Definition and Scope
Healing, in the biblical context, refers to the restoration of health, wholeness, and well-being, often through divine intervention. It encompasses physical, emotional, and spiritual dimensions, reflecting God's power and compassion. Healing is a significant theme throughout the Scriptures, illustrating God's desire to restore His creation.

Old Testament Context
In the Old Testament, healing is frequently associated with God's covenant relationship with Israel. God reveals Himself as Jehovah-Rapha, "The LORD who heals you" (Exodus 15:26). Healing is often contingent upon obedience to God's commandments, as seen in Deuteronomy 7:15: "And the LORD will remove from you all sickness. He will not lay upon you any of the terrible diseases you knew in Egypt, but He will inflict them on all who hate you."

The prophets also speak of healing, both in physical and spiritual terms. Isaiah 53:5 prophesies the Messianic healing through suffering: "But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed."

New Testament Context
The New Testament presents Jesus Christ as the ultimate healer, fulfilling Old Testament prophecies and demonstrating God's kingdom through miraculous healings. Jesus' ministry is marked by numerous healings, which serve as signs of His divine authority and compassion. Matthew 4:23 states, "Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people."

The Gospels record various instances of Jesus healing the sick, such as the blind (Mark 10:46-52), the lepers (Luke 17:11-19), and the paralytic (Mark 2:1-12). These acts of healing not only restore physical health but also signify forgiveness of sins and spiritual renewal.

The apostles continue the healing ministry in the early church, empowered by the Holy Spirit. Acts 3:6-8 recounts Peter healing a lame man: "But Peter said, 'Silver or gold I do not have, but what I have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, get up and walk!' Taking him by the right hand, Peter helped him up, and at once the man’s feet and ankles were made strong."

Theological Significance
Healing in the Bible is deeply connected to faith. Jesus often emphasizes faith as a prerequisite for healing, as seen in Matthew 9:22: "Jesus turned and saw her. 'Take courage, daughter,' He said, 'your faith has healed you.' And the woman was cured from that very hour." Faith is not merely belief in healing but trust in God's sovereign will and timing.

Healing also points to the eschatological hope of complete restoration in the new creation. Revelation 21:4 promises, "He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the former things have passed away."

Practical Application
Believers are encouraged to pray for healing, as instructed in James 5:14-15: "Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick. The Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven."

While God may choose to heal miraculously, He also works through natural means, such as medicine and healthcare. Christians are called to trust in God's wisdom and sovereignty, whether healing occurs in this life or is ultimately fulfilled in eternity.1 Peter 2:24
Who his own self bore our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live to righteousness: by whose stripes you were healed.
Topicalbible.org

James 5:16
Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that you may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.
Topicalbible.org

James 5:14
Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord:
Topicalbible.org

Matthew 10:1
And when he had called to him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease.
Topicalbible.org

2 Corinthians 7:1
Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.
Topicalbible.org

1. (p. pr. & vb. n.) of Heal.

2. (a.) Tending to cure; soothing; mollifying; as, the healing art; a healing salve; healing words.

HEALING

hel'-ing (marpe', te`alah, kehah): In the Old Testament this word is always used in its figurative sense; marpe', which literally means "a cure," is used in Jeremiah 14:19 twice, and in Malachi 4:2; te`alah, which literally means "an irrigation canal," here means something applied externally, as a plaster, in which sense it is used metaphorically in Jeremiah 30:13; kehah occurs only in Nahum 3:19 the King James Version and is translated "assuagings" in the Revised Version (British and American).

In the New Testament 5 times the verb is therapeuo; once (Acts 10:38) iaomai; in the other passages it is either iama, as in 1 Corinthians 12:9-30, or iasis, as in Acts 4:22, derivatives from this verb

HEALING, GIFTS OF

(charismata iamaton): Among the "spiritual gifts" enumerated in 1 Corinthians 12:4-11, 28 are included "gifts of healings." See SPIRITUAL GIFTS. The subject has risen into much prominence of recent years, and so calls for separate treatment. The points to be considered are:

(1) the New Testament facts,

(2) the nature of the gifts,

(3) their permanence in the church.

