Matthew 9 - New English Translation (NET)

Healing and Forgiving a Paralytic

9 After getting into a boat^[a] he crossed to the other side and came to his own town.^{[b] 2} Just then^[c] some people^[d] brought to him a paralytic lying on a stretcher.^[e] When Jesus saw their^[f] faith, he said to the paralytic, “Have courage, son! Your sins are forgiven.”^{[g] 3} Then^[h] some of the experts in the law^[i] said to themselves, “This man is blaspheming!”^{[j] 4} When Jesus perceived their thoughts he said, “Why do you respond with evil in your hearts? ⁵ Which is easier,^[k] to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven’ or to say, ‘Stand up and walk’? ⁶ But so that you may know^[l] that the Son of Man^[m] has authority on earth to forgive sins”—then he said to the paralytic^[n]—“Stand up, take your stretcher, and go home.”^{[o] 7} So^[p] he stood up and went home.^{[q] 8} When^[r] the crowd saw this, they were afraid^[s] and honored God who had given such authority to men.^[t]

The Call of Matthew; Eating with Sinners

⁹ As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax booth.^[u] “Follow me,” he said to him. So^[v] he got up and followed him. ¹⁰ As^[w] Jesus^[x] was having a meal^[y] in Matthew’s^[z] house, many tax collectors^[aa] and sinners came and ate with Jesus and his disciples. ¹¹ When the Pharisees^[ab] saw this they said to his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”^{[ac] 12} When^[ad] Jesus heard this he said, “Those who are healthy don’t need a physician, but those who are sick do.^{[ae] 13} Go and learn what this saying means: ‘I want mercy and not sacrifice.’^[af] For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

The Superiority of the New

¹⁴ Then John’s^[ag] disciples came to Jesus^[ah] and asked, “Why do we and the Pharisees^[ai] fast often,^[aj] but your disciples don’t fast?” ¹⁵ Jesus said to them, “The wedding guests^[ak] cannot mourn while the bridegroom^[al] is with them, can they? But the days^[am] are coming when the bridegroom will be taken from them,^[an] and then they will fast. ¹⁶ No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, because the patch will pull away from the garment and the tear will be worse.^{[ao] 17} And no one pours new wine into old wineskins;^[ap] otherwise the skins burst and the wine is spilled out and the skins are destroyed. Instead they put new wine into new wineskins^[aq] and both are preserved.”

Restoration and Healing

¹⁸ As he was saying these things, a leader^[ar] came, bowed low before him, and said, “My daughter has just died, but come and lay your hand on her and she will live.” ¹⁹ Jesus and his disciples got up and followed him. ²⁰ But^[as] a woman who had been suffering from a hemorrhage^[at] for twelve years came up behind him and touched the edge^[au] of his cloak.^{[av] 21} For she kept saying to herself,^[aw] “If only I touch his cloak, I will be healed.”^{[ax] 22} But when Jesus turned and saw her he said, “Have courage, daughter! Your faith has made you well.”^[ay] And the woman was healed^[az] from that hour. ²³ When Jesus entered the leader’s house and saw the flute players^[ba] and the disorderly crowd, ²⁴ he said, “Go away, for the girl is not dead but asleep!” And they began making fun of him.^{[bb] 25} But when the crowd had been forced outside,^[bc] he went in and gently took her by the hand, and the girl got up. ²⁶ And the news of this spread throughout that region.^[bd]

Healing the Blind and Mute

²⁷ As Jesus went on from there, two blind men began to follow^[be] him, shouting,^[bf] “Have mercy^[bg] on us, Son of David!”^{[bh] 28} When^[bi] he went into the house, the blind men came to him. Jesus^[bj] said to them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” They said to him, “Yes, Lord.” ²⁹ Then he touched their eyes saying, “Let it be done for you according to your faith.” ³⁰ And their eyes were opened. Then Jesus sternly warned them, “See that no one knows about this!” ³¹ But they went out and spread the news about him throughout that entire region.^[bk]

³² As^[bl] they were going away,^[bm] a man who was demon-possessed and unable to speak^[bn] was brought to him. ³³ After the demon was cast out, the man who had been mute began to speak.^[bo] The crowds were amazed and said, “Never has anything like this been seen in Israel!” ³⁴ But the Pharisees^[bp] said, “By the ruler^[bq] of demons he casts out demons!”

