'Sick' in the Bible

Now some time after these things happened, Joseph was told, “Your father is sick.” So he took his two sons Manasseh and Ephraim with him [to go to Goshen].

and for the woman who is ill because of her monthly period, and for the one who has a discharge, whether man or woman, or for a man who lies with a woman who is [ceremonially] unclean.

Now the next generation, your children who come after you and the foreigner who comes from a distant land, when they see the plagues of this land and the diseases with which the Lord has afflicted it, will say,

And when Saul sent messengers to take David, she said, “He is sick.”

David said to him, “To whom do you belong, and where are you from?” He said, “I am a young man from Egypt, a servant of an Amalekite; and my master abandoned me [as useless] when I fell sick three days ago.

Then Nathan went [back] to his home.And the Lord struck the child that Uriah’s widow bore to David, and he was very sick.

Amnon was so frustrated because of his [half-] sister Tamar that he made himself sick, for she was a virgin, and Amnon thought it impossible for him to do anything to her.

Jonadab said to him, “Go to bed and pretend you are sick; and when your father [David] comes to see you, say to him, ‘Just let my sister Tamar come and serve me food, and let her prepare it in my sight, so that I may see it and eat it from her hand.’”

So Amnon lay down and pretended to be sick; and when the king came to see him, Amnon said to the king, “Please let my sister Tamar come and make me a couple of cakes in my sight, so that I may eat from her hand.”

At that time Abijah the son [and crown prince, heir] of Jeroboam became sick.

And the Lord said to Ahijah, “Behold, the wife of Jeroboam is coming to inquire of you about her son, because he is sick. You shall say such and such to her, for when she arrives, she will pretend to be another woman.”

It happened after these things, that the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, became sick; and his illness was so severe that there was no breath left in him.

Ahaziah [the king of Israel] fell through the lattice (grid) in his upper chamber which was in Samaria, and became sick [from the injury]. So he sent messengers, saying to them, “Go, inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, if I will recover from this sickness.”

Now Elisha came to Damascus, and Ben-hadad king of Aram (Syria) was sick; and he was told, “The man of God has come here.”

King Joram returned to Jezreel to be healed of the wounds which the Arameans had inflicted on him at Ramah when he fought against Hazael king of Aram. And Ahaziah the son of Jehoram king of Judah went down to see Joram the son of Ahab in Jezreel, because he was sick.

Then he returned to Jezreel to recover from the wounds they had inflicted on him at Ramah when he fought against Hazael king of Aram. And Ahaziah, the son of Jehoram king of Judah, went down to see Jehoram the son of Ahab in Jezreel, because he was sick.

In those days Hezekiah became terminally ill; and he prayed to the Lord, and He answered him and gave him a [miraculous] sign.

So the king said to me, “Why do you look sad when you are not sick? This is nothing but sadness of heart.” Then I was very frightened,

But as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth (mourning garment);I humbled my soul with fasting,And I prayed with my head bowed on my chest.

Reproach and insults have broken my heart and I am so sick.I looked for sympathy, but there was none,And for comforters, but I found none.

Hope deferred makes the heart sick,But when desire is fulfilled, it is a tree of life.

“Sustain me with raisin cakes,Refresh me with apples,Because I am sick with love.

“I command that you take an oath, O daughters of Jerusalem,If you find my beloved,As to what you tell him—[Say that] I am sick from love [sick from being without him].”

Why should you be stricken and punished again [since no change results from it]?You [only] continue to rebel.The whole head is sickAnd the whole heart is faint and sick.

The Lord will consume the glory of Assyria’s forest and of its fruitful garden, both soul and body,And it will be as when a sick man wastes away.

And no inhabitant [of Zion] will say, “I am sick”;The people who dwell there will be forgiven their wickedness [their sin, their injustice, their wrongdoing].

This is the writing of Hezekiah king of Judah after he had been sick and had recovered from his illness:

At that time Merodach-baladan son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent [messengers with] letters and a present to Hezekiah, for he had heard that he had been sick and had recovered.

Yet the Lord was willingTo crush Him, causing Him to suffer;If He would give Himself as a guilt offering [an atonement for sin],He shall see His [spiritual] offspring,He shall prolong His days,And the will (good pleasure) of the Lord shall succeed and prosper in His hand.

Oh, that I (Jeremiah) could find comfort from my sorrow [for my grief is beyond healing],My heart is sick and faint within me!

“The heart is deceitful above all thingsAnd it is extremely sick;Who can understand it fully and know its secret motives?

Because of this our heart is faint,Because of these things our eyes are dim.

You have not strengthened those who are weak, you have not healed the sick, you have not bandaged the crippled, you have not brought back those gone astray, you have not looked for the lost; but you have ruled them with force and violence.

“I will seek the lost, bring back the scattered, bandage the crippled, and strengthen the weak and the sick; but I will destroy the fat and the strong [who have become hard-hearted and perverse]. I will feed them with judgment and punishment.

