João 5
Warren Wiersbe · Citado em PreceptAustin
João 5
Wiersbe - JOHN 5 Works (Jn 5:1–21). The Father “broke” His Sabbath rest to help two sinners (Gen. 3:8ff.), and Jesus followed His example. In the world of nature, the Father is healing bodies, multiplying food, turning water into wine, and so forth; but He takes longer to do those things. Our Lord’s miracles are the Father’s works done instantly. Whether instantly or gradually, they are wonderful works of God. Wrath (Jn 5:22, 24–30). Today, Jesus is the Savior; tomorrow, He will be the Judge (Rev. 20:11–15). Even death cannot keep lost sinners from the judgment, for He will raise them from the dead. There is no escape, except faith in Jesus Christ (Jn 5:24). Worship (Jn 5:23). If you worship God the Father, you must also worship the Son; and if you dishonor the Son, you dishonor the Father. Those who claim to worship God but ignore the Son are not even worshiping God! They are only fooling themselves. Witness (Jn 5:31–47). How can anyone deny that Jesus is the Son of God when so many witnesses affirm that He is: John the Baptist (Jn 5:31–35), the miracles (Jn 5:36), the Father (Jn 5:37; Mark 1:11), and the Scriptures (Jn 5:38–39)? But when people believe on Him, they have the witness within themselves (Jn 5:39–47; 1 John 5:9–13). (Borrow With the Word) John 5:2 Now there is in Jerusalem by the sheep gate a pool, which is called in Hebrew Bethesda, having five porticoes. KJV John 5:2 Now there is at Jerusalem by the sheep market a pool, which is called in the Hebrew tongue Bethesda, having five porches. NET John 5:2 Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool called Bethzatha in Aramaic, which has five covered walkways. CSB John 5:2 By the Sheep Gate in Jerusalem there is a pool, called Bethesda in Hebrew, which has five colonnades. ESV John 5:2 Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, in Aramaic called Bethesda, which has five roofed colonnades. NIV John 5:2 Now there is in Jerusalem near the Sheep Gate a pool, which in Aramaic is called Bethesda and which is surrounded by five covered colonnades. NLT John 5:2 Inside the city, near the Sheep Gate, was the pool of Bethesda, with five covered porches. NRS John 5:2 Now in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate there is a pool, called in Hebrew Beth-zatha, which has five porticoes. NJB John 5:2 Now in Jerusalem next to the Sheep Pool there is a pool called Bethesda in Hebrew, which has five porticos; NAB John 5:2 Now there is in Jerusalem at the Sheep (Gate) a pool called in Hebrew Bethesda, with five porticoes. YLT John 5:2 and there is in Jerusalem by the sheep -gate a pool that is called in Hebrew Bethesda, having five porches, gate, Ne 3:1 12:39 pool: Isa 22:9,11 John 5 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries Archaeological Proof - Pool of Bethesda WATCH THE FAITHLIFE SHORT VIDEO THE POOL AT BETHESDA Now there is in Jerusalem by the sheep gate a pool (kolumbethra), which is called in Hebrew Bethesda ("house of mercy"), having five porticoes (stoa) - In the model above, note the columns which are synonymous with porticoes or porches (see picture of a colonnade). The pool has been discovered and excavated and measures 95 meters or 315 feet in length with a central partition dividing it into two sections. On the partition and on the four sides there are colonnades (porticoes), that represent the five porches John describes. THOUGHT - Do you still not believe the Word of God is really the Word of God? Here in John 5 we encounter another archaeological find which underscores the absolute veracity (verbal plenary inspiration) of the Word. And Jesus is the Word! Believe in Him and be saved forever. Amen. As Ripley said "Believe it (in Him) or not" but in this case both beliefs have eternal consequences! Jon Courson on sheep gate - The very location speaks of Judaism, of the law, of men's traditions—for it was through the sheep gate that sacrifices were brought into the city of Jerusalem. (See Jon Courson's Application Commentary - scroll up and down to show more text) Spurgeon's Exposition - This pool of Bethesda was rightly called “the house of mercy”; but it might have just as truly named “the house of misery”: for its “five porches” were the abode of many who were in misery, and who needed mercy. NET NOTE - The pool had five porticoes. These were covered walkways formed by rows of columns supporting a roof and open on the side facing the pool. People could stand, sit, or walk on these colonnaded porches, protected from the weather and the heat of the sun. Kostenberger on sheep gate has an interesting comment - In Jesus’ day, this apparently was a small opening in the north wall of the temple. The sheep were washed in the pool before being taken to the sanctuary. This was also the place where invalids lay in hopes of being healed. The upper class and those wishing to be ritually pure would have avoided this area, but not Jesus. Related Resources: Borrow The Jerusalem Jesus knew : an archaeological guide to the Gospels - Pool of Bethesda on page 60 Borrow The rediscovery of Bethesda, John 5:2 by Joachim Jeremias See Wikipedia - Pool of Bethesda Pool (2861)(kolumbethra from kolumbao = plunge into the sea) describes a place for swimming, a pool, a pond. It denotes a relatively large construction for containing water ‘pool’ (primarily used for bathing). It means a deep pool from underneath that comes bubbling (which does raise the possibility that the intermittent stirring of the pool was actually the effect of an underground spring occasionally erupting). Most uses are John 5 describes a "healing pool," with the one other use in Jn 9:7 referring to the "Pool of Siloam." Gilbrant - By derivation kolumbēthra denotes “a place for swimming” (see kolumbaō = to swim). In classical Greek the primary function of such a “swimming place” was for bathing. All the Biblical usages, however, refer to artificial “reservoirs” for storing water, particularly against times of drought or siege. Except for Ecclesiastes 2:6 and Nahum 2:8 (LXX 2:9) these were various pools in and around the city of Jerusalem (cf. 2 Kings 18:17 [LXX 4 Kings 18:17]; Nehemiah 2:14; 3:15,16; Isaiah 7:3; 22:9,11; 36:2). In the New Testament the word occurs only in John’s Gospel. John used it in recounting two of Jesus’ miracles—the healing of the lame man (5:2,4,7) and the healing of the man born blind (9:7,11). The first happened at a pool called “Bethesda,” which was by the “sheep market” and was connected with an intermittent water source. The second, “Siloam,” was where the man born blind washed his eyes to receive sight after Jesus smeared a mixture of clay and saliva on them." (Complete Biblical Library) Kolumbethra - 4v - Jn. 5:2; Jn. 5:4; Jn. 5:7; Jn. 9:7 - all translated pool. Kolumbethra in the Septuagint - 2 Ki. 18:17; Neh. 2:14; Neh. 3:15; Neh. 3:16; Eccl. 2:6; Isa. 7:3; Isa. 22:9; Isa. 22:11; Isa. 36:2; Nah. 2:8; Jn. 5:2; Jn. 5:7; Jn. 9:7 Porticoes (colonnade)(4745)(stoa) a pillar, column, roofed colonnade (an open space surrounded and supported by columns), porch, cloister. A roofed colonnade open normally on one side where people could stand, sit, or walk there and be protected from the weather and the heat of the sun. Thayer on stoa - "a portico, a covered colonnade where people can stand or walk protected from the weather and the heat of the sun.... a porch or portico built by Solomon in the eastern part of the temple (which in the temple's destruction by the Babylonians was left uninjured, and remained down to the times of king Agrippa, to whom the care of the temple was entrusted by the emperor Claudius, and who on account of its antiquity did not dare to demolish and build it anew; so Josephus relates, Antiquities 20, 9, 7." Compare Stoics (Acts 17:18), "philosophers of the porch." Gilbrant - The most familiar stoa in the New Testament was Solomon’s Porch, a roofed colonnade on the east side of the temple in Jerusalem. Left intact by the Babylonians when they razed the temple, it was incorporated into Herod’s rebuilt temple which existed in the time of Jesus. It was here that Jesus debated with the Jews concerning His sonship (John 10:23ff.) and Peter and John healed the lame man (Acts 3:11). The only other stoa mentioned in the New Testament was at the Pool of Bethesda in Jerusalem. According to John’s description it was surrounded by five “porches” (John 5:2), which has been verified in recent archaeological excavations near St. Stephen’s Gate and the Church of St. Anne (Complete Biblical Library). Wikipedia on Colonnade - In classical architecture, a colonnade is a long sequence of columns joined by their entablature, often free-standing, or part of a building.