Mark 5:21When Jesus had crossed again in a boat to the other side, a large crowd gathered around him, and he was by the sea. 22Then one of the synagogue rulers, named Jairus, came up, and when he saw Jesus, he fell at his feet. 23 He asked him urgently, “My little daughter is near death. Come and lay your hands on her so that she may be healed and live.” 24 Jesus went with him, and a large crowd followed and pressed around him. 25 Now a woman was there who had been suffering from a hemorrhage for twelve years. 26 She had endured a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all that she had. Yet instead of getting better, she grew worse. 27 When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, 28 for she kept saying, “If only I touch his clothes, I will be healed.” 29 At once the bleeding stopped, and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease. 30 Jesus knew at once that power had gone out from him. He turned around in the crowd and said, “Who touched my clothes?” 31 His disciples said to him, “You see the crowd pressing against you and you say, ‘Who touched me?’” 32 But he looked around to see who had done it. 33 Then the woman, with fear and trembling, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell down before him and told him the whole truth. 34 He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace, and be healed of your disease.” 35 While he was still speaking, people came from the synagogue ruler’s house saying, “Your daughter has died. Why trouble the teacher any longer?” NET
The Temple in Jerusalem was the institution (and center) of worship in Judaism which meant that Jews living outside of Jerusalem had to return three times a year for the pilgrimage festivals held there. All this changes when the Babylonians destroy Solomon’s Temple and carry them off into captivity. During this time period, the Jews decided they should get together to pray and read Scripture as a way of keeping their faith alive. This is the start of the synagogues. When they return to Jerusalem, the Temple gets rebuilt but the synagogues persist. Jairus, as an official of the synagogue, would lead them in prayer and preside over the proceedings. As one of the rulers, he is also literate and an observant Jew.
At this point, Jesus has a reputation for working wonders as a healer. From our perspective today, it is interesting that no one of the time accused Jesus of being a charlatan – they may have questioned the source of His power but not that He had power. We don’t know if by falling at the feet of Christ that Jairus is worshiping Him or simply acknowledging that He has power. Either way, Jairus is desperate and approaches Jesus respectively and reverently. There is a seed of faithfulness as he has confidence that Jesus can accomplish this request.
There is a large (and perhaps a little chaotic) crowd moving in the direction of the Jewish official’s house when there is a turn in the tale. An unnamed woman sneaks up from behind and touches Jesus’ clothing. (The fact that she is unnamed speaks to her status). This woman is without money and unclean from her constant bleeding. Definitely someone at the outer edges of society but unlike the other people touching and bumping into Jesus, she has a purpose. Lacking any standing in society, she can’t just walk right up and talk to Christ as Jairus can. She was certainly aware of her position and might have been afraid that a face to face conversation with Jesus might cause Him to send her away.
Jesus appears to be surprised by the power leaving Him which might indicate that this is an unintentional miracle. On the other hand, He may well have known but wanted to let the rest of the people know what happened in order to turn it into a teaching moment. Especially noteworthy is that Jesus stops down and deals with her as a way to show that she is just as important as a Jewish religious official. Also by Jesus calling her out, it opens the door for her to rejoin society.
Mark is writing to a Roman audience who have been told for years by Jews that they are unclean Gentiles who are not worthy. The fact that Jesus heals a woman who is of so little consequence that we don’t know her name (and does this before He heals the daughter of the Jewish official) would have an impact on this them.