2:1 Now 1 after some days, when he returned to Capernaum, 2 the news spread 3 that he was at home. 2:2 So many gathered that there was no longer any room, not even by 4 the door, and he preached the word to them. 2:3 Some people 5 came bringing to him a paralytic, carried by four of them. 6 2:4 When they were not able to bring him in because of the crowd, they removed the roof 7 above Jesus. 8 Then, 9 after tearing it out, they lowered the stretcher the paralytic was lying on. 2:5 When Jesus saw their 10 faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.” 11 2:6 Now some of the experts in the law 12 were sitting there, turning these things over in their minds: 13 2:7 “Why does this man speak this way? He is blaspheming! 14 Who can forgive sins but God alone?” 2:8 Now 15 immediately, when Jesus realized in his spirit that they were contemplating such thoughts, 16 he said to them, “Why are you thinking such things in your hearts? 17 2:9 Which is easier, 18 to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Stand up, take your stretcher, and walk’? 2:10 But so that you may know 19 that the Son of Man 20 has authority on earth to forgive sins,” – he said to the paralytic 21 – 2:11 “I tell you, stand up, take your stretcher, and go home.” 22 2:12 And immediately the man 23 stood up, took his stretcher, and went out in front of them all. They were all amazed and glorified God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this!”
2:13 Jesus 24 went out again by the sea. The whole crowd came to him, and he taught them. 2:14 As he went along, he saw Levi, the son of Alphaeus, sitting at the tax booth. 25 “Follow me,” he said to him. And he got up and followed him. 2:15 As Jesus 26 was having a meal 27 in Levi’s 28 home, many tax collectors 29 and sinners were eating with Jesus and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. 2:16 When the experts in the law 30 and the Pharisees 31 saw that he was eating with sinners and tax collectors, they said to his disciples, “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?” 32 2:17 When Jesus heard this he said to them, “Those who are healthy don’t need a physician, but those who are sick do. 33 I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”
2:18 Now 34 John’s 35 disciples and the Pharisees 36 were fasting. 37 So 38 they came to Jesus 39 and said, “Why do the disciples of John and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples don’t fast?”
1 tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic.
2 sn Capernaum was a town on the northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee, 680 ft (204 m) below sea level. It was a major trade and economic center in the North Galilean region.
3 tn Grk “it was heard.”
4 tn Some translations (e.g., NIV, NLT) take the preposition πρός (pro"), which indicates proximity, to mean “outside the door.” Others render it as “in front of the door” (TEV, CEV), and still others, “around the door” (NAB). There is some ambiguity inherent in the description here.
5 tn Grk “they”; the referent (some unnamed people) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
6 tn The redundancy in this verse is characteristic of the author’s rougher style.
7 sn A house in 1st century Palestine would have had a flat roof with stairs or a ladder going up. This access was often from the outside of the house.
8 tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
9 tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
10 sn The plural pronoun their makes it clear that Jesus was responding to the faith of the entire group, not just the paralyzed man.
11 sn The passive voice here is a divine passive (ExSyn 437). It is clear that God does the forgiving.
12 tn Or “some of the scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 1:22.
13 tn Grk “Reasoning within their hearts.”
14 sn Blaspheming meant to say something that dishonored God. To claim divine prerogatives or claim to speak for God when one really does not would be such an act of offense. The remark raised directly the issue of the nature of Jesus’ ministry.
15 tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the shift from the thoughts of the experts in the law to Jesus’ response.
16 tn Grk “they were thus reasoning within themselves.”
17 tn Grk “Why are you reasoning these things in your hearts?”
18 sn Which is easier is a reflective kind of question. On the one hand to declare sins are forgiven is easier, since one does not need to see it, unlike telling a paralyzed person to walk. On the other hand, it is harder, because for it to be true one must possess the authority to forgive the sin.
19 sn Now Jesus put the two actions together. The walking of the man would be proof (so that you may know) that his sins were forgiven and that God had worked through Jesus (i.e., the Son of Man).
20 sn The term Son of Man, which is a title in Greek, comes from a pictorial description in Dan 7:13 of one “like a son of man” (i.e., a human being). It is Jesus’ favorite way to refer to himself. Jesus did not reveal the background of the term here, which mixes human and divine imagery as the man in Daniel rides a cloud, something only God does. He just used it. It also could be an idiom in Aramaic meaning either “some person” or “me.” So there is a little ambiguity in its use here, since its origin is not clear at this point. However, the action makes it clear that Jesus used it to refer to himself here.
21 sn Jesus did not finish his sentence with words but with action, that is, healing the paralytic with an accompanying pronouncement to him directly.
22 tn Grk “to your house.”
23 tn Grk “he”; the referent (the man who was healed) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
24 tn Grk “He”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
25 tn While “tax office” is sometimes given as a translation for τελώνιον (telwnion, so L&N 57.183), this could give the modern reader a false impression of an indoor office with all its associated furnishings.
26 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
27 tn Grk “As he reclined at table.”
28 tn Grk “his.”
29 sn The tax collectors would bid to collect taxes for the Roman government and then add a surcharge, which they kept. Since tax collectors worked for Rome, they were viewed as traitors to their own people and were not well liked.
30 tn Or “the scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 1:22.
31 sn Pharisees were members of one of the most important and influential religious and political parties of Judaism in the time of Jesus. There were more Pharisees than Sadducees (according to Josephus, Ant. 17.2.4 [17.42] there were more than 6,000 Pharisees at about this time). Pharisees differed with Sadducees on certain doctrines and patterns of behavior. The Pharisees were strict and zealous adherents to the laws of the OT and to numerous additional traditions such as angels and bodily resurrection.
32 sn The issue here is inappropriate associations. Jews were very careful about personal associations and contact as a matter of ritual cleanliness. Their question borders on an accusation that Jesus is ritually unclean.
33 sn Jesus’ point is that he associates with those who are sick because they have the need and will respond to the offer of help. A person who is healthy (or who thinks mistakenly that he is) will not seek treatment.
34 tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic.
35 sn John refers to John the Baptist.
36 sn See the note on Pharisees in 2:16.
37 sn John’s disciples and the Pharisees followed typical practices with regard to fasting and prayer. Many Jews fasted regularly (Lev 16:29-34; 23:26-32; Num 29:7-11). The zealous fasted twice a week on Monday and Thursday.
38 tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “So” to indicate that in the narrative this question happened as a result of the fasting of John’s disciples and the Pharisees.
39 tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.