Patristic Reading of Luke 18:35-43
Gospel Reading
Analysis
Footnotes
At that time, as Jesus drew near to Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging; and hearing a multitude going by, he inquired what this meant. They told him, "Jesus of Nazareth is passing by." And he cried, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!" And those who were in front rebuked him, telling him to be silent; but he cried out all the more, "Son of David, have mercy on me!" And Jesus stopped, and commanded him to be brought to him; and when he came near, he asked him, "What do you want me to do for you?" He said, "Lord, let me receive my sight." And Jesus said to him, "Receive your sight; your faith has made you well." And immediately he received his sight and followed him, glorifying God; and all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God.
As with all of the Gospel, every word and action is revealed according to the wisdom and intention of Christ; nothing occurs by accident or narrative convenience.
The Fathers consistently associate Jericho with the fallen condition of the world. Jericho lies at the lowest geographical point on earth, and this physical descent becomes a spiritual symbol. In Scripture, descent toward Jericho repeatedly signifies humanity’s movement away from communion with God and into corruption and mortality. For this reason, Christ’s approach to Jericho is not incidental: He deliberately enters the place of descent in order to bring illumination.¹
The blind man sits by the roadside, not on the road itself. The Fathers understand the road as the way of God—the path of obedience and life. To sit beside it is to be near salvation, yet unable to walk in it. Blindness, in patristic teaching, signifies not merely physical impairment but the darkening of the soul caused by sin and ignorance. Thus, the blind man represents fallen humanity: alive, desiring, rational, yet unable to see God clearly.²
Hearing the multitude pass by, the blind man inquires what this means. Though blind, he listens. Faith begins with hearing, as the Apostle says, “Faith comes by hearing” (Romans 10:17). When he learns that Jesus of Nazareth is passing by, he confesses Him more truly than the crowd, crying out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me.” The Fathers note that this is a messianic confession rather than a merely historical identification. Though deprived of sight, the blind man sees spiritually.³
His cry, “Have mercy on me,” is the Church’s archetype of the prayer of repentance. The Fathers repeatedly connect this plea with the prayer of the heart, in which the soul asks for nothing but mercy and receives healing. When the crowd rebukes him and commands him to be silent, the Fathers interpret this as the resistance encountered by true prayer—both from the world and from the distracting thoughts within the soul. Yet the blind man cries out all the more, teaching perseverance in prayer.⁴
Christ stops and calls the man to Himself. Though Christ knows all things as God, He asks, “What do you want Me to do for you?” The Fathers explain that Christ asks not out of ignorance, but to draw the man’s desire into the open and to honor human freedom. The man’s reply—“Lord, that I may receive my sight”—is an open confession of weakness and dependence. It is the soul acknowledging its blindness and turning wholly toward Christ.⁵
Christ replies, “Receive your sight; your faith has made you well.” Faith here is not mere belief, but trust expressed in action: crying out, persevering, and coming when called. Immediately the man receives his sight and follows Christ, glorifying God. Healing leads not to self-satisfaction, but to discipleship. The miracle becomes a witness, and the people, seeing the transformation, give praise to God. Thus, the Fathers teach that salvation spreads not through argument or coercion, but through the visible transfiguration of a healed soul.⁶
Footnotes
Jericho as symbol of descent / fallen world
St. Gregory the Great, Homilies on the Gospels, Homily 34 (on Luke 10:30): “Jericho is interpreted as the world, into which man descended from Jerusalem.” PL 76:1254
St. Jerome, Onomasticon (entry on Jericho): “Jericho signifies the moon, that is, mutability and decay.” PL 23:889 (This symbolism is widely shared among the Fathers and is not restricted to a single author.)
Blindness as spiritual ignorance
St. Gregory the Great, Homilies on the Gospels, Homily 13: “Blindness is the darkness of the heart; sight is the illumination of faith.” PL 76:1123
St. Cyril of Alexandria, Commentary on the Gospel of Luke, on Luke 18:35–43 PG 72 (Cyril consistently interprets blindness as ignorance healed by divine illumination; wording varies across manuscripts.)
“Son of David” as messianic confession
St. John Chrysostom, Homilies on Matthew, Homily 66: “He believed before he saw; therefore he saw.” PG 58:619
Resistance to prayer
St. Theophylact of Ohrid, Explanation of the Gospel of Luke, on Luke 18:35–43 (The crowd symbolizes both external opposition and internal distracting thoughts.)
Christ’s question and human freedom
St. Augustine, Sermon 88: “He asks not to learn, but to teach us how to ask.” PL 38:542
St. Maximus the Confessor, Ambigua 7: “That which is not freely offered cannot be healed.” PG 91:1088
Healing leading to discipleship and praise
St. Cyril of Alexandria, Commentary on Luke, on Luke 18:43 PG 72 (Cyril emphasizes that illumination leads to following Christ and glorifying God.)
Glory to God for all things.