John 5 1 9

John

Hon 5:1-9

At first glance the text of John 5:1-9 is relatively simple and straightforward: Jesus is again in Jerusalem for a festival, and he stops by a pool that has healing properties. There he meets a sick old man who has been plagued with paralysis for years, yet when Jesus tells him to stand and walk the man finds that he is cured. Even a slight consideration of this passage prior to any scholarly commentary reveals a certain positioning of this narrative within the New Testament at large, calling up certain motifs and considerations that help to inform a proper understanding of Jesus and his role. The man seems to be put upon not only by his disease but by his community, as no one will help him to the pool and they even apparently jump in front of him in order to be healed. That Jesus picks out the lowest of the low to heal recalls many other instances in the New Testament both in a direct parallel and in more symbolic terms, such as his elevation of Mary.

The commentary here is also quite detailed and revealing. In the New Oxford annotated Bible, notes are given that Jerusalem has been the site of many rejections of Jesus, and though the rejection does not occur in verses 1 -- 9 it is set up with this Jerusalem commentary in verse 2.

This commentary goes on to note the recurring theme of water that can be seen in many different passages of John, and the pool mentioned here is mirrored in chapter 9 of this book, as well.

These notes serve to connect both Jesus and the unnamed man he heals in this passage to the larger trajectory of this gospel and to the overall symbols and lessons of the New Testament. Textual notes also provide additional insight, especially when it comes to the "stirring of the waters" described as a part of the healing process: according to some sources, an angel would descend and stir the water of the pool, and it was only the first person in the pool after this stirring that would be healed.

This gives the healing a more exclusive feel that denies the ability to heal through direct faith in God, and this is the sentiment and aspect that Jesus works to directly counter.

Other readings of this passage also exist, of course, and one extensive commentary notes how the passage underlines Jesus' status as an outsider at least twice in the very opening passage, first by stating that he was again in Jerusalem which emphasizes that he was a visitor to the city, and then by specifically noting that the name of the pool given is Hebrew -- a language defined by being beyond certain boundaries and thus also outside or other than the expected norm of the time.

This same commentary notes that Jesus is well aware of the superstitions held by those he was amongst when it came to the Sabbath, and specifically asks the old man (in this interpretation) if he wants to be healed in order to make sure the man is alright with the notion of being healed on the Sabbath.