Thy Strong Word — John 5:1-18: Healing on the Sabbath: The Bethesda Pool

While in Jerusalem, Jesus encounters a man who has been crippled for 38 years and heals him, instructing him to take up his mat and walk. This act takes place on the Sabbath, provoking the anger of the Jewish authorities who deem it unlawful to carry a mat on the holy day. When questioned, Jesus defends His actions, asserting that He is simply doing the work of His Father, God. This statement further incenses the leaders, as they realize it is a bold claim to divine equality.

The Rev. Ryan Kleimola, pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church in Toledo, OH, joins guest host Rev. Doug Griebenaw to study John 5:1-18.

The Gospel of John takes us on a journey through the Good News of Jesus in a unique way. It reveals Jesus as the incarnate son of God from eternity. From His miraculous signs to His profound “I Am” statements, we witness Jesus offering living water to the thirsty, light to those in darkness, and life to the dead. But this is also a story of conflict: Jesus is relentlessly pursued by those who reject Him, yet He willingly goes to the cross, showing the depths of God’s love. As we travel from His first miracle to His ultimate victory over death, John invites us to see and believe—that in Jesus, we find eternal life and the very presence of God among us. Connect to God’s revealing Word in this series that uncovers the rich, layered truths of John’s Gospel and the unshakable hope it offers.

Thy Strong Word, hosted by Rev. Dr. Phil Booe, pastor of St. John Lutheran Church of Luverne, MN, reveals the light of our salvation in Christ through study of God’s Word, breaking our darkness with His redeeming light. Each weekday, two pastors fix our eyes on Jesus by considering Holy Scripture, verse by verse, in order to be strengthened in the Word and be equipped to faithfully serve in our daily vocations. Submit comments or questions to: thystrongword@kfuo.org.

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John 5:1-18

The Healing at the Pool on the Sabbath

5 After this there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.

²Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, in Aramaic^[a] called Bethesda,^[b] which has five roofed colonnades. ³In these lay a multitude of invalids—blind, lame, and paralyzed.^[c] ⁵One man was there who had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. ⁶When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had already been there a long time, he said to him, “Do you want to be healed?” ⁷The 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.” ⁸Jesus said to him, “Get up, take up your bed, and walk.” ⁹And at once the man was healed, and he took up his bed and walked.

Now that day was the Sabbath. ¹⁰So the Jews^[d] said to the man who had been healed, “It is the Sabbath, and it is not lawful for you to take up your bed.” ¹¹But he answered them, “The man who healed me, that man said to me, ‘Take up your bed, and walk.’” ¹²They asked him, “Who is the man who said to you, ‘Take up your bed and walk’?” ¹³Now the man who had been healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had withdrawn, as there was a crowd in the place. ¹⁴Afterward Jesus found him in the temple and said to him, “See, you are well! Sin no more, that nothing worse may happen to you.” ¹⁵The man went away and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had healed him. ¹⁶And this was why the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because he was doing these things on the Sabbath. ¹⁷But Jesus answered them, “My Father is working until now, and I am working.”

Jesus Is Equal with God

¹⁸This was why the Jews were seeking all the more to kill him, because not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God.

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Footnotes

John 5:2 Or Hebrew
John 5:2 Some manuscripts Bethsaida
John 5:3 Some manuscripts insert, wholly or in part, waiting for the moving of the water; ⁴for an angel of the Lord went down at certain seasons into the pool, and stirred the water: whoever stepped in first after the stirring of the water was healed of whatever disease he had
John 5:10 The Greek word Ioudaioi refers specifically here to Jewish religious leaders, and others under their influence, who opposed Jesus in that time; also verses 15, 16, 18

Rev. Dr. Phil Booe

Native North Carolinian Rev. Dr. Phil Booe serves pastor of St. John Lutheran Church of Luverne, MN, and host of Thy Strong Word on KFUO Radio. His parishioners probably think he can’t teach Bible study without a mug of coffee in his hand, and he’ll always be happy to eat a plate of sushi. When he’s not shepherding his flock or teaching on the radio, you might find him watching bad movies from the 50s, 60s, and 70s, and especially binging RiffTrax and MST3K episodes. Some day he’d love to travel to the Lutheran homeland in Germany, but for now he spends time in Minnesota with his wife, son, daughter, and cat, and looks forward to Holy Week every year.