[1] Paired or multiple pairs of columns are normally employed in a colonnade which can be straight or curved. The space enclosed may be covered or open. In St. Peter's Square in Rome, Bernini's great colonnade encloses a vast open elliptical space. When in front of a building, screening the door (Latin porta), it is called a portico. When enclosing an open court, a peristyle. A portico may be more than one rank of columns deep, as at the Pantheon in Rome or the stoae of Ancient Greece. Stoa - 4x - Jn. 5:2; Jn. 10:23; Acts 3:11; Acts 5:12. Four uses in the Septuagint - 1 Ki. 6:33; Ezek. 40:18; Ezek. 42:3; Ezek. 42:5 Bethesda - ISBE - BETHESDA - be-thez'-da (Bethesda; Textus Receptus of the New Testament, Jn 5:2 (probably beth chicda', "house of mercy"); other forms occur as Bethzatha and Bethsaida): The only data we have is the statement in Jn 5:2-4: "Now there is in Jerusalem by the sheep gate a pool, which is called in Hebrew Bethesda, having five porches. In these lay a multitude of them that were sick, blind, halt, withered." Many ancient authorities add (as in the Revised Version, margin) "waiting for the moving of the water: for an angel of the Lord went down at certain seasons into the pool, and troubled the water," etc. The name does not help as to the site, no such name occurs elsewhere in Jerusalem; the mention of the sheep gate is of little assistance because the word "gate" is supplied, and even were it there, its site is uncertain. Sheep "pool" or "place" is at least as probable; the tradition about the "troubling of the water" (which may be true even if the angelic visitant may be of the nature of folk-lore) can receive no rational explanation except by the well-known phenomenon, by no means uncommon in Syria and always considered the work of a supernatural being, of an intermittent spring. The arrangement of the five porches is similar to that demonstrated by Dr. F. Bliss as having existed in Roman times as the Pool of Siloam; the story implies that the incident occurred outside the city walls, as to carry a bed on the Sabbath would not have been forbidden by Jewish traditional law. Bethesda - Wikipedia - The name of the pool is said to be derived from the Hebrew and/or Aramaic language. Beth hesda (בית חסד/חסדא), means either house of mercy[1] or house of grace. This meaning may have been thought appropriate, since the location was seen as a place of disgrace due to the presence of invalids, and as a place of grace due to the granting of healing.[2][3][4][5] Alternative renderings to the name Βηθεσδά (Bethesda),[6] appearing in manuscripts of the Gospel of John, include Βηθζαθά[7] (Beth-zatha = בית חדתא[8]), a derivative of Bezetha, and Bethsaida (not to be confused with Bethsaida, a town in Galilee), although the latter is considered to be a metathetical corruption by Biblical scholars.[9].....The Pool of Bethesda is a pool in Jerusalem known from the New Testament account of Jesus miraculously healing a paralysed man (AT BETHSEDA), from the fifth chapter of the Gospel of John, where it is described as being near the Sheep Gate, surrounded by five covered colonnades or porticoes. It is now associated with the site of a pool in the current Muslim Quarter of the city, near the gate now called the Lions' Gate or St. Stephen's Gate and the Church of St. Anne, that was excavated in the late 19th century.... ESV Study note on pool at Bethesda - there remains strong reason to identify this pool with a single large two-pool complex near the Sheep Gate in Jerusalem and adjacent to the modern Church of St. Anne. The two pools are separated from each other by a partition. The remains of columns found around this site help confirm that the partition between the pools, along with each of the four sides surrounding the pool complex, likely contained the five roofed colonnades (i.e., five stoas, which are covered walkways; a “colonnade” is a row of columns). A fifth-century Byzantine basilica was built over this site. (ESV Study Bible borrow) NET NOTE - Regarding the use of the present tense ἐστιν (estin) and its implications for the dating of the Gospel of John, see the article by D. B. Wallace,” John 5, 2 and the Date of the Fourth Gospel,” Bib 71 (1990): 177–205. See Dan Wallace's related article John 5:2 and the Date of the Fourth Gospel ... again NET NOTE - The site of the miracle is also something of a problem: προβατικῇ (probatikē) is usually taken as a reference to the Sheep Gate near the temple. Some (R. E. Brown and others) would place the word κολυμβήθρα (kolumbēthra) with προβατικῇ to read “in Jerusalem, by the Sheep Pool, there is (another pool) with the Hebrew name.” This would imply that there is reference to two pools in the context rather than only one. This does not seem necessary (although it is a grammatical possibility). The gender of the words does not help since both are feminine (as is the participle ἐπιλεγομένη [epilegomenē]). Note however that Brown’s suggestion would require a feminine word to be supplied (for the participle ἐπιλεγομένη to modify). The traditional understanding of the phrase as a reference to the Sheep Gate near the temple appears more probably correct. NET NOTE on Bethesda - Some MSS (א [L] 33 it) read Bethzatha, while others read Bethsaida (𝔓[66],75 B T Ws [Ψ] pc vg); codex D has Belzetha. A lot of controversy has surrounded the name of the pool itself: The reading of the Byzantine (or majority) text (A C Θ 078 f1, 13 𝔐), Bethesda, has been virtually discarded by scholars in favor of what is thought to be the more primitive Bethzatha, even though many recent translations continue to employ Bethesda, the traditional reading. The latter is attested by Josephus as the name of a quarter of the city near the northeast corner of the temple area. He reports that the Syrian Legate Cestius burned this suburb in his attack on Jerusalem in October A.D. 68 (J. W. 2.19.4 [2.530]). However, there is some new archaeological evidence for this problem. 3Q15 (Copper Scroll) from Qumran seems to indicate that in the general area of the temple, on the eastern hill of Jerusalem, a treasure was buried in Betʾ Esdatayin, in the pool at the entrance to the smaller basin. The name of the region or pool itself seems then to have been Bet ᾿Esda, “house of the flowing.” It appears with the dual ending in the scroll because there were two basins. Bethesda seems to be an accurate Greek rendition of the name, while J. T. Milik suggests Bethzatha is a rendition of the Aramaic intensive plural Betʾ Esdata (DJDJ 3, 271). As for the text of John 5:2, the fundamental problems with the Bethesda reading are that it looks motivated (with an edifying Semitic etymology, meaning “House of Mercy” [TCGNT 178]), and is minimally attested. Apart from the Copper Scroll, the evidence for Bethesda is almost entirely shut up to the Byzantine text (C being the most notable exception, but it often has Byzantine encroachments). On the one hand, this argues the Byzantine reading here had ancient, semitic roots; on the other hand, since both readings are attested as historically accurate, a decision has to be based on the better witnesses. The fact that there are multiple readings here suggests that the original was not well understood. Which reading best explains the rise of the others? It seems that Bethzatha is the best choice. NET NOTE - On the location of the pool called Bethzatha, the double-pool of St. Anne is the probable site, and has been excavated; the pools were trapezoidal in shape, 165 ft (49.5 m) wide at one end, 220 ft (66 m) wide at the other, and 315 ft (94.5 m) long, divided by a central partition. There were colonnades (rows of columns) on all 4 sides and on the partition, thus forming the five covered walkways mentioned in John 5:2. Stairways at the corners permitted descent to the pool. QUESTION - What happened at the Pool of Bethesda? ANSWER - The Pool of Bethesda was “in Jerusalem near the Sheep Gate” (John 5:2), which places it north of the temple, near Fort Antonia. John gives the additional detail that the pool was “surrounded by five covered colonnades.” During