If you take a trip to Israel, will you plan to visit Nain? Probably not. This ancient village (now known as Nein) isn’t located on any major roads running through the Jezreel Plain. It’s not likely that many tourists visited this off-the-beaten-path destination during the time of Jesus either. But it was in this small, obscure village that the Savior chose to bring a widow’s son back to life.

Jesus came upon a funeral procession (Luke 7:12) in Nain. The expectation of the crowd that followed Him was that He would stay away from the mourners—not just to be respectful, but also to keep a ritually acceptable distance between Himself and a passing corpse. But that’s not what happened.

Jesus looked at the widow, walking beside her son’s coffin as it was being carried out from the city gate, and “His heart overflowed with compassion” (v.13). He crossed over the barrier of religious tradition, of ritual purity law (Numbers 19:11,13), and He touched the coffin.

The widow, bereft of a husband and now having lost her only son, was in danger of becoming destitute. She was burying the person who was to take care of her in her old age. So when Jesus raised her son from the dead (Luke 7:15), He also lifted up the widow from her hopeless situation. After witnessing the miracle, the crowd said, “God has visited His people today” (v.16).

Believers in Jesus living in the 21st century have a more complete understanding of God’s “visit” to earth—of Jesus’ work on our behalf. “When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners” (Romans 5:6).

Like the widow, we were utterly helpless, without hope. But Jesus came and willingly gave His life. He crossed over the barriers of sin and death to save us. Out of deep compassion, He touched us.