John 9:16

9:16 Then some of the Pharisees began to say, ¹  “This man is not from God, because he does not observe ²  the Sabbath.” ³  But others said, “How can a man who is a sinner perform ⁴  such miraculous signs?” Thus there was a division ⁵  among them.

Mark 2:9-11

2:9 Which is easier, ⁶  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 ⁷  that the Son of Man ⁸  has authority on earth to forgive sins,” – he said to the paralytic ⁹  – 2:11 “I tell you, stand up, take your stretcher, and go home.” ¹⁰ 

[9:16]  ¹ tn As a response to the answers of the man who used to be blind, the use of the imperfect tense in the reply of the Pharisees is best translated as an ingressive imperfect (“began to say” or “started saying”).

[9:16]  ² tn Grk “he does not keep.”

[9:16]  ³ sn The Jewish religious leaders considered the work involved in making the mud to be a violation of the Sabbath.

[9:16]  ⁴ tn Grk “do.”

[9:16]  ⁵ tn Or “So there was discord.”

[2:9]  ⁶ 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.

[2:10]  ⁷ 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).

[2:10]  ⁸ 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.

[2:10]  ⁹ sn Jesus did not finish his sentence with words but with action, that is, healing the paralytic with an accompanying pronouncement to him directly.

[2:11]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “to your house.”