Jesus’ time, the Pool of Bethesda lay outside the city walls. It was at this pool that Jesus performed a miracle showing that He is greater than any human malady and that superstition and religious folklore are foolish and feeble substitutes for faith in God. The Pool of Bethesda was used in ancient times to provide water for the temple. The mention of the “Upper Pool” in 2 Kings 18:17 may be a reference to the Pool of Bethesda. Sometime during the Hasmonean Period, an additional pool was added to the original one. The name of the pool, “Bethesda,” is Aramaic. It means “House of Mercy.” John tells us that “a great number of disabled people used to lie [there]—the blind, the lame, the paralyzed” (John 5:3). The covered colonnades would have provided shade for the disabled who gathered there, but there was another reason for the popularity of the Pool of Bethesda. Legend had it that an angel would come down into the pool and “stir up the water.” The first person into the pool after the stirring of the water “was made well from whatever disease with which he was afflicted” (John 5:4, NAS). The Bible does not teach that this actually happened—John 5:4 is not included in most modern translations because it is unlikely to be original to the text—rather, the superstitious belief probably arose because of the pool’s association with the nearby temple. On the day that Jesus visited the Pool of Bethesda, there was a man there who “had been an invalid for thirty-eight years” (John 5:5). Jesus asked the man if he wanted to be healed. The man replied, “I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me” (verse 7). Obviously, the man believed the urban legend about the stirring of the water. He blamed the fact that he was never healed on his tardiness in getting into the water. Jesus swept aside all superstition and bypassed altogether the need for magic water with one command: “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk” (John 5:8). The man was instantly cured, and “he picked up his mat and walked” (verse 9). The man did not need quicker reflexes or beneficent angels or enchanted water. The man needed Jesus. Amazingly, not everyone was happy about the man’s miraculous healing. The day Jesus healed the man at the poolside happened to be a Sabbath. As the man left Bethesda, the Jewish leaders saw him carrying his mat, and they stopped him: “It is the Sabbath,” they said. “The law forbids you to carry your mat” (John 5:10). The man told them that he was simply obeying orders: “The man who made me well said to me, ‘Pick up your mat and walk’” (verse 11). The Jews inquired who would so brazenly promote Law-breaking, but “the man who was healed had no idea who it was, for Jesus had slipped away into the crowd” (verse 13). The reaction of the Jewish leaders shows that, no matter how much proof God provides, there will be some people who refuse to see the truth. Jesus was a bona fide Miracle Worker, but the religious leaders couldn’t see the miracle. All they could see was that someone had violated a rule. The issue was not the breaking of God’s command, for Jesus fulfilled the Law and was completely subject to it (Matthew 5:17). The only thing being broken was a pharisaical interpretation of one of God’s laws. So, a blessing meant to increase faith only increased the blindness of those who refused to acknowledge the blessing. The postscript to the story reveals that the man who was physically healed still needed some spiritual healing. “Later Jesus found him at the temple and said to him, ‘See, you are well again. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you’” (John 5:14). Jesus’ words are a rebuke of an unnamed sin—the man was living contrary to God’s will somehow—and a warning of “something worse.” What could be worse than thirty-eight years of paralysis? How about an eternity in hell (see Mark 9:47)? Now that the man knew who Jesus was, he returned to the Jewish leaders and told them “it was Jesus who had made him well” (John 5:15). It is likely that the man did this in praise of Jesus, to magnify the glory due His name, and also from a sense of obligation—he had been asked a question and felt he should respond with the answer, once he had it. Little did he anticipate the reaction the leaders would have: “So, because Jesus was doing these things on the Sabbath, the Jewish leaders began to persecute him” (verse 16). The Pool of Bethesda was the focus of a local legend about healing, but Jesus showed that faith in legends and superstition is misplaced. In contrast, faith in Jesus Christ—the One who can heal with a simple word, the Savior who can forgive any sin, the true Master of the “House of Mercy”—is never misplaced.GotQuestions.org John 5:3 In these lay a multitude of those who were sick, blind, lame, and withered, [waiting for the moving of the waters] BGT John 5:3 ἐν ταύταις κατέκειτο πλῆθος τῶν ἀσθενούντων, τυφλῶν, χωλῶν, ξηρῶν. KJV John 5:3 In these lay a great multitude of impotent folk, of blind, halt, withered, waiting for the moving of the water. NET John 5:3 A great number of sick, blind, lame, and paralyzed people were lying in these walkways. CSB John 5:3 Within these lay a large number of the sick-- blind, lame, and paralyzed [-- waiting for the moving of the water, ESV John 5:3 In these lay a multitude of invalids-- blind, lame, and paralyzed. NIV John 5:3 Here a great number of disabled people used to lie--the blind, the lame, the paralyzed. NLT John 5:3 Crowds of sick people-- blind, lame, or paralyzed-- lay on the porches. NRS John 5:3 In these lay many invalids-- blind, lame, and paralyzed. of blind: Mt 15:30 Lu 7:22 withered: 1Ki 13:4 Zec 11:17 Mk 3:1-4 waiting: Pr 8:34 La 3:26 Ro 8:25 Jas 5:7 John 5 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries A CROWDED POOL OF PATHETIC SOULS In these lay a multitude ("great multitude" - plethos) of those who were sick (astheneo), blind (tuphlos), lame (cholos), and withered (xeros) - In these refers to the 5 porticoes (or porches) on which sick were strewn out hoping for a healing. This was a sad, pathetic sight of a great multitude of sick humanity waiting and hoping for an opportunity to be healed. It should not be surprising that many writers (see Spurgeon below) apply these literal pictures (sick, blind, etc) to the spiritual condition of the "great multitude" of all mankind who are not just "sin sick" but literally spiritually "dead in their trespasses and sins." (Eph 2:1+). As an aside "sick (astheneo), blind (tuphlos), lame (cholos), and withered (xeros)" is not just a description of the souls gathered around the pool, but a picture of the spiritual state of the entire Jewish nation! The irony is that those around the pool knew they were sick, but many if not most of the nation (especially the religious group) did not know they were "sick!" The practical application is to remember that the healing good news of the Gospel is most efficacious in the hearts of those who know and acknowledge their soul's sin sickness! Ron Teed - At this time there was no provision for the poor who were sick. There were no hospitals they could go to in order to receive treatment, so they were on their own. They came to this particular pool because it was reported to provide miracle cures. That was the only hope they had. ILLUSTRATION - But invalids were probably not the only people drawn to this site. Think about the times in our lifetime when supposed miracles have been reported. What has been the response to such miracles by the public? They have flocked to the places where the miracles were reported to have taken place. One example that comes to mind is the woman in California some years ago who reported having received revelations from Saint Joseph. It was not long before crowds began to gather outside of her home. People even came from other countries just to be near the place where these miracles were reported to have taken place. Soon people were buying any house that was for sale near hers so they could be close to where the miracle occurred. There were even reports of armed guards required to protect the shrine that was built to Saint Joseph not far from her home. (Hughes, Kent, Preaching the Word, John 5:1-18.) Charles Swindoll writes that "When Jesus earlier cleansed the temple (John 2:13-22), He claimed ownership of Judaism’s most visible symbol. His purpose was to restore worship. Here, on His next visit