Matthew 8:13-22

Welcome –

So, we left off last week where Yeshua says to a Centurion who asked Him to come and heal his servant that from the east and west people would flow into the kingdom,

“But (that the) children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

23 Matthew 8.13-22

June 14th 2026

Outer darkness is mentioned only three times and they are all in Matthew.

Some say that because there are no other mentions of the place in the entire Bible Yeshua was likening a literal place people around Him would recognize (like a Roman dungeon) which existed in total darkness.

I tend to think otherwise which we will get to in a minute. In every case where Outer Darkness is mentioned in the apostolic record, “weeping and gnashing of teeth,” is mentioned too.

In the Parable of the Wedding Feast, Yeshua tells of a “wedding crasher” who was discovered to have entered the feast without authorization. Yeshua says that the king, the master of the feast, issued a dire command concerning the interloper. “Bind him hand and foot and cast him into the outer darkness” (ESV).

Yeshua uses the term “outer darkness” in the parable to describe a condition of great sorrow, loss and woe. It stands in vivid contrast to the brightly lit and joyous celebration attended by those who accepted the king’s invitation and were dressed appropriately.

Interpreting the wedding feast as heaven, the “outer darkness” must be the place of punishment. Again, and I think errantly, Bible scholars agree that the phrase “outer darkness” refers to hell but most suggest it speaks of the lake of fire.

The outer darkness of Yeshua’ parable is called “blackest darkness” in Jude 1:13. Again, a place of judgment is the obvious meaning, since it is reserved for “godless men.”

Perhaps the place of judgment is pictured as “dark” because of the absence of God’s cheering presence. Psalm 104:29 says, “When you hide your face, they are terrified.”

Because God is called “light” in 1st John 1:5, it seems if He is not present only darkness is left. So outer darkness, wherever that realm is, appears to be a place where God is not.

Throughout the Scriptures light symbolizes God’s purity, holiness, and glory. Darkness is used as a symbol of moral depravity but it can also refer to trouble and affliction and also to death and nothingness.

As mentioned the outer darkness mentioned in Matthew is always accompanied by “weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

The “weeping” seems to describe an inner pain of the heart, mind, and soul. The “gnashing of teeth” describes an outward pain of the body or of anger.

Taken together, the weeping and gnashing of teeth describes a place of indescribable spiritual agony and some say unending physical pain.

In an interesting parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus, one that is rightly very different from all of Yeshua’s teachings and that gives great insight into the afterlife OF THAT DAY (mind you) we read in Luke 16:19-28,

Luke 16:19 There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day:

20 And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores,

21 And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores.

(Note on the personal pronoun name here of one of the characters and the fact that Lazarus will die and be brought back to life)

22 And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried;

23 And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.

24 And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.

25 But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented.

26 And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.

27 Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father's house:

28 For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment.

29 Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.

30 And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent.

31 And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.

So here are some added complexities to the situation of outer darkness, sheol or hell and the telling of these stories then by Yeshua and our reading them today.

Because everything described in the text about the afterlife is spiritual, and not physical, the references to pain and agony must be from within the mind and soul of a person as their flesh is dead.

Secondly, hell or sheol was a place where the dead went before Christ and it can be described as a prison and a paradise – one of darkness (like the Roman cell in that day) and one like a garden.

It is likely that the prison part of hell is what Yeshua is describing to them then in this parable and to the Centurion.

We also know that the prison part was a place of torment which again, I maintain was the psychological emotional soulish torment of a persons mind.

However, we know that because of Christ paying the price of sin, which is death, and that at His return Hell would be emptied out with all assessed and judged at the great white throne judgment (reserved for the Jews of that day) I tend to believe that instead of outer darkness being a place of torment today for most, it is a destination of preference for some, and while a place for those destitute of love or light, it is essentially and to some degree or another a place of less and less light radiating out from the New Jerusalem about to the point that it is a place entirely absent to light or presence of God.

Because the New Jerusalem above is the dwelling place of God and His Christ (as the scripture says) but the 12 gates are open all the time, I suggest that post the victory of Christ over all things what was outer darkness in the former age is now a realm outside the New Jerusalem and serves to bring those who hate it toward the light and as a home for those that love it.

