John 5

Jesus heals a lame man on the Sabbath 1
The Jews questioned the man and persecuted Jesus 10
Jesus worked with His Father in resurrection; Jesus judges 17
Life in words of Jesus 24
Dead will hear 25
Dead in their graves will hear; two resurrections 28
Witness about Jesus 31
Jesus' honor is not from men; Moses 41
Text
Comments
.1 ¶ After this there was a feast of the Jews; and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
.2  Now there is at Jerusalem by the sheep market a pool, which is called in the Hebrew tongue Bethesda, having five porches.
 3  In these lay a great multitude of impotent folk, of blind, halt, withered, waiting for the moving of the water.
.4  For an angel went down at a certain season into the pool, and troubled the water: whosoever then first after the troubling of the water stepped in was made whole of whatsoever disease he had.
5  And a certain man was there, which had an infirmity thirty and eight years.
 6  When Jesus saw him lie, and knew that he had been now a long time in that case, he saith unto him, Wilt thou be made whole?
 7  The impotent man answered him, Sir, I have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into the pool: but while I am coming, another steppeth down before me.
 8  Jesus saith unto him, Rise, take up thy bed, and walk.


  2 - Now there is ... a pool It is thought to be now below the current ground surface under the Church of St. Ann. Also see ne0301 which mentions a sheep gate.
  4 - Angel went down This healing system catches our attention for being so unlike the way Jesus dealt with people. He certainly did not reward the stronger ones who trampled others to get what they wanted mr0935, lu1330. And God does not wait for certain physical signs to respond to our requests ps09114f. We may resolve the problem in two ways. First, John may have written from the perspective of the crippled man v7. Second, the latter part of v3 and all of v4 do not appear in many manuscripts. We have good reason to accept the first solution. See v18 and on v31. There is extrabiblical evidence that there was such a belief.
  5 - Thirty and eight years Clearly Jesus act was a miracle. Compare lu1311, ac0421f.
  6 - Wilt thou? Does this give us reason to say that with strong enough faith or willpower we can  get what we pray for? No, the Greek reads simply "Do you want to be healed?" Of course he did. Jesus was inviting him to ask.
 9  And immediately the man was made whole, and took up his bed, and walked: and on the same day was the sabbath.
.10  The Jews therefore said unto him that was cured, It is the sabbath day: it is not lawful for thee to carry thy bed.
 11  He answered them, He that made me whole, the same said unto me, Take up thy bed, and walk.
 12  Then asked they him, What man is that which said unto thee, Take up thy bed, and walk?
 13  And he that was healed wist not who it was: for Jesus had conveyed himself away, a multitude being in that place.
 14  Afterward Jesus findeth him in the temple, and said unto him, Behold, thou art made whole: sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee.
 15  The man departed, and told the Jews that it was Jesus, which had made him whole.
.16  And therefore did the Jews persecute Jesus, and sought to slay him, because he had done these things on the sabbath day.


  10 - Sabbath The first of seven Sabbath miracles.
  10 - Not lawful The Jews had manufactured laws about how to keep the Sabbath. They can be found in their Mishnah. Compare mr0224.
  11 - He that made me whole ... said The man recognized an authority higher than the Jewish law makers.
  9 - Immediately His faith didn't hesitate. The Greek for the word walked indicates a new ability.
  14 - In the temple Greek hieron, referring to the whole temple complex.
  14 - Sin no more Jesus was interested in the man's salvation. How often do we pray for healing while continuing to break the laws of nature that God has given to assure good health.
  16 - Persecute Jesus They were jealous of their own power and wanted justification to kill Him. Did they really think He was not the Messiah? They had had plenty of evidence. For example: lu0105, lu0208, mt0201, lu0241, and now this miracle. They chose to doubt. They hated Jesus in defense of the tradition they had created mt1509. Passages linked to often have more than one verse.
.17 ¶ But Jesus answered them, My Father worketh hitherto, and I work.
.18  Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill him, because he not only had broken the sabbath, but said also that God was his Father, making himself equal with God.
.19  Then answered Jesus and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise.
.20  For the Father loveth the Son, and sheweth him all things that himself doeth: and he will shew him greater works than these, that ye may marvel.
 21  For as the Father raiseth up the dead, and quickeneth them; even so the Son quickeneth whom he will.
.22  For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son:
.23  That all men should honour the Son, even as they honour the Father. He that honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father which hath sent him.