Workers for the Harvest

³⁵ Then Jesus went throughout all the towns^[br] and villages, teaching in their synagogues,^[bs] preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and sickness.^{[bt] 36} When^[bu] he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them because they were bewildered and helpless,^[bv] like sheep without a shepherd. ³⁷ Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. ³⁸ Therefore ask the Lord of the harvest^[bw] to send out workers into his harvest-ready fields.”^[bx]

Footnotes

1. Matthew 9:1 sn See the note at Matt 4:21 for a description of the first-century fishing boat discovered in 1986 near Tiberias on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee.
2. Matthew 9:1 sn His own town refers to Capernaum. Capernaum was a town located on the northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee, 680 ft (204 m) below sea level. It existed since Hasmonean times and was a major trade and economic center in the North Galilean region. The population in the first century is estimated to be around 1,500. Capernaum became the hub of operations for Jesus’ Galilean ministry (Matt 4:13; Mark 2:1). For more information, see the note at Matt 8:5.
3. Matthew 9:2 tn Grk “And behold, they were bringing.” Here καὶ ἰδού (kai idou) has been translated as “just then” to indicate the somewhat sudden appearance of the people carrying the paralytic. The Greek word ἰδού (idou) has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1), especially in conjunction with the suddenness of the stretcher-bearers’ appearance.
4. Matthew 9:2 tn Grk “they”; the referent (some unnamed people) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
5. Matthew 9:2 tn Traditionally, “on a bed,” but this could be confusing to the modern reader who might envision a large piece of furniture. In various contexts, κλίνη (klinē) may be translated “bed, couch, cot, stretcher, or bier” (in the case of a corpse). See L&N 6.106.
6. Matthew 9:2 sn The plural pronoun their makes it clear that Jesus was responding to the faith of the entire group, not just the paralyzed man.
7. Matthew 9:2 sn The passive voice here is a divine passive (ExSyn 437). It is clear that God does the forgiving.
8. Matthew 9:3 tn 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). Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events in the narrative.
9. Matthew 9:3 tn Or “some of the scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 2:4.
10. Matthew 9:3 sn Blaspheming in the NT has a somewhat broader meaning than mere utterances. It could mean to say something that dishonored God, but it could also involve claims to divine prerogatives (in this case, to forgive sins on God’s behalf). Such claims were viewed as usurping God’s majesty or honor. The remark here raised directly the issue of the nature of Jesus’ ministry, and even more importantly, the identity of Jesus himself as God’s representative.
11. Matthew 9:5 sn Which is easier is a reflective kind of question. On the one hand to declare that sins are forgiven is easier, since the forgiveness is unseen, unlike telling a paralyzed person to walk. On the other hand, to declare sins forgiven is harder, because for it to be true one must possess the authority to forgive the sin. Jesus is implicitly claiming that authority here.
12. Matthew 9:6 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).
13. Matthew 9:6 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.
14. Matthew 9:6 sn Jesus did not finish his sentence with words but with action, that is, healing the paralytic with an accompanying pronouncement to him directly.
15. Matthew 9:6 tn Grk “to your house.”
16. Matthew 9:7 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied sequence of events in the narrative.
17. Matthew 9:7 tn Grk “to his house.”
18. Matthew 9:8 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
19. Matthew 9:8 tc Most witnesses (C L N Γ Θ 0233 ƒ¹³ 565 579 700 M) have ἐθαύμασαν (ethaumasan; “marveled, were amazed”) instead of ἐφοβήθησαν (ephobēthēsan) here, effectively turning the fearful reaction into one of veneration. But the harder reading is well supported by א B D W 0281 ƒ¹ 33 892 1424 lat co and thus is surely authentic.
20. Matthew 9:8 tn Grk “people.” The plural of ἄνθρωπος (anthrōpos) usually indicates people in general, but the singular is used in the expression “Son of Man.” There is thus an ironic allusion to Jesus’ statement in v. 6: His self-designation as “Son of Man” is meant to be unique, but the crowd regards it simply as meaning “human, person.” To maintain this connection for the English reader the plural ἀνθρώποις (anthrōpois) has been translated here as “men” rather than as the more generic “people.”
