10 Notable, Nameless People In The Holy Bible

Every time I sit down and read the Bible, I often times come across an interesting passage, which always adds up to hundreds of interesting passages. Reading through the Gospel of Mark, I found a few passages that made me wonder about all of these nameless people Christ Jesus healed or helped who were never heard from again. Nothing was put in the Holy Bible just for sport, for every word of GOD serves a purpose. So I started to question the point of all of these nameless, yet very notable people. These are my humble interpretations, and you are of course encouraged to add your own two cents.

Note: The list is not in any particular order.

1. Woman With The Alabaster Jar

I was re-reading through the Gospels when I came across the passage in Matthew 6:6-13 in which a woman with an alabaster jar filled with oil anoints Jesus (before his crucifixion). His disciples start murmuring about the oil being wasted and how it could have been sold and the proceeds given to the poor.

10 But when Jesus was aware of it, He said to them, “Why do you trouble the woman? For she has done a good work for Me. 11 For you have the poor with you always, but Me you do not have always. 12 For in pouring this fragrant oil on My body, she did it for My burial. 13 Assuredly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be told as a memorial to her.”

And, as the LORD said, this unnamed woman is indeed spoken of all the time. For what did she do? — She anointed our LORD and Savior before his death. Now, this doesn’t mean that this lady somehow knew the Savior would be crucified, but the Spirit led her to do this anyway. This stands in stark contrast to the disciples who had constantly ignored or refused to believe what Jesus told them about his impending death (and resurrection). Even up to the very moment when Jesus is apprehended, some of the disciples still tried to fight what their LORD had told them must happen (John 18:9-11).

This woman is not to be confused with the other woman spoken of in Luke 7:36-50, who …stood at His feet behind Him weeping; and she began to wash His feet with her tears, and wiped them with the hair of her head; and she kissed His feet and anointed them with the fragrant oil.

That other woman, as the Gospel of John points out in chapter 11, verses 1-3, was …Mary who anointed the Lord with fragrant oil and wiped His feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick.

2. Woman Caught In Adultery

This is another woman spoken of all the time, yet her name was never recorded. And, no, this was not Mary Magdalene as the common misconception goes (which you can read about here). As found in John 8:1-12, this was a woman whom the Pharisees had apparently “caught in the very act of adultery” (may I say, I’ve always wondered what became of the man whom she was supposedly committing this act with). The Pharisees, so dedicated to the word of the law, but totally missing its points, wanted Jesus to agree that she should be stoned, as the law of Moses decrees. They wanted to bring this man whom they feared down to their blind level.

7 So when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.” 9 Then those who heard it, being convicted by their conscience, went out one by one, beginning with the oldest even to the last. 10 When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, “Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?” 11 She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said to her, “Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more.” 12 Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.”

How Jesus Christ treated this woman who was caught in sin/adultery exemplifies how Christians should treat everyone — with love and mercy (compassion). Not one of us is perfect, for we are all born with the stain of sin. This brings to mind the passage in Luke 6:27-42 in which the LORD admonishes us to “Judge not, and you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. 38 Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.”

3. The Samaritan Woman At The Well

In John 4:1-42, we learn of the Samaritan woman at the well whom Jesus approaches and asks for a drink. Not only is the woman shocked that a Jew would be asking her for anything, but Jesus’ disciples are also disturbed to see their teacher talking with such a woman (”For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans”).

The two talk, and don’t say very much really, but what the woman gets from this conversation with Jesus makes her believe that she is indeed speaking to Messiah.

28 The woman then left her waterpot, went her way into the city, and said to the men, 29 “Come, see a Man who told me all things that I ever did. Could this be the Christ?” 30 Then they went out of the city and came to Him. …39 And many of the Samaritans of that city believed in Him because of the word of the woman who testified, “He told me all that I ever did.” 41 And many more believed because of His own word. 42 Then they said to the woman, “Now we believe, not because of what you said, for we ourselves have heard Him and we know that this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world.”

I find this particular story to be one of the most touching in the Gospels, for this woman only believed Jesus was whom He said He was because HE “told (her) all that (she) ever did.” HE did not perform any miracle for her, yet her faith was great…in contrast to the countless others who refused to believe when they witnessed Jesus raise the dead, cast out demons, make the lame walk, the blind see, etc. And how even more wonderful that many others believed and came to have faith in Christ Jesus because of her testimony? She helped bring them to Christ, and when they heard HIM speak, they too believed. The passage does not say that Jesus performed any miracles among them, yet these people believed because of the words HE spoke with authority.

