805. Sickness could be expected when God's Law was disobeyed, according to the law. The twenty-eighth chapter of Deuteronomy lists many curses that would come upon the children of Israel because of disobedience. Therefore the Israelites would grow up believing that health was a reward for obedience and sickness came as punishment. The ancient Hebrews did not go to physicians when they were ill. There are surprisingly few references to doctors in the Old Testament times, and it's possible that those mentioned were foreigners (2 Chron. 16:12; Job 13:4; Jer. 8:22).
806. Multitudes of sick people in the land are described in the New Testament Gospel records. Many were brought to Jesus to be healed.
807. The Jews of the New Testament lacked knowledge of medicine, so they would seek help from the most pious man for healing power, rather than the most educated. They believed sickness was punishment for the sin of the sick person or a relative. Concerning the blind man, the disciples asked Jesus, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" (John 9:2).
808. Mark adds an interesting fact in his account of Christ healing the woman with an issue of blood. He says that she "had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had" (Mark 5:26). One scholar of the Talmud of Babylon suggests that some of the rabbis posed as physicians and some prescribed very queer remedies for a woman with this type of ailment. If one procedure didn't succeed, another one was suggested.
809. As soon as a death took place, a wail was raised to announce to all the neighborhood what had happened. This was a sign for the relatives to begin their grieving. The death wail is described as a sharp, shrill, ear-piercing shriek. This shriek is followed by prolonged wails. This death wail was referred to in connection with the death of all the firstborn in Egypt. "Pharaoh and all his officials and all the Egyptians got up during the night, and there was loud wailing in Egypt, for there was not a house without someone dead" (Exod. 12:30).