We do NOT know any more about this place and even what I have said is a great deal of conjecture. (verse 13)

13 And Yeshua said unto the centurion, Go thy way; and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the selfsame hour.

Now, something to point out before we move along.

In Luke 7:1-10 there is a very similar story told. Some suggest they are one and the same accounts while others suggest they are two differing accounts of a similar plot.

It is hard to believe that in the synoptic gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke) that these are two different stories and I think when people suggest this they are trying to avoid the complexity of why the account in Matthew appears to conflict with the account in Luke. The two accounts, however, do differ.

Matthew says:

that the centurion came to Yeshua himself.

Luke says, “that he at first sent elders of the Jews, and then his particular friends.

Luke also adds that fact that this Centurion was “friendly to the Jews, and had built them a synagogue.”

Are these contradictions?

Not in the least. Let’s look at the first difference between the two accounts:

That Matthew seems to say the Centuri0n came alone and Luke says definitively that he first sent some Jewish Elders to speak to Yeshua and then some friends to request His services but this does not mean the Matthew account is in conflict with Luke.

I would suggest that the Matthew account, which happens all the time in scripture, speaks of the Centurion actually being present and speaking to the Lord was really those who represented him.

It was a maxim among the Jews, as it is now in law, that what a man does by another, he does himself.

In this light scripture says that Yeshua was said to baptize, when he only baptized by and through his disciples doing the act on His behalf.

So it was that the Centurian acted by and through his servants and friends.

And if this was the case, it is obvious that Matthew wrote in this tradition of the Jews and Luke reported the event literally.

It is here in scripture that we begin to discover differences in the Gospel accounts.

All of them have sound explanations which often take customs and style of speech into account.

We’ll try and mention these apparent discrepancies as we go along.

Okay to the third healing (Verse 14)

14 And when Yeshua was come into Peter's house, he saw his wife's mother laid, and sick of a fever.

This account is also found in

Mark 1:29-31

Luke 4:38-39

Mark adds that Peter and Andrew lived together, and that James and John went with them to the house.

He also says that before the miracle they spake to him about the sick person, that the miracle was direct and complete – so much so that she was able to attend and minister to them once it occured.

Got all that?

Now, by virtue of Matthew’s account we learn something very important - Peter was married.

1st Corinthians 9:5 strongly suggests his wife was still living during his ministry. But Peter is claimed by the Roman Catholics to be the head of the church; and the “vice-gerent” of Christ, or the one who “carries something on.”

The popes, according to their view, are the successor of this apostle.

So, we have to ask why do they maintain that it is wrong for pops and priests to marry? And why did Christ choose Peter to be an apostle since he had a wife?

Anyway, what occurs here? (verse 15)

15 And he touched her hand, and the fever left her: and she arose, and ministered unto them.

Now, notice that Peter’s mother in law had nothing to do with the healing. This healing was “Not according to her faith” nor was it “according to the faith of those standing around her” (at least the text never has Yeshua state that her recovery was based on their faith).

He just healed her.

(beat)

Sometimes faithless people are healed.

Sometimes it is by the faith of people they are healed.

Sometimes it may be by the faith of others that people are healed.

But healing is always and only going to occur if God wills it. And remember, reading the Apostolic Record His healings are more as a picture of Him healing all sin rather than as a description of what MUST happen in every church today in order for them to be considered viable.

(Verse 16)

16 When the even was come, they brought unto him many that were possessed with devils: and he cast out the spirits with his word, and healed all that were sick:

17 That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses.

18 Now when Yeshuasaw great multitudes about him, he gave commandment to depart unto the other side.

Can you imagine the rapidity with which news would travel that there was someone about who could really heal – especially back in the day without anti-biotics, xrays, and chemotherapy?

Family and friends would rush to grab anyone who was afflicted and drag them to the feet of Yeshua. Verse 16 tells us that all who were brought to Him were healed. What a picture! And what does it say?

“All who come to Him, who are brought to Him were healed.”

This fact speaks volumes about Our Lord and His Heart.

Have you ever been thronged by a crowd?

Maybe you have walked into a room full of hungry teenagers with a plate of donuts and suddenly you are being pushed in all directions so they can possess what you have.