1. The New Testament Facts:

The Gospels abundantly show that the ministry of Christ Himself was one of healing no less than of teaching (compare Mark 1:14 with 1:32-34). When He sent forth the Twelve (Mark 6:7, 13) and the Seventy (Luke 10:1, 9), it was not only to preach the Kingdom of God but to heal the sick. The inauthentic conclusion of Mark's Gospel, if it does not preserve words actually used by Christ Himself, bears witness at all events to the traditional belief of the early church that after His departure from the world His disciples would still possess the gift of healing. The Book of Acts furnishes plentiful evidence of the exercise of this gift by apostles and other prominent men in the primitive church (Acts 3:7; Acts 5:12-16; 8:07; 19:12; 28:8 f), and the Epistle of James refers to a ministry of healing carried on by the elders of a local church acting in their collective capacity (James 5:14 f). But Paul in this passage speaks of "gifts of healings" (the plural "healings" apparently refers to the variety of ailments that were cured) as being distributed along with other spiritual gifts among the ordinary members of the church. There were men, it would seem, who occupied no official position in the community, and who might not otherwise be distinguished among their fellow-members, on whom this special charisma of healing had been bestowed.

2. The Nature of the Gifts:

On this subject the New Testament furnishes no direct information, but it supplies evidence from which conclusions may be drawn. We notice that the exercise of the gift is ordinarily conditional on the faith of the recipient of the blessing (Mark 6:5, 6; Mark 10:52 Acts 14:9)-faith not only in God but in the human agent (Acts 3:4; Acts 5:15; Acts 9:17). The healer himself is a person of great faith (Matthew 17:19 f), while his power of inspiring the patient with confidence points to the possession of strong, magnetic personality. The diseases cured appear for the most part to have been not organic but functional; and many of them would now be classed as nervous disorders. The conclusion from these data is that the gifts of healing to which Paul alludes were not miraculous endowments, but natural therapeutic faculties raised to their highest power by Christian faith.

Modern psychology, by its revelation of the marvels of the subliminal self or subconscious mind and the power of "suggestion," shows how it is possible for one man to lay his hand on the very springs of personal life in another, and so discloses the psychical basis of the gift of healing. The medical science of our time, by its recognition of the dependence of the physical upon the spiritual, of the control of the bodily functions by the subconscious self, and of the physician's ability by means of suggestion, whether waking or hypnotic, to influence the subconscious soul and set free the healing powers of Nature, provides the physiological basis. And may we not add that many incontestable cases of Christian faith-cure (take as a type the well-known instance in which Luther at Weimar "tore Melanchthon," as the latter put it, "out of the very jaws of death"; see RE, XII, 520) furnish the religious basis, and prove that faith in God, working through the soul upon the body, is the mightiest of all healing influences, and that one who by his own faith and sympathy and force of personality can stir up faith in others may exercise by God's blessing the power of healing diseases?

3. Permanence of Healing Gifts in the Church:

There is abundant evidence that in the early centuries the gifts of healing were still claimed and practiced within the church (Justin, Apol. ii0.6; Irenaeus, Adv. Haer. ii. 32, 4; Tertullian, Apol. xxiii; Origen, Contra Celsum, vii.4). The free exercise of these gifts gradually ceased, partly, no doubt, through loss of the early faith and spirituality, but partly through the growth of an ascetic temper which ignored Christ's gospel for the body and tended to the view that pain and sickness are the indispensable ministers of His gospel for the soul. All down the history of the church, however, there have been notable personalities (e.g. Francis of Assisi, Luther, Wesley) and little societies of earnest Christians (e.g. the Waldenses, the early Moravians and Quakers) who have reasserted Christ's gospel on its physical side as a gospel for sickness no less than for sin, and claimed for the gift of healing the place Paul assigned to it among the gifts of the Spirit. In recent years the subject of Christian healing has risen into importance outside of the regularly organized churches through the activity of various faith-healing movements. That the leaders of these movements have laid hold of a truth at once Scriptural and scientific there can be little doubt, though they have usually combined it with what we regard as a mistaken hostility to the ordinary practice of medicine. It is worth remembering that with all his faith in the spiritual gift of healing and personal experience of its power, Paul chose Luke the physician as the companion of his later journeys; and worth noticing that Luke shared with the apostle the honors showered upon the missionaries by the people of Melita whom they had cured of their diseases (Acts 28:10). Upon the modern church there seems to lie the duty of reaffirming the reality and permanence of the primitive gift of healing, while relating it to the scientific practice of medicine as another power ordained of God, and its natural ally in the task of diffusing the Christian gospel of health.

