On these walkways lay a great number of the sick, the blind, the lame, and the paralyzed.
Parallel translations
- WEB In these lay a great multitude of those who were sick, blind, lame, or paralyzed, waiting for the moving of the water;
- KJV In these lay a great multitude of impotent folk, of blind, halt, withered, waiting for the moving of the water.
- NKJV In these lay a great multitude of sick people, blind, lame, paralyzed, waiting for the moving of the water.
- NASB In these porticoes lay a multitude of those who were sick, blind, limping, or paralyzed.
- NLT Crowds of sick people—blind, lame, or paralyzed—lay on the porches.
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
A great crowd of sick, blind, lame, and paralyzed people lay there. The scene shows the depth of human suffering Jesus enters.
Overview
The gathering of the afflicted pictures humanity's helplessness under sickness and, by extension, the brokenness of a fallen world. Into this place of despair Jesus comes. The setting magnifies the compassion and power he is about to display.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- Mark 3:1–4Once again Jesus entered the synagogue, and a man with a withered hand was there.
- Luke 7:22So He replied, “Go back and report to John what you have seen and heard: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor.
- Matt 15:30Large crowds came to Him, bringing the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute, and many others, and laid them at His feet, and He healed them.
- Zech 11:17Woe to the worthless shepherd, who deserts the flock! May a sword strike his arm and his right eye! May his arm be completely withered and his right eye utterly blinded!”
- Lam 3:26It is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the LORD.
- Jas 5:7Be patient, then, brothers, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer awaits the precious fruit of the soil—how patient he is for the fall and spring rains.
- 1 Kgs 13:4Now when King Jeroboam, who was at the altar in Bethel, heard the word that the man of God had cried out against it, he stretched out his hand and said, “Seize him!” But the hand he stretched out toward him withered, so that he could not pull it back.
- Rom 8:25But if we hope for what we do not yet see, we wait for it patiently.
- Prov 8:34Blessed is the man who listens to me, watching daily at my doors, waiting at the posts of my doorway.
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Christ at the center
John declares him plainly: the eternal Word made flesh, the Lamb of God, the great 'I AM' — bread, light, door, shepherd, way, truth, life, resurrection — that you may believe and have life in his name.
How John 5:3 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.