John 5
New American Standard Bible
The Healing at Bethesda
5 After these things there was (A)a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
2 Now in Jerusalem, by (B)the Sheep Gate, there is a pool which (C)in [a]Hebrew is called [b]Bethesda, having five [c]porticoes. 3 In these porticoes lay a multitude of those who were sick, blind, limping, or [d]paralyzed.[e] 5 Now a man was there who had been [f]ill for thirty-eight years. 6 Jesus, upon seeing this man lying there and knowing that he had already been in that condition for a long time, *said to him, “Do you want to get well?” 7 The sick man answered Him, “Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, but while I am coming, another steps down before me.” 8 Jesus *said to him, “(D)Get up, pick up your pallet and walk.” 9 Immediately the man became well, and picked up his pallet and began to walk.
(E)Now it was a Sabbath on that day. 10 So (F)the Jews were saying to the man who was cured, “It is a Sabbath, and (G)it is not permissible for you to carry your pallet.” 11 But he answered them, “He who made me well was the one who said to me, ‘Pick up your pallet and walk.’” 12 They asked him, “Who is the Man who said to you, ‘Pick it up and walk’?” 13 But the man who was healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had slipped away while there was a crowd in that place. 14 Afterward, Jesus *found him in the temple and said to him, “Behold, you have become well; do not (H)sin anymore, (I)so that nothing worse happens to you.” 15 The man went away, and informed (J)the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well. 16 For this reason (K)the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because He was doing these things on a Sabbath. 17 But He answered them, “My Father [g]is working until now, and I Myself am working.”
Jesus’ Equality with God
18 For this reason therefore (L)the Jews (M)were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, (N)making Himself equal with God.
19 Therefore Jesus answered and was saying to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, (O)the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever [h]the Father does, these things the Son also does in the same way. 20 (P)For the Father loves the Son and shows Him all things that He Himself is doing; and the Father will show Him (Q)greater works than these, so that you will be amazed. 21 For just as the Father raises the dead and (R)gives them life, so (S)the Son also gives life to whom He wishes. 22 For not even the Father judges anyone, but (T)He has given all judgment to the Son, 23 so that all will honor the Son just as they honor the Father. (U)The one who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.
24 “Truly, truly, I say to you, the one who hears My word, and (V)believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and (W)does not come into judgment, but has (X)passed out of death into life.
Two Resurrections
25 Truly, truly, I say to you, [i](Y)a time is coming and [j]even now has arrived, when (Z)the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who (AA)hear will live. 26 For just as the Father has life in Himself, so He (AB)gave to the Son also to have life in Himself; 27 and He gave Him authority to (AC)execute judgment, because He is [k]the Son of Man. 28 Do not be amazed at this; for [l](AD)a time is coming when (AE)all who are in the tombs will hear His voice, 29 and will come out: (AF)those who did the good deeds to a resurrection of life, those who committed the bad deeds to a resurrection of judgment.
30 “(AG)I can do nothing [m]on My own. As I hear, I judge; and (AH)My judgment is [n]righteous, because I do not seek My own will but (AI)the will of Him who sent Me.
31 “(AJ)If I alone testify about Myself, My testimony is not [o]true. 32 There is (AK)another who testifies about Me, and I know that the testimony which He gives about Me is true.
Testimony of John the Baptist
33 You have sent messengers to John, and he (AL)has testified to the truth. 34 But (AM)the testimony I receive is not from man, but I say these things so that you may be saved. 35 He was (AN)the lamp that was burning and shining, and you (AO)were willing to rejoice for [p]a while in his light.
Testimony of Works
36 But the testimony I have is greater than the testimony of John; for (AP)the works which the Father has given Me (AQ)to accomplish—the very works that I do—testify about Me, that the Father (AR)has sent Me.
Testimony of the Father
37 And the Father who sent Me, (AS)He has testified about Me. You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His form. 38 Also you do not have (AT)His word remaining in you, because you do not believe Him whom He (AU)sent.
