Jesus travelled to Jerusalem for a Jewish festival.

In Jerusalem, near the Sheep Gate, was a pool called Bethesda that had five porches. Many sick and disabled people were lying there. One man was there who had been sick for 38 years.

Jesus saw him lying there and knew he had been there for a long time. Jesus asked him, “You want to be healed?”

The sick man answered, “Sir, I don’t have anyone that can put me in the pool when the water is flowing. Someone else goes down before me, while I am going.”

Jesus said, “Get up. Pick up your bed and walk.”

The man was immediately healed. He picked up his bed and began walking. It was the Sabbath (rest) day.

The Jews said to the man who had been healed, “It is the Sabbath. You are not allowed to carry your bed.”

The man replied, “My healer said, ‘pick up your bed and walk’.”

“Which man told you to, ‘pick it up and walk’?” The Jews asked.

But the healed man didn’t know who it was because Jesus had left through the crowds.

Later, Jesus found the man in the temple and said, “Look, you’ve being healed. Don’t do any more wrong things, in case something worse happens.”

The man went to the Jews and told them it was Jesus who had healed him.

The Jews began going after Jesus because of this. He was healing on the day set aside for rest.

Jesus explained to them, “My Father is working today and I am too.”

Because of this, the Jews wanted to kill him, not only because he was breaking the day of rest, but because he was calling God his Father, which made him equal with God.

Jesus said to them, “I’m honestly telling you, the Son can’t do anything except for what he sees the Father doing. Whatever the Father does, the son also does in a similar way. The Father loves the son and shows him everything he is doing. He will show you even greater works than what I did today, and you’ll be amazed. Just like the Father brings the dead back to life, the Son also chooses who to make alive. The Father does not judge anyone but has given all the judgement to the Son so everyone will respect the Son just like the respect the Father. Whoever does not respect the Son does not respect the Father who sent him. I’m honestly telling you; whoever hears my word and believes my sender gets eternal life and does not get judged, but they go from death to life.

I’m honestly telling you that a time is coming, and it’s here now, when the dead will hear the Son of God’s voice, and the hearers will live. Just like the Father has life in himself, he has allowed the Son to have life in himself. He has given him the right to judge because is the Son of Man. Don’t be amazed at this, because a time is coming when everyone in the tombs will hear his voice and they will leave. Those who have done good will leave to a life resurrection, but those who have done evil will leave to a judgement resurrection.

I can’t do anything from myself. Listening, I judge and my judgement is fair because I don’t look for my own wishes, but the wishes of my sender.

If I biasly talk about myself, what I say is wrong. Someone else talks about me and I know that what he says about me is right. You sent for John and he told you the truth. I don’t just take what people say, but I’m telling you this so you can be saved. That person was the lamp burning and shining, and you wanted to celebrate for an hour in his light, but I have something to share greater than what John did. The tasks the Father gave me to complete, the tasks I am doing, speak about me and that the Father sent me.

The Father who sent me has spoken about me. You haven’t ever heard his voice or seen him, or have his message living in you, because you don’t believe in the person he sent. You look through the scriptures because you think you have everlasting life in them, and these scriptures talk about me. You’re not wanting to come to me to get everlasting life. I don’t take honour from people, but I know that you don’t have God’s love in you.

I came in my Father’s name and you don’t accept me. If someone comes in his own name, you would accept them. How can you believe when you accept honour from each other but don’t look for glory from the only God?

Don’t think I will accuse you before the Father. Moses is the one who accuses you. You’ve put your hope in him, and if you believed Moses, you would believe me, because Moses wrote about me. If you don’t believe Moses’ writings, how will you believe my words?”

John Chapter 5 Summary

Jesus visits Jerusalem and meets a man who has been sick for 38 years. The man believes he cannot be healed because he can’t get to the pool of Bethesda in time. Jesus heals him instantly by telling him to “get up, pick up your bed, and walk.” This healing occurs on the Sabbath (day of rest), which upsets the Jewish leaders who believe it is wrong to carry a bed on this day. The healed man tells the leaders it was Jesus who healed him, and this increases their anger towards Jesus. Jesus explains that he is working with His Father, God and talks about His divine authority, highlighting that the Father has given Him the power to give life and to judge. Jesus criticises the Jewish leaders for not really accepting God, even though the Scriptures and Moses spoke of Him. He warns that their hope in Moses will lead them astray because Moses wrote about Him, and rejecting Jesus means rejecting God’s message.