to Jerusalem, He claimed ownership of Judaism’s most treasured institution: the Sabbath. His purpose on this occasion was to restore grace. When Jesus arrived in Jerusalem, He apparently visited the sanitarium that lay in the shadow of the great temple built by Herod. The temple authorities, especially the Pharisees among them, would never have entered the place and probably rebuked any Jew who did.....Generally accepted theology held that illness was the result of God’s judgment for sin (Jn 9:2); he would not have found much sympathy in the temple. (BORROW Insights on John or see Insights on John scroll up and down for more text) (bolding added) Spurgeon's Exposition - Invalid persons, diseased, and scarcely able to move. What a sight for the Great Physician (Jehovah Rapha) to look upon! The whole world must have been to Him like one huge hospital, full of “impotent folk, blind, halt withered.” Wherever he went, he was surrounded by the sick, and sad, and suffering, those who were afflicted physically, mentally, and spiritually. But there was a special reason for the gathering together of so many sufferers at the pool of Bethesda. (See his exposition - scroll down after his sermon Impotence and Omnipotence) In Spurgeon's sermon Jesus at Bethsheda he asked his audience "to go with me to the pool with the five porches, around which the sick are lying. Walk tenderly amongst the groups of lame and blind! Nay, do not close your eyes. It will do you good to see the sorrowful sight, to mark what sin has done and to what sorrows our father Adam has made us heirs. Why are they all here? They are here because sometimes the waters bubble up with a healing virtue. Whether visibly stirred by an angel or not it is not necessary for us here to discuss; but it was generally believed that an angel descended and touched the water—this rumour attracted the sick from all quarters. As soon as the stir was seen in the waters, the whole mass probably leaped into the pool—those who could not leap themselves were pushed in by their attendants. Alas! how small the result! Many were disappointed; only one was rewarded for the leap; whosoever first stepped in was healed, but only the first. For the poor and meagre chance of winning this cure the sick folk lingered in Bethesda’s arches year after year. The impotent man in the narrative had most likely spent the better part of his thirty-eight years in waiting at this famous pool, buoyed up by the slender hope that he might one day be first of the throng. On the Sabbath mentioned in the text, the angel had not come to him, but something better had come, for Jesus Christ, the angel’s Master was there. Spurgeon on waiting (albeit not in best manuscripts) - Now, I commend this man for waiting; I admire him for his patience and his perseverance; but I beg you not to make his case your own. He waited, for Jesus was not there. You may not wait, you must not wait; for Jesus is here. There was necessity for him to wait. As I have told you, there was an angel and a pool, and nothing more; but where Christ is, there should be no waiting. Any soul that believes in Christ to-night will be saved to-night. Any soul that looks to Christ to-night shall be saved, even though he looks from the ends of the earth. Thou mayest look now; nay, thou art commanded so to do. “Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” “Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation.” There, in that pew, or in yonder aisles, if you turn your eye by faith to Jesus, the Living One on the throne of the Highest, you shall obtain immediate cure. Waiting is all very well at the pool of Bethesda; but waiting at the pool of ordinances, as I have heard some say, is not according to the Scriptures. I read nothing about waiting there; but I do read this, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.” TECHNICAL NOTES: [Waiting for the moving of the waters] - This phrase and all of verse 4 are not accepted by most sources are genuine writings in the original Greek manuscripts. Bratcher - In TEV the last half of verse 3 and all of verse 4 are included in a footnote, indicating that these verses do not appear in the earliest and best Greek manuscripts. It seems likely that this part of the text was added by some ancient scribe as a kind of marginal note, explaining why the sick people gathered about the pool and how they reacted when the water was stirred up (perhaps by an underground stream that flowed in from time to time). This explanation probably represents a popular belief held by the people of that day, that is, that the stirring up of the water was caused by an angel of the Lord, and that whoever should be the first sick person to go down into the pool after the water was stirred up was healed from whatever disease he had. (UBS Handbook - John) NET NOTE - The majority of later manuscripts (C3 Θ Ψ 078 f1, 13 𝔐) add the following to Jn 5:3-4: “waiting for the moving of the water. 4 For an angel of the Lord went down and stirred up the water at certain times. Whoever first stepped in after the stirring of the water was healed from whatever disease which he suffered.” Other manuscripts include only Jn 5:3b (Ac D 33 lat) or Jn 5:4 (A L it). Few textual scholars today would accept the authenticity of any portion of Jn 5:3b–4, for they are not found in the earliest and best witnesses (𝔓66, 75 א B C* T pc co), they include un-Johannine vocabulary and syntax, several of the manuscripts that include the verses mark them as spurious (with an asterisk or obelisk), and because there is a great amount of textual diversity among the witnesses that do include the verses. The present translation follows NA27 in omitting the verse number, a procedure also followed by a number of other modern translations. ILLUSTRATION from J
João 5
Wiersbe comments that Jesus "asked him if he wanted to be healed. You would think that the man would have responded with an enthusiastic, "Yes! I want to be healed!" But, instead, he began to give excuses! He had been in that sad condition for so long that his will was as paralyzed as his body. But if you compare John 5:6 with John 5:40, you will see that Jesus had a spiritual lesson in mind as well. Indeed, this man did illustrate the tragic spiritual state of the nation (ED: THEY WERE UNWILLING TO COME! cf Jn 1:11) (Bible Exposition Commentary) Frédéric Louis Godet comments on Do you wish to get well - Jesus endeavors thus, as Lange says, to draw the sick man from the dark discouragement in which this long and useless waiting had plunged him, and to reanimate hope within him. At the same time, Jesus by means of this question wishes to turn away His thought from the means of healing on which it was exclusively fixed, and to give him a perception of a new means, the living Being Who is to become for him the true Bethesda Comp. the similar words of Peter to the impotent man, Acts 3:4+ “Look (aorist imperative) at us.” Faith, awakened by his look fixed upon Him Who is speaking to him, will be, as it were, the channel through which the force from above will penetrate within him. (John 5 Commentary) Spurgeon -Jesus, having looked upon this man with a special eye of regard, said to him, “Wilt thou be made whole?” I have already hinted that this was not said because Christ wanted information, but because he wished to arouse the man’s attention. On account of its being the Sabbath, the man was not thinking of being cured, for to the Jew it seemed a most unlikely thing that cures should be wrought on a Sabbath day. (Jesus at Bethsheda) Jon Courson - To whom did Jesus come? Not to those closest to the edge of the pool, but to the one who was clear at the back, farthest out of the way. He came not to the aggressor, the initiator, the leader—but to the one who was the least competitive of them all. (See Jon Courson's Application Commentary - scroll up and down to show more text) David Thompson - Dr. H. A. Ironside said, “We are all like these impotent people gathered by the pool.” We have all been sick in sin and blind to God. We cannot in and of ourselves walk tall and straight in the righteous ways of God. This is God’s verdict of us all that we are sick, blind, lame and withered by sin and none of us are in any position to debate with God about this point. We were all spiritually dry and dead and that is exactly the kind of person Jesus Christ loves to touch. There is a fountain