Commentaries:
In Matthew 9:18-26; Mark 5:22-43; and Luke 8:41-56 appears the account of the resurrection of Jairus' twelve-year-old daughter. Having recently performed the astonishing exorcism of the legion of demons, Jesus' renown was quickly spreading. As He is thronged by a multitude of curious and desperate people, a distraught father bows to Him, desperately asking Him to heal his dying daughter.
Jesus responds by going immediately to the home of the father, Jairus (Mark 5:22), a ruler of the same synagogue that the centurion had built for the Jews and whose servant Christ had healed (Matthew 8:5-13). On the way, He heals a woman with a serious issue of blood.
It is obvious that Jairus knew all about Jesus' enlightening teachings, and because of His miraculous ministry, he was convinced of His power. Although he expresses unhesitating faith in Christ's ability to heal, his faith is not equal to the centurion's, who believed that distance was no hindrance to limitless power. Jairus believes Christ's presence in his home is necessary and so beseeches Him to come and touch his daughter.
Notice the details that Mark and Luke add about this girl: Mark records that her father calls her "my little daughter," while Luke relates that she was an only child, highlighting how precious she was to her father.
Martin G. Collins
The Miracles of Jesus Christ: Resurrecting Jairus' Daughter
His attention to such detail reveals His characteristic kindness and sympathy. That He orders nourishment suggests that her body was still weak and needed to be strengthened, showing that she was resurrected to physical existence. Those who saw her did not see a spirit but a human. Her body, still dependent on natural laws, needed to be nourished.
Christ finishes by requesting that the parents "tell no one what had happened" (Mark 5:43; Luke 8:56), partly to save the little girl from rude gawkers, but most probably so that fame would not hinder her future spiritual life. The world scorns the reality of resurrection because sin separates them from God, but the day is not far off when the "dead in Christ" will respond to His simple but powerful command, "Arise!" (John 5:28-29; I Thessalonians 4:16).
Martin G. Collins
The Miracles of Jesus Christ: Resurrecting Jairus' Daughter
Other Forerunner Commentary entries containing Mark 5:43:
Matthew 9:18-26
Matthew 13:44
Mark 5:22-43
Mark 5:43
Luke 8:41-56
Luke 8:55