Matthew 12:6-11

Context
12:6 I¹ tell you that something greater than the temple is here. 12:7 If² you had known what this means: ‘I want mercy and not sacrifice,’³ you would not have condemned the innocent. 12:8 For the Son of Man is lord⁴ of the Sabbath.”

12:9 Then⁵ Jesus⁶ left that place and entered their synagogue.⁷ 12:10 A⁸ man was there who had a withered⁹ hand. And they asked Jesus,¹⁰ “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?”¹¹ so that they could accuse him. 12:11 He said to them, “Would not any one of you, if he had one sheep that fell into a pit on the Sabbath, take hold of it and lift it out?

[12:6] ¹tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[12:7] ²tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[12:7] ³sn A quotation from Hos 6:6 (see also Matt 9:13).

[12:8] ³tn The term “lord” is in emphatic position in the Greek text.

[12:9] ⁴tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[12:9] ⁵tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[12:9] ⁶sn See the note on synagogues in 4:23.

[12:10] ⁵tn Grk “And behold.” The Greek word ἰδού (idou) has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1).

[12:10] ⁶sn Withered means the man’s hand was shrunken and paralyzed.

[12:10] ⁷tn Grk “and they asked him, saying.” The participle λέγοντες (legontes) is redundant and has not been translated. The referent of the pronoun (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[12:10] ⁸sn The background for this is the view that only if life was endangered should one attempt to heal on the Sabbath (see the Mishnah, m. Shabbat 6.3; 12.1; 18.3; 19.2; m. Yoma 8.6).