The Jews therefore said to him who was cured, “It is the Sabbath; it is not lawful for you to carry your bed.”
Parallel translations
- WEB So the Jews said to him who was cured, “It is the Sabbath. It is not lawful for you to carry the mat.”
- KJV The Jews therefore said unto him that was cured, It is the sabbath day: it is not lawful for thee to carry thy bed.
- BSB so the Jews said to the man who had been healed, “This is the Sabbath! It is unlawful for you to carry your mat.”
- NASB So the Jews were saying to the man who was cured, “It is a Sabbath, and it is not permissible for you to carry your pallet.”
- NLT so the Jewish leaders objected. They said to the man who was cured, “You can’t work on the Sabbath! The law doesn’t allow you to carry that sleeping mat!”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The Jewish leaders objected that carrying the mat broke the Sabbath. They focused on rule-keeping rather than the mercy shown.
Overview
The leaders' challenge reflects their tradition forbidding carrying burdens on the Sabbath. Their concern for regulation blinds them to the wonder of a man healed after thirty-eight years. The scene exposes a religion of external observance that misses God's compassionate purpose.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 15
- Jer 17:21Yahweh says, “Be careful, and bear no burden on the Sabbath day, nor bring it in by the gates of Jerusalem;
- Luke 6:2But some of the Pharisees said to them, “Why do you do that which is not lawful to do on the Sabbath day?”
- John 9:16Some therefore of the Pharisees said, “This man is not from God, because he doesn’t keep the Sabbath.” Others said, “How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?” There was division among them.
- Mark 3:4He said to them, “Is it lawful on the Sabbath day to do good, or to do harm? To save a life, or to kill?” But they were silent.
- Luke 13:14The ruler of the synagogue, being indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, said to the multitude, “There are six days in which men ought to work. Therefore come on those days and be healed, and not on the Sabbath day!”
- Mark 2:24The Pharisees said to him, “Behold, why do they do that which is not lawful on the Sabbath day?”
- Neh 13:15–21In those days saw I in Judah some men treading wine presses on the Sabbath, bringing in sheaves, and loading donkeys; also with wine, grapes, figs, and all kinds of burdens, which they brought into Jerusalem on the Sabbath day; and I testified against them in the day in which they sold food.
- Matt 12:2–8But the Pharisees, when they saw it, said to him, “Behold, your disciples do what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath.”
- John 5:16For this cause the Jews persecuted Jesus, and sought to kill him, because he did these things on the Sabbath.
- Exod 20:8–11“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.
- John 7:23If a boy receives circumcision on the Sabbath, that the law of Moses may not be broken, are you angry with me, because I made a man completely healthy on the Sabbath?
- Exod 31:12–17Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,
- Isa 58:13“If you turn away your foot from the Sabbath, from doing your pleasure on my holy day; and call the Sabbath a delight, and the holy of Yahweh honorable; and shall honor it, not doing your own ways, nor finding your own pleasure, nor speaking your own words:
- Jer 17:27But if you will not listen to me to make the Sabbath day holy, and not to bear a burden and enter in at the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath day; then I will kindle a fire in its gates, and it shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem, and it shall not be quenched.”’”
- Luke 23:56They returned, and prepared spices and ointments. On the Sabbath they rested according to the commandment.
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Original language
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