Acts 9:36-43
36In Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha (which, when translated, is Dorcas[b]), who was always doing good and helping the poor. 37About that time she became sick and died, and her body was washed and placed in an upstairs room. 38Lydda was near Joppa; so when the disciples heard that Peter was in Lydda, they sent two men to him and urged him, “Please come at once!”
After the healing of Aeneas in the previous passage, the word spread of this miraculous healing to the nearby town of Joppa. As a result, when one of the believers there died, they immediately sent for Peter. Luke never says that they expected Peter to raise her from the dead, but it doesn’t seem likely that they sent two men to urge him to come and preside over a funeral. They had heard about a miracle, and I think they sent for Peter expecting one.
Luke says that Dorcas “was always doing good and helping the poor.” As we learn in the next verses, she was a seamstress who made clothing for widows and orphans. In a society where women were not considered equal to men, she was so highly valued because of her good works that two men were sent to fetch Peter when she died. Luke calls her a disciple in verse 36 without even mentioning her gender. Dorcas means deer, gazelle, or little doe in Greek, and Tabitha means the same in Aramaic. It’s interesting to me that of the two names, Dorcas and Tabitha, the Aramaic name Tabitha is the name that is still used in English, at least in the U.S. I still hear of women named Tabitha, but I don’t think I’ve ever known anyone named Dorcas. But to this day, there are charitable societies that make clothing for the poor named Dorcas societies. Girls in America are still named Tabitha, but the woman who did good for others is remembered as Dorcas.
39Peter went with them, and when he arrived he was taken upstairs to the room. All the widows stood around him, crying and showing him the robes and other clothing that Dorcas had made while she was still with them.
The best funerals are the ones where the deceased is remembered as one who did good for others. I recently attended the funeral of a friend of mine, Reggie McDaniel. I met Reggie in 1997 when we both worked at KOA radio in Denver. Reggie was loved by everyone who knew him, and by many who did not. He was, as I put it, full of joy. He was a man of God who made everyone around him feel good just being near him. He was a very funny guy too, and his funeral was a hoot! As my sister once said to me, it’s a good funeral when you laugh more than you cry. Reggie’s funeral was fun. What does it say about a person when their funeral is fun? His memorial service would have gone on for hours if every person who wanted to had been allowed to tell what Reggie meant to them. That’s the kind of impact he had during his life, even though he was dying of lung disease for the entire time I knew him.
I imagine that Dorcas’ funeral might have been something like Reggie’s. Dorcas had been a living example of Jesus’ teachings on giving to others. Peter had come in response to a need, and went to the upper room where the body was. But in order to do what God had brought him there to do, Peter first had to get past all of the widows who wanted to show him the things Dorcas had made for them. At my funeral, will people want to talk about what I did for others, or what I accomplished for myself?
40Peter sent them all out of the room; then he got down on his knees and prayed. Turning toward the dead woman, he said, “Tabitha, get up.” She opened her eyes, and seeing Peter she sat up. 41He took her by the hand and helped her to her feet. Then he called the believers and the widows and presented her to them alive. 42This became known all over Joppa, and many people believed in the Lord.
What Peter does here is remarkably similar to what Jesus did in his raising of Jairus’ daughter in Mark 5:37-43, (blog) and Luke 8:49-56, (blog). Like Jesus, he puts all of the mourners out of the room. Peter’s words in Aramaic, “Tabitha, koum,”, which meant, “Little doe, get up,” mirrors Jesus’ words, “Talitha koum!”, which meant, “Little girl, get up!” Unlike Jesus, Peter felt the need to get down on his knees and pray there in the room where the body was. Of course, Jesus spent a lot of time in prayer, but the Bible never says that he prayed right before raising Jairus’ daughter. This shows Peter’s wisdom, humility, and discernment. He knew where the miracle, if there was to be one, would come from. If Dorcas was to be raised up, it was Jesus who would have to do it, as he had done with Jairus’ daughter, the widow’s son (Luke 7:11-17, blog), and Lazarus (John 11:1-43, blog). I think it’s possible that Jesus allowed Peter to observe the miracle of Jairus’ daughter so he would have faith that it could happen for Dorcas. Peter remembered, and modeled his behavior on what he had seen Jesus do. That’s what it means to be a disciple.
It’s important to remember that Dorcas was not resurrected. She was merely revived. She went on to live a normal life and eventually died again. Jesus is still the only one who has been resurrected to life everlasting in his glorified body, but one day all who believe will be.
For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. (1 Cor. 15:52)
I read one commentary today which questioned why God raised Dorcas, but not Stephen. Surely, the writer said, Stephen was more valuable to the early church than Dorcas! But I don’t believe that God considers one person more valuable to the kingdom than another. And Dorcas did provide a valuable service to the church, one that was very Christlike. But I don’t believe that’s why God raised her either. God doesn’t perform miracles for people based upon what they can do for him if he helps them. As a friend so wisely put it to me once, God can use us, but he doesn’t really need us. Someone in my family has needed a medical miracle for decades, and I have been tempted on many occasions to think of all the great things this family member could do for the kingdom if God would heal them. But it’s wrong-headed to think that way. As I said yesterday, and as I’ve said over and over in this blog, there are two reasons that God performs miracles; to glorify himself, and to help people believe. Dorcas was not raised so she could go on making clothes for the poor. She was raised to bring glory to God, and so many people would believe in the Lord, as Luke says happened in Joppa.
43Peter stayed in Joppa for some time with a tanner named Simon.
This seemingly random observation by Luke actually has great meaning. Tanners were ceremonially unclean because they worked with the bodies of dead animals (Leviticus 11:31). According to the laws of that time, a tanner had to live at least 75 feet outside a village because of his ritual uncleanness. If a girl was betrothed to a tanner without knowing what he did for a living, the betrothal was void. Yet Peter stayed with a tanner for a long time. This laid the groundwork for what was to come for Peter in the next chapter. Peter was beginning to get past the traditions he was raised with, and evolving in his acceptance of all people. It seems to me that this goes back to his laying hands on the believers in Samaria in 8:14-17. He had accepted Samaritans as members of the church, and now he stays with a despised tanner. Soon he will be ready for what God will show him through Cornelius. Are we letting God stretch us? Are we letting him get us beyond our prejudices?