that can heal any sinner from their sins. It is a fountain filled with blood drawn from Immanuel’s veins, and sinners plunged beneath that flood lose all their guilty stains. Spurgeon on knew that he had already been a long time - Concerning the man at the pool, Jesus knew that he had been a long time in that case. He knows the years that you have been waiting. You remember being carried to the house of God by your mother. You recollect, as a boy, listening to sermons that seemed to startle you; and you went home to your little bedroom, and cried to God for mercy; but you forgot your impressions. They were like the morning mist, that vanishes in the rising sun. You came to London; you grew up to be a man; you became careless about divine things; you shook off all your early impressions. Still, you went to hear the Word preached, and oftentimes you half hoped that you might get a blessing. You heard the Word; but faith was not mixed with what you heard, so you missed the blessing. Yet still, you always had a wish that it should come to you. You never could despise godly people, or the things of Christ. You could not get them for yourself; at least, you thought you could not; but you always had some lingering wish that you were numbered with the people of God. Now, the Lord Jesus knows all about that, and the many years in which you have been waiting as a hearer; but a hearer only, and not a doer of the Word; impressed at times, but doing violence to your better feelings, and going back to a careless life. My Lord knows all about you. I cannot pick you out in this congregation; but remember, while I am preaching to-night, miracles will be wrought; processes which will change the very nature of men are going on within this house; for Christ is being preached, and his gospel is being set forth, and this is not done, with prayerful earnestness, in vain. God will bless it; he is going to bless somebody to-night. Who that somebody may be, or how many hundred somebodies there will be, I cannot guess; but he will bless his own Word, and why should he not bless you? He sees just who you are, and where you are, and what you are. QUESTION - Why did Jesus ask the man at the Pool of Bethesda, “Do you want to be made well?” (John 5:6)? ANSWER - The apostle John records a select number of signs or miracles that help demonstrate who Jesus is and the importance of believing in Him for eternal life (John 20:30–31). These miracles showed Jesus’ authority—an authority that only the Creator could have. In recounting one of these remarkable miracles, John records that Jesus asks an infirm man at the Pool of Bethesda, “Do you want to be made well?” (John 5:6, NKJV). On a Sabbath during a feast of the Jews (John 5:1, 9, 16), Jesus sought out a man who had been sick and unable to walk for thirty-eight years (John 5:5). This man was part of a multitude of those with severe ailments who would wait by the Pool of Bethesda in hopes of being healed (John 5:3–4). Jesus knew that this man had been there a long time in that condition, and He asked the man at the Pool of Bethesda, “Do you want to be made well?” Obviously, the man wanted to be made well physically. The man’s being at that location was an indicator of that desire. So, when Jesus asked the man, “Do you want to be made well?” He wasn’t asking the man simply about his physical well-being. Jesus also cared for the man’s spiritual well-being. Before resolving the spiritual or the physical problems the man was dealing with, Jesus had this man think about his need. The sick man responds that he had no one to put him in the pool—thought to have healing powers—at the right time. In his mind, he had no means to resolve his problem. The man acknowledged that he needed help (John 5:7). After the man admitted his own inability, Jesus gives him an incredible direction: “Get up, pick up your pallet and walk” (John 5:8NASB). Immediately—even before the man could obey the command—the man was healed. Immediately after that, the man did what Jesus had directed him to do: “He picked up his mat and walked” (John 5:9). Those who saw the man carrying his bedding on the Sabbath argued that it was not lawful for him to do that (John 5:10). The man responded that he was carrying his mat at the instruction of the man who had healed him (John 5:11). In this, the man most likely recognized that, because Jesus had demonstrated power over nature, Jesus must also have authority over the Sabbath. Later, Jesus found the man again and told him, “See, you are well again. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you” (John 5:14). With these words, Jesus was continuing to teach this man that there is more to wellness than physical health. The man seemed to understand that Jesus’ question “Do you want to be made well?” was about more than physical wellness, because, when Jesus found the man again, the man was in the temple (John 5:14). This miracle shows Jesus’ authority and identity. It illustrates that He is indeed the One in whom we believe for eternal life. It also can help remind us that true wellness is about much more than physical health. If Jesus were to ask us, “Do you want to be made well?” would we recognize, like the man at the Pool of Bethesda, that we can’t resolve our problems ourselves? Would we look to Him as this man did? GotQuestions.org Hope Restored When Jesus saw him lying there . . . , he asked him, “Do you want to get well?” John 5:6 Today's Scripture & Insight: John 5:1–8 Does the sun rise in the east? Is the sky blue? Is the ocean salty? Is the atomic weight of cobalt 58.9? Okay, that last one you might only know if you’re a science geek or tend to dabble in trivia, but the other questions have an obvious answer: Yes. In fact, questions like these are usually mixed with a hint of sarcasm. If we’re not careful, our modern—sometimes jaded—ears can hear a bit of sarcasm in Jesus’s question to an invalid: “Do you want to get well?” (John 5:6). The obvious answer would seem to be, “Are you kidding me?! I’ve been wanting help for thirty-eight years!” But there’s no sarcasm present, that’s the furthest thing from the truth. Jesus’s voice is always filled with compassion, and His questions are always posed for our good. In what ways has your hope grown cold? How has Jesus revealed His compassion to you? Jesus, there are places in my life where hope has grown weak and cold, or even dead. You know this. You also know I want to hope again, I truly do. Restore to me the joy of hope, a hope born by trusting You. Becoming Whole Do you want to be made well? — John 5:6 Today's Scripture: John 5:1-9 John Steinbeck’s Pulitzer prizewinning novel The Grapes of Wrath begins with a scene in drought-ravaged Oklahoma during the Great Depression. With the crops dying and the land choked by dust, the women watched the men to see if they would break under the strain. When they saw the men’s will to carry on, they took heart. Steinbeck writes, “Women and children knew deep in themselves that no misfortune was too great to bear if their men were whole.” The issue was not happiness, prosperity, or satisfaction, but wholeness. This is the great need of us all. In the King James Version of the Bible, the word whole is often used to describe Jesus’ work of physical healing. When the Lord encountered a man who had been an invalid for 38 years, He asked, “Wilt thou be made whole?” (John 5:5-6 kjv). After Jesus healed the man, He challenged him to also embrace spiritual wholeness: “See, you have been made well. Sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you” (v.14). I thank Thee for Thy precious Word Where Thou didst make me see My sinful self, my helpless soul, Made whole by trusting Thee. —Anon. Only Jesus can give wholeness to a broken life. Not Just A Victim When Jesus saw him lying there, . . . He said to him, "Do you want to be made well?". — John 5:6 Today's Scripture: John 5:1-9 David Gelernter suffered permanent injuries when he opened an explosive package sent by the man known as the Unabomber. But he has refused to view himself as a helpless victim or to wallow in self-pity. Gelernter writes, “When you encourage a man to see himself as a victim of anything —crime, poverty, bigotry, bad luck—you are piling bricks on his chest.” The tendency to see oneself as a victim of life’s injustices is widespread today. It’s easy for all of us to feel that our misfortunes have somehow