Testimony of the Scripture
39 [q](AV)You examine the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is (AW)those very Scriptures that testify about Me; 40 and yet you are unwilling to come to Me so that you may have life. 41 (AX)I do not receive glory from people; 42 but I know you, that you do not have the love of God in yourselves. 43 I have come in My Father’s name, and you do not [r]receive Me; (AY)if another comes in his own name, you will [s]receive him. 44 How can you believe, when you [t](AZ)accept [u]glory from one another and you do not seek (BA)the [v]glory that is from (BB)the one and only God? 45 Do not think that I will accuse you before the Father; the one who accuses you is (BC)Moses, in whom you have put your hope. 46 For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for (BD)he wrote about Me. 47 But (BE)if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?”
Footnotes
- John 5:2 I.e., Jewish Aramaic
- John 5:2 Some early mss Bethsaida or Bethzatha
- John 5:2 Or colonnades (with roofs)
- John 5:3 Or had shrunken limbs
- John 5:3 Late mss add the following as the remainder of v 3, and v 4: paralyzed, waiting for the moving of the waters; for an angel of the Lord went down at certain seasons into the pool and stirred up the water; whoever then first stepped in after the stirring up of the water was made well from whatever disease with which he was afflicted
- John 5:5 Lit in his sickness
- John 5:17 I.e., has been and continues
- John 5:19 Lit that One
- John 5:25 Lit an hour
- John 5:25 Lit now is, when
- John 5:27 Or a son of man
- John 5:28 Lit an hour
- John 5:30 Or of Myself
- John 5:30 Or fair
- John 5:31 I.e., admissible as legal evidence
- John 5:35 Lit an hour
- John 5:39 Or (a command) Examine the Scriptures
- John 5:43 Or accept
- John 5:43 Or accept
- John 5:44 Or receive
- John 5:44 Or honor
- John 5:44 Or honor
John 5
Contemporary English Version
Jesus Heals a Sick Man
5 Later, Jesus went to Jerusalem for another Jewish festival.[a] 2 In the city near the sheep gate was a pool with five porches, and its name in Hebrew was Bethzatha.[b]
3-4 Many sick, blind, lame, and paralyzed people were lying close to the pool.[c]
5 Beside the pool was a man who had been sick for 38 years. 6 When Jesus saw the man and realized that he had been crippled for a long time, he asked him, “Do you want to be healed?”
7 The man answered, “Sir, I don't have anyone to put me in the pool when the water is stirred up. I try to get in, but someone else always gets there first.”
8 Jesus told him, “Pick up your mat and walk!” 9 Right then the man was healed. He picked up his mat and started walking around. The day on which this happened was a Sabbath.
10 (A) When the Jewish leaders saw the man carrying his mat, they said to him, “This is the Sabbath! No one is allowed to carry a mat on the Sabbath.”
11 But he replied, “The man who healed me told me to pick up my mat and walk.”
12 They asked him, “Who is this man that told you to pick up your mat and walk?” 13 But he did not know who Jesus was, and Jesus had left because of the crowd.
14 Later, Jesus met the man in the temple and told him, “You are now well. But don't sin anymore or something worse might happen to you.” 15 The man left and told the leaders that Jesus was the one who had healed him. 16 They started making a lot of trouble for Jesus because he did things like this on the Sabbath.
17 But Jesus said, “My Father has never stopped working, and this is why I keep on working.” 18 (B) Now the leaders wanted to kill Jesus for two reasons. First, he had broken the law of the Sabbath. But even worse, he had said God was his Father, which made him equal with God.
The Son's Authority
19 Jesus told the people:
I tell you for certain the Son cannot do anything on his own. He can do only what he sees the Father doing, and he does exactly what he sees the Father do. 20 The Father loves the Son and has shown him everything he does. The Father will show him even greater things, and you will be amazed. 21 Just as the Father raises the dead and gives life, so the Son gives life to anyone he wants to.
