Church Fathers Commentary John 5:1-13

"After these things there was a feast of the Jews; and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. Now there is in Jerusalem by the sheep [gate] a pool, which is called in Hebrew Bethesda, having five porches. In these lay a multitude of them that were sick, blind, halt, withered, [waiting for the moving of the water.] [for an angel of the Lord went down at certain seasons into the pool, and troubled the water: whosoever then first after the troubling of the waters stepped in was made whole, with whatsoever disease he was holden.] And a certain man was there, who had been thirty and eight years in his infirmity. When Jesus saw him lying, and knew that he had been now a long time [in that case], he saith unto him, Wouldest thou be made whole? The sick man answered him, Sir, I have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into the pool: but while I am coming, another steppeth down before me. Jesus saith unto him, Arise, take up thy bed, and walk. And straightway the man was made whole, and took up his bed and walked. Now it was the sabbath on that day. So the Jews said unto him that was cured, It is the sabbath, and it is not lawful for thee to take up thy bed. But he answered them, He that made me whole, the same said unto me, Take up thy bed, and walk. They asked him, Who is the man that said unto thee, Take up [thy bed], and walk? But he that was healed knew not who it was; for Jesus had conveyed himself away, a multitude being in the place." — John 5:1-13 (ASV)

St. Augustine of Hippo: After the miracle in Galilee, Jesus returned to Jerusalem: After this there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.

St. John Chrysostom: This was the feast of Pentecost. Jesus always went up to Jerusalem at the time of the feasts, so that it could be seen that He was not an enemy to the Law, but an observer of it. This also gave Him the opportunity to impress the simple multitude with miracles and teaching, since great numbers used to gather then from the neighboring towns.

Alcuin of York: The pool by the sheep market was the place where the priests washed the animals that were going to be sacrificed.

St. John Chrysostom: This pool was one of many types of baptism, which was to purge away sin. First, God enjoined water for cleansing the filth of the body and for those impurities that were not actual but ceremonial—such as those from contact with death, leprosy, and the like. Later, illnesses were healed by water, as we read: In these (the porches) lay a great multitude of impotent folk, of blind, halt, withered, waiting for the moving of the water.

This was a closer parallel to the gift of baptism, where not only impurities are cleansed, but sicknesses are healed. Types exist in various ranks, just as in a royal court some officials are nearer to the prince while others are more distant. The water, however, did not heal by its own natural properties, for if it had, the effect would have been consistent. Instead, it healed by the descent of an angel: For an Angel went down at a certain season into the pool, and troubled the water. In the same way, in Baptism, water does not act simply as water but first receives the grace of the Holy Spirit, by which it cleanses us from all our sins.

The angel troubled the water and imparted a healing virtue to it in order to foreshadow for the Jews the far greater power of the Lord of the Angels to heal the diseases of the soul. But at that time, their illnesses prevented them from receiving the cure, for it follows, Whosoever then first after the troubling of the water stepped in, was made whole of whatsoever disease he had. But now everyone may attain this blessing, for it is not an angel that troubles the water, but the Lord of Angels, who works everywhere. Though the whole world may come, grace does not fail but remains as full as ever, like the sun’s rays which give light all day and every day, and yet are not spent. The sun’s light is not diminished by this bountiful expenditure; no more is the influence of the Holy Spirit diminished by the abundance of its outpourings.

Only one person could be cured at the pool. God’s design was to present the healing power of water to people's minds and compel them to dwell on it, so that from seeing its effect on the body, they might more readily believe in its power over the soul.

St. Augustine of Hippo: It was a greater act for Christ to heal the diseases of the soul than the sicknesses of the perishable body. But since the soul itself did not know its Restorer—for it had eyes in the flesh to perceive visible things, but not eyes in the heart with which to know God—our Lord performed cures that could be seen so that He might afterward work cures that could not be seen. He went to the place where a multitude of the sick lay, from whom He chose one to heal: And a certain man was there, which had an infirmity thirty and eight years.

St. John Chrysostom: He did not, however, proceed immediately to heal him, but first tried through conversation to bring him to a state of belief. He did not require faith at first, as He did from the blind man when He asked, Believe you that I am able to do this? This was because the lame man could not have known who Jesus was. This question was properly asked of people who, in various ways, had the means of knowing Him. But there were some who did not and could not yet know Him, but would be brought to know Him later by His miracles. In their case, the demand for faith was reserved until after those miracles had taken place.

When Jesus saw him lie, and knew that he had been a long time in that case, He said to him, Will you be made whole? He does not ask this question for His own information (for this was unnecessary), but to reveal the great patience of the man. For thirty-eight years he had sat year after year by that place, hoping to be cured, which sufficiently explains why Christ passed by the others and went to him. He does not say, “Do you wish Me to heal you?” for the man did not yet have any idea that He was such a great Person.

Nor did the lame man suspect any mockery in the question that would cause him to take offense and say, “Have you come to annoy me by asking if I want to be made whole?” Instead, he answered mildly, Sir, I have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into the pool; but while I am coming, another steps down before me. He still had no idea that the Person asking this question would heal him, but thought that Christ might be able to help put him into the water. But Christ’s word is sufficient: Jesus said to him, Rise, take up your bed, and walk.

St. Augustine of Hippo: These are three distinct instructions. “Rise,” however, is not a command but the bestowal of the cure. Two commands were given upon his cure: “take up your bed” and “walk.”

