And Jesus, moved with compassion, put forth his hand, and touched him, and said unto him,
I will; be clean.
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John Chrysostom
AD 407
He did not simply say, “I will, be cleansed,” but he also “extended his hand, and touched him”—an act we do well to analyze. If he cleansed him merely by willing it and by speaking it, why did he also add the touch of his hand? For no other reason, it seems to me, than that he might signify by this that he is not under the hand of the law, but the law is in his hands. Hence to the pure in heart, from now on, nothing is impure. … He touched the leper to signify that he heals not as servant but as Lord. For the leprosy did not defile his hand, but his holy hand cleansed the leprous body. The Gospel of St. Matthew, Homily