I suppose it is also necessary to note that time and time again Jesus tried to show the Jews that they are not any better than GOD’s other children just because they have the law and the covenant, for all are in need of salvation. Jews hated the Samaritans for various reasons (mentioned here) and would even insult them by calling them “dogs.” Which may be why Jesus took offense when some ignorant Jews asked HIM if HE wasn’t a demon-possessed Samaritan (John 8:48-59). But Jesus showed GOD’S impartiality when HE spoke of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37) and the one leper out of 10 who were healed (Luke 7:11-17).

4. The Widow Who Gave All She Had

In Mark 12:41-43 we read Now Jesus sat opposite the treasury and saw how the people put money into the treasury. And many who were rich put in much. 42 Then one poor widow came and threw in two mites… 43 So He called His disciples to Himself and said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all those who have given to the treasury; 44 for they all put in out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all that she had, her whole livelihood.”

Now, I’m not going to talk about giving your “little grocery money” to Jan Crouch (watch), as I don’t believe Jesus Christ was saying we should literally give our last penny. I think this passage is more about giving/making a truly meaningful sacrifice. What those rich folks put into the treasury wasn’t anything they were going to miss (not to say their offering was meaningless), but that poor widow gave all that she had, her last penny — perhaps secure in the fact that GOD would take care of her needs and provide a way.

5. The Woman Who Touched Jesus’ Garments

This is an encouraging passage as well, and it’s also a bit amusing when your read all the Gospel accounts of it. In Mark 5:21-43 we read of the woman who had been suffering “a flow of blood for 12 years” who is convinced that if she just touches the hem of Jesus’ clothes, she’ll be healed. The passage mentions that Jesus immediately felt “power had gone out of Him” and spun around, asking HIS disciples who had touched HIM. Now, as was usually the case, there was a throng of people pressing in on them and following them, so the disciples said to HIM: “You see the multitude thronging You, and You say, ‘Who touched Me?’”

32 And He looked around to see her who had done this thing. 33 But the woman, fearing and trembling, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell down before Him and told Him the whole truth. 34 And He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace, and be healed of your affliction.”

This unnamed woman is a great example of the type of faith we are to have! This woman believe that if she could just touch a piece of Jesus’ clothing, she would be healed. She didn’t think it was so necessary for him to put his hands on her or to even say any words to her — which he did afterwards, confirming her faith. [Also see, Matthew 14:35-36 and Mark 6:55-56]

6. The Centurions

There are a few centurions mentioned in the Gospel, two notable ones being the one who had no doubt Jesus Christ could heal his servant just by simply saying he would be well; and another centurion is mentioned during the crucifixion, when Christ Jesus gives up his last breath. I decided to count these two as one…simply because of their positions as soldiers of Rome.

Mark 15:33-41

33 Now when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour. 34 And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?” which is translated, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” …37 And Jesus cried out with a loud voice, and breathed His last. 38 Then the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. 39 So when the centurion, who stood opposite Him, saw that He cried out like this and breathed His last, he said, “Truly this Man was the Son of God!”

It is quite likely this centurion had taken part in beating, mocking and finally killing Christ Jesus. At the end of it all, he confesses that Jesus is LORD. Should readers assume that this centurion repented of what he had taken part in and decided to pursue the Kingdom? What if this was the centurion who had hammered the nails through Jesus’ hands and feet? I am not too sure what to make of this man besides that he, having never heard a sermon from or witnessed a miracle done by Jesus, was just a stranger whose eyes were opened.

The other centurion, with the sick servant:

Matthew 8:5-12

5 Now when Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to Him, pleading with Him, 6 saying, “Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, dreadfully tormented.” 7 And Jesus said to him, “I will come and heal him.” 8 The centurion answered and said, “Lord, I am not worthy that You should come under my roof. But only speak a word, and my servant will be healed. 9 For I also am a man under authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” 10 When Jesus heard it, He marveled, and said to those who followed, “Assuredly, I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel! 11 And I say to you that many will come from east and west, and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. 12 But the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” 13 Then Jesus said to the centurion, “Go your way; and as you have believed, so let it be done for you.” And his servant was healed that same hour.

There is nothing in the Gospels to indicate that this man had witnessed any of Jesus’ miracles or even heard him speak, but for some reason, perhaps because of what others may have told him they witnessed, this centurion believed Jesus was whom HE said HE was and therefore had great power and authority. The passage indicates that Jesus is taken aback — that this Roman soldier, a Gentile to whom the Kingdom had not necessarily been preached, had such faith. Jesus tells those around them that there will be many Gentiles who enter the Kingdom of heaven and sadly not many Jews, to whom HE came specifically to teach about salvation.