St. John Chrysostom: Behold the richness of Divine Wisdom. He not only heals but also bids him carry his bed. This was to show that the cure was truly miraculous and not a mere effect of the imagination, for the man’s limbs must have become completely sound and strong to allow him to carry his bed. The sick man, for his part, did not mock Him and say, “The angel comes down and troubles the water, and he only cures one each time; do You, who are a mere man, think You can do more than an angel?” On the contrary, he heard, believed the One who commanded him, and was made whole: And immediately the man was made whole, and took up his bed, and walked.

The Venerable Bede: There is a wide difference between our Lord’s way of healing and a physician’s. He acts by His word and acts immediately; the other requires a long time for its completion.

St. John Chrysostom: This was wonderful, but what follows is even more so. As yet, he had faced no opposition. It becomes more wonderful when we see him obeying Christ afterward, in spite of the rage and condemnation of the Jews: And on the same day was the sabbath. The Jews therefore said to him that was cured, It is the sabbath day, it is not lawful for you to carry your bed.

St. Augustine of Hippo: They did not charge our Lord with healing on the Sabbath, for He would have replied that if one of their own oxen or donkeys had fallen into a pit, would they not have pulled it out on the Sabbath day? Instead, they addressed the man as he was carrying his bed, as if to say, “Even if the healing could not be delayed, why command the work?” He shields himself with the authority of his Healer: He that made me whole, the Same said to me, Take up your bed, and walk. This means, “Why should I not receive a command from Him, if I have received a cure from Him?”

St. John Chrysostom: Had he been inclined to be treacherous, he might have said, “If it is a crime, accuse the One who commanded it, and I will put down my bed.” He would have concealed his cure, knowing as he did that their real cause of offense was not the breaking of the Sabbath but the miracle itself. But he neither concealed it nor asked for pardon; instead, he boldly confessed the cure. They then ask spitefully: What man is that who said to you, Take up your bed, and walk. They do not ask, “Who is it that made you whole?” but only mention the supposed offense.

It follows, And he that was healed wist not who it was, for Jesus had conveyed Himself away, a multitude being in that place. Jesus had done this, first, because the man who had been healed was the best witness of the cure and could give his testimony with less suspicion in our Lord’s absence. Second, He did it so that the fury of the people would not be needlessly provoked. For the mere sight of the object of one's envy is a powerful incentive to more envy. For these reasons, He departed and left them to examine the event for themselves.

Some are of the opinion that this is the same man with palsy whom Matthew mentions, but he is not. The man in Matthew's account had many to attend to and carry him, whereas this man had no one. The place where the miracle was performed is also different.

St. Augustine of Hippo: Judging this miracle by low and human standards, it is not a striking display of power and only a moderate one of goodness. Of the many who lay sick, only one was healed, although He could have restored them all with a single word had He chosen. How must we account for this? We must suppose that His power and goodness were demonstrated more for imparting knowledge of eternal salvation to the soul than for working a temporal cure on the body. The body that received the temporal cure was certain to decay eventually when death arrived, whereas the soul that believed passed into eternal life. The pool and the water seem to me to signify the Jewish people, for John in the Apocalypse clearly uses water to represent people.

The Venerable Bede: It is fittingly described as a sheep pool. By “sheep,” people are meant, according to the passage, We are your people, and the sheep of your pasture.

St. Augustine of Hippo: The water, then (that is, the people), was enclosed within five porches, representing the five books of Moses. But those books only exposed the weakness of the people; they did not heal them. That is to say, the Law convicted the sinner but did not absolve him.

The Venerable Bede: Finally, many kinds of sick people lay near the pool: the blind, meaning those without the light of knowledge; the lame, meaning those who lack the strength to do what they are commanded; and the withered, meaning those who lack the substance of heavenly love.

St. Augustine of Hippo: So then, Christ came to the Jewish people and, by means of mighty works and profitable lessons, troubled the sinners (that is, the water), and this stirring continued until He brought about His own passion. But He troubled the water while being unknown to the world. For, had they known Him, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. The troubling of the water happened all at once, and it was not seen who troubled it. To go down into the troubled water is to believe humbly in our Lord’s passion.

Only one was healed, signifying the unity of the Church. Whoever came afterward was not healed, signifying that anyone outside this unity cannot be healed. Woe to those who hate unity and create sects. Furthermore, the man who was healed had his illness for thirty-eight years, a number that belongs more to sickness than to health. The number forty has a sacred character for us and signifies perfection. The Law was given in Ten Commandments and was to be preached throughout the whole world, which consists of four parts; four multiplied by ten makes forty. The Law is also fulfilled by the Gospel, which is contained in four books.

So then, if the number forty possesses the perfection of the Law, and nothing fulfills the Law except the twofold precept of love, why wonder at the weakness of him who was two short of forty? A man was necessary for his recovery, but it was a man who was God. He found the man falling short by the number two and therefore gave two commands to fill the deficiency. For our Lord's two precepts signify love: the love of God is first in the order of the command, and the love of our neighbor is first in the order of performance. “Take up your bed,” our Lord said, meaning, “When you were weak, your neighbor carried you; now that you are made whole, you must carry your neighbor.” And “walk”—but where, except to the Lord your God?

The Venerable Bede: What do the words “Arise, and walk” mean, except that you should raise yourself from your lethargy and idleness and strive to advance in good works? “Take up your bed” means to patiently bear your neighbor, by whom you are carried.

St. Augustine of Hippo: Carry, then, the one with whom you walk, so that you may come to Him with whom you desire to abide. As yet, however, he did not know who Jesus was, just as we too believe in Him though we do not see Him. Jesus again does not wish to be seen, but withdraws from the crowd. It is in a kind of solitude of the mind that God is seen. The crowd is noisy; this vision requires stillness.