21. Matthew 9:9 tn While “tax office” is sometimes given as a translation for τελώνιον (telōnion, so L&N 57.183), this could give the modern reader a false impression of an indoor office with all its associated furnishings.sn The tax booth was a booth located at a port or on the edge of a city or town to collect taxes for trade. These taxes were a form of customs duty or toll applied to the movement of goods and produce brought into an area for sale. As such these tolls were a sort of “sales tax” paid by the seller but obviously passed on to the purchaser in the form of increased prices (L&N 57.183). The system as a whole is sometimes referred to as “tax farming” because a contract to collect these taxes for an entire district would be sold to the highest bidder, who would pay up front, hire employees to do the work of collection, and then recoup the investment and overhead by charging commissions on top of the taxes. Although rates and commissions were regulated by law, there was plenty of room for abuse in the system through the subjective valuation of goods by the tax collectors, and even through outright bribery. Tax overseers and their employees were obviously not well liked. There was a tax booth in Capernaum, which was on the trade route from Damascus to Galilee and the Mediterranean. It was here that Jesus met Matthew (also named Levi [see Mark 2:14, Luke 5:27]) who, although indirectly employed by the Romans, was probably more directly responsible to Herod Antipas, the tetrarch of Galilee appointed by Rome. It was Matthew’s job to collect customs duties for Rome and he was thus despised by his fellow Jews, many of whom would have regarded him as a traitor.
22. Matthew 9:9 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied sequence of events in the narrative.
23. Matthew 9:10 tn Grk “And it happened that while.” The introductory phrase καὶ ἐγένετο (kai egeneto, “it happened that”) is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.
24. Matthew 9:10 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
25. Matthew 9:10 tn Grk “was reclining at table.”sn As Jesus was having a meal. First century middle eastern meals were not eaten while sitting at a table, but while reclining on one’s side on the floor with the head closest to the low table and the feet farthest away.
26. Matthew 9:10 tn Grk “in the house.” The Greek article is used here in a context that implies possession, and the referent of the implied possessive pronoun (Matthew) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
27. Matthew 9:10 sn See the note on tax collectors in 5:46.
28. Matthew 9:11 sn See the note on Pharisees in 3:7.
29. Matthew 9:11 sn The issue here is inappropriate associations (on the status of tax collectors see the note at 5:46; the phrase often occurs in the NT in collocation with sinners). 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 because of who he associates with.
30. Matthew 9:12 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
31. Matthew 9:12 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. People who are healthy (or who think mistakenly that they are) will not seek treatment.
32. Matthew 9:13 sn A quotation from Hos 6:6 (see also Matt 12:7). The statement both in the Hebrew text of Hosea and the Greek text of Matthew creates an apparent antithesis between mercy and sacrifice. Even among the church fathers, some understood this to be an absolute rejection of sacrifice by Jesus, and to signal the end of the sacrificial cult with the arrival of the new covenant. This interpretation is unlikely, however, both for Hosea and for Matthew. The LXX renders the Hebrew text of Hos 6:6 as comparative: “I want mercy more than sacrifice,” and this is probably closer to Hosea’s meaning (see the note at Hos 6:6). Such an understanding is also consistent with Jesus’ teaching elsewhere in Matthew (e.g. 5:18-24; 23:23-28). Obedience to the law is important, but even more important is to show mercy to those who are in dire need, as demonstrated by Jesus himself in his ministry of healing (alluded to in Matt 9:12 with the imagery of the physician, and in Matt 9:1-8 by the healing of the paralytic).
33. Matthew 9:14 sn John refers to John the Baptist.
34. Matthew 9:14 tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
35. Matthew 9:14 sn See the note on Pharisees in 3:7.
36. Matthew 9:14 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 (cf. Luke 18:12) on Monday and Thursday (Didache 8:1).
