Rooting Path · How to Read the Bible · Lesson 2 of 7 · Slow Down and See · about 18 min
Jesus was taking his disciples to Jerusalem, and passed through Jericho:
46They came to Jericho. As he went out from Jericho with his disciples and a great multitude, the son of Timaeus, Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, was sitting by the road. 47When he heard that it was Jesus the Nazarene, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, you son of David, have mercy on me!” 48Many rebuked him, that he should be quiet, but he cried out much more, “You son of David, have mercy on me!” 49Jesus stood still and said, “Call him.” They called the blind man, saying to him, “Cheer up! Get up. He is calling you!” 50He, casting away his cloak, sprang up, and came to Jesus. 51Jesus asked him, “What do you want me to do for you?” The blind man said to him, “Rabboni, that I may see again.” 52Jesus said to him, “Go your way. Your faith has made you well.” Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus on the way.
Mark 10:46–52 · WEB
Not long before this, on the same road:
35James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came near to him, saying, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we will ask.” 36He said to them, “What do you want me to do for you?” 37They said to him, “Grant to us that we may sit, one at your right hand and one at your left hand, in your glory.”
Mark 10:35–37 · WEB
The last lesson looked at the map of the whole Bible. This lesson teaches the first method, and the most basic one: see first, then explain.
Many people finish reading a passage and immediately ask: ‘What does this mean for me?’ It is a good question, just asked too soon. If we rush to find meaning before seeing clearly what the passage says, what we find is often what we already wanted to say. So the first step is observation: slow down and see clearly what the passage actually says.
Observation can begin with a few simple questions: Who is there? Where? What happens? Who says what? Which words repeat? What surprises you? In Ezra’s day, when the Levites taught the people the book of the law, this was the order: “They read in the book, in the law of God, distinctly; and they gave the sense, so that they understood the reading” (Neh 8:8)—first read clearly, then explain the meaning.
Try it on the Bartimaeus passage. Who is there? Jesus, the disciples, a great crowd, and a blind beggar—the text even records his father’s name: “the son of Timaeus, Bartimaeus.” (Mark 10:46) What is surprising? Many rebuked him, “that he should be quiet,” (Mark 10:48) but “he cried out much more.” (Mark 10:48) And then: “Jesus stood still.” (Mark 10:49) A great crowd was heading for Jerusalem, and he stopped for one beggar.
Now look at a word that is easy to miss: the road. At the start of the story Bartimaeus “was sitting by the road” (Mark 10:46); at the end he “followed Jesus on the way.” (Mark 10:52) From the roadside to the road—in a few words, the turning of his whole life. We did not add this meaning; it showed itself when we read slowly.
There is one more thing, but you have to turn back a few verses to see it. Just before this, James and John came with a request, and Jesus asked them: “What do you want me to do for you?” (Mark 10:36) What they asked for was “one at your right hand and one at your left hand” (Mark 10:37). Not long after, Jesus asks Bartimaeus almost exactly the same thing: “What do you want me to do for you?” (Mark 10:51) What he asks for is: “that I may see again.” (Mark 10:51) The same question, two answers: the disciples who had walked the whole road with Jesus asked for position; a man who could not see asked to see.
Observation takes no scholarship, only slowness. There is a prayer in the Psalms that is very fitting before reading the Bible: “Open my eyes, that I may see wondrous things out of your law” (Ps 119:18).
Read Mark 10:46–52 three more times. After each reading, write down what you see—not what it means, only what you see. Aim for 10. You can start with these questions: Who is there? Where? Who says what? Which words repeat? What surprises you?
For reference: ①the place is Jericho; ②Jesus is leaving the city with his disciples and a great crowd; ③the blind man has a name, and even his father’s name is recorded; ④he sits by the road begging; ⑤he calls Jesus “son of David” (Mark 10:47); ⑥many tell him to be quiet; ⑦he cries out all the more; ⑧Jesus stands still; ⑨the people say to him, “Cheer up! Get up” (Mark 10:49); ⑩he throws off his cloak and springs up; ⑪Jesus asks what he wants; ⑫he immediately sees; ⑬he follows Jesus on the way. If what you saw is different from this, that’s fine—the more concrete, the better.
Open my eyes, that I may see wondrous things out of your law.
Ps 119:18 · WEB
This week read a short section of Mark each day (starting from chapter 1), and write only observations, not meanings: three things you see each day.
Just this one thing. When you do it, tap that day below; if you don’t, that’s all right—try again next week.
Good. Tap each day you do it this week:
Putting down roots is not something you do alone. Find a brother or sister you trust (ideally of the same sex) and talk this question over this week:
What did you see in the text this week that you had never noticed before?