deprived us of the opportunity or the will to become the kind of people we long to be. I have often pondered the question Jesus asked the man lying by the pool of Bethesda: “Do you want to be made well?” (Jn. 5:6). The man answered with an excuse that was overpowered by the command of Christ: “Rise, take up your bed, and walk” (v.8). Say not, "The days are evil. Who's to blame?" And fold the hand and acquiesce—oh, shame! Stand up, speak out, and bravely, in God's name, Be strong! —Babcock We need not be victims, because Christ is the victor. John 5:7 The sick man answered Him, "Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, but while I am coming, another steps down before me." BGT John 5:7 ἀπεκρίθη αὐτῷ ὁ ἀσθενῶν· κύριε, ἄνθρωπον οὐκ ἔχω ἵνα ὅταν ταραχθῇ τὸ ὕδωρ βάλῃ με εἰς τὴν κολυμβήθραν· ἐν ᾧ δὲ ἔρχομαι ἐγώ, ἄλλος πρὸ ἐμοῦ καταβαίνει. KJV John 5:7 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. NET John 5:7 The sick man answered him, "Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up. While I am trying to get into the water, someone else goes down there before me." CSB John 5:7 "Sir," the sick man answered, "I don't have a man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, but while I'm coming, someone goes down ahead of me." ESV John 5:7 The sick man answered him, "Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, and while I am going another steps down before me." NIV John 5:7 "Sir," the invalid replied, "I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me." NLT John 5:7 "I can't, sir," the sick man said, "for I have no one to put me into the pool when the water bubbles up. Someone else always gets there ahead of me." NRS John 5:7 The sick man answered him, "Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; and while I am making my way, someone else steps down ahead of me." NJB John 5:7 'Sir,' replied the sick man, 'I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is disturbed; and while I am still on the way, someone else gets down there before me.' NAB John 5:7 The sick man answered him, "Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; while I am on my way, someone else gets down there before me." YLT John 5:7 The ailing man answered him, 'Sir, I have no man, that, when the water may be troubled, he may put me into the pool, and while I am coming, another doth go down before me.' I have: De 32:36 Ps 72:12 142:4 Ro 5:6 2Co 1:8-10 before: Jn 5:4 1Co 9:24 John 5 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries MAN'S CONDITION PREVENTS ENTRY INTO POOL Notice that Jesus asked him a specific question, but he does not give a direct answer. He in essence gives an excuse. His focus is on the pool and how he can get into the pool before others. He is unaware that the Healer is standing before him! The sick (astheneo) man answered Him, "Sir, I have no man to put (ballo - "throw") me into the pool (kolumbethra) when the water is stirred up (tarasso - "bubbles up" - NLT) - Sir is kurios which is found over 665x in the Bible and is usually translated "Lord," but in this context it is clear the paralytic does not recognize that he is speaking to the Lord, much like the Samaritan woman and the Royal official (kurios usee in Jn 4:11, 15, 19+ Jn 4:49). Jn 5:13 underscores the fact that this man did not know Who Jesus word so that his use of "kurios" was as a polite address. It would be reasonable to see the invalid man now viewing Jesus as just the Man Who might be able to help him get into the pool first. 456 consecutive months of waiting; 13,680 days getting beat to the water!
João 5
Wiersbe - He commanded the man to do the very thing he was unable to do, but in His command was the power of fulfillment (see Mark 3:5; Heb. 4:12). (Bible Exposition Commentary)
João 5
Wiersbe has a more middle of the road comment - It is not easy to understand the relationship between this man and Jesus. There is no evidence that he believed on Christ and was converted, yet we cannot say that he was opposed to the Saviour. In fact, he did not even know who it was that healed him until Jesus met him in the temple. No doubt the man went there to give thanks to God and to offer the appropriate sacrifices. It seems strange that the man did not actively seek a closer relationship with the One who healed him (ED: IN FACT WHO GOES TO REPORT HIM TO THE JEWS!!!), but more than one person has gratefully accepted the gift and ignored the Giver. (Bible Exposition Commentary) Henry
João 5
Wiersbe - The scribes had listed thirty-nine tasks that were prohibited on the Sabbath, and carrying a burden was one of them. Instead of rejoicing at the wonderful deliverance of the man, the religious leaders condemned him for carrying his bed and thereby breaking the law. (Bible Exposition Commentary) (ED: Someone has written that prohibition against bearing a burden even included one could not wear a wooden leg or even false teeth!) The Jews (Ioudaios) were saying to the man who was cured (therapeuo in perfect tense - lasting effect), "It is the Sabbath (sabbaton), and it is not (ouk = absolutely not) permissible (lawful - exesti) for you to carry your pallet." -The Jews here are not Jews in general but those leading Jews in opposition to Jesus, the "religious authorities." Were saying is in the picturesque imperfect tense (over and over, again and again), depicting the Jewish authorities, one after another, saying "Sabbath! Sabbath! Sabbath! No! No! No!" The Law of Moses said nothing about forbidding carrying something like his bedroll, but the tradition of the Jews made it strictly forbidden! As was typical of legalism, they focused on the letter of the Law (but even then superimposed ungodly hair-splitting distinctions and rabbinical restrictions) and missed the spirit of of the Law! These religious experts may have had Jeremiah 17:21 in mind for it says "Thus says the LORD, “Take heed for yourselves, and do not carry any load on the sabbath day or bring anything in through the gates of Jerusalem." If so, they took the passage out of context for Jeremiah was accusing the Jews of treating the sabbath as a regular business day, like any other day of the week. (Cf Neh 13:19). For the Pharisees the Sabbath was a day of idleness, but for the Lord it was a day of work, that He might do the work of His Father Who sent Him (John 5:17, 30, 36; 6:38; 8:29; cf. Ps. 40:8; Isa. 61:1-3; Mt. 3:15; Jn 4:34). Robertson on to carry your pallet - Carrying burdens was considered unlawful on the Sabbath (Exodus 23:12; Neh. 13:19; Jeremiah 17:21). Stoning was the rabbinical punishment. The healing of the man was a minor detail. (John 5 Commentary) Read some of the ridiculous teachings of the Mishnah, Shabbat 7.2. They had taken the Sabbath—God's gift to man— and had transformed it into a prison house of regulations and restrictions Warren Wiersbe - Jesus had healed a demoniac on the Sabbath (Luke 4:31-37+), so the Sanhedrin was already suspicious. In the days following the miracle recorded in John 5, Jesus would defend His disciples for picking grain on the Sabbath (Matt. 12:1-8+), and would heal a man's withered hand on the Sabbath (Matt. 12:9-14). He deliberately challenged the legalistic traditions of the scribes and Pharisees. They had taken the Sabbath—God's gift to man—and had transformed it into a prison house of regulations and restrictions. (Bible Exposition Commentary) John
João 5
