The Meaning of Matthew 8:4 Explained

Matthew 8:4

KJV: And Jesus saith unto him, See thou tell no man; but go thy way, shew thyself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them.

YLT: And Jesus saith to him, 'See, thou mayest tell no one, but go, thyself shew to the priest, and bring the gift that Moses commanded for a testimony to them.'

Darby: And Jesus says to him, See thou tell no man, but go, shew thyself to the priest, and offer the gift which Moses ordained, for a testimony to them.

ASV: And Jesus saith unto him, See thou tell no man; but go, show thyself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And  Jesus  saith  unto him,  See  thou tell  no man;  but  go thy way,  shew  thyself  to the priest,  and  offer  the gift  that  Moses  commanded,  for  a testimony  unto them. 

What does Matthew 8:4 Mean?

Verse Meaning

Why did Jesus tell the cleansed leper to tell no one about his cleansing? Probably Jesus did not want the news of this cleansing broadcast widely because it would have attracted multitudes whose sole interest would have been to obtain physical healing. [1] In other words, He wanted to limit His purely physical appeal since He came to provide much more than just physical healing. [2] A corollary of this view is that by keeping quiet the leper would have retarded the opposition of Jesus" enemies who were hostile to Him and who resented His popularity.
More significant is why Jesus told the man to present himself to the priests at the temple in Jerusalem. Jesus was encouraging the man to obey the Mosaic Law concerning the cleansing of lepers ( Leviticus 14:2; cf. Talmudic tractate Negaim14). However by sending him there to do that Jesus was notifying the religious authorities in Israel that someone with messianic power was ministering in Galilee. Since no leper had received cleansing since Elisha had cleansed Naaman the Aramean, the priests should have wanted to investigate Jesus. (Moses had previously cleansed Miriam"s leprosy.)
"Jesus in effect was presenting His "calling card" to the priests, for they would have to investigate His claims." [3]
This investigation by Israel"s leaders-who, we have observed, were surprisingly uninterested in Messiah"s birth-was something Jesus initiated by sending the leper to the temple with his offering. When the priests examined the cleansed leper closely, they would have had to certify that Jesus had genuinely healed the man. Their certification should have convinced everyone in Israel of Jesus" power.
Matthew evidently recorded this miracle to show that Jesus" ability to heal leprosy marked Him as the Messiah to all who would pay attention in Israel.
"By recounting Jesus" response to the most feared and ostracized medical condition of his day, Matthew has thus laid an impressive foundation for this collection of stories which demonstrate both Jesus" unique healing power and his willingness to challenge the taboos of society in the interests of human compassion." [4]

Context Summary

Matthew 8:1-10 - Rewards Of Faith
The Lord can touch thy heart, leprous with impurity, and make its stain depart, so that, as in the case of Naaman, its foulness shall become like "unto the flesh of a little child." See 2 Kings 5:14. The psalmist cried, "Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean," alluding to the rite for the cleansing of the leper. Compare Psalms 51:7; Leviticus 14:4, etc. But one touch of Christ's hand is enough, for He is the great High Priest.
He also can heal the paralysis which has limited thy service and pinned thee down in helplessness. As the centurion recognized, because Christ was obedient to the Father's law He was able to wield the Father's power. He humbled Himself and became obedient to the death of the Cross; therefore God hath highly exalted Him, that He might send tides of living energy into the paralyzed will. The Apostle Paul testified, "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me." [source]

Chapter Summary: Matthew 8

1  Jesus cleanses the leper;
5  heals the centurion's servant,
14  Peter's mother in law,
16  and many others;
18  shows the cost of following him;
23  stills the storm on the sea;
28  drives the demons out of two men possessed;
31  and tells them to go into the pigs

What do the individual words in Matthew 8:4 mean?

And says to him - Jesus See that no one you tell But go yourself show to the priest offer the gift that commanded Moses for a testimony to them
καὶ λέγει αὐτῷ Ἰησοῦς Ὅρα μηδενὶ εἴπῃς ἀλλὰ ὕπαγε σεαυτὸν δεῖξον τῷ ἱερεῖ προσένεγκον τὸ δῶρον προσέταξεν Μωϋσῆς εἰς μαρτύριον αὐτοῖς

λέγει  says 
Parse: Verb, Present Indicative Active, 3rd Person Singular
Root: λέγω 
Sense: to say, to speak.
αὐτῷ  to  him 
Parse: Personal / Possessive Pronoun, Dative Masculine 3rd Person Singular
Root: αὐτός  
Sense: himself, herself, themselves, itself.
  - 
Parse: Article, Nominative Masculine Singular
Root:  
Sense: this, that, these, etc.
Ἰησοῦς  Jesus 
Parse: Noun, Nominative Masculine Singular
Root: Ἰησοῦς  
Sense: Joshua was the famous captain of the Israelites, Moses’ successor.
Ὅρα  See  that 
Parse: Verb, Present Imperative Active, 2nd Person Singular
Root: εἶδον 
Sense: to see with the eyes.
μηδενὶ  no  one 
Parse: Adjective, Dative Masculine Singular
Root: μηδείς 
Sense: nobody, no one, nothing.
εἴπῃς  you  tell 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Subjunctive Active, 2nd Person Singular
Root: λέγω  
Sense: to speak, say.
ὕπαγε  go 
Parse: Verb, Present Imperative Active, 2nd Person Singular
Root: ὑπάγω  
Sense: to lead under, bring under.
σεαυτὸν  yourself 
Parse: Personal / Possessive Pronoun, Accusative Masculine 2nd Person Singular
Root: σεαυτοῦ  
Sense: thyself, thee.
δεῖξον  show 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Imperative Active, 2nd Person Singular
Root: δείκνυμι 
Sense: to show, expose to the eyes.
τῷ  to  the 
Parse: Article, Dative Masculine Singular
Root:  
Sense: this, that, these, etc.
ἱερεῖ  priest 
Parse: Noun, Dative Masculine Singular
Root: ἱερεύς  
Sense: a priest, one who offers sacrifices and in general in busied with sacred rites.
προσένεγκον  offer 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Imperative Active, 2nd Person Singular
Root: προσφέρω  
Sense: to bring to, lead to.
δῶρον  gift 
Parse: Noun, Accusative Neuter Singular
Root: δῶρον  
Sense: a gift, present.
  that 
Parse: Personal / Relative Pronoun, Accusative Neuter Singular
Root: ὅς 
Sense: who, which, what, that.
προσέταξεν  commanded 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Indicative Active, 3rd Person Singular
Root: προστάσσω  
Sense: to assign or ascribe to, join to.
Μωϋσῆς  Moses 
Parse: Noun, Nominative Masculine Singular
Root: Μωσεύς 
Sense: the legislator of the Jewish people and in a certain sense the founder of the Jewish religion.
μαρτύριον  a  testimony 
Parse: Noun, Accusative Neuter Singular
Root: μαρτύριον  
Sense: testimony.
αὐτοῖς  to  them 
Parse: Personal / Possessive Pronoun, Dative Masculine 3rd Person Plural
Root: αὐτός  
Sense: himself, herself, themselves, itself.