Bible Strands
Matthew 9:31
But they went out and spread the news about Him throughout the land.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Jesus has just restored two blind men’s sight and issued a stern command to keep the miracle secret. Immediately following that instruction, the healed men leave and publicize what occurred.
The words — The participle ἐξελθόντες (exelthontes) means "having gone out," coupled with the verb διεφήμισαν (diephēmisan), literally "they made known" or "spread abroad." These terms mark the immediate transition from private healing to public proclamation.
The thread — Uncommanded dissemination follows other healings in Matthew 9:26, which simply notes news spreading through a region. Mark 7:36 shows the same dynamic, where repeated prohibitions produce wider publication, while Mark 1:44 records a separate command for a healed man to present the prescribed offering to the priest.
Why it lands — The verse records a factual narrative outcome rather than prescribing a model for witness. A reader must first acknowledge the text’s plain statement of human action before evaluating its theological implications.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
But they, when they were departed, spread abroad his fame in all that country.
Cross-references
- Mark 7:36 Jesus ordered them not to tell anyone. But the more He ordered them, the more widely they proclaimed it.
- Matthew 9:26 And the news about this spread throughout that region.
- Mark 1:44 “See that you don’t tell anyone. But go, show yourself to the priest and present the offering Moses prescribed for your cleansing, as a testimony to them.”