In some cases, the thronging might seem like a reflection on your personal worth. But frequently, this is not so. The crowd really only wants to get something from you, whether it be a touch, an item of some sort, or maybe a bit of your time and attention.

We had been filming and airing HOTM for about eight months when I made my first appearance in a public forum.

It was at a church where I spoke then signed books.

I walked from the parking lot Shawn McCraney, just a dude from Huntington Beach and walked out an altered man.

After I spoke I was surrounded by “fans” of the program. Some were pushing pens and books in my face, some were pleading for a snapshot, and some were crying and hugging me – and not letting me go.

At first I was taken back, then a bit flattered, and I tried to reciprocate the love to the best of my ability.

After about a year of this, I started seeing what it was really all about – at least in my case. It was about very needy people reaching out to someone they believed could supply them with what they needed.

My person – Shawn Aaron McCraney – who loves tacos, slow plodding films, and has a great distain for many things those very masses adore – was irrelevant.

What was relevant was what the masses perceived me to be, what they wanted me to be in their imaginations, and what they could get out of this person standing before them who they assigned some type of value.

In the end, the attentions were NOT about me, they were about what people sought to get from me, someone they assumed had something more to give.

I am always amazed at the love and compassion our Lord and King had for these masses, these great unwashed, who came to Him often not because they cared one whit about Him, or who He was, but because they needed something from Him.

But loving them unconditionally, He ALWAYS gave, to the point that the text says that “He healed all.”

Matthew, whose objective, we recall was to prove to the Jewish reader that Yeshua was the prophesied Messiah, now takes a minute in the presence of these miracles and adds the following at verse 17:

17 That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, “Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses.”

This passage is found in Isaiah 53:4.

Our English translation of that important passage is, "Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows."

Now the words in Isaiah and Matthew are different because one quotes the Hebrew and one quotes the Greek.

But the word translated “griefs,” in Isaiah, “and infirmities,” in Matthew, means properly, in the Hebrew and Greek, “diseases of the body.” So, surely He has born our diseases of the body.”

Then the word rendered "sorrows," in Isaiah, and "sicknesses," in Matthew, both mean “pains or anguish of mind.”

So bottom line the Isaiah passage is telling us that Yeshua bore our physical diseases of the body and the accompanying pains that go with them.

To bear them is to sympathize with the sufferers; to make provision for alleviating those sorrows; and to take them away.

I would reiterate that this is what the Mortal Messiah did for His own to the point of healing them of such in that day as prophesied. When He became flesh, part of His work was to do this very thing for them who were paying directly for the Fall.

So, for them/then He physically healed them and bore their anguish and pain.

For the rest of the world, after wrapping up that age and taking His Bride to the New Jerusalem, the effects of the Fall relative to sin were “spiritual pain” and alienation and suffering wherein He provides solace to all but not necessarily physical healing.

So Yeshua has been healing and freeing people from the horrible confines of illness, even demonic possession.

Because we will deal with demonic possession in the future, I am not going to get into it here. (verse 18)

18 Now when Yeshua saw great multitudes about him, he gave commandment to depart unto the other side.

Linking His seeing the vast multitudes His instructions to depart to what Matthew describes as “the other side,” appears to be to escape them – their demands were too high.

And if our God man King did this we can rest assured that there is also a time when we humans all need to depart to the other side too.

Our Lord embodied selfless service, love, and an ability to extend Himself in amazing ways. But here, looking at all the people, He told the disciples, “let’s go to the other side.”

That other side would be a place known as “Gergesenes,” where they would come upon a man named Legion.

But first He would escape. And He would go out into the wilderness to commune with the Father.

We are physical beings. We need nourishment, relaxation, and time to personally commune with our God.

It comes by meditation upon His scripture. Prayer. Mediation. Even relaxing with and in Him.

I don’t know the ratio – I would guess it is different for everyone. For some of you the ratio might be 90% of your private time with the Lord and 10% in your interactions with Man.

For others it may be reversed.

You know. God knows. Feel no shame or compulsion for your method of taking time with God to be refreshed, to be nourished in and through Him.