And I, Daniel, was exhausted and was sick for [several] days. Afterward I got up and continued with the king’s business; but I was astounded at the vision, and there was no one who could explain it.

On the [special] day of our king, the princes became sick with the heat of wine;The king stretched out his hand [in association] with scoffers (lawless people).

Who drink wine from sacrificial bowlsAnd anoint themselves with the finest oils [reflecting their unrestrained celebration];Yet they are not grieved over the ruin of Joseph (Israel).

“So also I will make you sick, striking you down,Desolating and devastating you, because of your sins.

When you [priests] present the blind [animals] for sacrifice, is it not evil? And when you present the lame and the sick, is it not evil? Offer such a thing [as a blind or lame or sick animal] to your governor [as a gift or as payment for your taxes]. Would he be pleased with you? Or would he receive you graciously?” says the Lord of hosts.

You also say, ‘How tiresome this is!’ And you disdainfully sniff at it,” says the Lord of hosts, “and you bring what was taken by robbery, and the lame or the sick [animals]; this you bring as an offering! Should I receive it with pleasure from your hand?” says the Lord.

So the news about Him spread throughout all Syria; and they brought to Him all who were sick, those suffering with various diseases and pains, those under the power of demons, and epileptics, paralytics; and He healed them.

When evening came, they brought to Him many who were under the power of demons; and He cast out the evil spirits with a word, and restored to health all who were sick [exhibiting His authority as Messiah],

But when Jesus heard this, He said, “Those who are healthy have no need for a physician, but [only] those who are sick.

Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give.

When He went ashore, He saw a large crowd, and felt [profound] compassion for them and healed their sick.

And when the men of that place recognized Him, they sent word throughout all the surrounding district and brought to Him all who were sick;

I was naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me [with help and ministering care]; I was in prison, and you came to Me [ignoring personal danger].’

And when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’

I was a stranger, and you did not invite Me in; naked, and you did not clothe Me; sick, and in prison, and you did not visit Me [with help and ministering care].’

Then they also [in their turn] will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, or thirsty, or as a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister to You?’

Now Simon’s mother-in-law was lying sick with a fever; and immediately they told Him about her.

Now when evening came, after the sun had set [and the Sabbath Day had ended, in a steady stream] they were bringing to Him all who were sick and those who were under the power of demons,

When Jesus heard this, He said to them, “Those who are healthy have no need of a physician, but [only] those who are sick; I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners [who recognize their sin and humbly seek forgiveness].”

and to have authority and power to cast out demons.

And they were casting out many demons and were anointing with oil many who were sick, and healing them.

and ran throughout that surrounding countryside and began to carry around on their mats those who were sick, to any place where they heard He was.

And wherever He came into villages, or cities, or the countryside, they were laying the sick in the market places and pleading with Him [to allow them] just to touch the fringe (tassel with a blue cord) of His robe; and all who touched it were healed.

they will pick up serpents, and if they drink anything deadly, it will not hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will get well.”

While the sun was setting [marking the end of the Sabbath day], all those who had any who were sick with various diseases brought them to Jesus; and laying His hands on each one of them, He was healing them [exhibiting His authority as Messiah].

And Jesus replied to them, “It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but [only] those who are sick.

Now a [Roman] centurion’s slave, who was highly regarded by him, was sick and on the verge of death.

and heal those in it who are sick [authenticating your message], and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’

In these porticoes lay a great number of people who were sick, blind, lame, withered, [waiting for the stirring of the water;

A large crowd was following Him because they had seen the signs (attesting miracles) which He continually performed on those who were sick.

It was the Mary who anointed the Lord with perfume and wiped His feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick.

So the sisters sent word to Him, saying, “Lord, he [our brother and Your friend] whom You love is sick.”

So [even] when He heard that Lazarus was sick, He stayed in the same place two more days.

to such an extent that they even carried their sick out into the streets and put them on cots and sleeping pads, so that when Peter came by at least his shadow might fall on one of them [with healing power].

And the people from the towns in the vicinity of Jerusalem were coming together, bringing the sick and those who were tormented by unclean spirits, and they were all being healed.

During that time it happened that she became sick and died; and when they had washed her body, they laid it in an upstairs room.

so that even handkerchiefs or face-towels or aprons that had touched his skin were brought to the sick, and their diseases left them and the evil spirits came out [of them].

And it happened that the father of Publius was sick [in bed] with recurring attacks of fever and dysentery; and Paul went to him, and after he had prayed, he laid his hands on him and healed him.

So God has appointed and placed in the church [for His own use]: first apostles [chosen by Christ], second prophets [those who foretell the future, those who speak a new message from God to the people], third teachers, then those who work miracles, then those with the gifts of healings, the helpers, the administrators, and speakers in various kinds of [unknown] tongues.

Is anyone among you sick? He must call for the elders (spiritual leaders) of the church and they are to pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord;

and the prayer of faith will restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up; and if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.