The four gospels; Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John contain a great deal of information about what went on during Jesus’ three year ministry on Earth. Each of these accounts focuses on a particular aspect of Jesus’ ministry that stood out to the authors. For instance, Matthew, one of the original twelve apostles, saw Jesus as the Messiah of the Jews and wrote his gospel from the perspective of Jesus’ fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy. Luke, a companion of the Apostle Paul (2 Timothy 4:11), wrote his gospel message to a specific person named Theophilus who was likely a Roman official that had become a Christian during Paul’s ministry. Mark, a member of the Apostle Peter’s church in Jerusalem (Acts 12:12), probably wrote his gospel based on details that came from Peter’s messages to his congregation.

Matthew, Mark, and Luke are referred to as the synoptic gospels because they are noticeably similar, while John is quite different. Although much of their content is the same, Matthew, Mark, and Luke wrote from different perspectives and each included details that the others may have missed. One incident in particular, the healing of the blind man Bartimeus stands out as a situation in which these three men viewed the outcome as being distinctly different. Matthew focused on the physical restoration of Bartimeus’ sight (Matthew 20:34), whereas Luke said Bartimeus was saved (Luke 18:42) and Mark recorded that Jesus had made the blind man whole (Mark 10:52). The reason these accounts differ could be because Jesus’ miracle was perceived to be motivated by different objectives.

Matthew’s view of Bartimeus’ healing seemed to be focused on his being restored to a normal life. Matthew said of Bartimeus and his companion, “Jesus had compassion on them, and touched their eyes: and immediately their eyes received sight, and they followed him” (Matthew 20:34). The Greek word translated compassion, splagchnizomai (splangkh-nid´-zom-ahee) means to feel sympathy or to pity someone that is suffering (G4697). Matthew may have viewed Bartimeus’ condition as a disadvantage that Jesus’ wanted to eliminate. It seems likely that Matthew thought Bartimeus would prefer to be like everyone else and his request to have his eyes opened (Matthew 20:33) was directly related to his physical eyesight being restored.

Mark’s account of Bartimeus’ healing showed that the blind man was interested in more than just having his eyesight restored. As Jesus passed by, Bartimeus called out to him repeatedly trying to get Jesus’ attention (Mark 10:48). Mark recorded, “And Jesus stood still, and commanded him to be called. And they call the blind man, saying unto him, Be of good comfort, rise; he calleth thee. And he casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus” (Mark 10:49-50). Bartimeus’ response showed he was eager to meet Jesus. Even though he couldn’t see where Jesus was standing, Bartimeus may have walked (or perhaps even ran) directly toward him. Although, Luke’s gospel states Jesus commanded that Bartimeus to be brought to him (Luke 18:40). After he requested to have his sight restored, Jesus told Bartimeus, “Go thy way; they faith hath made thee whole” (Mark 10:52).

.The Greek word that is translated faith in Mark 10:52 and Luke 18:42 is pistis. Pistis is “related to God with the conviction that God exists and is the creator and ruler of all things, the provider and bestower of eternal salvation through Christ” (G4102). The Greek word pistis is derived from the word peitho (pi´-tho), which in the active voice, signifies “to apply persuasion, to prevail upon or win over, to persuade,” bringing about a change of mind by the influence of reason or moral considerations (G3982). Apparently, God granted Bartimeus eternal salvation immediately because he believed on the Lord Jesus Christ (G4982). Luke’s account of the incident verifies this. He recorded, “Jesus said unto him, Receive thy sight: thy faith hath saved thee” (Luke 18:42). Afterward, Matthew, Mark, and Luke all agreed that Bartimeus followed Jesus to Jerusalem (Matthew 20:34, Mark 10:52, Luke 18:43), and as a result of having his eyesight restored, probably saw Jesus die on the cross.