They
ridiculed him. But he, having put them all out, took the father of the child, her mother, and those who were with him, and went in where the child was lying. Taking the child by the hand, he said to her, “Talitha cumi!” which means, being interpreted, “Girl, I tell you, get up!” Immediately the girl rose up and walked, for she was twelve years old. They were amazed with great amazement. He strictly ordered them that no one should know this, and commanded that something should be given to her to eat.
Mark 5:40-43
Mark 5 [36.] But Jesus, when he heard the message spoken, immediately said to the ruler of the synagogue, “Don’t be afraid, only believe.” He allowed no one to follow him, except Peter, James, and John the brother of James. He came to the synagogue ruler’s house, and he saw an uproar, weeping, and great wailing. When he had entered in, he said to them, “Why do you make an uproar and weep? The child is not dead, but is asleep.”
Mark 5 [40.] They ridiculed him. But he, having put them all out, took the father of the child, her mother, and those who were with him, and went in where the child was lying. Taking the child by the hand, he said to her, “Talitha cumi!” which means, being interpreted, “Girl, I tell you, get up!” Immediately the girl rose up and walked, for she was twelve years old. They were amazed with great amazement. He strictly ordered them that no one should know this, and commanded that something should be given to her to eat.
Mark 6 [1.] He went out from there. He came into his own country, and his disciples followed him. When the Sabbath had come, he began to teach in the synagogue, and many hearing him were astonished, saying, “Where did this man get these things?” and, “What is the wisdom that is given to this man, that such mighty works come about by his hands? Isn’t this the carpenter, the son of Mary, and brother of James, Joses, Judah, and Simon? Aren’t his sisters here with us?” They were offended at him.
Meaning:
Mark 5:40-43 brings the story of Jairus’ daughter, and the whole chapter, to its climax. Jesus has calmed a storm, freed a man from a legion of demons and healed a woman of a twelve-year illness. Now he faces death itself. Mocked by the mourners, he clears the room, takes the dead girl by the hand and speaks two Aramaic words. She gets up and walks. Mark shows that Jesus is Lord not only over nature, demons and disease, but over the grave.
- “They Ridiculed Him”
When Jesus said the child was only asleep (Mark 5:39), the mourners laughed at him. Their scorn proves that she was truly dead; they had seen the body. Jesus “put them all out.” Unbelief and noise had no place in that room. He took only the girl’s father and mother and the three disciples, a small company of witnesses. Years later Peter, one of those three, would do the same at Joppa: “Peter sent them all out, and knelt down and prayed” (Acts 9:40).
- Taking the Child by the Hand
Under the Law, “He who touches the dead body of any man shall be unclean seven days” (Numbers 19:11). Jesus took the dead girl’s hand without hesitation. As with the woman who touched him earlier (Mark 5:27-29), uncleanness did not pass to him; life passed from him. The gesture is gentle and familiar. Early in his ministry he “came and took her by the hand, and raised her up” when he healed Peter’s mother-in-law (Mark 1:31).
- “Talitha Cumi!”
Mark preserves Jesus’ actual words in Aramaic, the everyday language of Galilee, and then translates them for his Greek-speaking readers: “Girl, I tell you, get up!” Talitha is a tender word for a little girl, the kind a parent might use when waking a child in the morning. Jesus woke her from death as easily as from sleep.
The contrast with the Old Testament is striking. Elijah stretched himself on the widow’s son and pleaded with God, and “Yahweh listened to the voice of Elijah” (1 Kings 17:22). Jesus did not plead; he commanded. The authority that rebuked the wind and the unclean spirits now rebukes death.
- “Immediately the Girl Rose Up and Walked”
The miracle was instant and complete. She did not merely breathe again; she got up and walked. Mark adds that “she was twelve years old,” linking her with the woman who had suffered for twelve years (Mark 5:25). Both “daughters” received new life the same day. The witnesses “were amazed with great amazement,” the strongest expression of astonishment in the chapter.
- “No One Should Know ... Something to Eat”
Jesus “strictly ordered them that no one should know this,” as he often did in Jewish Galilee, where excitement about a political Messiah could hinder his mission (Mark 1:44). The crowd outside would soon see the girl alive, but Jesus did not want the miracle turned into a spectacle. Then he “commanded that something should be given to her to eat.” The Lord of life cared about a hungry child, and the meal proved she was truly, physically alive.
The Significance of Mark 5:40-43
- Jesus Is Lord Over Death
This miracle is a preview of Jesus’ own resurrection and of ours. The girl would one day die again, but Jesus later rose never to die, and he says, “I was dead, and behold, I am alive forever more. Amen. I have the keys of Death and of Hades” (Revelation 1:18). “The last enemy that will be abolished is death” (1 Corinthians 15:26).
- Great Power, Tender Care
Jesus raised the dead with two simple words, then remembered that a little girl needed food. His power never makes him distant. Believers can bring him both their greatest crises and their smallest daily needs, confident that he cares about both.
Cross-References:
John 11:25: "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will still live, even if he dies." Jesus’ power over death flows from who he is.
Revelation 1:18: "I was dead, and behold, I am alive forever more. Amen. I have the keys of Death and of Hades." The risen Christ holds the keys of death.
1 Kings 17:22: "Yahweh listened to the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came into him again, and he revived." Elijah prayed for life; Jesus commanded it.
Acts 9:40: "Peter sent them all out, and knelt down and prayed. Turning to the body, he said, “Tabitha, get up!” She opened her eyes, and when she saw Peter, she sat up." Peter followed the pattern he had seen in Jairus’ house.
Conclusion: Mark 5:40-43 shows Jesus calmly overcoming the last enemy. Mocked by unbelief, he took a dead girl by the hand and called her back to life, then saw to it that she was fed. The chapter ends with a family overwhelmed by joy and a promise for every believer: the One who said “Talitha cumi” will one day speak life over all who have fallen asleep in him.
PIB Scriptures are derived from the World English Bible