God's Healing Revealed in the Old Testament and His Word

David W Palmer

OLD TESTAMENT HISTORY

Throughout the Old Testament writings, we see many references to healing. Mostly they are records of God healing people in answer to prayer. For example, we have:

Naaman the Syrian healed of leprosy through Elisha’s prayer (2 Kings 5:14)

Hezekiah the king healed through a word of wisdom given to the prophet Isaiah (2 Kings 20:5)

God used Elijah the prophet to raise a small boy from the dead (1 Kings 17:18–23)

Elisha the prophet also prayed for a boy to be raised from the dead (2 Kings 4:32–35)

THE PSALMS

The Old Testament book of Psalms mentions healing often. Jesus said that the Psalms revealed God’s will (Luke 24:44). Therefore, what we read about healing in the Psalms will help us understand God’s will where healing is concerned.

1. Psalm 30

(Psalm 30:2 nkjv) “O LORD my God, I cried out to You, And You healed me.”

2. Psalm 103

(Psalm 103:1–4 nkjv) “Bless the LORD, O my soul; And all that is within me, bless His holy name! {2} Bless the LORD, O my soul, And forget not all His benefits: {3} Who forgives all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases, {4} Who redeems your life from destruction, Who crowns you with loving kindness and tender mercies.”

This passage reveals that God forgives all our iniquities, and heals all our diseases. To be certain we understand exactly what this means when it says “all,” we look up the meaning of the original Hebrew word from which our English word, “all,” was translated. Here is the definition from Strongs concordance:

“The whole; hence all, any or every.”

All means all!

This Psalm states the will of God: he “heals all your diseases.” Another way to put this is “The whole of; hence all, any or every” disease. Therefore, God heals all—any or every—sickness. Clearly, God’s will is to heal all sickness and disease.

3. Psalm 107

How does God heal? This psalm is very enlightening in understanding how he heals:

(Psalm 107:17–21 nkjv) Fools, because of their transgression, And because of their iniquities, were afflicted. {18} Their soul abhorred all manner of food, And they drew near to the gates of death. {19} Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble, And He saved them out of their distresses. {20} He sent His word and healed them, And delivered them from their destructions. {21} Oh, that men would give thanks to the LORD for His goodness, And for His wonderful works to the children of men!

This says that God “sent his word” to heal the sick. We know that God created the earth with his words. Jesus performed miracles and calmed storms etc. with his words. So it is not surprising that this Psalm says that God heals by sending his word. Many other passages confirm this. For example:

(Isaiah 55:11 nkjv) “So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.”

(Luke 1:37 asv) “For no word from God shall be void of power.”

(Jeremiah 1:12 nkjv) “… I am ready to perform My word.”

Now we look at the various ways he has sent/sends his word to heal:

The written Word

(Psalm 1:1–3 nkjv) Blessed is the man Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, Nor stands in the path of sinners, Nor sits in the seat of the scornful; {2} But his delight is in the law of the LORD, And in His law he meditates day and night. {3} He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, That brings forth its fruit in its season, Whose leaf also shall not wither; And whatever he does shall prosper.

Here we see that the person who meditates in God’s written word day and night is blessed; he values God’s word and delights in it. Earlier, we saw that sickness was part of the curse that dominates Satan’s world and its system; and that healing and health are part of the blessing under God’s covering. If the “man” of Psalm 1 is “blessed” through meditating on God’s word, he is not under the curse. The blessing, therefore, includes healing; he “sent his word” to heal.

So, the healing we saw God operate in and through Abraham via the covenant is part and parcel of the covenant blessing. Psalm 1 shows us how to activate that blessing in our own lives today: delight in God’s word and meditate in it day and night.

The spoken Word

(Proverbs 4:20–22 nkjv) “My son, give attention to my words; Incline your ear to my sayings. {21} Do not let them depart from your eyes; Keep them in the midst of your heart; {22} For they are life to those who find them, And health to all their flesh.”

In this passage, we see the healing, life-giving properties of God’s word. However, it also says that to qualify for receiving its benefits, we need to:

Give our attention to the word,

Incline our ears to God’s sayings,

Keep our eyes focused on them,

Keep them in the midst of our hearts, and

Find them.

The last point reminds us to: “draw near to God” (James 4:8 NKJV), come boldly to his throne for mercy (Heb 4:16), and to seek to hear his gracious voice (Jer. 29:13, John 10:27). When we hear from God, the words he speaks or quickens to us carry life, health, light, faith, as well as information. They are creative and powerful, full of majesty and authority. In addition, they are our offensive weapon—the sword of the spirit—against our enemy.

The Living Word

(Isaiah 61:1 nkjv) “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon Me, Because the LORD has anointed Me To preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives, And the opening of the prison to those who are bound.”

For us under the New Testament, this passage reveals two important truths about the Living Word:

First, Jesus is God’s “logos” word made flesh. He is the Living Word of God.

Second, it shows that the Living Word, Jesus, is anointed, and that he is a preacher. Therefore, the Living Word of God is anointed to preach, heal, and set us at liberty; what’s more, he breaks the shackles of poverty, heals broken hearts, and frees the bound. God truly sent his word to heal the sick.

In saying that God sent his word to heal us, this means both the person of Jesus, and the words he spoke.

So we see throughout the Old Testament that sickness came because of the fall of man, and that healing was God’s will. He included it in his covenant with Abraham, as explained more fully through Moses. We see many clear examples of God fulfilling this word throughout the writings of the Old Testament. And we see his hope of the perfect fulfilment of his promises and will coming in the person of the Living Word, Jesus.

Today, I encourage you to seek the healer: seek God, seek to hear the good shepherd’s voice and his kingdom, and seek him by consistently meditating in his word day and night. Begin with the scriptures we have been, and will be, looking at in these studies. Healing is yours, it belongs to you now, and you can learn from God his way for you to receive it from him.