… WHERE ARE THE 9?
While Jesus was on His way to Jerusalem, passing along the border between Samaria and Galilee, He entered a village where ten lepers stood afar off, unable to come close because of the severity of their condition. Yet even from a distance, they still had one thing they could use—their voices. And they lifted those voices with desperation and hope, crying out, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!” They didn’t ask for healing or cleansing. They simply asked for mercy. And Jesus, full of compassion, stopped when He saw them. He didn’t lay hands on them, He didn’t pray long prayers, He didn’t even approach them. Instead, He gave a simple instruction: “Go and show yourselves to the priests,” as the Law required for anyone who hoped to be declared clean. And in obedience, they went. It was along this journey of obedience that the miracle happened—as they went, they were healed and made clean.
Imagine the moment! The shock, the joy, the overwhelming realization that the disease that had defined their lives was suddenly gone. Yet out of ten, only one turned back. Only one allowed gratitude to interrupt his journey. He came back glorifying God with a loud voice, fell face down at Jesus’ feet, and thanked Him repeatedly. And Scripture highlights that he was a Samaritan—a man considered an outsider, a foreigner.
Jesus noticed his return—but He also noticed the absence of the others. “Were not ten cleansed?” He asked. “Where are the nine? Was no one found to return and give thanks to God except this foreigner?” Jesus expected gratitude. He looked for it. And when He didn’t see it in the nine, He questioned it. The thankful man received something deeper than the others. Jesus said to him, “Get up and go; your faith has made you whole.” Healing restored his body. Wholeness restored his life, his peace, his identity. Healing can be temporary. Wholeness is lasting—an inner transformation not tied to circumstances.
Why didn’t the nine return? Perhaps they felt the instruction must be completed first. Perhaps they believed the healing came from their obedience rather than from Jesus. Perhaps gratitude felt unnecessary or inconvenient. Perhaps they were so used to suffering that they didn’t know how to respond to blessing. Perhaps they simply took the miracle for granted. We aren’t told. But what we do know is that Jesus was expecting them to come back.
Do you also have a reason or maybe reasons for not returning to give thanks?
What keeps you from going back to acknowledge the One who showed you mercy? For every blessing, every answered prayer, and the blessings you didn’t ask for, every quiet act of divine kindness, Jesus still waits. He still asks, “Where are the nine?”
Do you want to be made whole? Jesus is still waiting. He is expecting you. Come.
