The Woman with the Issue of Blood

If any woman in the Bible draws my compassion, it's the woman with the issue of blood. As someone who has had horrible periods my whole life, I can't imagine being in that state for 12 years! There is so much to learn from her...

Introduction

The woman with the issues of blood is an unnamed woman who has been bleeding for twelve years. During those twelve years she had seen doctors and tried many things to heal her body, but none worked. In her quest to be healed, she pushes through a crowd to touch the hem of Messiah's robe and is healed. Messiah confirms that it is becasue of her faith that she is healed. Interestingly, before Messiah proclaims victory over her infirmary, she is worried that she is going to get in trouble for touching Him, yet when the quesiton is asked, she speaks up. This is a beautiful example of faith, honesty, and accountability, as well as miracle healings.

Origin

We aren't given any information about this woman's lineage, name, or origin. I assume she is Israelite because the text doesn't specify anything else; it seems to be relying on deafult which would be Israelite. Remember how the woman at the well is speficied to be Samaritan? Since no effort is made to other this woman, I have assumed she was an Israelite. This would make her most likely to be descended from Judah or Levi.

Questions

About the Passage

1. How sure are we that the bleeding was menstrual?
2. Was she suffering (and healed) from other ailments too?
3. Was she weak from the blood loss? Iron deficiency?
4. Did she have any repreive during the twelve years?
5. How old was she?
6. Did she have family?
7. Was she quarantined the whole 12 years?
8. Was she married?
9. If she was married, did her husband leave her due to her infirmity?
10. Is there significance in the number of years she bled?
11. What was the average age of puberty back then?
12. Was she also experiencing PMS and cramping?
13. What did the doctors try?
14. How did she hear about Messiah?
15. Why did she think touching His garment was sufficient to heal her?
16. Would she have been healed if she'd just bumped into Him?
17. Why was Messiah so concerned with who touched Him?
18. Where did she get the energy to fight the crowd for her chance?
19. Was she cursed or was just this to show God's glory?

If I could meet her...

Pondering this question while starting my own period is interesting. What usually gets me through the roughest parts of this is knoing it is temporary. Twelve years of bleeding without knowing when or if it would end would be agonizing. How did she she continue on and believe and seek change? Many of us would break but she didn't. What gave her such strong faith and did this faith apply to all areas of her life?

Aside from trying to understand the faith that led to her touching Messiah's garment, I would want to know about her life after. Did she go on to spread the gospel? Was she part of the early church? Did she continue to follow Him and His ministry? How did His crucifixion affect her? When her next period came was she worried? Did she ever get another period, actually? Basically I want know how her life changed after the encounter.

Phototheology

Phototheology is a way of learning the Bible taught by Ivor Myers.[2] I am employing this technique in my weekly Woman of God study journal. The following three prompts are the ones I drew from the card deck while studying the The Woman with the Issue of Blood.

Connect the text with something from the gospel accounts

This text is in the gospels, but we'll try to connect to something else within the gospels.

The woman with the issue of blood could actually be symbolic of the story of the gospel, if you think about it.

• She is hemorrhaging blood, which means no amount of blood is statisfying the cleansing process of the womb. None of the earthly doctors could fix the issue. This is similar to the favt that Israel was hemorrhaging blood with the sacrifices they made at the Temple for their sins.
• Twelve is a symbolic number in the Bible. There are twelve tribes, representing a complet government or nations. Similarly, the woman bleeds for twelve years, representing the complete Church.
• To be healed, the woman only has to come to Messiah and believe. Similarly, we only have to believe in Messiah's sacrifice and resurrection when approaching our Father to receive salvation.
• She is healed by her faith, not by her actions or works.

The woman illustrates Messiah's ability to heal despite what doctors say—He gives her life back to her. This is proof that He can do what ordinary men cannot, another purpose and message from the gospels.

Compare or contrast this cycle with the Cyrusic cycle

The Cyrus cycle would be when Israel was in Babylon/Persia in captivity, or shortly after when they were set free to rebuild Jerusalem. In my mind, periods are their own type of bondage—the woman with the issue of blood was in bondage to her own body, from which Messiah set her free! Cyrus frees Israel because it is the appointed time but the woman is freed because of her faith. In the Old Testament, appointed times (or feasts) point to the Messiah whereas faith is what allows us to recognize and accept freedom in Messiah.

1 Lord, do not rebuke me in Your anger,
Nor discipline me in Your wrath.
2 Be gracious to me, Lord, for I am frail;
Heal me, Lord, for my bones are horrified.

Connect the text with a segment from the poetry section of the Bible

Every time I have horrible cramps and I feel like I'm dying, my prayer to God is for mercy. I can only imagine that twelve years of bleeding led to a lot of prayers for mercy and healing! Also, because of Genesis 3, when I'm in pain from my period, I always wonder if it is sin related. Hav I angered God? Am I being punished for something I did or didn't do? I know it's just a part of the general curse on the Earth, but 12 years straight would have me questioning my sanity and wondering what I did wrong.

Psalm 6 was written by David, who never knew what period pain felt like and was likely talking about healing the spirit. In a lot of ways, though, they are the same. The life is in the blood (Leviticus 17:11) and it is the blood that pays the price of our sins. To hemorrhage blood speaks to the death that plagues us due to sin. Even 12 years of blood isn't enough to cover it. Only the grace and mercy of the Most High can heal and rectify the problem, just as David says.

Journal Pages

Journal pages on The Woman with the Issue of Blood from July 2-8, 2025

References & Footnotes

1. No information is given about her origins, but Messiah doesn't call her out as being a foreigner so I think it is safe to assume she was an Israelite.
2. Pastor Ivor Myers' Phototheology Game Deck