Luke 8:42  “…she was dying…”
Matthew’s account says Jairus came and said his daughter was already dead, but that he knew Jesus could raise her up.  Makes me think the disciples didn’t all hear exactly everything that was happening, but caught the issue was over a daughter.  Since she was dead when they got to the house, they assumed she had been dead all along.  Witnesses Luke spoke with got more specific details.

43  “…having a flow of blood…”
It is assumed this was probably part of her monthly feminine issues.  Perhaps it was occurring more often than once a month.

43  “…had spent all her livelihood…”
Doesn’t say she was a widow, but it doesn’t mention a husband either.  Depending on her age, perhaps the problem had prevented her from marrying.  It is pure speculation, but it sounds like she was a widow with decent means originally, but the physical issue had caused her to use up all her provisions.  Now she had no livelihood and was sick to boot.

47  “…that she was not hidden…”
One commentary suggested that she had thought to just touch His garment and disappear with her miracle.  That her faith wasn’t completely in Jesus, but that she thought of Him as one who had power, and she only had to touch His garment to capture some of that power for herself and get away.  Hard to say.  But what we do know is that Jesus said her faith, even if it was very small, was enough.  We don’t have to know everything about Jesus to accept Him.  I certainly did not at the age of ten when I received Him.  All I knew was that I recognized my sin and my need for Him.  I asked Him to forgive me of my sin and to come into my heart and save me.  That was a tiny bit of faith, but Jesus says it is enough.  All who call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

49-50  “…Your daughter is dead…only believe…”
That must have been a hard blow to hear.  Jairus thought the truth was that his daughter was dead.  But the Truth was standing there with him.  The conclusion would not be reached until Jesus had His say.

52  “…she is not dead, but sleeping”
Her outward or inward appearance didn’t matter.  What Jesus said was the truth.  And He was about to wake her up.

55  “…He commanded that she be given something to eat”
Would prove that she was indeed alive.  Would also be attending to her physical needs if she had not eaten while she was sick.

56  “…He charged them to tell no one…”
Probably the standard reason of not wanting the crowds to try and make Him an earthly leader.  Knowing He had raised a child from the dead would have greatly fueled that desire among the people.  They would be more interested in what He could bring as a ruler than His message of salvation and redemption.  That would create folks like we have today, many who claim to follow Him, who even admit Who He is, but don’t believe on Him since they don’t see their need.

I hope you enjoy reading and studying His word.  May it accomplish what He desires.  Please feel free to comment or post questions.  Thanks for reading!

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.