective on this passage, and you’ll have sampled the necessary skills to effectively dig into any section of Scripture on your own.
If you’ve studied with me using DISO before, welcome back! If it’s been a while, things have changed a bit, but we’re still answering questions that lead us through the inductive study process. Full disclosure: more changes are coming, but they won’t be finalized for a while, so in the meantime, Iet’s keep digging!
As always, I encourage you to share your ideas and questions with me by commenting below this or any post in the series, using mycontact form, or emailing me at [email protected].
How It Works
In this study, we’ll use the Digging into Scripture Ourselves approach to explore Matthew 8:5-13 over the next nine weeks.
You can choose to:
Read Matthew 8:5-13 and my posts (and linked materials) here each week, thinking and praying through the passage with me; OR
Work through some or all the phases on your own and compare what you find to my answers in the blog each week.
Either approach is fine: the first is better if you don’t have the time to do it yourself, or if you want to see how the process works before “digging in” on your own. Of course, I encourage you to work along with me because then you’ll get the full benefit of the Holy Spirit using this passage to change your life!
Study Materials
All you need is:
Internet access, so you can follow this blog each week and access the free Bible study tools you’ll need to practice along with me.
Your favorite Bible translation of the study text. I like to copy the text into a new document and format it with lots of room for notes like this, but you can just use a bound Bible if you like.
The questions and how to answer them, which I’ll share with you in the Dig In Challenges section of my posts, starting with this one.
A study journal for personal notetaking.
Putting It All Together
Every week beginning next Tuesday (no later than 6pm Eastern time), I’ll post a new message containing these features:
Last Week’s Work, summarizing what I discovered as I worked on the assigned questions, with links to my notes and other reference materials so you can see exactly how I arrived at my answers. NOTE: One of the best parts of this study method is you and I can study the same Scripture with the same questions at the same time and discover different insights. If we allow the Holy Spirit to guide our study and stay aligned with the whole message of God’s Word, we know we’re on the right track even when our individual results vary.
Dig In Challenges, where I’ll preview what I’ll be working on during the upcoming week, along with helpful links if you want to work on it, too.
I hope you’ll join me in this study—I know it will be worth your while! If you decide to work through the process too, don’t forget to start and end your study sessions with prayer. And know that I’m praying with you and for you, as well.
Dig In Challenges
So, this week,
Pray for the Holy Spirit’s presence and guidance in your study.
Read through the passage a couple of times, then answer Question 1: What’s the Passage About? by summarizing the events or topics in your study journal and highlighting one or two items that stand out to you.
Finally, answer Question 2: What Types of Writing did the Author use? by taking note of how the author recorded this information: is it a letter, or a narrative? Does it contain law, instruction, poetry, and/or prophecy? HINT: more than one of these may apply to this passage.
I hope you’ll join me next week to see how I answered these prompts and to keep digging into this Scripture with me!