37. Matthew 9:15 tn Grk “sons of the wedding hall,” an idiom referring to wedding guests, or more specifically friends of the bridegroom present at the wedding celebration (L&N 11.7).
38. Matthew 9:15 sn The expression while the bridegroom is with them is an allusion to messianic times (John 3:29; Isa 54:5-6; 62:4-5).
39. Matthew 9:15 tn Grk “days.”
40. Matthew 9:15 sn The statement the bridegroom will be taken from them is a veiled allusion by Jesus to his death, which he did not make explicit until the incident at Caesarea Philippi in 16:13ff. For Matthew it is unlikely this statement is meant to refer to fasting in the early church following Jesus’ resurrection and exaltation, since Matthew presents the post-resurrection period as a time of Jesus’ presence rather than his absence (18:20; 28:20). Nevertheless, this passage is frequently cited as a justification of the fasting practices of the early church (such a practice may be reflected in Didache 8:1).
41. Matthew 9:16 sn The point of the saying is the incompatibility of the old and the new, with Jesus and his disciples representing what is new. In the context this explains why Jesus and his disciples do not fast like the Pharisees and the disciples of John the Baptist (v. 14).
42. Matthew 9:17 sn Wineskins were bags made of skin or leather, used for storing wine in NT times. As the new wine fermented and expanded, it would stretch the new wineskins. Putting new (unfermented) wine in old wineskins, which had already been stretched, would result in the bursting of the wineskins.
43. Matthew 9:17 sn The meaning of the saying new wine into new wineskins is that the presence and teaching of Jesus was something new and signaled the passing of the old. It could not be confined within the old religion of Judaism, but involved the inauguration and consummation of the kingdom of God.
44. Matthew 9:18 tn Matthew’s account does not qualify this individual as “a leader of the synagogue” as do the parallel accounts in Mark 5:22 and Luke 8:41, both of which also give the individual’s name as Jairus. The traditional translation of the Greek term ἄρχων (archōn) as “ruler” could in this unqualified context in Matthew suggest a political or other form of ruler, so here the translation “leader” is preferred (see BDAG 140 s.v. ἄρχων 2.a).
45. Matthew 9:20 tn Grk “And behold a woman.” 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).
46. Matthew 9:20 sn The woman was most likely suffering from a chronic vaginal or uterine hemorrhage which would have made her ritually unclean. The same Greek term is used in the LXX only once, at Lev 15:33, and there it refers to menstruation (J. Nolland, The Gospel of Matthew [NIGTC], 395).
47. Matthew 9:20 sn The edge of his cloak could simply refer to the edge or hem, but the same term kraspedon is used in Matt 23:5 to refer to the tassels on the four corners of a Jewish man’s garment, and it probably means the same here (J. Nolland, The Gospel of Matthew [NIGTC], 396). The tassel on the corner of the garment symbolized obedience to the law (cf. Num 15:37-41; Deut 22:12). The woman thus touched the very part of Jesus’ clothing that indicated his ritual purity.
48. Matthew 9:20 tn Grk “garment,” but here ἱμάτιον (himation) denotes the outer garment in particular.
49. Matthew 9:21 tn The imperfect verb is here taken iteratively (“kept saying”), for the context suggests that the woman was trying to find the courage to touch Jesus’ cloak.
50. Matthew 9:21 tn Grk “saved.”sn In this pericope the author uses a term for being healed (Grk “saved”) that, while referring to the woman’s physical healing, would have spiritual significance to his readers. It may be a double entendre (cf. the parallel in Mark 5:28 which uses the same term), since elsewhere the evangelist uses verbs that simply mean “heal”: If only the readers would “touch” Jesus, they too would be “saved.”
51. Matthew 9:22 tn Or “has delivered you”; Grk “has saved you.” sn The phrase has made you well should not be understood as an expression for full salvation in the original setting; it refers only to the woman’s healing. However, as the note on the previous verse points out, it is possible the evangelist did intend something of a double entendre by the use of the term, suggesting to his readers that for them, faith in Jesus would lead to salvation in the full theological sense.
52. Matthew 9:22 tn Grk “saved.”
53. Matthew 9:23 sn Hired flute players were a standard feature at Jewish funerals in the first century. According to the Mishnah (m. Ketubot 4:4) the husband was responsible to provide flute players for his wife’s funeral: “Even the poorest man in Israel should not hire fewer than two flutes and one professional wailing woman.”
