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Matthew 9:1-8

Mark 2:1-12

Luke 5:17-26

1. And entering into a ship, he passed over, and came into his own
city. 2. And, lo, they brought to him a paralytic lying on a bed. And
when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, Take courage, my
son, thy sins are forgiven thee. 3. And, lo, some of the scribes said
among themselves, This man blasphemeth. 4. And when Jesus saw their
thoughts, he said, Why do you think evil in your hearts? 5. For whether
is it easier to say, Thy sins are forgiven thee; or to say, Arise, and
walk? 6. But that you may know that the Son of man hath authority on
earth to forgive sins, (then he saith to the paralytic,) Arise, take up
thy bed, and go away to thy house. 7. And he arose, and went away to
his house. 8. And the multitudes who saw it wondered, and glorified
God, who had given such authority to men.

1. And again he entered into Capernaum after some days; and it was
reported that he was in the house. 2. And immediately many were
assembled, so that the places which were around the door did not now
contain them, and he preached the word to them. 3. And they come to
him, bringing a paralytic, who was carried by four persons. 4. And when
they could not approach him on account of the crowd, they uncovered the
roof of the house in which he was, and having made an opening in the
roof, they lower the couch on which the paralytic lay. 5. And when
Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, Son, thy sins are
forgiven thee. 6. And some of the scribes were sitting there, and
thinking [508] in their hearts, 7. Why does this man thus speak
blasphemies? Who can forgive sins but God alone? 8. And immediately
when Jesus knew by his Spirit that they thought thus within themselves,
he said to them, Why do you think those things in your hearts?
9. Whether it is easier to say to the paralytic, Thy sins are forgiven
thee; or to say, Rise, and take up thy bed, and walk? 10. But that you
may know that the Son of man hath authority on earth to forgive sins,
(he saith to the paralytic,) 11. I say to thee, Arise, take up thy bed,
and go away to thy house. 12. And immediately he arose, and having
taken up the bed, went out in the presence of all, so that all were
astonished, and glorified God, saying, We never saw such a thing.

17. And it happened on a certain day, and he was teaching: and
Pharisees and doctors of the law were sitting, who had come out of
every village of Galilee and Judea, and from Jerusalem; and the power
of the Lord was present to heal them. 18. And, lo, men carrying on a
bed, a man who was a paralytic, and they sought to bring him in, and to
place him before him. 19. And not finding a way by which they could
bring him in on account of the crowd, they went up to the roof, and
lowered him by cords with the bed into the midst before Jesus. 20. And
when he saw their faith, he said to him, Man, thy sins are forgiven
thee. 21. And the scribes and Pharisees began to think, saying, Who is
this that speaketh blasphemies? Who can forgive sins but God alone?
22. And when Jesus knew their thoughts, he answering said to them, What
do you think in your hearts? 23. Whether it is easier to say, Thy sins
are forgiven thee, or to say, Arise, and walk? 24. But that you may
know that the Son of man hath authority on earth, (he saith to the
paralytic,) I say to thee, Arise, take up thy bed, and go to thy house.
25. And immediately rising up before them, he took up the bed on which
he had been lying, and went away to his own house, glorifying God.
26. And amazement seized all, and they glorified God, and were filled
with fear, saying, We have seen incredible things today.


Matthew 9:1. And came into his own city. This passage shows, that
Capernaum was generally believed to be the birth-place of Christ,
because his visits to it were frequent: for there is no room to doubt,
that it is the same history which is related by the three Evangelists,
though some circumstances may be more exactly related by one of them
than by another. Luke says that scribes had come from various parts of
Judea, who were spectators when Christ healed the paralytic; and at the
same time states indirectly, that there were others who also received
healing through the grace of Christ. For, before he comes to the
paralytic, he speaks in the plural number, and says, that the power of
God was displayed for healing their diseases; the power of the Lord was
present to heal them The glory of this miracle was very remarkable. A
man destitute of the use of all his limbs, lying on a bed, and lowered
by cords, suddenly rises up in health, vigor, and agility. Another
special reason why the Evangelists dwell more on this miracle than on
others is, that the scribes were offended at Christ for claiming power
and authority to forgive sins; while Christ intended to confirm and
seal that authority by a visible sign.

2. And when Jesus saw their faith. It is God alone, indeed, who knows
faith: but they had given evidence of faith by the laboriousness of
that attempt: for they would never have submitted to so much trouble,
nor contended with such formidable hindrances, if they had not derived
courage from entire confidence of success. The fruit of their faith
appeared in their not being wearied out, when they found the entrance
closed up on all sides. The view which some take of these words, that
Christ, as a divine person, knew their faith, which lay concealed
within them, appears to me a forced interpretation.