22 The Father doesn't judge anyone, but he has made his Son the judge of everyone. 23 The Father wants all people to honor the Son as much as they honor him. When anyone refuses to honor the Son, this is the same as refusing to honor the Father who sent him. 24 I tell you for certain that everyone who hears my message and has faith in the one who sent me has eternal life and will never be condemned. They have already gone from death to life.
25 I tell you for certain the time will come, and it is already here, when all of the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God. And those who listen to it will live! 26 The Father has the power to give life, and he has given that same power to the Son. 27 And he has given his Son the right to judge everyone, because he is the Son of Man.
28 Don't be surprised! The time will come when all of the dead will hear the voice of the Son of Man, 29 (C) and they will come out of their graves. Everyone who has done good things will rise to life, but everyone who has done evil things will rise and be condemned.
30 I cannot do anything on my own. The Father sent me, and he is the one who told me how to judge. I judge with fairness, because I obey him, and I don't just try to please myself.
Witnesses to Jesus
31 If I speak for myself, there is no way to prove I am telling the truth. 32 But there is someone else who speaks for me, and I know what he says is true. 33 (D) You sent messengers to John, and he told them the truth. 34 I don't depend on what people say about me, but I tell you these things so that you may be saved. 35 (E) John was a lamp that gave a lot of light, and you were glad to enjoy his light for a while.
36 But something more important than John speaks for me. I mean the things that the Father has given me to do! All of these speak for me and prove that the Father sent me.
37 (F) The Father who sent me also speaks for me, but you have never heard his voice or seen him face to face. 38 You have not believed his message, because you refused to have faith in the one he sent.
39 (G) You search the Scriptures, because you think you will find eternal life in them. The Scriptures tell about me, 40 but you refuse to come to me for eternal life.
41 I don't care about human praise, 42 but I do know that none of you love God. 43 I have come with my Father's authority, and you have not welcomed me. But you will welcome people who come on their own. 44 How could you possibly believe? You like to have your friends praise you, and you don't care about praise that the only God can give!
45 Don't think that I will be the one to accuse you to the Father. You have put your hope in Moses, yet he is the very one who will accuse you. 46 Moses wrote about me, and if you had believed Moses, you would have believed me. 47 But if you don't believe what Moses wrote, how can you believe what I say?
Footnotes
- 5.1 another Jewish festival: Either the Festival of Shelters or Passover.
- 5.2 Bethzatha: Some manuscripts have “Bethesda” and others have “Bethsaida.”
- 5.3,4 pool: Some manuscripts add, “They were waiting for the water to be stirred, because an angel from the Lord would sometimes come down and stir it. The first person to get into the pool after that would be healed.”
John 5
Living Bible
5 Afterwards Jesus returned to Jerusalem for one of the Jewish religious holidays. 2 Inside the city, near the Sheep Gate, was Bethesda Pool, with five covered platforms or porches surrounding it. 3 Crowds of sick folks—lame, blind, or with paralyzed limbs—lay on the platforms (waiting for a certain movement of the water, 4 for an angel of the Lord came from time to time and disturbed the water, and the first person to step down into it afterwards was healed).[a]
5 One of the men lying there had been sick for thirty-eight years. 6 When Jesus saw him and knew how long he had been ill, he asked him, “Would you like to get well?”
7 “I can’t,” the sick man said, “for I have no one to help me into the pool at the movement of the water. While I am trying to get there, someone else always gets in ahead of me.”
8 Jesus told him, “Stand up, roll up your sleeping mat and go on home!”
9 Instantly, the man was healed! He rolled up the mat and began walking!
But it was on the Sabbath when this miracle was done. 10 So the Jewish leaders objected. They said to the man who was cured, “You can’t work on the Sabbath! It’s illegal to carry that sleeping mat!”