.17 - My Father worketh hitherto That is, He "is working until now." So He was working with Jesus in the miracle of healing the lame man as He had worked at the time of creation; and He was working in Jesus! Many Jews at that time had the deistic idea that God was distant and in everything and thus would not be so directly involved.
.So was Jesus saying that it was now okay to work on the Sabbath? that the Sabbath commandment was no longer binding? The answer takes careful consideration. See the notes page for this chapter.
* The chapter continues in the next column and then below the note.
  17 - My Father ... worketh hitherto Or literally "is working until now." The One who created the world is continually active. Scroll down for this verse in the left column.
  18 - Because  He had ... broken the Sabbath Had He really broken the Sabbath? No. jn1510, 1jo0503, he0415. John spoke from the viewpoint of the Jews. See on in v4. Of course Jesus did say that God was His father. In the context, the Jewish leaders understood His claim to divinity. Did He "make Himself equal to God?" He was already equal with God. The Jews understood His claim.
  Some teach that He was God's son only as all are but He had all the power of the Father v36. Continuing through the chapter He strengthens His claim to divinity. If Christ had been only human, the Jews would have been justified in their assertions.
  19 - Nothing of himself Does this mean He was inferior, not fully divine, or a lower rank God? Not according to verse 21 but verse 20 amplifies His dependence on the Father. The apparent conflict is resolved in realizing that our Lord was both fully human and fully divine – the Son of Man and the Son of God lu0958, 2jo03. Also jn0101, is5303. As a human He lived a perfect life and died in our place. Being less than fully human would have made His substitionary death unsatisfactory 2co0521. Being less than fully divine would not have answered Satan's charge that God was selfish in His requirements (He died to pay the penalty of our disobedience to the divine law of happiness). This charge of selfishness Satan demonstrated by his encounter with Eve. (He spoke using the serpent as a spirit medium ge0301.) If Christ and the Father had been selfish, Christ would not have yielded to the terrible ordeal of the cross lu2253, mt2639, jn0316. Christ's subordinate role was by choice. 1pe0120, he1005, ph0205-8. When He returned to heaven He was exalted ph0209.
  21 - Even so the son Christ also has power to raise the dead jn1143. He has life in Himself v26. We do not 2co0411.
22 - Hath committed all judgment unto the Son Didomi, the Greek word for "has committed" is generally translated "has given." Also Judgment is given in  re2004 meaning that the recipients judge. Here all judgment is given to the Son who, in turn will give us judgment, perhaps like members of the jury re0321. Compare ez1006f.
  23 - Honour Son ... Father The people may have felt that Jesus Christ was less important. jn1401-3.
Resurrections
    Verses 28 and 29 present a problem. It appears that Jesus here declares that all the dead will be raised at once, some to life and some to condemnation. From other Bible statements, what do we know about the resurrection for righteous and wicked? The most significant statements are by Paul.
    "For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent [go ahead of] them which are asleep.  For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord." (1 Thess. 2:15-17)
    Only the "dead in Christ" will rise at this time. Paul considered himself and his readers to be "in Christ," (committed Christians.) Those who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will join the resurrected ones in being caught up to meet Him in the air. In 1 Cor. 15:50-58 we find the same viewpoint.
    In Revelation 20 we read about the first and second deaths and resurrections re2006a. None of these events occur at the same time. A close look at what Jesus said will help us understand what He meant.
Text
Comments
.24  Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life. Also lu1524, ro0802.    Those who hear and believe have everlasting life although with bodies that are subject to disease and death. When the final trumpet sounds, the righteous will be changed to immortality 1co1550ff.
   So, considering the text in 1st Corinthians, how could Jesus say that those who hear His word and believe would have everlasting life? First, by a spiritual resurrection (born again) and second, with assurance that we can believe Christ's promises. As we accept the conditions, we may hold the promises as reality.
  Condemnation From krisis, the result of judgment. Some translations read "judgment." See on jn0318,19. Assuming that a believer will bypass the judgment is inconsistent with other clear descriptions of the judgment. ec1213,4, he0927, da0710.
.25  Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live.
.26  For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself;
 27  And hath given him authority to execute judgment also, because he is the Son of man.
   25 - Following from verse 24, we expect hearing the voice to bring spiritual life. But notice, that He said that the hour was both "coming" and "is now."
    Again we have two meanings, the physical and the spiritual
    Physical: Jesus raised the dead when He was here, and He will again at the time of the resurrection at His coming.
    Spiritual: Jesus brought spiritual life to those who accepted Him when on earth, and He continues to provide it for us now, through the Holy Spirit.
  26 - Life in himself As we see in v28.
  27 - Because he is the Son of man He faced temptation without falling. He has the key to life.
.28  Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice,
 29  And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.
.30  I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.


