Matthew 8:2 (DBY)

Passage

And behold, a leper came up to [him] and did him homage, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou art able to cleanse me.

Nearby Context

Matthew 8:1 And when he had come down from the mountain, great crowds followed him.

Matthew 8:2 And behold, a leper came up to [him] and did him homage, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou art able to cleanse me.

Matthew 8:3 And he stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, I will; be cleansed. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed.

Matthew 8:4 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.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "behold", "leper", "came", "homage", "saying", "lord", "thou", and "wilt". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "behold" and "leper", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 1's "And when he had come down from..." into verse 3's "And he stretched out his hand and...", so "behold" and "leper" belong inside that flow. In Matthew context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "behold" and "leper" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.