7. The Demon-Possessed Man

In Mark, the passage only makes mention of one demon-possessed man, while in Matthew 8:28-34 we read of two possessed men.

Mark 5:1-13

2 And when He had come out of the boat, immediately there met Him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit, …5 And always, night and day, he was in the mountains and in the tombs, crying out and cutting himself with stones. 6 When he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and worshiped Him. 7 And he cried out with a loud voice and said, “What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I implore You by God that You do not torment me.” 8 For He said to him, “Come out of the man, unclean spirit!” 9 Then He asked him, “What is your name?” And he answered, saying, “My name is Legion; for we are many.” 10 Also he begged Him earnestly that He would not send them out of the country. 11 Now a large herd of swine was feeding there near the mountains. 12 So all the demons begged Him, saying, “Send us to the swine, that we may enter them.” 13 And at once Jesus gave them permission. Then the unclean spirits went out and entered the swine (there were about two thousand); and the herd ran violently down the steep place into the sea, and drowned in the sea.

When you read the Gospels, you learn that Jesus casted out a whole lot of evil spirits and healed many demon-possessed people, but there are two things that stand out about this particular possessed man, who is probably talked about as often as the widow who gave her last penny and the woman with the alabaster jar.

First off, this man is possessed by myriad demons who, when Jesus speaks to him, comes running and falls before him. The wicked demons know Jesus, Son of the Most High GOD, by name, illustrating that all are under GOD’s authority, including Satan (showing that the creation is never greater than or even equal to the CREATOR). [Also consider Mark 1:21-28]

The second thing about this story, which is very disturbing, is that this man had a host of demons inside his body. The passage says Jesus cast the demons out and granted their request to be placed into the swine –of which there about two thousand! Could it be possible that one person could be possessed by so many evil spirits? …Apparently.

8. The Rich Young Ruler

Mark 10:17-22

17 Now as He was going out on the road, one came running, knelt before Him, and asked Him, “Good Teacher, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life?” 18 So Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God. 19 You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery,’ ‘Do not murder,’ ‘Do not steal,’ ‘Do not bear false witness,’ ‘Do not defraud,’ ‘Honor your father and your mother.’” 20 And he answered and said to Him, “Teacher, all these things I have kept from my youth.” 21 Then Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “One thing you lack: Go your way, sell whatever you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, take up the cross, and follow Me.” 22 But he was sad at this word, and went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.

Not to start a fire or anything, but I can’t help but think of the prosperity preachers who teach a word of faith gospel and have become vastly wealthy by preying on people’s needs (which is usually money or a physical healing). When I read this passage, I have to wonder if any of these prosperity preachers would, if push were to come to shove, cling to their accumulated wealth and expensive possessions. But if Jesus Christ said “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God (Mark 10:25)” then it’s likely some of them are conflicted over worshiping GOD and mammon (Matthew 6:24), for you must admit, some of their possessions are excessive (do folks really need 3 mansions and 7 cars?). Perhaps they will do as this young ruler — walk away from the LORD because of their ‘great possessions,’ if they haven’t already.

And that goes for all of us, of course, because “…what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? (Matthew 16:26)”

9. The Blind Man Who Professed Jesus In The Synagogue

This passage is quite special for many reasons. A man who was born blind is healed and given sight by Jesus Christ on the Sabbath (the day of rest). The man is taken before the Pharisees in the synagogue to testify about what had happened. The man tells them what Jesus had done, but they doubt him. They then summon his parents to validate whether he was actually born blind. The parents say yes, but don’t want to take it any further in fear of being excommunicated from the temple. Their adult son is questioned once more, and this time teaches the arrogant, envious Pharisees the Truth. He states a simple logic, which they refuse to understand.

John 9:

28 Then they reviled him and said, “You are His disciple, but we are Moses’ disciples. 29 We know that God spoke to Moses; as for this fellow, we do not know where He is from.” 30 The man answered and said to them, “Why, this is a marvelous thing, that you do not know where He is from; yet He has opened my eyes! 31 Now we know that God does not hear sinners; but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does His will, He hears him. 32 Since the world began it has been unheard of that anyone opened the eyes of one who was born blind. 33 If this Man were not from God, He could do nothing.” 34 They answered and said to him, “You were completely born in sins, and are you teaching us?” And they cast him out.