54. Matthew 9:24 tn Grk “They were laughing at him.” The imperfect verb has been understood ingressively (“began making fun”).
55. Matthew 9:25 tn Or “had been expelled.” The typical “had been put outside” is slightly understated in the context; given the raucous nature of the crowd in v. 23, forceful activity was probably required in order to evict them.
56. Matthew 9:26 tn For the translation of τὴν γῆν ἐκείνην (tēn gēn ekeinēn) as “that region,” see L&N 1.79; BDAG 196 s.v. γῆ 3.
57. Matthew 9:27 tn The aorist verb has been translated here as ingressive, stressing the beginning of the action. So Wallace: “The following verse makes it clear that an ingressive idea is meant, for the blind men are still following Jesus” (ExSyn 559).
58. Matthew 9:27 tn Grk “shouting, saying.” The participle λέγοντες (legontes) is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.
59. Matthew 9:27 sn Have mercy on us is a request for healing. Implicit in the request is the assumption that Jesus had the power to heal them and restore their sight.
60. Matthew 9:27 sn There was a tradition in Judaism that the Son of David (Solomon) had great powers of healing (Josephus, Ant. 8.2.5 [8.42-49]). By extension this would apply to the ultimate royal Davidic descendant, the Messiah, as well. At this point in his narrative Matthew picks up again the theme of Jesus as Davidic descendant which had appeared in chaps. 1–2, but had not been developed further until now.
61. Matthew 9:28 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
62. Matthew 9:28 tn Grk “to him, and Jesus.” This is a continuation of the previous sentence in Greek, but a new sentence was started here in the translation.
63. Matthew 9:31 tn For the translation of τὴν γῆν ἐκείνην (tēn gēn ekeinēn) as “that region,” see L&N 1.79; BDAG 196 s.v. γῆ 3.
64. Matthew 9:32 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
65. Matthew 9:32 tn Grk “away, behold, they brought a man to him.” 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).
66. Matthew 9:32 tn Grk “a man mute, demon-possessed.” Some translations infer a causal relationship here (“was mute because he was demon-possessed”; cf. TEV, CEV). The present translation allows for this interpretation (“was demon-possessed and [thus] unable to speak”) without making it explicit.
67. Matthew 9:33 tn The aorist verb has been translated here as ingressive, stressing the beginning of the action. The context clearly indicates an ingressive force here.
68. Matthew 9:34 sn See the note on Pharisees in 3:7.
69. Matthew 9:34 tn Or “prince.”
70. Matthew 9:35 tn Or “cities.”
71. Matthew 9:35 sn See the note on synagogues in 4:23.
72. Matthew 9:35 tn Grk “every [kind of] disease and every [kind of] sickness.” Here “every” was not repeated in the translation for stylistic reasons. Although the present translation, like several other translations (e.g., NASB, NKJV, NLT), has opted for “every kind of disease and sickness” here, understanding the Greek term πᾶς to refer to “everything belonging, in kind, to the class designated by the noun” (BDAG 784 s.v. 5), it may be possible to understand the word to mean “all” in the sense of totality (i.e., “every disease and every sickness”), given that the same Greek term occurs at the beginning of the verse in the phrase “all the towns and villages” and the phrase at the end of the verse may be intended as a contrast. Arguing against this is the evangelist’s usage of the exact same phrase “every disease and every sickness” in 4:23 referring to Jesus’ healing ministry and in 10:1 to refer to the ministry of the disciples. In the two last-mentioned passages the contrast with “all the towns and villages” does not occur.
73. Matthew 9:36 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
74. Matthew 9:36 tn Or perhaps “because they had been bewildered and helpless.” The grammatical issue is whether the perfect participles are to be regarded as predicate adjectives or as pluperfect periphrastic constructions (i.e., εἰμί in the indicative plus a perfect participle). Wallace regards these as pluperfect periphrastics, stating: “There may be a hint in Matthew’s use of the pluperfect, esp. in collocation with the shepherd-motif, that this situation would soon disappear” (ExSyn 584).
75. Matthew 9:38 sn The phrase Lord of the harvest recognizes God’s sovereignty over the harvest process.
76. Matthew 9:38 tn Grk “harvest,” but by extension of meaning this refers to the crops awaiting harvest in the fields. See BDAG 453 s.v. θερισμός 2.a.