During this blessed time of the year when Christians all over the world commemorate the life, death and resurrection of our conquering Canaan King Jesus Christ, I want to travel back 2000 years and take a look at that fateful night right before Jesus’ arrest.
We have heard the story about the servant of the high priest whose ear Peter cut off. My friends, The Holy Spirit has given us a bit of illumination to this. Research and study tell us that Malchus was the name of the servant to the High Priest. Malchus was well-known among the land and would be sent out on missions for the High Priest. He was what you call the “ears” of the High Priest. Whenever anything went down in the city, Malchus was right there to report the happenings to the High Priest.
There was a stir and a buzz about this water walking, devil chasing, dead raising, young Jewish man named Jesus. The city was talking about him. The Jews were nervous about him. The elders and rulers were infuriated with him. The High Priest had to do something about this rabble rouser. The High Priest takes the occasion to send Malchus to a traitor disciple named Judas, to set Jesus up (this is later why Judas kissed Jesus, so Malchus would know whom to capture).
Let’s now fast forward to Jesus’ arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane. Judas now slides up to Jesus and kisses him. Isn’t it amazing how God can take the kiss of a covert enemy and release you into a supernatural destiny moment! The disciple Peter now springs into action, wielding his sword and cuts Malchus’ ear off. Now don’t forget, Malchus was the ears of the High Priest.
Luke 22:50 And one of them smote the servant of the high priest, and cut off his right ear.
Luke 22:51 And Jesus answered and said, Suffer ye thus far. And he touched his ear, and healed him.
Why did the Bible care to give us the description of which ear was cut off? Would it matter? You better believe it! Right is always the sign of power and authority. We could easily say then, that Peter cut off Malchus’s authority and power. But check this out!
Jesus reaches down and picks Malchus’s ear up and puts the ear back on.
Why? Because Malchus job was to always go back to the High priest to report what he had seen and heard in the land. What Jesus did was literally put Malchus’s authority and power back so he could go back and tell The High Priest, “This Jesus of Nazareth, whom we are trying to kill, put my ear BACK ON!”
I see Malchus running, panting, and stumbling back to the High Priest with dried blood on his robe, shaking his head, trembling. I see Malchus washing the blood out of his robe still shaking, feeling for his ear still in disbelief, whispering to himself with tears in his eyes, chanting, “Surely this must be the Son of God!
Now run and tell that!
