It was not unusual for parents to take their children to a scribe to have him bless their child. Such blessings had power in the minds of the people.
Now Jesus had just turned 34 years old and was preparing to leave Bethany of Perea on the Plains of Moab and to go to Jerusalem. He was busy. When some parents attempted to bring their children to Jesus, some disciples intercepted them. ‘Go find a regular scribe, our master is far too busy’, they said. When the parents persisted, the disciples got aggressive and spoke harshly to them.
But when Jesus saw what the parents wanted and what the disciples were doing, he was angry at the disciples’ misunderstanding, and chose this moment to teach them a “kingdom lesson”. He instructed the disciples to allow the parents and children to come. Jesus knew that only those who could ‘trust like a child’ could follow Jesus into the Kingdom.
And Jesus embraced the children one by one as living examples of a trusting attitude. He prayed to the Father for their welfare and promised them that God would watch over them. To the disciples he then said, ‘Children, in their innocence, have the ability to believe what they are told, despite what is happening around them. You will need to have that same innocent faith in God’s promise in the coming days. I wish everyone would have such faith.’
DAB