Church Fathers Commentary Luke 5:17-26

"And it came to pass on one of those days, that he was teaching; and there were Pharisees and doctors of the law sitting by, who were come out of every village of Galilee and Judaea and Jerusalem: and the power of the Lord was with him to heal. And behold, men bring on a bed a man that was palsied: and they sought to bring him in, and to lay him before him. And not finding by what [way] they might bring him in because of the multitude, they went up to the housetop, and let him down through the tiles with his couch into the midst before Jesus. And seeing their faith, he said, Man, thy sins are forgiven thee. And the scribes and the Pharisees began to reason, saying, Who is this that speaketh blasphemies? Who can forgive sins, but God alone? But Jesus perceiving their reasonings, answered and said unto them, Why reason ye in your hearts? Which is easier, to say, Thy sins are forgiven thee; or to say, Arise and walk? But that ye may know that the Son of man hath authority on earth to forgive sins (he said unto him that was palsied), I say unto thee, Arise, and take up thy couch, and go unto thy house. And immediately he rose up before them, and took up that whereon he lay, and departed to his house, glorifying God. And amazement took hold on all, and they glorified God; and they were filled with fear, saying, We have seen strange things to-day." — Luke 5:17-26 (ASV)

St. Cyril of Alexandria: The Scribes and Pharisees who had become witnesses to Christ’s miracles also heard Him teaching. This is why it is said, And it came to pass on a certain day, as he was teaching, that there were Pharisees sitting by... And the power of the Lord was present to heal them. This was not as though He borrowed power from another; rather, as God and Lord, He healed by His own inherent power.

Now, people often become worthy of spiritual gifts, but they generally depart from the rule known to the Giver of those gifts. This was not so with Christ, for the divine power continued to abound in providing remedies. But because so great a number of Scribes and Pharisees had gathered, it was necessary that something be done to demonstrate His power before these men who disregarded Him. He therefore performed the miracle on the paralyzed man, who, since medical art had failed, was carried by his relatives to a higher and heavenly Physician. As the text continues, And behold men brought him.

St. John Chrysostom: But the men who brought in the paralytic are to be admired, since, finding they could not enter through the door, they attempted a new and untried way. As the text continues, And when they could not find by what way they might bring him in, they went upon the housetop... By uncovering the roof, they let down the couch and placed the paralytic in the middle, as it follows, And they let him down through the tilings. Some might interpret this to mean that the opening itself was let down, from which they lowered the couch of the paralyzed man through the tiles.

The Venerable Bede: As the Lord was about to cure the man of his paralysis, He first loosened the chains of his sins. He did this to show the man that he was punished with the loosening of his joints because of the bonds of his sins, and that unless those bonds were released, he could not be healed and recover his limbs. This is why the text says, And when he saw their faith...

St. Ambrose of Milan: The Lord is mighty, who pardons one person for the good deed of another; while He approves of the one, He forgives the other's sins. Why, O man, does your fellow man not prevail with you, when with God a servant has both the freedom to intercede on your behalf and the power to obtain what he asks? If you despair of pardon for grave sins, bring the prayers of others; bring the Church to pray for you. At the sight of this, the Lord may pardon what man denies you.

St. John Chrysostom: But the faith of the sufferer himself was also combined in this, for he would not have allowed himself to be let down if he had not believed.

St. Augustine of Hippo: Our Lord’s statement, Man, your sins are forgiven, means that the man had his sins forgiven because, being human, he could not say, “I have not sinned.” At the same time, it also shows that the One who forgave sins might be known to be God.

St. John Chrysostom: If we suffer bodily, we are very concerned to get rid of the affliction. But when harm has come to the soul, we delay, and so we are not cured of our bodily ailments either. Let us then remove the fountain of evil, and the waters of sickness will cease to flow. But from fear of the multitude, the Pharisees dared not openly expose their intentions, but only meditated on them in their hearts. This is why the text continues, And they began to reason, saying, Who is this which speaks blasphemies?

St. Cyril of Alexandria: By this, they hastened to condemn Him to death, for the law commanded that whoever blasphemed God should be punished with death.

St. Ambrose of Milan: From His very works, therefore, the Son of God receives a testimony. For the evidence is more powerful when people confess unwillingly, and the error is more fatal when those who deny are left to the consequences of their own assertions. This is why they say, Who can forgive sins, but God only? Great is the madness of an unbelieving people! Though they confess that God alone can forgive sins, they do not believe God when He forgives sins.

The Venerable Bede: For they speak the truth that no one can forgive sins but God, yet He also forgives through those to whom He has given the power to forgive. Therefore, Christ is proved to be truly God, because He is able to forgive sins as God.

St. Ambrose of Milan: The Lord, wishing to save sinners, shows Himself to be God by knowing their secret thoughts, as He says, But that you may know.