Wiersbe - Did the man "inform" on Jesus because of fear? We do not know. The Jewish leaders at least turned from him and aimed their accusations at Jesus Christ; and, unlike the healed blind man in John 9, this man was not excommunicated. (Bible Exposition Commentary) John 5:16 For this reason the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because He was doing these things on the Sabbath. BGT John 5:16 καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ἐδίωκον οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι τὸν Ἰησοῦν, ὅτι ταῦτα ἐποίει ἐν σαββάτῳ. KJV John 5:16 And therefore did the Jews persecute Jesus, and sought to slay him, because he had done these things on the sabbath day. NET John 5:16 Now because Jesus was doing these things on the Sabbath, the Jewish leaders began persecuting him. CSB John 5:16 Therefore, the Jews began persecuting Jesus because He was doing these things on the Sabbath. ESV John 5:16 And this was why the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because he was doing these things on the Sabbath. NIV John 5:16 So, because Jesus was doing these things on the Sabbath, the Jews persecuted him. NLT John 5:16 So the Jewish leaders began harassing Jesus for breaking the Sabbath rules. NRS John 5:16 Therefore the Jews started persecuting Jesus, because he was doing such things on the sabbath. persecuting: Jn 15:20 Ac 9:4,5 because He was doing these things on the Sabbath: Jn 5:13 7:19,20,25 10:39 Mt 12:13 Mk 3:6 Lu 6:11 John 5 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries PERSECUTING THE "SABBATH BREAKER" For this reason - A clear term of conclusion. What is the conclusion? The Jews (Ioudaios - see note) were persecuting (dioko) Jesus (Ioudaios) - NLT = "Harassing." This is John's first mention of persecution of Jesus (John 7:1, 19-20, 25-26, 30, 32, 44, 45; Jn 8:37, 40, 59; Jn 11:8, 53, 57). Were persecuting is a good translation for the verb dioko is in the vivid imperfect tense picturing this action over and over, again and again they continued to persecute Him. They are after the blood of Jesus like the bloodhounds chasing after the foxes! As you can see on the chart above, this event marks the beginning of ever increasing persecution and hatred of Jesus by the Jewish leadership which culminates in the Cross. A T
João 5
Wiersbe - Jesus described the resurrection of lost sinners into eternal life (see Jn 5:24-25; Ep 2:1-10). The lost sinner is as lifeless and helpless as a corpse. No matter how an undertaker may prepare a corpse, it is still dead; and no corpse is "deader" than any other corpse. If you are dead, you are dead! The lost sinner is helpless to save himself and he certainly cannot give himself life. How are dead sinners raised from the dead? By hearing God's Word and believing on God's Son. Jesus healed the paralyzed man at the pool by His word (Jn 5:8). Each time He raised somebody from the dead, He spoke the word (Lk 7:11-17; 8:49-56; John 11:41-44). His Word is "living and powerful" (Heb. 4:12) and can raise sinners from spiritual death. "Everlasting life" means that they can never die spiritually again, nor can they ever come into judgment (Ro 8:1). To hear His Word and believe means salvation; to reject His Word means condemnation (John 12:48). (Borrow Be alive John 1-12: Get to Know the Living Savior) Michaels has an interesting note on the meaning of hear - The verb “to hear” is used differently in different pronouncements. In Jn 5:24, one must not only “hear” the word (ἀκουεῖν with the accusative), but also “believe” what is said (πιστεύειν with the dative). In Jn 5:25, to “hear” the Son of God’s voice (ἀκουεῖν with the genitive) means to take heed, or to hear and obey, implying belief. In vv. 28–29, all who are physically dead will “hear his voice” (again ἀκουεῖν with the genitive), but this time “hear” does not necessarily imply belief, for not all will attain a “resurrection of life” (v. 29) (Borrow The Gospel of John) COMPARISON OF THE RESURRECTIONS IN Jn 5:25 AND Jn 5:28-29 LIFE FROM DEATH SPIRITUAL RESURRECTION LIFE AFTER DEATH PHYSICAL RESURRECTION An hour is coming and now is An hour is coming The dead All who are in the tombs Will hear the voice Will hear His voice Those who hear will live And will come forth See also flow chart below by Charles Swindoll John 5:26 "For just as the Father has life in Himself, even so He gave to the Son also to have life in Himself; BGT John 5:26 ὥσπερ γὰρ ὁ πατὴρ ἔχει ζωὴν ἐν ἑαυτῷ, οὕτως καὶ τῷ υἱῷ ἔδωκεν ζωὴν ἔχειν ἐν ἑαυτῷ. KJV John 5:26 For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself; NET John 5:26 For just as the Father has life in himself, thus he has granted the Son to have life in himself, CSB John 5:26 For just as the Father has life in Himself, so also He has granted to the Son to have life in Himself. ESV John 5:26 For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself. NIV John 5:26 For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son to have life in himself. NLT John 5:26 The Father has life in himself, and he has granted that same life-giving power to his Son. NRS John 5:26 For just as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself; NJB John 5:26 For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself; NAB John 5:26 For just as the Father has life in himself, so also he gave to his Son the possession of life in himself. YLT John 5:26 for, as the Father hath life in himself, so He gave also to the Son to have life in himself, has life: Ex 3:14 Ps 36:9 90:2 Jer 10:10 Ac 17:25 1Ti 1:17 6:16 even so: Jn 1:4 Jn 4:10 Jn 7:37,38 Jn 8:51 Jn 11:26 Jn 14:6,19 Jn 17:2,3 1Co 15:45 Col 3:3,4 1Jn 1:1-3 Rev 7:17 21:6 22:1,17 John 5 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries Related Passages: Exodus 3:14+ God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM” (LIFE IN HIMSELF!); and He said, “Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’” John 8:51 “Truly, truly (amen, amen), I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he will never see death.” (NOTE HOW ONE ELEMENT OF GENUINE BELIEF IS KEEPING JESUS' WORD.) John 11:25-26 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?” John 14:6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me. John 17:2; 3 even as You gave Him authority over all flesh, that to all whom You have given Him, He may give eternal life. 3 “This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. 1 John 1:1-3 What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the Word of Life– 2 and the life was manifested, and we have seen and testify and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was manifested to us– 3 what we have seen and heard we proclaim to you also, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ. JESUS GIVER OF LIFE For (gar - Term of explanation) For indicates that this verse explains the previous verse - how a person can receive life from Jesus. Christ can give eternal life because He Himself possesses life. He not only has a part in giving it, He is the Source of it. This is another testimony to Jesus’ deity, because only God has life in Himself (Jn 17:2-3 Col 3:3-4).. Just as the Father (pater) has (present tense = continually has) life (zoe) in Himself (cf Ex 3:14+), even so He gave to the Son also to have life in Himself - Once again note the phrases just as....even so which emphasize the equality and oneness between the Father and the Son. This declaration by Jesus echoes the opening words of John's gospel that point out that "In Him (THE WORD = JESUS) was life, and the life was the Light of men." (Jn 1:4+) The Jewish leaders knew what Jesus was claiming by His possessing life like His Father, and it is similar to those times with when He referred to Himself as "I Am." To use a theological term, Jesus was saying that He was Self-existent or possessed aseity! A T Robertson on in Himself - The Living God possesses life wholly in himself and so he has bestowed this power of life to the Son as already stated in the Prologue of the Logos (John 1:3). (Word Pictures of the New Testament) John
João 5
Wiersbe - The grave could not hold Him because He is "the Prince of Life" (Acts 2:24; Acts 3:15). Jesus laid down His life and then took it up again (John 10:17-18). Because He has life in Himself, He can share that life with all who will trust Him. (Borrow Be alive John 1-12: Get to Know the Living Savior) QUESTION - What is the aseity of God? ANSWER - The aseity of God is His attribute of independent self-existence. God is the uncaused Cause, the uncreated Creator. He is the source of all things, the One who originated everything and who sustains everything that exists. The aseity of God means that He is the One in whom all other things find their source, existence, and continuance. He is the ever-present Power that sustains all life. There is no other source of life and none other like Him: “For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me” (Isaiah 46:9). The aseity of God is expressed in Exodus 3:14. When Moses asked the Lord about His name, God replied, “I AM WHO I AM.” God is the eternally self-existent Being who always was and always will be. The aseity of God is related to His complete independence. God has no need. He is complete in and of Himself and always has been. God did not create man because He was lonely or because He needed to create. He is and always has been complete and self-sufficient in and of Himself. God’s name I AM embodies the concept of God’s eternality and immutability, both of which are linked to His aseity. God is eternal (Psalm 90:2). He did not have a beginning. He has always been. God is unchangeable (Malachi 3:6; James 1:17), always the same yesterday, today, and forever. He will be what He is forever. All of God’s attributes—His love, power, wisdom, etc.