Mark 5:41

Apparently Jesus took the hand of the dead girl to associate His power with her healing in the witnesses’ minds. He did not need to touch her to raise her. Elijah (1 Kings 17:17-23) and Elisha (2 Kings 4:18-37) had both raised children to life, but they had to exert considerably more effort and spend more time doing so than Jesus did. It was probably this healing that led many of the people to identify Jesus with Elijah (Mark 6:15). Touching a dead person resulted in ceremonial defilement, but Jesus overcame this with His power.

Mark alone recorded Jesus’ command in Aramaic and translated it for his Roman readers.

"Mark gives the translation as a contrast with magical formulas so esoteric and nonsensical that they mock would-be translators . . ." [Note: Robert H. Gundry, Mark, p. 274.]

In every instance of Jesus raising the dead in the Gospels, He addressed the dead person directly (cf. Luke 7:14; John 11:43).

"It has been suggested that His very words were those used by the mother each morning to arouse her daughter from sleep." [Note: Hiebert, p. 136.]

There is only one letter difference between Jesus’ command here and the one Peter uttered when he restored Dorcas to life (Acts 9:40). Peter said, "Tabitha kum!" This shows that Jesus continued to exercise His power through Peter after His ascension (cf. Acts 1:1-2).