Now, as Christ granted to their faith the favor which he bestowed on
the paralytic, a question is usually raised on this passage how far do
men derive advantage from the faith of others? And, first, it is
certain, that the faith of Abraham was of advantage to his posterity,
when he embraced the free covenant offered to him and to his seed. We
must hold a similar belief with regard to all believers, that, by their
faith, the grace of God is extended to their children and their
children's children even before they are born. The same thing takes
place in infants, who are not yet of such an age as to be capable of
faith. With regard to adults, on the other hand, who have no faith of
their own, (whether they be strangers, or allied by blood,) the faith
of others can have nothing more than an indirect influence in promoting
the eternal salvation of their souls. As the prayers, by which we ask
that God will turn unbelievers to repentance, are not without
advantage, our faith is evidently of such advantage to them, that they
do not arrive at salvation, till they have been made partakers of the
same faith with us in answer to our prayers. But where there is a
mutual agreement in faith, it is well known that they promote the
salvation of each other. It is also beyond all question, that earthly
blessings are often, for the sake of the godly, bestowed on
unbelievers.

With regard to the present passage, though Christ is said to have been
moved by the faith of others, yet the paralytic could not have obtained
the forgiveness of his sins, if he had had no faith of his own.
Unworthy persons were often restored by Christ to health of body, as
God daily maketh his sun to rise on the evil and the good, (Matthew
5:45) but there is no other way in which he is reconciled to us than by
faith. There is a synecdoche, therefore, in the word their, when it is
said that Jesus saw their faith: for Christ not only looked at those
who brought the paralytic, but looked also at his faith.

Thy sins are forgiven thee. Christ appears here to promise to the
paralytic something different from what he had requested: but, as he
intends to bestow health of body, he begins with removing the cause of
the disease, and at the same time reminds the paralytic of the origin
of his disease, and of the manner in which he ought to arrange his
prayers. As men usually do not consider that the afflictions which they
endure are God's chastisements, they desire nothing more than some
alleviation in the flesh, and, in the meantime, feel no concern about
their sins: just as if a sick man were to disregard his disease, and to
seek only relief from present pain. [509] But the only way of obtaining
deliverance from all evils is to have God reconciled to us. It does
sometimes happen, that wicked men are freed from their distresses,
while God is still their enemy: but when they think that they have
completely escaped, the same evils immediately return, or more numerous
and heavier calamities overwhelm them, which make it manifest that they
will not be mitigated or terminated. until the wrath of God shall be
appeased, as God declares by the Prophet Amos

If thou escape a lion, a bear shall meet thee;
if thou shut thyself up at home, a serpent shall bite thee,
(Amos 5:19.)

Thus it appears that this is a frequent and ordinary way of speaking in
the Scriptures, to promise the pardon of sins, when the mitigation of
punishments is sought. It is proper to attend to this order in our
prayers. When the feeling of afflictions reminds us of our sins, let us
first of all be careful to obtain pardon, that, when God is reconciled
to us, he may withdraw his hand from punishing.

3. And, lo, some of the scribes They accuse Christ of blasphemy and
sacrilege, because he claims for himself what is God's prerogative. The
other two Evangelists tell us also that they said, Who can forgive sins
but God alone? It is beyond all question, that their eagerness to
slander drove them to this wicked conclusion. If they think that there
is any thing which deserves blame, why do they not inquire into it?
[510] Besides, as the expression admits of more than one meaning, and
as Christ said nothing more than what the Prophets frequently say when
they announce the grace of God, why do they take in a bad sense what
admits of a favorable interpretation? They must have been already
poisoned by malice and envy, otherwise they would not so eagerly have
seized an occasion of blaming Christ. They remain silent, but think in
their hearts, that they may slander him when absent among people of
their own class. It is no doubt true, that God alone has power and
authority to forgive sins: but they are wrong in concluding that it
does not belong to Christ, for he is God manifested in the flesh, (1
Timothy 3:16.) They had a right to inquire on what grounds Christ laid
claim to such authority: but, without any inquiry, they suppose him to
be one of the common rank of men, and proceed rashly to condemn him.

4. And when Jesus saw their thoughts He now gives a proof of his
Divinity in bringing to light their secret thoughts: for who knoweth
the things of a man but the spirit of man which is in him? (1
Corinthians 2:11.) And so Mark adds, that Jesus knew by his Spirit:
which means, that what was concealed in their hearts could not be
perceived by man, but that Christ by his Divine Spirit knew it
thoroughly. Why do you think evil? This does not imply that it gave
them pain to see a mortal man assuming what God claims as his own
prerogative, but that they proudly and wickedly rejected God, who was
openly manifested to them.