Along with gaining his worldly sight, the formerly blind man who professes Jesus Christ in the synagogue also gains spiritual insight. Instead of welcoming his wisdom, however, the Pharisees play the high and mighty card — how dare a sinner teach us! They don’t take issue so much with that his healing was indeed a miracle, instead they choose to focus on the idea of someone else (Jesus Christ) assuming to have greater ‘authority’ than they.

Now, as evidenced throughout the Gospels, the Jews in power didn’t really deny that Jesus was whom HE said HE was, nor could they deny the countless testimonies of healing and other miracles which they themselves witnessed. But because they clung to the world (position of power, admiration of men, money, etc.), their eyes were not opened. For they truly did see and hear the Truth, but closed themselves off from it. I guess one could say they chose to be shortsighted.

10. The Man Who Ran Away Naked

I am not too sure what one can garner from this unnamed young man, mentioned very briefly and only once in the Gospels (I believe). On the night of Jesus’ arrest, when all of his disciples had supposedly forsaken HIM…

Mark 14:51-52

…a certain young man followed Him, having a linen cloth thrown around his naked body. And the young men (soldiers) laid hold of him, and he left the linen cloth and fled from them naked.

This young man’s story is strange and I have no idea what to make of it. It is possible that this ‘certain young man’ was actually one of the disciples who wanted to stick around after Jesus’ arrest, but got a bad case of the frights when the soldiers laid hands on him, and took off — naked. And I have a feeling this young man may have been stark naked, like, in his birthday suit. I suppose he was that disparate to get away from all the trouble this Jesus had caused.

I would also like to note that when I looked up this passage in Google to make sure I typed it correctly, I noticed that someone had put out the idea that this young man may just be the same or very much like another young man mentioned in Mark 16:1-8, who was found by the women sitting on Jesus’ empty tomb the day of HIS resurrection. I must admit, it’s quite possible… that Jesus had angelic companions while HE was on the earth.

In Summary…

Yes, I know that all of the people mentioned in this post of “10 Notable, Nameless People In The Holy Bible” are all in the New Testament. That’s mostly due to coincidence, since it was while re-reading the Gospels that the idea came to me. However, I know there are some notable, nameless people in the Old Testament, too (I pray), and I will attempt to put together a list of them and their stories at a future time.

There is one particular Old Testament passage that did end up on the draft of this post, but didn’t make the cut — The Man Who Wrestled With Jacob.

The story in Genesis 32:22-32 about the divine being who wrestled with Jacob is probably also talked about quite often, and is probably a point of contention for some folks. Some say it was the Angel of the LORD (GOD HIMSELF) who fought with Jacob from night until just before sunrise, and others say it was an angel. The Jewish Bible, for instance, says it was “a divine being,” which I suppose infers that the editors/translators believe that it was not GOD HIMSELF who wrestled with Jacob, but only an angel.

24 Then Jacob was left alone; and a Man wrestled with him until the breaking of day. …6 And He said, “Let Me go, for the day breaks.” But he said, “I will not let You go unless You bless me!” …28 And He said, “Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel; for you have struggled with God and with men, and have prevailed.” …29 Then Jacob asked, saying, “Tell me Your name, I pray.” And He said, “Why is it that you ask about My name?” And He blessed him there. 30 So Jacob called the name of the place Peniel: “For I have seen God face to face, and my life is preserved.”

I must admit that I cut this particular item because I am not sure how to treat it and I am not sure if I understand it. Was Jacob really able to withstand the physical might of GOD HIMSELF? I don’t really think so, as I’m sure the LORD could have snapped him in half like a twig if HE so wanted. But HE tested Jacob, nonetheless, to see if he would withstand HIM, for Jacob had had a very hard life (due to his own fault) and a very long day, but was still able to stand. So Jacob “passed” and it was through his seed that the tribes of Israel were born.

I welcome any feedback on this particular passage. But I digress…

I guess the purpose of all of these unnamed, yet very important people we read of in the Gospels can be summed up by Christ Jesus HIMSELF, who said, “If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes (Mark 9:23).” All of these people the LORD healed showed great faith that HE could do what HE said HE could do. Many times, as we learn in the Gospels, Jesus didn’t even question the cause of their faith. HE simply said, ‘You’re right,’ and their prayer was granted. If we can have such faith — really believe that the LORD will return as HE promised to banish the unrepentant from among HIS saints — then one day, we, too, can say to HIM face-to-face, “Yes, LORD, I believe.”

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