  28 - All that are in the graves Not just those like Lazarus, the daughter of Jairus, and the widow's son. He is the archangel whose trumpet voice calls all the dead to life. First the righteous 1th0416 and later the wicked. See the note above.
  28 - Shall hear His voice "I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death." re0118.
  Jesus lived in human flesh and died in order to destroy Satan's claim that we should not live. Seehe0214f.

  28 - More By His death and resurrection, Jesus authenticated (clarified) His power over death and the grave. After that "hour" ( in our verse and lu2253) He would raise all the dead without credible challenge from Satan jude09; re1210).
  29 - They that have done good Then do good works save us? No ep0208f. See on re2212.
  29 - Resurrection of life ... damnation  The two resurrections. We may confirm the harmony of Jesus' statement with the picture of the two resurrections in Revelation 20. They are a thousand years apart re2005.
  30 - Do nothing In coming to this earth in human form ph0206 subject to the same temptations 1co1013, He depended on the Father as we may. He could have made the stones into bread mt0403 but that would have taken Him out of our class and Satan would have had an argument that we could not be kept from sinning through Christ because He, Christ, had an advantage!
.31 ¶ If I bear witness of myself, my witness is not true.
 32  There is another that beareth witness of me; and I know that the witness which he witnesseth of me is true.
 33  Ye sent unto John, and he bare witness unto the truth.
 34  But I receive not testimony from man: but these things I say, that ye might be saved.
 35  He was a burning and a shining light: and ye were willing for a season to rejoice in his light.
.36  But I have greater witness than that of John: for the works which the Father hath given me to finish, the same works that I do, bear witness of me, that the Father hath sent me.
 37  And the Father himself, which hath sent me, hath borne witness of me. Ye have neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen his shape.
  31 - Witness of myself He appealed to the witness of John the Baptist v32f, miracles v36, the Father, v37, and to the Scriptures v39.
  31 - Not true A little strange because Jesus is the truth jn1406. In jn0814 He declared His self-witness to be true. Here He spoke from the viewpoint of the Jewish leaders v16. Their Mishnah and Talmud (writings of Jewish interpretation and added rules mr0707) stated "No one may testify concerning himself." Other passages of Jesus are like this arguing from the mindset of His listeners. See v18 and on v4 and lu1622. Also in v41 He seems to explain His position here.
  32 - Another beareth witness This could be the Father mt0317 just mentioned. Some argue that the other is John the Baptist v33. In the context, the Father's witness is better than John's. The text is inconclusive and it doesn't matter because we see the whole picture.
 38  And ye have not his word abiding in you: for whom he hath sent, him ye believe not.
.39  Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.
.40  And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.
 35 - Light Literally, "lamp" compared to the true light which was Christ jn0109.
  39 - Search the scriptures The statement may be translated as in the KJV or as, "You search the scriptures. . . ." The latter seems to better fit the context, but it doesn't matter.
  40 - Come to me This means more than coming physically. It is connected with belief – coming intellectually and spiritually. See jn0635, jn0737f.
.41  I receive not honour from men.
 42  But I know you, that ye have not the love of God in you.
.43  I am come in my Father's name, and ye receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive.
.44  How can ye believe, which receive honour one of another, and seek not the honour that cometh from God only?
 45  Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father: there is one that accuseth you, even Moses, in whom ye trust.
.46  For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me: for he wrote of me.
 47  But if ye believe not his writings, how shall ye believe my words?
  42 - Love ... in you 1jo0410f.
  43 - Another Consider Barabbas mr1507.
  44 - Honor ... from God Literally, "... from the only God."ja0410, 2co1012.
  45 - Do not think ... accuse you In one sense He was accusing them right then. The point is that, the law was the accuser. It made the case for their condemnation. See ro0707.
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