Matthew 26:51-53 And suddenly, one of those who were with Jesus stretched out his hand and drew his sword, struck the servant of the high priest, and cut off his ear. (52) But Jesus said to him, “Put your sword in its place, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword.” (53) “Or do you think that I cannot now pray to my My Father, and He will provide Me with more than twelve legions of angels?” *
Mark 14:47: And one of those who stood by drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest, and cut off his ear.
Luke 22:50-51: And one of them struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his right ear. (51) But Jesus answered and said, “Permit even this.” And He touched his ear and healed him.
John 18:10: Then Simon Peter, having a sword, drew it and struck the high priest’s servant and cut off his right ear. The servant’s name was Malchus.
The Setting: The Garden of Gethsemane
The Time: The night before Jesus’ crucifixion
The Characters: Jesus, his disciples, Judas Iscariot (His betrayer), along with a great multitude of officers sent by the chief priests and elders of the Jews who have come with clubs and swords to arrest Jesus
Jesus had told His disciples what would happen. He had taken them with Him to the Garden of Gethsemane and asked them to watch and pray as He went further and prayed so fervently that it was as if his sweat became as “great drops of blood falling down to the ground” (Luke 22:44). Yet the disciples were weary and slept. Now the army is here, with swords, clubs, lanterns, and torches, ready to take Jesus into custody, based upon trumped-up charges made by the misguided religious “powers that be” of that day. Sadly, one of Jesus’ own disciples, Judas Iscariot, leads the search party. As he seals his own fate by identifying Jesus with a kiss of betrayal, the drama unfolds.
Had a Jerusalem Post been in existence and a reporter on hand the night of Jesus’ arrest, the headline in the next day’s edition would most likely have read something similar to the caption in my New King James Version of the Bible: “Betrayal and Arrest in Gethsemane.” And yet, as the reporter spoke with eyewitnesses to the event, other side-stories, within the big story, would soon emerge. One such story appears in all four gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John (see above), but only Luke and John give us the specifics.
As the detachment of officers seek to lay hands upon Jesus, one of His disciples takes a sword and cuts off the right ear of a servant of the high priest. The Apostle John reveals the name of the disciple to be none other than Peter, and the name of the servant as Malchus. Quickly, Jesus instructs Peter to put away the sword, with the admonition that those who live by the sword will die by it (see above). Perhaps because he was a physician by profession, Luke is the only gospel writer to tell us the incredible miracle that happens next. Jesus reaches out his hand, touches the ear of Malchus, and heals it.
Poor Peter. Jesus has already told him he will deny Him three times before the cock crows. Then, he is the one disciple singled out for sleeping (“Simon, are you sleeping? Could you not watch one hour?” Mark 14:37). And now this.
It’s little wonder Peter is confused about the “sword thing.” Earlier that night, as Jesus tried to tell His disciples what lay ahead, He explained to them that up until this point, they had been provided all that they needed, but now things would be different. Preparing them for persecution ahead, He even instructed them to buy a sword if they didn’t have one. Peter evidently had taken the words of Jesus literally and in Peter-like fashion decided to take action. It’s got to be the worst night of his life, at least so far.
But what about Malchus? Because we don’t know anything else about him, his fate is the fodder for open-ended conjecture. We can imagine the blood and the cry of pain as he grabs the right side of his face as his ear is sliced off by the sword. Then almost as quickly he feels the divine Hand of Jesus as He touches the ear and heals it.
What we do know from scripture is that the healing of his ear is the last recorded miracle Jesus performed before His crucifixion. Although Malchus is mentioned nowhere else in the Bible (except for a brief reference in John 18:26 made by one of his relatives as she questioned Peter), and even though no other gospel writer offers his name, the Apostle John knew it, and, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, he recorded it for us to know as well. Furthermore, we see that even at this perilous time in Jesus’ earthly existence, He paused long enough to show mercy to one taking part in the arrest that would deliver Him closer to His own impending death.
Being a servant of the high priest, surely Malchus had heard stories about Jesus’ claim to be the long-awaited Messiah. We can imagine that now he had a vested interest in following the events of the next several days. Would he not have witnessed the three hours of darkness that fell upon the land and felt the earth quake as Jesus hung in agony on the cross (Matthew: 27:45; Mark 15:33; Luke 23:44)? Perhaps he heard the high priestly conversations about how the veil of the temple was torn in two as Jesus breathed His last and said, “it is finished.” (Matt: 27:51; Mark 15: 37:38; Luke 23:45; John 19:30). On the third day, when news of the resurrection began to circulate, did he not wondrously touch his healed ear and contemplate that One who could perfectly heal a severed ear could also rise from the grave? For the rest of his days, did he not relive that moment–that miraculous touch?
Though we’ll never know the eternal fate of Malchus this side of heaven, his story can speak to our own hearts if we stop to listen. You see, Jesus not only knew his name, but He knew all about Malchus, just as He knows you, and just as he knows me. He knew when he was born (and even before); He knew when he would die, and everything in between (see Psalm 139 and Jeremiah 1:5). Even though this servant of the high priest did nothing to deserve it, Jesus still loved him and gave him this great gift of physical healing at the most unlikely moment. This healing was unique in that the one who needed healing didn’t ask to be healed or have anyone else to make the request for him; there’s no mention of faith, and, even though he probably only followed orders, he most likely approached Jesus in an antagonistic manner. And yet, Jesus showed compassion and healed him anyway.
Even more amazing, that night Jesus was paving the way for all who would believe in Him, including Malchus, to have so much more than temporary physical healing. He was preparing to offer Himself as a sacrifice for sin, making the greatest exchange in all history–His righteousness for the sins of mankind (see 2nd Corinthians 5:21), “the just for the unjust” (1st Peter 3:18) –so that all who would believe in Him could be reconciled to God and receive the free gift of eternal life. He didn’t need for Peter to defend Him because He could have called legions of angels to the rescue (see above), but He willingly chose to go to the Cross instead.
We on this side of the Cross can certainly identify with Malchus. He needed a Savior, and so do we. Even though we may not be involved in open rebellion against Jesus, the Bible says “…all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23), and “…the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23). As Jesus prayed in the Garden that night, He prayed: “…O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will but as You will” (Matthew 26:39). Surely if there had been another way to conquer death and save mankind from the penalty of sin, Jesus would not have willingly gone to the Cross. He did the part that only He could do. Malchus’ part and our part is found in Romans 10:9, “…if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” That’s the part Jesus can’t do for us.
If Malchus didn’t come to believe in Jesus as his Lord and Savior, it certainly was not because he lacked ample opportunity. It’s hard to imagine that he failed to hear the gospel message as the news of the resurrection spread throughout Jerusalem, not to mention that he had actually felt the physical and personal touch of the Son of God. How could he turn his back in unbelief? And yet, 2,000 plus years later, when the message has been preached throughout the world, because of their unbelief, countless souls still reject the free gift Christ offers, all the while looking for some other way.
Perhaps we are told just enough about Malchus to give us pause to consider. As for my own conjecture, I truly hope to see him in heaven one day to hear the rest of his story.
*All scripture taken from the New King James Version of the Bible.
Faith for This Side of the Dark Glass 