Cana, the site of Jesus’ first miracle, was about twenty miles from Capernaum. The fishing village of Capernaum, on the northwestern banks of Galilee, was about seven-hundred feet below sea level. Cana, almost two-thousand feet higher, was a hard day’s walk, uphill all the way. A “certain royal official whose son was ill at Capernaum” (John 4:46), made that trek, seeking Jesus, his only hope. “When this man heard that Jesus had come from Judea into Galilee, he went to him and pleaded with him to come down and heal his son, since he was about to die” (John 4:47).
The “royal official” was probably a mid-level diplomat responsible for overseeing Herod’s governmental enterprises in Galilee. This “royal official” had likely demanded the attention of every medical practitioner in the region, exhausting all of his influence. Nothing helped, and his son grew weaker and closer to the death. That’s when the rumor mills brought news that Jesus, the miracle-working Jewish rabbi, had come into the southern edge of the region.
Immediately, the “royal official” started walking, headed to Cana and a face-to-face visit with Jesus. Twenty miles, uphill, in record time. When he found Jesus, he “pleaded with him to come down and heal his son, since he was about to die”(John 4:47) to which Jesus responded, “Go … your son will live” (John 4:50).
Here’s where the story gets interesting.
He didn’t go home. If he had, he could have arrived in time for supper. It was downhill all the way. Apparently, he went to the Ritz for and early dinner and a good night’s rest. The “royal official” trusted Jesus! Instead of racing home, he rested in Christ’s promise!
The following morning, he returned to Capernaum. On his leisurely trip into the valley, he ran into his servants who reported the remarkable news of the boy’s miraculous recovery. “What time did he get better?” “ ‘Yesterday at one in the afternoon the fever left him,’ they answered” (John 4:52).
“Wow! Isn’t that interesting. One in the afternoon is exactly when I spoke with Jesus! He promised me that my son wouldn’t die, but he would recover.” John ends his record with this: “So he himself believed, along with his whole household” (John 4:53).
And again, we’re left to wonder about the rest of the story. Did the “royal official” use his considerable influence to tell others about his life-changing interaction with Jesus? And what about the boy? Did he grow up in a home filled with God’s peaceful presence, learning to trust and obey God’s Word?
“… think on these things” (Philippians 4:8, KJV).
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