Where was Bartimaeus sitting?

By the highway side, begging, near Jericho.

Free Bible lesson for kids · On the Way to Jerusalem

Blind Bartimaeus

Blind Bartimaeus sat by the road near Jericho and cried, “Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy on me.” People told him to be quiet, but he cried all the more. Jesus healed him, and he followed Jesus.

Teach this lesson: film, sheets and guide Print the coloring page

Bible passage: Mark 10:46–52 · Luke 18:35–43 · Matthew 20:29–34
Big idea: Keep calling out to Jesus. He hears.
Memory verse: And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way. Mark 10:52 (KJV)
Ages: Preschool to preteen (3 to 12), with tips for each age
Time: About 45 minutes
Included, free: Animated story film, coloring page, class sheet, teacher guide, questions and answers, a game

The story

As Jesus left Jericho with His disciples and a great crowd, blind Bartimaeus sat by the road, begging (Mark 10:46). When he heard that Jesus of Nazareth was passing by, he cried out, “Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy on me” (Mark 10:47; Luke 18:37–38). Many people told him to be quiet. But he cried out even more, “Thou son of David, have mercy on me” (Mark 10:48).

Jesus stood still and told them to call him. They said, “Be of good comfort, rise; he calleth thee” (Mark 10:49). Bartimaeus threw off his coat, rose and came to Jesus (Mark 10:50). Jesus asked what he wanted, and he said, “Lord, that I might receive my sight” (Mark 10:51). Jesus said, “Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole” (Mark 10:52). At once he could see, and he followed Jesus, glorifying God (Luke 18:43).

Read it in the Bible: Mark 10:46–52 (KJV)

⁴⁶And they came to Jericho: and as he went out of Jericho with his disciples and a great number of people, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the highway side begging. ⁴⁷And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out, and say, Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy on me. ⁴⁸And many charged him that he should hold his peace: but he cried the more a great deal, Thou son of David, have mercy on me. ⁴⁹And Jesus stood still, and commanded him to be called. And they call the blind man, saying unto him, Be of good comfort, rise; he calleth thee. ⁵⁰And he, casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus. ⁵¹And Jesus answered and said unto him, What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? The blind man said unto him, Lord, that I might receive my sight. ⁵²And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way.

Read it in the Bible: Luke 18:35–43 (KJV)

³⁵And it came to pass, that as he was come nigh unto Jericho, a certain blind man sat by the way side begging: ³⁶And hearing the multitude pass by, he asked what it meant. ³⁷And they told him, that Jesus of Nazareth passeth by. ³⁸And he cried, saying, Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy on me. ³⁹And they which went before rebuked him, that he should hold his peace: but he cried so much the more, Thou son of David, have mercy on me. ⁴⁰And Jesus stood, and commanded him to be brought unto him: and when he was come near, he asked him, ⁴¹Saying, What wilt thou that I shall do unto thee? And he said, Lord, that I may receive my sight. ⁴²And Jesus said unto him, Receive thy sight: thy faith hath saved thee. ⁴³And immediately he received his sight, and followed him, glorifying God: and all the people, when they saw it, gave praise unto God.

Read it in the Bible: Matthew 20:29–34 (KJV)

²⁹And as they departed from Jericho, a great multitude followed him. ³⁰And, behold, two blind men sitting by the way side, when they heard that Jesus passed by, cried out, saying, Have mercy on us, O Lord, thou son of David. ³¹And the multitude rebuked them, because they should hold their peace: but they cried the more, saying, Have mercy on us, O Lord, thou son of David. ³²And Jesus stood still, and called them, and said, What will ye that I shall do unto you? ³³They say unto him, Lord, that our eyes may be opened. ³⁴So Jesus had compassion on them, and touched their eyes: and immediately their eyes received sight, and they followed him.

Questions to ask

Where was Bartimaeus sitting?
By the highway side, begging, near Jericho.
What did he do when people told him to be quiet?
He cried the more a great deal.
What did he do after he could see?
He followed Jesus in the way.

What this story teaches

Jesus hears us when we call out to Him (Mark 10:47–49).
Keep praying, even when others tell you to stop (Mark 10:48).
Jesus has compassion on people who are in need (Matthew 20:34).
Jesus honors faith that trusts Him to help (Mark 10:52).
When Jesus helps us, we should follow Him (Mark 10:52).

Jesus Is Our Light

Bartimaeus followed Jesus once he could see. Jesus is the light of the world, and whoever follows Him has the light of life.

John 8:12

A 45-minute lesson plan

5 min	Welcome and pray. Greet each child by name and pray: Ask Jesus for what we need, and trust Him.
10 min	The story. Play the story film: each verse appears on screen in the King James Version while the scene plays. Pause to ask what happens next.
10 min	Talk about it. Ask the three questions below. Then ask: “Keep calling out to Jesus. He hears.” What does that mean for us?
5 min	Memory verse. Say Mark 10:52 together, covering one word at a time until the children can say it alone.
10 min	Activity. Younger children color the coloring page while you retell the story; older children do the class sheet (memory-verse fill-in, word search and questions).
5 min	Pray and send home. Pray together and send the sheet home so families can talk about the first question this week.

Preschool: keep it short and physical. Act out the story, use a simple prop, and repeat the big idea in one sentence.
Elementary: let children find the passage in their own Bibles. Ask “who, what, where” questions first, then “why.”
Preteens: read the verses before and after the passage, and ask how this story fits the whole story of the Bible.

Game time

For kids · game · indoors · about 10 minutes

Bartimaeus Polo

You need: A blindfold

One child is Bartimaeus and wears the blindfold. The leader is Jesus, somewhere in the room.
Bartimaeus calls, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”, and Jesus answers, “What wilt thou?”
The crowd quietly says “Shh!” to distract. Bartimaeus follows Jesus’ voice until he finds Him.

People told Bartimaeus to be quiet, but he cried out all the more. Jesus stopped, healed him, and he followed Jesus.

For youth group · game · indoors · about 12 minutes

Over the Noise

You need: Short messages on cards, paper, pens

One player on each team gets a message card and must get it across the room to a teammate who writes it down.
Meanwhile the other team makes as much noise as it can.
Score for every word written correctly, then switch.

Bartimaeus kept calling out over the crowd until Jesus heard him. Never stop calling out to Jesus.

Pray

Ask Jesus for what we need, and trust Him.