47 – Healing a Withered Hand; Matthew 12:9-14; Mark 3:1-6; Luke 6:6-11

Matthew 12:9 Departing from there, He went into their synagogue. 10 And a man was there whose hand was withered. And they questioned [a]Jesus, asking, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?”—so that they might accuse Him. 11 And He said to them, “What man [b]is there among you who [c]has a sheep, and if it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will he not take hold of it and lift it out? 12 How much more valuable then is a man than a sheep! So then, it is lawful to do [d]good on the Sabbath.” 13 Then He *said to the man, “Stretch out your hand!” He stretched it out, and it was restored to [e]normal, like the other. 14 But the Pharisees went out and [f]conspired against Him, as to how they might destroy Him.

Mark 3:1 He entered again into a synagogue; and a man was there whose hand was withered. 2 They were watching Him to see if He would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse Him. 3 He *said to the man with the withered hand, “[a]Get up and come forward!” 4 And He *said to them, “Is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the Sabbath, to save a life or to kill?” But they kept silent. 5 After looking around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, He *said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored. 6 The Pharisees went out and immediately began [b]conspiring with the Herodians against Him, as to how they might destroy Him.

Luke 6:6 On another Sabbath He entered the synagogue and was teaching; and there was a man there [a]whose right hand was withered. 7 The scribes and the Pharisees were watching Him closely to see if He healed on the Sabbath, so that they might find reason to accuse Him. 8 But He knew [b]what they were thinking, and He said to the man with the withered hand, “Get up and [c]come forward!” And he got up and [d]came forward. 9 And Jesus said to them, “I ask you, is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the Sabbath, to save a life or to destroy it?” 10 After looking around at them all, He said to him, “Stretch out your hand!” And he did so; and his hand was restored. 11 But they themselves were filled with [e]rage, and discussed together what they might do to Jesus.

Footnotes (Matthew)

a. Matthew 12:10 Lit Him

b. Matthew 12:11 Lit will be from you

c. Matthew 12:11 Lit will have

d. Matthew 12:12 Lit well

e. Matthew 12:13 Lit health

f. Matthew 12:14 Lit took counsel

Footnotes (Mark)

a. Mark 3:3 Lit Arise into the midst

b. Mark 3:6 Lit giving counsel

Footnotes (Luke)

a. Luke 6:6 Lit and his

b. Luke 6:8 Lit their thoughts

b. Luke 6:8 Lit stand into the middle

c. Luke 6:8 Lit stood

d. Luke 6:11 Lit folly

Commentary

After setting the scene in the synagogue, all three passages immediately introduce the man with the withered hand. Some believe this man would typically have been hidden in the rear of the church because of his embarrassment regarding his deformity; however, the Pharisees, in an attempt to ensnare Jesus, placed the man in a position where he would be more visible to Jesus. It is unclear how the man came to be injured, but I found some interesting commentary in an article from a medical journal. While the doctor who authored the article will not acknowledge Jesus’s healing as a miracle, he has clearly done considerable research into the potential causes and remedies for the man’s condition. Dr. Lineaweaver mentions, “St. Jerome described the crippled man as a stonemason who wished to be restored to his livelihood” (https://journals.lww.com/plasreconsurg/pages/articleviewer.aspx?year=2013&issue=12000&article=00084&type=Fulltext). Jerome was born circa A.D. 347, and it stands to reason there would still have been some oral tradition that carried over, informing Jerome of the man’s profession.

I am making some personal speculation, but based on the way ancient Jewish culture treated those with diseases, deformities, or other handicaps, it wouldn’t have been difficult for Jesus to see through the Pharisees’ plot when the man with the withered hand was so easily visible to Him in the synagogue. After all, not only would the man have wanted to stay hidden because of his own embarrassment, but he would also have been relegated to the outskirts of society by those who believed illness was a punishment for sin (see the commentary about John 9:2 https://biblehub.com/john/9-2.htm). The fact that the Pharisees allowed (let alone encouraged) him to stand in a prominent location in the auditorium was evidence they were up to something.

Jesus brings the man to the center of the room and puts him on display, probably making both the man and the audience very uncomfortable, laying the man’s “sin” bare in the vision of his outstretched arm. It also likely rubbed the Pharisees’ plot in their faces. “You wanted to put him close to the front? I’ll put him where everyone can see him, where you are forced to acknowledge him, and when I heal him, you will be embarrassed over your crude plot.”

Jesus then directly confronts the Pharisees with a question. Is it lawful to save a life (Jesus was about to save the life of this man, who would become able to support himself and his family once healed) or to kill (the Pharisees were attempting to plot Jesus’s death)? This is a very noisy recording, but it’s a good message related to that point https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uTrjaTfSWRo. The Pharisees’ interpretation of the law would have prohibited Jesus from healing on the Sabbath, but meanwhile they have no problem conspiring to trap Him in some misdeed and have Him put to death. They attempted to enforce the fourth commandment at the expense of the sixth. I quoted 2 Corinthians in the post about healing the Invalid on the Sabbath, but it applies well here, also. “He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life” 2 Corinthians 3:6.

