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Malchus (/ˈmælkəs/;Koinē Greek:Μάλχος,romanized: Málkhos,pronounced[ˈmal.kʰos]) was theservant of theJewishHigh PriestCaiaphas who participated in thearrest ofJesus as written in thefour gospels. According to theBible, one of thedisciples,Simon Peter, being armed with asword, cut off the servant's ear in an attempt to prevent thearrest of Jesus.
That a disciple cut off the ear of a servant of the high priest is related in all fourcanonical gospels, inMatthew 26:51,Mark 14:47,Luke 22:50–51, andJohn 18:10–11, but Simon Peter and Malchus are named only in theGospel of John. Also,Luke is the only gospel that says Jesus healed the servant. This was Jesus' last recorded miracle prior to his resurrection.
The relevant passages in the Gospels of John and Luke,KJV, read:
10 Then Simon Peter having a sword drew it, and smote the high priest's servant, and cut off his right ear. The servant's name was Malchus.
11 Then said Jesus unto Peter, Put up thy sword into the sheath: the cup which my Father hath given me, shall I not drink it?
50 And one of them smote the servant of the high priest, and cut off his right ear.
51 And Jesus answered and said, Suffer ye thus far. And he touched his ear, and healed him.
James F. McGrath suggests that this account reflects an event that did happen, in that early Christians would hardly have invented a story portraying themselves as violent.[1]
Later in Chapter 18, John records that a relative of Malchus witnessed Peter's assault in the Garden of Gethsemane, and identified Peter as a follower of Christ. Peterdenied this.
4th century church father Jerome cites a post-resurrection appearance of Jesus to Malchus, quoting a passage from the lost "gospel according to the Hebrews." "And when the Lord had given the linen cloth to the servant of the priest, he went to James and appeared to him."[2][3]
Thornton Wilder wrote a short play entitled, "The Servant's Name Was Malchus"; it appears in the collectionThe Angel That Troubled the Waters and Other Plays.
The Fire Gospel, a 2008 novel byMichel Faber, centers on the discovery of the fictionallost gospel of Malchus.
Malchus is portrayed byPaul Brightwell in the 2013 TV miniseriesThe Bible.
In the 2004Mel Gibson filmThe Passion of the Christ, Malchus is represented as an armed member of the temple guard. In this depiction, Jesusheals Malchus' wounded ear, leaving the latter to stay behind sitting dumbfounded in a state of disbelief, suggesting a possible conversion to Christianity.
Isak Dinesen inThe Deluge at Norderney (the first ofSeven Gothic Tales) relates a story about Simon Peter wherein he uses the memory of cutting off Malchus' ear "to control his temper".
Touch by John Ferguson portrays Malchus as a Roman soldier sent by Pilate to spy on the Sanhedrin. Malchus is then sent by Caiaphas to spy on Jesus and his followers.[4]
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