The leper's plea, "If you will, you can make me clean," highlights a crucial aspect of faith: it grapples with God's willingness, not just His ability. This conditional phrase reveals the leper's uncertainty about whether God desires to help him, even as he acknowledges Jesus's immense power. It's a profound reminder that our trust often involves surrendering to God's perfect will, even when we don't fully understand it.
And a leper came to him, imploring him, and kneeling said to him, “If you will, you can make me clean.” Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand and touched him and said to him, “I will; be clean.” And immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean.
English Standard Version (ESV)
Jesus has just delivered a powerful sermon on a mountainside, and now crowds are following Him. A man with a deeply isolating and feared disease, leprosy, approaches Jesus. He falls before Jesus, showing both reverence and desperation, and asks for healing, acknowledging Jesus' power while questioning His willingness.
This leper is at the absolute end of his rope, separated from society and facing a grim prognosis. What does his desperate approach tell us about reaching out to God?
A Bold Move
Leprosy in Jesus' day was a terrifying, isolating disease. Those afflicted were cast out, treated as ceremonially unclean, and often shunned by everyone.
This man, facing such despair, doesn't just approach Jesus; he does so with deep reverence and desperation:
Jesus didn't just heal the leper; His actions revealed something profound about His very nature. What makes His response so extraordinary?
More Than Human Power
Jesus' response to the leper is packed with divine significance:
Ask a follow-up
Jesus told the healed leper to keep silent, yet the leper spread the news widely. Why the command for silence, and what does this tension reveal?
A Divine Strategy
Jesus' instruction to the leper was deliberate and strategic:
Understand the original words
lepros · Greek Noun
A person afflicted with a severe, contagious skin disease (leprosy) which, under Old Testament law, rendered one ceremonially unclean and socially marginalized, representing a state of degradation or separation from God's people.
katharizō · Greek Verb
To make holy, pure, or ceremonially acceptable, removing the defilement of sin or disease to restore a person to fellowship with God and the community.
splagchnizomai · Greek Verb
An internal reaction of deep compassion, specifically visceral or gut-level sympathy, often followed by an act of mercy or restoration. In the Gospels, it is a hallmark of Jesus' nature.
katharos · Greek Adjective
A state of ritual and physical purity required for standing in the presence of God or participating in the community. Cleansing signifies both the removal of defilement and the restoration to holiness.
lepra · Greek Noun
A generic term in the New Testament referring to various severe skin diseases or conditions causing ceremonial impurity. It symbolizes the corrupting power of sin and separation from the community.
The leper's condition and approach to Jesus are deeply informed by the Old Testament Law's strictures on leprosy, which rendered individuals ritually unclean and socially isolated. Jesus' willingness to touch the leper and his instructions to follow the Mosaic law for cleansing highlight the tension between his new authority and the existing covenant.
c. 1500 BC
The Law of Moses Enacted
The Old Testament Law, including detailed instructions for identifying, isolating, and cleansing lepers, is given through Moses. These laws profoundly shaped Jewish understanding of purity, holiness, and societal exclusion.
c. 8th Century BC
Prophetic Warnings of Exile
Prophets like Isaiah and Jeremiah warn Israel of impending judgment and exile due to their disobedience and impurity. This context of national crisis and divine discipline would have been deeply ingrained in Jewish consciousness.
c. 1st Century BC
Second Temple Period
Judea is under foreign rule (first Hellenistic, then Roman). This period is marked by religious tension, messianic expectation, and a strong emphasis on maintaining ritual purity amidst foreign influence.
c. AD 28— this verse
Jesus' Ministry Begins
Jesus begins his public ministry in Galilee, teaching, healing, and calling disciples. His actions often challenge the established religious and social norms of the time, particularly concerning purity laws.
c. AD 30
Jesus' Teaching and Miracles Intensify
Jesus' fame grows as he performs numerous miracles and teaches with authority. This leads to increased crowds, but also to opposition from religious leaders who question his authority and methods.
This passage details the specific Mosaic Law procedures for a leper who has been healed, including showing themselves to the priest and offering sacrifices, which Jesus directs the healed leper to follow.
Matthew 8:2-4This is the parallel account of the same event, emphasizing Jesus' compassion and His command to secrecy, while also noting the leper's worship and Jesus' declaration of willingness.
Luke 5:12-14Luke's account also describes the leper's plea and Jesus' healing touch, but highlights the leper's prostration (falling on his face) and Jesus' instructions to show himself to the priest and offer the prescribed sacrifice.
2 Kings 5:1-14This narrative features Naaman, a Syrian commander with leprosy, who is healed by Elisha, showing a similar theme of a severe skin disease being miraculously cured and the recipient needing to acknowledge God's power.
Isaiah 35:5-6This prophetic passage foretells signs of the Messiah's coming, including the healing of lepers, underscoring the profound significance of Jesus' action as a fulfillment of God's promises.
calvinMark 1:40-45: "And there came a leper to him, beseeching him, and kneeling down to him, and saying unto him, If thou wilt, thou canst make me clean."
- And when he had come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed him. 2. And, lo, a leper, approaching, worshipped him, saying, Lord, if thou art willing, thou art able to cleanse me. 3. And Jesus, having stretched out his hand, touched him, saying, I am willing; be thou clean: and immediately his leprosy was cleansed. 4. And Jesus saith…
gillMark 1:40: "And there came a leper to him, beseeching him, and kneeling down to him, and saying unto him, If thou wilt, thou canst make me clean."
And there came a leper to him,.... After he was come down from a certain mountain, in Galilee, where he had been preaching to the people, Matthew 8:1 , and when be was in a certain city, Luke 5:12 , either Capernaum, or some other city of Galilee. This man was full of leprosy, as Luke says, and very probably deemed incurable; of the nature and sympto…
The leper's plea, "If you will, you can make me clean," highlights a crucial aspect of faith: it grapples with God's willingness, not just His ability. This conditional phrase reveals the leper's uncertainty about whether God desires to help him, even as he acknowledges Jesus's immense power. It's a profound reminder that our trust often involves surrendering to God's perfect will, even when we don't fully understand it.
Jesus has just delivered a powerful sermon on a mountainside, and now crowds are following Him. A man with a deeply isolating and feared disease, leprosy, approaches Jesus. He falls before Jesus, showing both reverence and desperation, and asks for healing, acknowledging Jesus' power while questioning His willingness.
Jesus has just delivered a powerful sermon on a mountainside, and now crowds are following Him. A man with a deeply isolating and feared disease, leprosy, approaches Jesus. He falls before Jesus, showing both reverence and desperation, and asks for healing, acknowledging Jesus' power while questioning His willingness.
"And a leper came to him, imploring him, and kneeling said to him, “If you will, you can make me clean.” Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand and touched him and said to him, “I will; be clean.” And immediately the leprosy left him, a…" — The leper's plea, "If you will, you can make me clean," highlights a crucial aspect of faith: it grapples with God's willingness, not just His ability. This conditional phrase reveals the leper's unc…
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Last reviewed October 2026