The Pharisees were blinded by their embarrassment, fear, and anger. Their opposition to Jesus wasn’t just on religious grounds, but also (possibly more so) on political grounds. The Pharisees “were concerned that His popularity might have political repercussions, drawing Roman troops to the area and causing the loss of what little independence the nation had” (The Word in Life Study Bible pg. 1652). This raises some very interesting questions for us today. Are we promoting sin in the interest of self-preservation or “the greater good”? I’m not suggesting that, if Jesus were a false prophet with truly malicious intentions, it would have been a sin to mete out justice. However, the Pharisees were willing to set up and kill an innocent man in order to protect their position and the political stability of their countrymen. For a modern analogy, I’m thinking of arguments for abortion in which supporters claim abortion prevents overcrowding in the foster or penal systems down the road. All we have to do is snuff out the life before it becomes a threat to our comfort and security. I’m sure there are many more modern examples of prioritizing the “health” of our community over sins against individuals. May we all remember, “Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me” (Matthew 25:40).

See the next post here https://onthepath.online/2020/01/31/withdrawal-to-the-sea-of-galilee/

Scripture References

Matthew 12:10

Matthew 12:2 When the Pharisees saw this, they said to Him, “Look, Your disciples are doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath.”

Luke 13:14 But the synagogue leader was indignant that Jesus had healed on the Sabbath. “There are six days for work,” he told the crowd. “So come and be healed on those days and not on the Sabbath.”

Luke 14:3 So Jesus asked the experts in the law and the Pharisees, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath or not?”

John 5:10 so the Jews said to the man who had been healed, “This is the Sabbath! It is unlawful for you to carry your mat.”

John 7:23 If a boy can be circumcised on the Sabbath so that the Law of Moses will not be broken, why are you angry with Me for making the whole man well on the Sabbath?

John 9:16 Because of this, some of the Pharisees said, “This man is not from God, for He does not keep the Sabbath.” But others said, “How can a sinful man perform such signs?” And there was division among them.

Matthew 12:11

Matthew 12:1 At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry and began to pick the heads of grain and eat them.

Luke 14:5 And He asked them, “Which of you whose son or ox falls into a pit on the Sabbath day will not immediately pull him out?”

Matthew 12:12

Matthew 10:31 So do not be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.

Luke 14:1 One Sabbath, Jesus went to eat in the home of a leading Pharisee, and those in attendance were watching Him closely.

Matthew 12:13

Matthew 8:3 Jesus reached out His hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” He said. “Be clean!” And immediately his leprosy was cleansed.

Matthew 11:5 The blind receive sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and good news is preached to the poor.

Acts 28:8 The father of Publius was sick in bed, suffering from fever and dysentery. Paul went in to see him, and after praying and placing his hands on him, he healed the man.

Matthew 12:14

Matthew 26:4 and they conspired to arrest Jesus covertly and kill Him.

Mark 14:1 Now the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread were two days away, and the chief priests and scribes were looking for a covert way to arrest Jesus and kill Him.

Luke 22:2 and the chief priests and scribes were looking for a way to put Jesus to death; for they feared the people.

John 7:30 So they tried to seize Him, but no one laid a hand on Him, because His hour had not yet come.

John 7:32 When the Pharisees heard the crowd whispering these things about Jesus, they and the chief priests sent officers to arrest Him.

John 7:44 Some of them wanted to seize Him, but no one laid a hand on Him.

John 8:59 At this, they picked up stones to throw at Him. But Jesus was hidden and went out of the temple area.

John 10:31 At this, the Jews again picked up stones to stone Him.

John 10:39 At this, they tried again to seize Him, but He escaped their grasp.

John 11:53 So from that day on they plotted to kill Him.

Mark 3:1

Mark 1:21 Then Jesus and His companions went to Capernaum, and as soon as the Sabbath began, Jesus entered the synagogue and began to teach.

Mark 1:39 So He went throughout Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and driving out demons.

Mark 2:28 Therefore, the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.”

Mark 3:2

Luke 11:54 waiting to catch Him in something He might say.

Luke 14:1 One Sabbath, Jesus went to eat in the home of a leading Pharisee, and those in attendance were watching Him closely.

Luke 20:20 So they watched Him closely and sent spies who pretended to be sincere. They were hoping to catch Him in His words in order to hand Him over to the rule and authority of the governor.

John 8:6 They said this to test Him, in order to have a basis for accusing Him. But Jesus bent down and began to write on the ground with His finger.

Mark 3:5

Ephesians 4:18 They are darkened in their understanding and alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardness of their hearts.

Revelation 6:16 And they said to the mountains and the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of the One seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb.

Mark 3:6

Matthew 22:16 They sent their disciples to Him along with the Herodians. “Teacher,” they said, “we know that You are honest and that You teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. You defer to no one, because You pay no attention to external appearance.

Mark 12:13 Later, they sent some of the Pharisees and Herodians to catch Jesus in His words.

Acts 4:25 You spoke by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of Your servant, our father David: ‘Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain?

Luke 6:6

Matthew 4:23 Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people.

Luke 6:7

Matthew 5:39 But I tell you not to resist an evil person. If someone slaps you on your right cheek, turn to him the other also;

Luke 6:8

Matthew 9:4 But Jesus knew what they were thinking and said, “Why do you harbor evil in your hearts?

Luke 6:11

Matthew 16:7 They discussed this among themselves and concluded, “It is because we did not bring any bread.”

Luke 6:12 In those days, Jesus went out to the mountain to pray, and He spent the night in prayer to God.

2 Timothy 3:9 But they will not advance much further. For just like Jannes and Jambres, their folly will be plain to everyone.