TEXT [Commentary]

5. Jesus heals a paralyzed man (9:1-8; cf. Mark 2:1-12; Luke 5:17-26)

1 Jesus climbed into a boat and went back across the lake to his own town. 2 Some people brought to him a paralyzed man on a mat. Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralyzed man, “Be encouraged, my child! Your sins are forgiven.”

3 But some of the teachers of religious law said to themselves, “That’s blasphemy! Does he think he’s God?”

4 Jesus knew[*] what they were thinking, so he asked them, “Why do you have such evil thoughts in your hearts? 5 Is it easier to say ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or ‘Stand up and walk’? 6 So I will prove to you that the Son of Man[*] has the authority on earth to forgive sins.” Then Jesus turned to the paralyzed man and said, “Stand up, pick up your mat, and go home!”

7 And the man jumped up and went home! 8 Fear swept through the crowd as they saw this happen. And they praised God for giving humans such authority.

NOTES

9:2 Be encouraged, my child. Your sins are forgiven! His encouraging words to the paralyzed man and his tender reference to him as “my child” (cf. 9:22) again show that Jesus’ authority was exercised with compassion. The forgiveness of sins reminds the attentive reader of the prediction of 1:21 that Jesus would save his people from their sins (cf. 3:6; 6:12; 9:13; 11:19; 12:31; 26:28).

9:3 blasphemy! Does he think he’s God? The teachers of religious law thought Jesus had blasphemed (cf. 26:65; John 10:33). Ironically, it was not Jesus who was blaspheming, but the scribes themselves, who ascribed his miracles to Satan (cf. 9:34; 12:24, 31; 26:65). The NLT’s “Does he think he’s God?” is not in the Gr. text but brings out the implications of Jesus’ forgiving the man’s sins. Blasphemy amounts to the slander of God by reviling his name or by pretending to do what he alone can do. The forgiveness Jesus granted the paralyzed man was not pretend, but the teachers’ words slandered the Son of God.

9:4-5 Jesus knew what they were thinking. Jesus’ knowledge of the teachers’ thoughts (cf. 12:25; 22:18) should be attributed to the ministry of the Holy Spirit in his life, not simply to his divinity (3:16; 4:1; 12:28; cf. 10:20).

Why do you have such evil thoughts? In light of this knowledge, Jesus asked them why they thought evil of him and then posed a second question, aimed at the root of their evil thoughts (9:4-5). Evidently the teachers thought Jesus spoke of sin being forgiven because it was easier to pronounce forgiveness than to heal paralysis. Indeed, it is easier, so Jesus told them that the imminent healing would demonstrate his authority to forgive sins.

9:6 So I will prove. Lit., “in order that you may know.” The man’s immediate healing and departure (9:7) underlines the central point of Matt 9–10: Jesus’ works confirm Jesus’ authority as the Son of Man (cf. 8:20; Dan 7:13-14) to forgive sins. Both his teaching and his miracles demonstrate the authority of God’s rule on earth.

9:7-8 From 9:3 the reader knows that one result of this incident is the opposition of the teachers of religious law. But here two additional results are explained: the paralytic’s healing and the crowd’s reaction. First we see the paralyzed man get up, pick up the mat he was lying on, and go home (9:7). Then, though there is no comment on Jesus’ emotions in this account, the crowd’s emotions are described. The miracle caused a reverential fear in them (cf. 14:30; 17:6; 27:54), and they praised God for giving such authority to humans.

for giving humans such authority. The use of the plural here is either a reference to the idea that the authority given to Jesus benefits mankind or that the authority has been given to Jesus and his disciples (cf. 16:19; 18:19).

COMMENTARY [Text]

Matthew 9:1-8 completes the second set of three miracle stories with the account of the healing of a paralyzed man. Thus, the three miracle stories of Matthew 8:23-9:8 correspond to 8:1-17, and the second pair of discipleship stories in Matthew 9:9-17 answers to 8:18-22. Rejected in a Gentile area (Gadara), Jesus traveled “back across the lake to his own town” (Capernaum, not Nazareth; cf. 4:13; 8:14), where he healed a paralyzed man (cf. 4:24; 8:6). Comparison of this account with the synoptic parallels (cf. Mark 2:1-12; Luke 5:17-26) shows that Matthew probably placed this story here for topical rather than chronological reasons.

The pericope on the healing of the paralytic (9:1-8) occurs after a return to Capernaum (9:1), where Jesus intentionally stressed his authority to forgive sins (9:2). This occasioned the charge of blasphemy from the scribes who were present (9:3). Jesus read their thoughts—they were thinking he vainly pronounced forgiveness because he was unable to heal (9:4-5). In response, Jesus healed the man to demonstrate his authority to forgive (9:6-7), and the crowd marveled at his authority and glorified God (9:8).

The healing of the paralyzed man extends the authority of Jesus to its most crucial aspect, the forgiveness of sins. Readers of Matthew have already seen how Jesus taught with authority in the Sermon on the Mount (7:28-29) and have become aware of his authoritative acts of healing, even from a distance (8:9). But authority over the forgiveness of sins is much greater than authoritative words and actions. Authority to forgive sins gets to the root of the problems and illnesses that are the symptoms of sin. One can teach against sin, but this does not cause the sin to stop, let alone secure its forgiveness. One can heal sick people, but sooner or later they will get sick again, and ultimately they will die. Jesus’ authority in these domains, as great as it is, pales in comparison to his authority to forgive the sins that are the root of all the other problems. Such authority is at the heart of Jesus’ mission to save his people from their sins (1:21) by giving his life as a ransom for them (20:28), thereby inaugurating the new covenant (26:28; cf. Jer 31:31). As God’s beloved Son, Jesus acts with divine prerogative. He does not blaspheme; he saves.

The relation of sin and sickness is a complex matter. Humans do not have the requisite insight to diagnose whether sin is the cause of sickness in individual cases (Job; Luke 13:1-5; John 9:2-3; Jas 5:15; but cf. Paul’s apostolic insight in 1 Cor 11:30). Yet it is possible that Jesus, through the Spirit, knew that this man’s illness was due to sin (Bruner 1987:329-330). And it is also possible that his illness was psychosomatic, and that the forgiveness of his sins freed his mind of guilt and thereby healed him (Barclay 1975:1.327-328). However, Matthew does not focus on the reason for the man’s paralysis but on the authority of Jesus to forgive his sins. In the present age, the righteous may suffer many physical maladies. But in redemptive history, human sickness and death are ultimately the results of human sin (Gen 3). Human beings find themselves caught in the maelstrom of sickness and death because of the rebellion of the first Adam. But through the obedience of the second Adam, the new humanity can find immediate release from sin’s bondage and ultimate physical healing as well (cf. Ps 103:3 and the comments on 8:17). Jesus’ healings are a sign that the ultimate defeat of sin and Satan has begun.

It is significant that Matthew’s portrayal of Jesus’ response to the Jewish teachers here is not conciliatory but confrontational. The accusation of blasphemy contradicts Jesus’ unique standing as the Son of God, and no gentle compromise is possible in this case. This confrontation signals that Matthew has begun to touch on the theme of opposition, which escalates as his story continues.