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He entered again into the synagogue, and there was a man there who had his hand withered.
Mark 3:1 · World English Bible
Parallel translations
  • KJV And he entered again into the synagogue; and there was a man there which had a withered hand.
  • BSB Once again Jesus entered the synagogue, and a man with a withered hand was there.
  • NKJV And He entered the synagogue again, and a man was there who had a withered hand.
  • NASB He entered a synagogue again; and a man was there whose hand was withered.
  • NLT Jesus went into the synagogue again and noticed a man with a deformed hand.

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

Jesus enters a synagogue where a man with a withered hand needs healing, setting up a confrontation over Sabbath mercy. It matters because it shows Jesus deliberately bringing compassion into a place of religious scrutiny.

Overview

This scene continues the Sabbath controversies, now in the synagogue on the Sabbath day. The man's withered hand represents real, visible human suffering that the law's true intent would relieve. By placing the encounter in worship space, Mark frames the coming healing as a clash between rigid tradition and the mercy of God revealed in Christ.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 5

  • Matt 12:9–14He departed there, and went into their synagogue.
  • Luke 6:6–11It also happened on another Sabbath that he entered into the synagogue and taught. There was a man there, and his right hand was withered.
  • Mark 1:21They went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath day he entered into the synagogue and taught.
  • 1 Kgs 13:4When the king heard the saying of the man of God, which he cried against the altar in Bethel, Jeroboam put out his hand from the altar, saying, “Seize him!” His hand, which he put out against him, dried up, so that he could not draw it back again to himself.
  • John 5:3In these lay a great multitude of those who were sick, blind, lame, or paralyzed, waiting for the moving of the water;

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (1)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Mark videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Mark 3:1YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on MarkMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

Mark drives urgently to the cross, showing Jesus the Son of God as the suffering Servant who 'came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.'

How Mark 3:1 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.