Sabbath Confrontation
Again he entered the synagogue, and a man was there with a withered hand. And they watched Jesus, to see whether he would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him. And he said to the man with the withered hand, "Come here." And he said to them, "Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to kill?" But they were silent. And he looked around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, and said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." He stretched it out, and his hand was restored. Mark 3:1-5, ESV.
Fast on the heels of the grainfield confrontation of Matthew 12:1-8 comes a second conflict over the Sabbath in verses 9-13 (also in Mark 3:1-5). The interesting thing about this one is that Jesus could easily have avoided it but chose not to.
The scene itself has three main characters: Jesus, a man who had a crippled hand for a long time, and those "watching Jesus" to see if He would do something they considered wrong.
Obviously seeing His would-be accusers, Jesus didn't skirt the issue. After all, synagogues reserved the front seats for such dignitaries. Now, Jesus knew that the Pharisees were not against medical care on the Sabbath, so long as it involved a matter of life and death for the sick person. But the man with the crippled hand obviously didn't fit into that category. He had had the disability for some time, and his healing could have easily waited a day or two.
But for Jesus it was a test case. He called the man up front where everybody could see and asked the watching Pharisees whether it was lawful to do good or evil on the Sabbath.
That put them in a dilemma. No one could answer that it was permissible to do evil. Thus they had no choice but to answer that it was lawful to do good. And wasn't healing a person doing good?
That first question put the Pharisees on the spot, but why Jesus asked it was obvious. The second question, however, at first leaves us baffled: "Is it lawful...to save life or to kill?" After all, who was killing anybody? All that was in question was the healing of a man's hand. But Jesus once again indicates that He understands the human heart (John 2:25). At that very time the Pharisees were beginning to concoct a plan to kill Jesus because He didn't agree with their understanding of the law (Matt. 12:14).
Out of these conflict stories flow not only hatred in those who fail to understand the principle of the law and who are watching for faults, but important principles relating to the Sabbath for Jesus' followers.
Help us, Father, as we ponder these stories to gain a fuller understanding of the relation of law and mercy.
Again he entered the synagogue, and a man was there with a withered hand. And they watched Jesus, to see whether he would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him. And he said to the man with the withered hand, "Come here." And he said to them, "Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to kill?" But they were silent. And he looked around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, and said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." He stretched it out, and his hand was restored. Mark 3:1-5, ESV.
Fast on the heels of the grainfield confrontation of Matthew 12:1-8 comes a second conflict over the Sabbath in verses 9-13 (also in Mark 3:1-5). The interesting thing about this one is that Jesus could easily have avoided it but chose not to.
The scene itself has three main characters: Jesus, a man who had a crippled hand for a long time, and those "watching Jesus" to see if He would do something they considered wrong.
Obviously seeing His would-be accusers, Jesus didn't skirt the issue. After all, synagogues reserved the front seats for such dignitaries. Now, Jesus knew that the Pharisees were not against medical care on the Sabbath, so long as it involved a matter of life and death for the sick person. But the man with the crippled hand obviously didn't fit into that category. He had had the disability for some time, and his healing could have easily waited a day or two.
But for Jesus it was a test case. He called the man up front where everybody could see and asked the watching Pharisees whether it was lawful to do good or evil on the Sabbath.
That put them in a dilemma. No one could answer that it was permissible to do evil. Thus they had no choice but to answer that it was lawful to do good. And wasn't healing a person doing good?
That first question put the Pharisees on the spot, but why Jesus asked it was obvious. The second question, however, at first leaves us baffled: "Is it lawful...to save life or to kill?" After all, who was killing anybody? All that was in question was the healing of a man's hand. But Jesus once again indicates that He understands the human heart (John 2:25). At that very time the Pharisees were beginning to concoct a plan to kill Jesus because He didn't agree with their understanding of the law (Matt. 12:14).
Out of these conflict stories flow not only hatred in those who fail to understand the principle of the law and who are watching for faults, but important principles relating to the Sabbath for Jesus' followers.
Help us, Father, as we ponder these stories to gain a fuller understanding of the relation of law and mercy.
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