Healing at the Bethesda Pool (John 5:1-16)

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In John 5:1-14, Jesus goes to Jerusalem for a Jewish festival and encounters a disabled man at the pool of Bethesda. The man has been unable to walk for several years. The pool is believed to have healing powers, but this man has no one to help him get into the water when it's stirred up, which is supposedly the presice moment its healing properties are activated.

Jesus asks the man if he wants to get well, to which the man explains his predicament. Instead of assisting him into the pool, Jesus directly tells him to "Get up! Pick up your mat and walk." (John 5:8) The man is instantly healed and picks up his mat to walk, as instructed.

The miracle occurs on the Sabbath, which leads to religious authorities questioning the man for carrying his mat. When asked who healed him, the man initially doesn't know, as Jesus had slipped away. Later, Jesus finds the man in the temple and tells him, "See, you are well again. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you." (John 5:14) The man then goes and tells the Jews that Jesus is the one who healed him. Because Jesus performed this healing miracle on the Sabbath, the Jews begin to persecute Him and seek to kill Him.

Vocabulary

Word Meaning
μετά with (with G); after (with A)
οὗτος, αὕτη, τοῦτο this
εἰμί I am; be
ἑορτή, ῆς, ἡ festival, celebration
ὁ, ἡ, τό the
Ἰουδαῖος, ία, ον Judean
καί and
ἀναβαίνω go up, ascend
Ἰησοῦς, οῦ, ὁ Jesus, Joshua
εἰς to; in (with A)
Ἱεροσόλυμα, ων, τά Jerusalem
δέ however, but
ἐν in (with D)
ἐπί on (with G, D, A); on the account of (with D); against (with A)
προβατικός, ή, όν of sheep
κολυμβήθρα, ας, ἡ a pool
ἐπιλέγω call/name
Ἑβραϊστί in Hebrew

Biblical text

5:1Μετὰ ταῦτα ἦν ἑορτὴ τῶν Ἰουδαίων, καὶ ἀνέβη Ἰησοῦς εἰς Ἱεροσόλυμα.2Ἔστιν δὲ ἐν τοῖς Ἱεροσολύμοις ἐπὶ τῇ προβατικῇ κολυμβήθρα, ἐπιλεγομένη Ἑβραϊστὶ Βηθζαθά, πέντε στοὰς ἔχουσα.3ἐν ταύταις κατέκειτο πλῆθος τῶν ἀσθενούντων, τυφλῶν, χωλῶν, ξηρῶν ἐκδεχομένων τὴν τοῦ ὕδατος κίνησιν.4ἄγγελος γὰρ κατὰ καιρὸν κατέβαινεν ἐν τῇ κολυμβήθρᾳ καὶ ἐτάρασσε τὸ ὕδωρ· οὖν πρῶτος ἐμβὰς μετὰ τὴν ταραχὴν τοῦ ὕδατος ὑγιὴς ἐγίνετο, δήποτε κατείχετο νοσήματι>.5ἦν δέ τις ἄνθρωπος ἐκεῖ τριάκοντα καὶ ὀκτὼ ἔτη ἔχων ἐν τῇ ἀσθενείᾳ αὐτοῦ·6τοῦτον ἰδὼν Ἰησοῦς κατακείμενον, καὶ γνοὺς ὅτι πολὺν ἤδη χρόνον ἔχει, λέγει αὐτῷ Θέλεις ὑγιὴς γενέσθαι;7ἀπεκρίθη αὐτῷ ἀσθενῶν Κύριε, ἄνθρωπον οὐκ ἔχω, ἵνα ὅταν ταραχθῇ τὸ ὕδωρ βάλῃ με εἰς τὴν κολυμβήθραν· ἐν δὲ ἔρχομαι ἐγὼ, ἄλλος πρὸ ἐμοῦ καταβαίνει.8λέγει αὐτῷ Ἰησοῦς Ἔγειρε ἆρον τὸν κράβαττόν σου καὶ περιπάτει.9καὶ εὐθέως ἐγένετο ὑγιὴς ἄνθρωπος, καὶ ἦρεν τὸν κράβαττον αὐτοῦ καὶ περιεπάτει. Ἦν δὲ σάββατον ἐν ἐκείνῃ τῇ ἡμέρᾳ.10ἔλεγον οὖν οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι τῷ τεθεραπευμένῳ Σάββατόν ἐστιν, καὶ οὐκ ἔξεστίν σοι ἆραι τὸν κράβαττον.11ὃς δὲ ἀπεκρίθη αὐτοῖς ποιήσας με ὑγιῆ, ἐκεῖνός μοι εἶπεν Ἆρον τὸν κράβαττόν σου καὶ περιπάτει.12ἠρώτησαν αὐτόν Τίς ἐστιν ἄνθρωπος εἰπών σοι Ἆρον καὶ περιπάτει;13 δὲ ἰαθεὶς οὐκ ᾔδει τίς ἐστιν· γὰρ Ἰησοῦς ἐξένευσεν ὄχλου ὄντος ἐν τῷ τόπῳ.14Μετὰ ταῦτα εὑρίσκει αὐτὸν Ἰησοῦς ἐν τῷ ἱερῷ καὶ εἶπεν αὐτῷ Ἴδε ὑγιὴς γέγονας· μηκέτι ἁμάρτανε, ἵνα μὴ χεῖρόν σοί τι γένηται.15ἀπῆλθεν ἄνθρωπος καὶ εἶπεν τοῖς Ἰουδαίοις ὅτι Ἰησοῦς ἐστιν ποιήσας αὐτὸν ὑγιῆ.16καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ἐδίωκον οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι τὸν Ἰησοῦν, ὅτι ταῦτα ἐποίει ἐν σαββάτῳ.