It seems that while they prepared to depart for the other side there were people who were desiring to join the team, to get on board, to become a disciple. (verse 19)

19 And a certain scribe came, and said unto him, “Master, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest.”

The Greek really says “one scribe, one grammateun.”

I think it was written this way to show the rarity of a scribe actually coming to Yeshuaand seeking to join Him.

And this scribe calls Him, “Master.”

“Teacher,” didaskow, “I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest.”

You know what is interesting about this claim is that often when a person who is NOT illuminated by the Spirit of God, NOT born-again, they often think they are capable of any thing.

Isn’t that funny.

“I will follow you WHEREVER you go!” he says.

Our flesh is so arrogant, and so weak.

Peter said similar things.

But when we’re filled with Him – His Holy Spirit – something happens.

We might call it reality, authenticity, maybe a genuine view of our frailties as human beings rather than our bloated strengths in our flesh.

You know, when we realize that in human flesh dwells no power, it helps align us correctly before God and Man.

Meaning, we realized God is everything, and we are merely trying to please Him to the best of our ability.

So we have patience with each other, and we have longsuffering when we fail each other, and God.

But Yeshuaknows what we’re about. Listen to verse 20:

20 And Yeshuasaith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.

Now, we could just read this as it is and say:

The Lord is telling this scribe that it’s not easy being a true disciple of Christ, that there’s poverty, and no place to rest comfortably.

But the creator of all things, able to choose any animals He would like in this response –

He could have said, the field mice have nests and the beavers have their damns – but He uses “foxes” and “birds of the air.”

More than generally speaking, foxes throughout scripture and “birds of the air” are not the most noble, virtuous, kind creatures.

The Syrian fox is the only species of fox indigenous to Palestine.

It was a burrower, is silent and solitary in its habits, and is destructive to vineyards, being a plunderer of ripe grapes (Song 2:15).

In Ezekiel 13:4 it says of evil prophets:

“O Israel, thy prophets are like the foxes in the deserts.”

Not a good thing.

In the New Testament, Yeshua, speaking of Herod, calls him “that Fox.”

Birds are often pictured as evil throughout scripture too. But there are exceptions like Doves, etc.

And of course, there’s the obvious meaning here, aside from what I BELIEVE is inferred through His use of these animals.

And that is to follow Christ, there is little comfort.

And the more we follow Him the less there generally is – but every case is unique and up to God.

This means there are wealthy comfortable believers and there are those who will have no place to rest their heads at night.

Let God dictate what He wants for you – in the end, it is exactly what you want – believe me.

Let’s wrap it up with verse twenty one:

21 And another of his disciples said unto him, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father.

Now Luke tells us here that Yeshua actually looked at this one and said “Follow me.”

The first man, the scribe, offered to follow Him and Yeshua called His bluff.

But then Yeshua calls another man’s bluff by calling Him TO follow him.

Maybe this man was acting really devoted. Bowing before the Lord, weeping – who knows.

But when the call is extended, this second man had an excuse.

“Let me first bury my father.”

Among the Jews it was a maxim that all duties were off if a man had to perform the duty of burying a loved one.

Yeshua puts this whole idea straight to bed.

22 But Yeshuasaid unto him, Follow me; and let the dead bury their dead.

It was usual for the Jews to consider a man as dead who had departed from the precepts of the law.

Interestingly enough, on this basis every transgressor was a dead man.

But what the Lord was saying was, “put anything ahead of following me (including burying your father) and you will be like a dead man.

So, let the dead bury their dead.

In other words, to follow me means a sold out commitment even about the duties you have as a son. Additionally we note an almost stern view of this world, the flesh, and the importance of the things surrounding it all as Yeshua referred to those who focused on such as the dead – and to let the dead bury their dead.

Hard as it is for some to see, some people live for all the dead and dying things of this world and Yeshua likens them to being dead.

When He is the King on the heart throne, the person is truly alive and far far better equipped to manage the dead and dying affairs of this life. The point – strive to obtain the eternal view of things by finding eternal life within first – then all things will be added unto you.

Some people claim to be ready to rush into ministry without a call and others will procrastinate long after they are actually called.

The solution: trust in Him, move in Him; and do it all for Him as He leads and not from a place of your own flesh.

We will stop here.

Thanks for watching.