LITERATURE.

Hort, Christian Ecclesia, chapter x; A.T. Schofield, Force of Mind, Unconscious Therapeutics; E. Worcester and others, Religion and Medicine; HJ, IV, 3, p. 606; The Expositor T, XVII, 349, 417.

J. C. Lambert

GIFTS OF HEALING

See HEALING.

2392. iasis -- a healing
... a healing. Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine Transliteration: iasis Phonetic Spelling:
(ee'-as-is) Short Definition: a cure, healing Definition: a cure, healing. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/2392.htm - 7k

2386. iama -- a healing
... a healing. Part of Speech: Noun, Neuter Transliteration: iama Phonetic Spelling:
(ee'-am-ah) Short Definition: healing, curing Definition: healing, curing ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/2386.htm - 6k

2322. therapeia -- attention, medical service
... service. Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine Transliteration: therapeia Phonetic Spelling:
(ther-ap-i'-ah) Short Definition: care, attention, healing Definition: care ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/2322.htm - 7k

2390. iaomai -- to heal
... [2390 ("to heal") draws the attention , the supernatural Healer, ie beyond the physical
healing itself and its benefits (as with 2323 ).]. Word Origin a prim. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/2390.htm - 8k

2323. therapeuo -- to serve, cure
... illness (disease, infirmity). [2323 (), the root of "" and "," usually involves
in the process of healing.]. Word Origin from therapon ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/2323.htm - 9k

218. aleipho -- anoint.
... Oil was also applied to the feet to soothe and show (courtesy, respect). Anointing
shares a "penetrating comfort" to impart strength and healing ().]. anoint. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/218.htm - 7k

4832. marpe -- a healing, cure, health
... 4831, 4832. marpe. 4833 . a healing, cure, health. Transliteration: marpe
Phonetic Spelling: (mar-pay') Short Definition: healing. ...
/hebrew/4832.htm - 6k

8644. teruphah -- a healing
... 8643, 8644. teruphah. 8645 . a healing. Transliteration: teruphah Phonetic
Spelling: (ter-oo-faw') Short Definition: healing. Word ...
/hebrew/8644.htm - 6k

8585b. tealah -- a healing
... a healing. Transliteration: tealah Short Definition: healing. Word Origin from alah
Definition a healing NASB Word Usage healing (1), recovery (1). ...
/hebrew/8585b.htm - 5k

7500. riphuth -- a healing
... 7499, 7500. riphuth. 7501 . a healing. Transliteration: riphuth Phonetic
Spelling: (rif-ooth') Short Definition: healing. Word Origin ...
/hebrew/7500.htm - 6k

1456. gehah -- a healing, cure
... 1455, 1456. gehah. 1457 . a healing, cure. Transliteration: gehah Phonetic
Spelling: (gay-haw') Short Definition: medicine. Word ...
/hebrew/1456.htm - 6k

724. arukah -- healing, restoration
... 723b, 724. arukah. 725 . healing, restoration. Transliteration: arukah
Phonetic Spelling: (ar-oo-kaw') Short Definition: health. ...
/hebrew/724.htm - 6k

4010. mabligith -- smiling, cheerfulness, source of brightening
... mabligith. 4011 . smiling, cheerfulness, source of brightening. Transliteration:
mabligith Phonetic Spelling: (mab-leeg-eeth') Short Definition: healing. ...
/hebrew/4010.htm - 6k

3545. kehah -- lessening, alleviation
... healing. Feminine of keheh; properly, a weakening; figuratively, alleviation, ie
Cure -- healing. see HEBREW keheh. 3544, 3545. kehah. 3546 . Strong's Numbers
/hebrew/3545.htm - 6k

7499. rephuah -- remedy, medicine
... 7498b, 7499. rephuah. 7500 . remedy, medicine. Transliteration: rephuah
Phonetic Spelling: (ref-oo-aw') Short Definition: healing. ...
/hebrew/7499.htm - 6k

8585. t'alah -- a watercourse
... a watercourse. Transliteration: t'alah Phonetic Spelling: (teh-aw-law') Short
Definition: conduit. conduit, cured, healing, little river, trench, watercourse ...
/hebrew/8585.htm - 5k

The Healing Christ
... ST. MATTHEW Chaps. I to VIII THE HEALING CHRIST. 'Himself ... briefly. One is the
prominence in Christ's life which is given to His healing energy. ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture a/the healing christ.htm

