Every person mentioned in the Bible has been put there by God for a reason. Nobody is insignificant in God’s eyes, and if He put someone in His Holy Word, they are there for a reason. As we finish up Holy Week, I would like to take a closer look at a very minor person mentioned in the Bible, and that is the man Malchus. What happened to him is mentioned in each of the Gospel accounts, though his name is only given in the Gospel of John. Let’s take a look at this person that most people have probably not taken much note of, and see how God’s immense love, mercy, and compassion is shown forth through him.
As our Scripture begins today, Jesus and His disciples are in the Garden of Gethsemane. Several hours earlier He had held the Last Supper, and has now just concluded a time of prayer to the Father. As we read in the Gospel, Judas arrived with a band of Temple soldiers sent by the Sanhedrin to arrest Jesus (vs. 47-48). When the soldiers began to apprehend Jesus, a rather serious scuffle broke out between the disciples and the soldiers and those with them. One of the disciples grabbed a sword and started swinging it, and he struck one of the servants of the high priest, who had come along. This blow with the sword was to his head, and managed to cut the man’s ear off (vs. 49-50).
We see here that the disciples were acting in a violent way to stop their Master from getting arrested. Jesus put an end to that right away, reminding them that if He asked, God would have sent Him legions of angels to defend Him (Matthew 26:53). Then Jesus reached over and touched that man, bringing healing to his ear (vs. 51).
Over the last several years Jesus had healed numerous people. What made this one something to look into? For one, at this moment Jesus was facing arrest, a mockery of a trial, scourging, beatings, carrying a heavy cross, and then crucifixion. Knowing, as He did, that this was what He would shortly have to endure, why would He think about someone else and their needs at that moment? How many of us, when we are in the midst of a problem of our own, take time to care for others and their problems? Yet that is exactly what Jesus did.
In John’s Gospel we read that this servant’s name was Malchus, and that it was Peter who wielded the sword that cut his ear off (John 18:10). Malchus was an enemy of Jesus right then. Though we don’t know anything about him, it is fairly safe to assume that he didn’t mind being there, where the action was that night, and that he was no follower of Jesus. The fact that Peter struck Malchus’ head indicated that Peter wasn’t intending to just wound him, but likely was trying to kill him. Yet here we see Jesus healing Malchus, healing His enemy.
Imagine a possible scenario later that night. Malchus returns home from that arrest at Gethsemane. His wife and family ask him how his shift at work went, and then they see a lot of blood all over his robe. They ask him what happened, and Malchus proceeds to tell them that there had been a scuffle at the time of the arrest of Jesus, and that his ear was cut off. But wait! They look at him, and both ears are on his head! Yes, he tells them, Jesus touched him and healed his ear! He took the time, right in the middle of His arrest, and healed him! Jesus healed Malchus, one of the group trying to arrest him!
Before coming to Him for salvation we were all enemies of Jesus (Romans 5:8-10). Yet God loved each of us so much that He sent His Son to die for us. While we were still His enemies, Jesus died to make us whole. He reached out with compassion and dealt with our sin-wounds, just as He did with Malchus. For all who accept Jesus as Savior, He changes us from enemies to children.
What became of Malchus? Did he become a follower of Jesus? The Scriptures do not say what happened to him. It is very likely that a few days later he heard the rumors that Jesus rose from the dead. Perhaps, every time he touched his ear, every time he saw those blood-stained clothes of his, he sought out to find more about this One many claimed was risen again. The fact that John knew his name many decades later when he wrote his Gospel, might indicate that Malchus became a Christian. We don’t know for sure. However, the important thing to see in this account is the deep love, compassion, and mercy of Jesus, that He would take the time to heal someone who was coming against Him, and that He had the love to die for us while we, too, were His enemies.
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