John Chapter 5 Bible Study Questions and Answers

1. What does the healing at Bethesda teach us about Jesus’ compassion?
Answer: This shows that Jesus cares and gives attention to individual suffering. The man was unable to help himself, but Jesus offers the man healing, without the man even asking. It shows that Jesus sees and understands our struggles, even when we feel hopeless.

2. How does Jesus’ healing on the day of rest challenge our understanding of religious rules and care?
Answer: Jesus prioritises care over religious rules, showing that acts of love and mercy should not be limited by legalism. This challenges us to consider whether our practices and beliefs sometimes prevent us from showing love and kindness.

3. What can we learn from the Jewish leaders’ reaction to the healing about the danger of legalism?
Answer: The Jewish leaders were more concerned with breaking the day of rest rules than with the miraculous healing. This shows how legalism can blind us to the work of God and lead us to prefer rules over people. It reminds us to focus on the spirit of God’s laws, which is love.

4. How does Jesus’ claim of being equal with God impact our understanding of who he is?
Answer: Jesus makes it clear that He is not just a prophet but the Son of God. This challenges us to recognise and honour Jesus as God Himself, worthy of our faith and obedience.

5. Why is belief in Jesus essential according to this chapter, and how does it affect our relationship with God?
Answer: Jesus explains that eternal life comes from believing in Him and that rejecting Him means rejecting the Father who sent Him. This highlights the importance of faith in Jesus for being saved and entering into a relationship with God.

John Chapter 5 Explained

The chapter begins with Jesus traveling to Jerusalem for a festival, where He meets a man who had been ill for 38 years at the pool of Bethesda. The pool was believed to have healing properties when the water bubbled up, but the man, due to his sickness, was never able to reach it in time. When Jesus asks if he wants to be healed, the man’s response is full of hopelessness, as he believes healing is beyond his reach. Jesus, however, heals the man instantly by commanding him to get up, take his bed, and walk. This miracle not only shows Jesus’ power but also His deep care, as He meets the man’s need without being asked.

The healing takes place on the Sabbath, a day set aside for rest according to Jewish law. The Jewish leaders, instead of celebrating the man’s healing, focus on the fact that he is carrying his bed, which they consider work and therefore breaking the Sabbath rules. This reaction highlights the dangers of legalism, where rules can be valued more than showing mercy and care. The healed man, unaware of who Jesus was, later meets Him in the temple, where Jesus warns him to avoid sin to prevent something worse from happening to him. This suggests that spiritual well-being is as important as physical health, and that Jesus’ concern goes beyond just physical healing.

The Jewish leaders confront Jesus for healing on the Sabbath. Jesus claims that He is working just as His Father is, implying that He is not bound by Sabbath rules because He is doing the work of God. This angers the leaders because it not only suggests that Jesus is above the law but also implies he is equal with God, which they see as insulting God’s importance.

Jesus further discusses His relationship with the Father (God), explaining that He only does what He sees the Father doing, and that the Father has given Jesus the responsibility of judgement. Jesus explains his authority to give life and judge, indicating that honouring the Son is the same as honouring the Father. Jesus’ words here are important because they establish His authority and His role in God’s plan of saving humanity.

Jesus further challenges the Jewish leaders by pointing out that their study of the Scriptures should lead them to Him, as the Scriptures tell them about Him. However, the leaders lack of belief in Him shows a lack of genuine faith in God, despite all their knowledge about the scriptures. Jesus also mentions Moses, whom the Jewish leaders see as very important, saying that Moses wrote about Him. Therefore, their disbelief in Jesus also indicates a failure to understand and believe Moses’ writings.

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Continue exploring John 5

If you’d like to read John 5 in other translations, here are a few BibleHub links:
For a translation that aims to be word-for-word, try John 5 in the English Standard Version.
For a translation that aims to be more thought-for-thought, try John 5 in the New International Version.
For a translation that aims to communicate the overall meaning, try John 5 in the Contemporary English Version.

If you prefer to read the Bible in a hard-copy format, here are cheaper versions from Amazon:
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For a translation that aims to be word-for-word, ESV Economy Bible
For a translation that aims to be more thought-for-thought, NIV, Economy Bible, Paperback: Accurate. Readable. Clear.
For a translation that aims to communicate the overall meaning, Holy Bible: Contemporary English Version

If you’d like to explore John in more depth, here are two commentaries I would recommend:
[These are Amazon affiliate links which support the production of this blog]
Easy to access commentaries that include life applications:
The NIV Application Commentary: John
For a commentary that goes into more depth:
The Gospel of John (The New International Commentary on the New Testament)