St. Cyril of Alexandria: It is as if He were saying, “O Pharisees, since you say, Who can forgive sins, but God alone? I answer you: Who can search the secrets of the heart but God alone, who says through His prophet, I am the Lord that searches the hearts, and tries the reins?”

St. John Chrysostom: It is as if Christ said, “If, then, you disbelieve the first miracle (that is, the forgiveness of sins), behold, I add another proof: I lay open your inmost thoughts. And another: I make the body of the paralyzed man whole.” This is why He adds, Whether is it easier? It is very plain that it is easier to restore the body to health. For as the soul is far nobler than the body, so the forgiveness of sins is more excellent than the healing of the body. But since you do not believe the former, because it is hidden, I will add the inferior, yet more visible miracle, so that the hidden one may be made manifest by it.

Indeed, in addressing the sick man, He did not say, I forgive you your sins, expressing His own power, but, Your sins are forgiven you. But they compelled Him to declare His own power to them more plainly when He said, But that you may know.

Theophylact of Ohrid: Observe that He forgives sins on earth. For while we are on earth, we can blot out our sins. But after we are taken from the earth, we will not be able to confess, for the gate will be shut.

St. John Chrysostom: He shows the pardon of sins by the healing of the body. This is why it follows, He says to the sick of the palsy, I say to you, Rise. But He demonstrates the healing of the body by the carrying of the bed, so that what took place might not be considered an illusion. This is why it follows, Take up your bed. It is as if He said, “I was willing through your suffering to cure those who think they are healthy while their souls are sick, but since they are unwilling, go and correct your own household.”

St. Ambrose of Milan: There is no delay; health is present instantly. The words and the healing happen in the same moment. This is why it says, And immediately he rose. From this fact, it is evident that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins. He said this for Himself and for us. For as God made man, and as the Lord of the Law, He forgives sins; and we also have been chosen to receive this same marvelous grace from Him.

For it was said to the disciples, Whose sins you remit, they are remitted to them. How can He not forgive sins Himself, when He has given the power to do so to others? The kings and princes of the earth, when they acquit murderers, release them from their present punishment but cannot atone for their crimes.

They behold him rising up, still disbelieving, and marvel at his departure, as the text says, And they were all amazed.

St. John Chrysostom: The Jews progressed by degrees, glorifying God, yet not thinking He was God, for His flesh was an obstacle to them. Still, it was no small thing to consider Him the chief of mortal men and to believe He had come from God.

St. Ambrose of Milan: But they would rather fear the miracles of divine works than believe them, as the text says, And they were filled with fear. If they had believed, they would not have feared, but loved; for perfect love casts out fear.

But this was no careless or insignificant cure of the paralytic, since our Lord is said to have prayed first, not for the sake of the petition, but as an example.

St. Augustine of Hippo: Regarding the paralytic, we may understand that the soul, with its faculties (that is, its operations) relaxed, seeks Christ (that is, the meaning of God’s Word). However, it is hindered by the crowds. This means it cannot arrive at the knowledge of Christ unless it uncovers the secrets of the thoughts—that is, the obscure parts of the Scriptures.

The Venerable Bede: The house where Jesus was is fittingly described as covered with tiles, since beneath the humble covering of the letters of Scripture is found the spiritual power of grace.

St. Ambrose of Milan: Now, let every sick person have people who will pray for his salvation. Through them, the loosened joints of our life and our halting steps may be renewed by the remedy of the heavenly Word. Let there be, then, certain monitors of the soul to raise the human mind to higher things, even though it has grown dull through the weakness of the physical body. With their help, the mind can again easily raise and humble itself, and so be placed before Jesus, worthy to be presented in the Lord’s sight. For the Lord looks upon the humble.

St. Augustine of Hippo: The men who let him down may signify the teachers of the Church. But the fact that he is let down with the couch signifies that a person ought to come to know Christ while still abiding in the flesh.

St. Ambrose of Milan: But the Lord, pointing to the full hope of the resurrection, pardons the sins of the soul and removes the weakness of the flesh. For this is the healing of the whole person. Although it is a great thing to forgive people's sins, it is much more divine to give resurrection to their bodies, since God is indeed the resurrection. But the bed that he is ordered to take up is nothing other than the human body.

St. Augustine of Hippo: This means that the infirm soul should no longer rest in carnal joys, as if in a bed, but should instead restrain its carnal affections and move toward its own home—that is, the resting place of the secrets of its heart.

St. Ambrose of Milan: Or, the soul may seek its own home again—that is, return to Paradise. For that is its true home, which first received humanity and was lost not by fair means, but by treachery. Rightly, then, is the soul restored there, since He has come who will undo the treacherous knot and reestablish righteousness.