5. Whether is it easier to say? The meaning is, that, as it is not
easier to quicken by a word a body which is nearly dead than to forgive
sins, there is no reason to wonder that he forgives sins, when he has
accomplished the other. The argument which our Lord uses may appear to
be not well-founded: for, in proportion as the soul is more excellent
than the body, the forgiveness of sins is a greater work than the
healing of the body. But the reply is easy. Christ adapts his discourse
to their capacity: for, being carnal, they were more powerfully
affected by outward signs, than by all the spiritual power of Christ,
which related to eternal salvation. Thus he proves the efficacy of the
Gospel for quickening men from the fact, that at the last day he will
raise the dead by his voice out of their graves.

Wonder not at this: for the hour is coming, in which all who are in the
graves shall hear his voice, and shall come forth,
(John 5:28,29.)

This was a sufficiently powerful argument to refute those who reckoned
a visible miracle of more importance than all things else. They could
not say that he had no right to forgive the sins of the paralytic, when
he restored to him health and rigour: for this was a result which
followed from the forgiveness of sins.

6. That the Son of man hath authority on earth. This authority is very
different from what was given to the apostles, and from what is now
exercised by the pastors of the Church: for they cannot so properly be
said to pardon sins, as to declare that they are pardoned, when they
deliver the commission which is entrusted to them. By these words
Christ declares that he is not only the minister and witness, but
likewise the author, of this grace. But what means this restriction, on
earth? Of what avail will it be to us to have obtained pardon here, if
it be not ratified in heaven? Christ's meaning was, that forgiveness of
sins ought not to be sought from a distance: for he exhibits it to men
in his own person, and as it were in his hands. So strong is our
inclination to distrust, that we never venture to believe that God is
merciful to us, till he draws near, and speaks familiarly to us. Now,
as Christ descended to earth for the purpose of exhibiting to men the
grace of God as present, he is said to forgive sins visibly, because in
him and by him the will of God was revealed which, according to the
perception of the flesh, had been formerly hidden above the clouds.

8. And the multitudes who saw Instead of astonishment which Matthew
mentions, [511] the other two Evangelists employ the word ekstasis, or
amazement: and Luke adds fear But the design of all the Evangelists is
to show, that the power of God was not merely acknowledged, but that
all were struck with astonishment, and compelled to give glory to God.
The fear, which followed the astonishment, had the effect of preventing
them from opposing Christ, and of making them submit to him with
reverence as a Prophet of God. Matthew expressly says, that they
glorified God, who had given such authority to men Here they appear to
be partly mistaken: for, though they see a man with their eyes, they
ought to have perceived in him, by the mind, something higher than man.
They are no doubt right in saying, that the nature of man received
great honor in Christ for the general advantage of the human race: but
as they do not perceive him to be God manifested in the flesh, (1
Timothy 3:6,) their confession is involved in some error. [512] In a
word, it was true, that God gave such authority to men: but the form
and manner of giving was not yet understood by those who were not aware
that the majesty of God was united to flesh.
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[508] "Et disputoyent en leurs coeurs;" -- "and were disputing in their
hearts."

[509] "Cherchoik seulement remede a la douleur presente, qui n'est
qu'un accident particulier de son mal;" -- "sought only a remedy for
the present pain, which is but a particular accident of his disease."

[510] "s'ils pensent qu'il y ait quelque chose digne de reprendre aux
paroles de Christ, que ne parlent-ils a luy pour en avoir resolution?"
-- "If they think that there is any thing worthy of blame in the words
of Christ, why do they not speak to him to have it explained?"

[511] It is remarkable that all the Latin editions which I have
examined, -- the highly and justly celebrated Amsterdam edition, two
Geneva editions, and Tholuck's, -- give the reading, "cujus meminit
Lucas," which Luke mentions, instead of "cujus meminit Matthoeus,"
which Matthew mentions, as the sense would have required. Matthew says,
ethaumasan, they wondered, or were astonished Mark uses a part of the
verb existamai hoste existasthai pantas,, so that all were amazed; and
Luke uses the cognate noun, kai ekstasis elabn hapanatas and amazement
seized all Still, the blunder must have been a slip of Calvin's pen,
and would have been permitted to remain in the text, if there had not
been express authority for the alteration in his own French version. --
Ed.

[512] "De quelque erreur et ignorance;" -- "in some error and
ignorance."