Healing and Service
... HEALING AND SERVICE. 'Simon's wife's mother lay sick of a fever; and
straightway they tell Him of her: 31. And He came and took her ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture d/healing and service.htm

The Healing of the Sick on the Other Side. The Method of Healing.
... Book XI. 7. The Healing of the Sick on the Other Side. The Method of Healing.
But after this both Jesus and Peter will go up into ...
/.../origen/origens commentary on the gospel of matthew/7 the healing of the.htm

Healing for the Wounded
... Healing for the Wounded. A Sermon (No.53). ... We intend to address you upon the important
subject of broken hearts, and the great healing provided for them. ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 1 1855/healing for the wounded.htm

Miracles of Healing
... MIRACLES OF HEALING. 'Then the ... joy. Thus Christ is the Healer. To men seeking
for knowledge, He offers a higher gift"healing. And ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture h/miracles of healing.htm

The Healing Power of the Name
... THE HEALING POWER OF THE NAME. 'And His name through faith in His name
hath made this man strong, whom ye see and know: yea, the ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture the acts/the healing power of the.htm

Swift Healing and Immediate Service
... ST. MATTHEW Chaps. I to VIII SWIFT HEALING AND IMMEDIATE SERVICE. ... He fixes attention
on the all-powerful word which was the vehicle of Christ's healing might. ...
/.../expositions of holy scripture a/swift healing and immediate service.htm

Divine Healing.
... Divine Healing. ... In verse thirteen is recorded the healing of the centurion's servant:
"Go thy way, and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. ...
//christianbookshelf.org/orr/the gospel day /chapter ix divine healing.htm

The Healing of the Waters
... Prophets of the Northern Kingdom Chapter 18 The Healing of the Waters. In Patriarchal
times the Jordan Valley was "well watered everywhere, . . . ...
/.../white/the story of prophets and kings/chapter 18 the healing of.htm

Sin's Healing Shadow.
... Sacrifice Sin's Healing Shadow. Sacrifice has come to be a law of life. ... And
so there is sacrifice. Sacrifice is sin's healing shadow. ...
/.../gordon/quiet talks with world winners/sins healing shadow.htm

Medicine (4 Occurrences)
... the Revised Version (British and American) "is a good medicine"; the Revised Version
margin gives another rendering, "causeth good healing," which is the form ...
/m/medicine.htm - 11k

Physician (6 Occurrences)
... The "physicians" were those who "practised heathen arts of magic, disavowing recognized
methods of cure, and dissociating the healing art from dependence on ...
/p/physician.htm - 14k

Gifts (144 Occurrences)
... They were the gifts of speaking with tongues, casting out devils, healing,
etc. ... Int. Standard Bible Encyclopedia. HEALING, GIFTS OF. ...
/g/gifts.htm - 61k

Sickness (40 Occurrences)
... The number of references in the latter is significant as showing how much the
healing of the sick was characteristic of the Lord's ministry. ...
/s/sickness.htm - 29k

Dismay (16 Occurrences)
... Jeremiah 8:15 We looked for peace, but no good came; and for a time of healing,
and behold, dismay! ... why have you struck us, and there is no healing for us? ...
/d/dismay.htm - 11k

Malady (3 Occurrences)
... Matthew 4:23 And Jesus was going about all Galilee teaching in their synagogues,
and proclaiming the good news of the reign, and healing every disease, and ...
/m/malady.htm - 7k

Medicines (3 Occurrences)
... Multi-Version Concordance Medicines (3 Occurrences). Jeremiah 30:13 There is none
to plead your cause, that you may be bound up: you have no healing medicines. ...
/m/medicines.htm - 7k

Casting (54 Occurrences)
... 10:1 And having called to him his twelve disciples, he gave to them power over unclean
spirits, so as to be casting them out, and to be healing every sickness ...
/c/casting.htm - 22k

Cure (28 Occurrences)
... water cure. 4. (n.) Act of healing or state of being healed; restoration
to health from disease, or to soundness after injury. 5. (n ...
/c/cure.htm - 17k

Tidings (169 Occurrences)
... Matthew 4:23 And Jesus went round the whole of Galilee, teaching in their synagogues,
and preaching the glad tidings of the kingdom, and healing every disease ...
/t/tidings.htm - 38k

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