—are eternal and unchanging. They are as they have always been and will never be any different. God’s aseity assures us that His autonomy is absolute. He alone decides what to do, and nothing can ever thwart His purpose to keep His promises. What He promises to do, He will do. What He predicts will come to pass. When God says, “My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please” (Isaiah 46:10), He is emphasizing His aseity and sovereignty. Jesus Christ, being God in flesh, shares the aseity of God with the Father. Jesus claimed the name I AM for Himself (John 8:58; 18:6). Speaking of Jesus, Paul declares, “In him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together” (Colossians 1:16–17). Jesus is not a created being. He came to earth as God in flesh and after His resurrection ascended back into heaven to take His rightful place as Creator of the universe. In the Old Testament, God declared to the Israelites that He is “the First and the Last” (Isaiah 44:6b). Jesus made the same declaration about Himself in Revelation 1:17. Because of the aseity of God, we can depend upon Him as the independent One who is able to deliver, protect, and keep those who trust in Him. Those whom God has purposed for salvation will come to Christ, and nothing can hinder them: “All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away” (John 6:37). If we understand the biblical doctrine of the aseity of God, we will be kept from the error of thinking that God is finite, that He grows weary, or that He will ever be insufficient to meet our needs (see Psalm 23:1).GotQuestions.org John 5:27 and He gave Him authority to execute judgment, because He is the Son of Man. BGT John 5:27 καὶ ἐξουσίαν ἔδωκεν αὐτῷ κρίσιν ποιεῖν, ὅτι υἱὸς ἀνθρώπου ἐστίν. KJV John 5:27 And hath given him authority to execute judgment also, because he is the Son of man. NET John 5:27 and he has granted the Son authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man. CSB John 5:27 And He has granted Him the right to pass judgment, because He is the Son of Man. ESV John 5:27 And he has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man. NIV John 5:27 And he has given him authority to judge because he is the Son of Man. NLT John 5:27 And he has given him authority to judge everyone because he is the Son of Man. NRS John 5:27 and he has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man. NJB John 5:27 and, because he is the Son of man, has granted him power to give judgement. NAB John 5:27 And he gave him power to exercise judgment, because he is the Son of Man. YLT John 5:27 and authority He gave him also to do judgment, because he is Son of Man. because: Da 7:13-14 Php 2:7-11 Heb 2:7-9 John 5 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries Related Passages: Daniel 7:13-14 “I kept looking in the night visions, And behold, with the clouds of heaven One like a Son of Man was coming, And He came up to the Ancient of Days And was presented before Him. 14 “And to Him was given dominion (= the power or right of governing and controlling; sovereign authority), Glory and a kingdom, That all the peoples, nations and men of every language Might serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion Which will not pass away; And His kingdom is one Which will not be destroyed. THE SON'S AUTHORITY TO JUDGE THE WORLD and (kai) - A crucial conjunction. Not only did the Father give the Son to have life in Himself, He also gave him authority. He gave Him authority (exousia) to execute (poieo - present tense - continually execute) judgment (krisis) - NLT paraphrases it correctly "To judge everyone!" The Father gave the Son the authority (exousia) which in simple terms means the "right and the might" to judge every person ever born. Judgment describes the process of making a separation based on investigation. The Jewish leaders knew exactly what Jesus claimed and it shut their mouth (for the time being)! The separation inherent in judgment makes one think of Psalm 1:4-6+ where the psalmist explains that "The wicked are not so (LIKE THE GODLY), but they are like chaff (CONTRAST THE WELL-WATERED TREE IN Ps 1:3!) which the wind drives away (AKA "SEPARATES" cf Rev 21:8+, Rev 22:14-15+). Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment (THEY WILL NOT REMAIN STANDING OR ENDURE BUT BE SEPARATED! cf Rev 20:11-15+), nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. For the LORD knows the way of the righteous, But the way of the wicked will perish. Because (term of explanation) He is the Son of Man - In John 5:25 Jesus described Himself as the Son of God, and here (only time in John 5) as the Son of Man. Jesus receives authority from the Father by virtue of the fact that He is God's Son. Why would Jesus change His self-designation to Son of Man? One reason is Son of Man would be a direct reference to Da 7:13, a passage which the Jews interpreted as a reference to the Messiah! MacDonald on Son of Man - He came into this world as a Man, lived here among men, and died on the cross as a Substitute for men and women. He was rejected and crucified when He came into the world as a Man. (Borrow Believer's Bible Commentary) Son of Man is frequent in the Gospels the Gospels - Matt. 8:20; Matt. 9:6; Matt. 10:23; Matt. 11:19; Matt. 12:8; Matt. 12:32; Matt. 12:40; Matt. 13:37; Matt. 13:41; Matt. 16:13; Matt. 16:27; Matt. 16:28; Matt. 17:9; Matt. 17:12; Matt. 17:22; Matt. 18:11; Matt. 19:28; Matt. 20:18; Matt. 20:28; Matt. 24:27; Matt. 24:30; Matt. 24:37; Matt. 24:39; Matt. 24:44; Matt. 25:31; Matt. 26:2; Matt. 26:24; Matt. 26:45; Matt. 26:64; Mk. 2:10; Mk. 2:28; Mk. 8:31; Mk. 8:38; Mk. 9:9; Mk. 9:12; Mk. 9:31; Mk. 10:33; Mk. 10:45; Mk. 13:26; Mk. 14:21; Mk. 14:41; Mk. 14:62; Lk. 5:24; Lk. 6:5; Lk. 6:22; Lk. 7:34; Lk. 9:22; Lk. 9:26; Lk. 9:44; Lk. 9:56; Lk. 9:58; Lk. 11:30; Lk. 12:8; Lk. 12:10; Lk. 12:40; Lk. 17:22; Lk. 17:24; Lk. 17:26; Lk. 17:30; Lk. 18:8; Lk. 18:31; Lk. 19:10; Lk. 21:27; Lk. 21:36; Lk. 22:22; Lk. 22:48; Lk. 22:69; Lk. 24:7; Jn. 1:51; Jn. 3:13; Jn. 3:14; Jn. 5:27; Jn. 6:27; Jn. 6:53; Jn. 6:62; Jn. 8:28; Jn. 9:35; Jn. 12:23; Jn. 12:34; Jn. 13:31; Acts 7:56; Heb. 2:6; Rev. 1:13; Rev. 14:14 Life Application Study Bible (borrow) has an interesting note - The Old Testament mentioned three signs of the coming Messiah. In this chapter, John shows that Jesus has fulfilled all three signs. Authority to judge is given to him as the Son of Man (cf. Jn 5:27 with Daniel 7:13, 14). The lame and sick are healed (cf. Jn 5:20, 21 with Isaiah 35:6; Jeremiah 31:8, 9). The dead are raised to life (cf. Jn 5:21, 28 with Deut 32:39; 1Sa 2:6; 2Ki 5:7). Complete Biblical Library also has an interesting allusion to the Old Testament - The Son of Man, according to Daniel 7:13, is the One who will dispense the final judgment at the end of the world. Jesus explicitly draws on Daniel 7:13 in Mark 14:62, Matthew 26:64, and Luke 22:69. John MacArthur on Son of Man - As with the authority to give life, the Father also gave the incarnate and submissive Son the authority to execute judgment. Christ received that authority because He is the Son of Man. As God in human flesh, a man “who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin” (Heb. 4:15), Jesus is uniquely qualified to be mankind’s judge. The phrase Son of Man, Jesus’ favorite designation of Himself, derives from Daniel’s messianic description of the Son of Man as the one who “was given dominion, glory and a kingdom, that all the peoples, nations and men of every language might serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion which will not pass away; and His kingdom is one which will not be destroyed” (Dan. 7:14). Since He is the God-man who entered fully into human life, experience, and temptation (Heb. 2:14–18; 4:14–16), Jesus can be the ultimate judge of all mankind. A T Robertson on the Son of Man - Rather, "because He is a Son of man" (note absence of articles and so not as the Messiah), because the judge of men must partake of human nature himself (Westcott). (Word Pictures of the New Testament) Bob