Transfiguration
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These men were now triumphantly declaring that a devil was here
found whom neither the disciples nor their Master could conquer.
As Jesus approached the scene he inquired the cause of the trouble;
the afflicted father replied: “Master, I have brought unto thee my son,
which hath a dumb spirit; and wheresoever he taketh him, he teareth
him; and he foameth, and gnasheth with his teeth, and pineth away;
and I spake to thy disciples that they should cast him out, and they
could not.” Jesus listened attentively to this narration, and then met the
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failure of his disciples, the doubts of the people, and the boasting of
the scribes, with these words: “O faithless generation! how long shall
I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? Bring him unto me.”
The father obeyed the command of Jesus; but no sooner was his
son brought into the divine presence than the evil spirit attacked him
with violence, and he fell upon the ground in agony, and writhed, and
foamed at the mouth. Jesus permitted Satan to exercise his power thus
over his victim, in order that the people might better understand the
nature of the miracle he was about to perform, and be more deeply
impressed with a sense of his divine power. Jesus proceeded to inquire
of the father how long his son had thus been afflicted by the demon.
The father answered:—
“Of a child. And ofttimes it hath cast him into the fire, and into the
water, to destroy him; but if thou canst do anything, have compassion
on us, and help us.” The failure of the disciples to heal this deplorable
case had sadly discouraged the father, and the sufferings of his son
now wrung his soul with anguish. The question of Jesus brought to
his mind the long years of suffering endured by his son, and his heart
sank within him. He feared that what the scribes asserted was true,
and that Jesus himself could not overcome so powerful a devil. Jesus
perceived his dispirited condition and sought to inspire him with faith.
He addressed him thus: “If thou canst believe, all things are possible
to him that believeth.” Hope was immediately kindled in the father’s
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heart, and he cried, “Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.”
The distressed father realized his immediate need of help, and that
no one could furnish that help but the merciful Saviour, and he relied
alone upon him. His faith was not in vain; for Jesus, before the whole
multitude, that flocked about to witness the scene, “rebuked the foul
spirit, saying unto him, Thou dumb and deaf spirit, I charge thee, come
out of him, and enter no more into him.” And immediately the demon