11 “The man who healed me told me to,” was his reply.
12 “Who said such a thing as that?” they demanded.
13 The man didn’t know, and Jesus had disappeared into the crowd. 14 But afterwards Jesus found him in the Temple and told him, “Now you are well; don’t sin as you did before,[b] or something even worse may happen to you.”
15 Then the man went to find the Jewish leaders and told them it was Jesus who had healed him.
16 So they began harassing Jesus as a Sabbath breaker.
17 But Jesus replied, “My Father constantly does good, and I’m following his example.”[c]
18 Then the Jewish leaders were all the more eager to kill him because in addition to disobeying their Sabbath laws, he had spoken of God as his Father, thereby making himself equal with God.
19 Jesus replied, “The Son can do nothing by himself. He does only what he sees the Father doing, and in the same way. 20 For the Father loves the Son, and tells him everything he is doing; and the Son will do far more awesome miracles than this man’s healing. 21 He will even raise from the dead anyone he wants to, just as the Father does. 22 And the Father leaves all judgment of sin to his Son, 23 so that everyone will honor the Son, just as they honor the Father. But if you refuse to honor God’s Son, whom he sent to you, then you are certainly not honoring the Father.
24 “I say emphatically that anyone who listens to my message and believes in God who sent me has eternal life, and will never be damned for his sins, but has already passed out of death into life.
25 “And I solemnly declare that the time is coming, in fact, it is here, when the dead shall hear my voice—the voice of the Son of God—and those who listen shall live. 26 The Father has life in himself, and has granted his Son to have life in himself, 27 and to judge the sins of all mankind because he is the Son of Man. 28 Don’t be so surprised! Indeed the time is coming when all the dead in their graves shall hear the voice of God’s Son, 29 and shall rise again—those who have done good, to eternal life; and those who have continued in evil, to judgment.
30 “But I pass no judgment without consulting the Father. I judge as I am told. And my judgment is absolutely fair and just, for it is according to the will of God who sent me and is not merely my own.
31 “When I make claims about myself they aren’t believed, 32-33 but someone else, yes, John the Baptist,[d] is making these claims for me too. You have gone out to listen to his preaching, and I can assure you that all he says about me is true! 34 But the truest witness I have is not from a man, though I have reminded you about John’s witness so that you will believe in me and be saved. 35 John shone brightly for a while, and you benefited and rejoiced, 36 but I have a greater witness than John. I refer to the miracles I do; these have been assigned me by the Father, and they prove that the Father has sent me. 37 And the Father himself has also testified about me, though not appearing to you personally, or speaking to you directly. 38 But you are not listening to him, for you refuse to believe me—the one sent to you with God’s message.
39 “You search the Scriptures, for you believe they give you eternal life. And the Scriptures point to me! 40 Yet you won’t come to me so that I can give you this life eternal!
41-42 “Your approval or disapproval means nothing to me, for as I know so well, you don’t have God’s love within you. 43 I know, because I have come to you representing my Father and you refuse to welcome me, though you readily enough receive those who aren’t sent from him, but represent only themselves! 44 No wonder you can’t believe! For you gladly honor each other, but you don’t care about the honor that comes from the only God!
45 “Yet it is not I who will accuse you of this to the Father—Moses will! Moses, on whose laws you set your hopes of heaven. 46 For you have refused to believe Moses. He wrote about me, but you refuse to believe him, so you refuse to believe in me. 47 And since you don’t believe what he wrote, no wonder you don’t believe me either.”
Footnotes
- John 5:4 Many of the ancient manuscripts omit the material within the parentheses.
- John 5:14 don’t sin as you did before, implied; literally, “sin no more.”
- John 5:17 My Father constantly does good, and I’m following his example, implied; literally, “My Father works even until now, and I work.”
- John 5:32 John the Baptist, implied. However, most commentators believe the reference is to the witness of his Father. See v. 37.
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