JHN 5:1-15

The Pool of Bethesda

1After these things there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. [5:2] Now in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate there is a pool — called in Hebrew Bethzatha — which has five porticoes. [5:3] In these were lying a large number of those suffering from various infirmities: blind, lame, paralyzed. [5:5] Now there was a man there who had been in his illness thirty-eight years. [5:6] When Jesus saw him lying there and knew he had already been there a long time, he said to him, "Do you want to be made well?" [5:7] 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 going, another steps down before me." [5:8] Jesus said to him, "Rise, take up your mat, and walk." [5:9] And immediately the man was made well, and he took up his mat and walked. Now that day was a Sabbath. [5:10] So the Jews said to the man who had been healed, "It is a Sabbath — it is not permitted for you to carry your mat." [5:11] But he answered them, "The one who made me well said to me, 'Take up your mat and walk.'" [5:12] They asked him, "Who is the man who said to you, 'Take it up and walk'?" [5:13] But the man who had been healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had withdrawn, as there was a crowd in that place. [5:14] After these things Jesus found him in the temple and said to him, "Look, you have been made well. Stop sinning habitually, so that nothing worse may come upon you." [5:15] The man went away and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well.

In the world it was spoken into

In 1st-century Jerusalem, the Pool of Bethesda was a site of both religious and social significance. Located near the Sheep Gate, it was associated with ritual purification and healing. The belief that an angel stirred the waters, granting healing to the first to enter, reflects a common Jewish understanding of divine intervention in specific, sacred spaces. The five porticoes suggest a structure resembling a Hellenistic stoa, blending Jewish and Greco-Roman architectural elements. The crowd of the sick—blind, lame, and paralyzed—represents the marginalized, those excluded from full participation in society due to their infirmities. The man’s 38-year illness underscores the chronic nature of his suffering, likely rendering him dependent on others for survival. His use of a (a simple mat) highlights his poverty and vulnerability. Jesus’ command to ‘sin no more’ ties physical healing to moral restoration, reflecting a Jewish worldview where illness and sin were often interconnected, though not always causally. The Sabbath controversy that follows aligns with broader tensions between Jesus and Jewish authorities over the interpretation of Torah.

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How other translations render this

JHN 5:1

KJV: After this there was a feast of the Jews; and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
BSB: Some time later there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
Koinōnos: After these things there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.

JHN 5:2

KJV: Now there is at Jerusalem by the sheep market a pool, which is called in the Hebrew tongue Bethesda, having five porches.
BSB: Now there is in Jerusalem near the Sheep Gate a pool with five covered colonnades, which in Hebrew is called Bethesda.
Koinōnos: Now in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate there is a pool — called in Hebrew Bethzatha — which has five porticoes.

JHN 5:3

KJV: In these lay a great multitude of impotent folk, of blind, halt, withered, waiting for the moving of the water.
BSB: On these walkways lay a great number of the sick, the blind, the lame, and the paralyzed.
Koinōnos: In these were lying a large number of those suffering from various infirmities: blind, lame, paralyzed.

JHN 5:5

KJV: And a certain man was there, which had an infirmity thirty and eight years.
BSB: One man there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years.
Koinōnos: Now there was a man there who had been in his illness thirty-eight years.

JHN 5:6

KJV: When Jesus saw him lie, and knew that he had been now a long time in that case, he saith unto him, Wilt thou be made whole?
BSB: When Jesus saw him lying there and realized that he had spent a long time in this condition, He asked him, “Do you want to get well?”
Koinōnos: When Jesus saw him lying there and knew he had already been there a long time, he said to him, "Do you want to be made well?

JHN 5:7

KJV: The impotent man answered him, Sir, I have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into the pool: but while I am coming, another steppeth down before me.
BSB: “Sir,” the invalid replied, “I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am on my way, someone else goes in before me.”
Koinōnos: 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 going, another steps down before me.

JHN 5:8

KJV: Jesus saith unto him, Rise, take up thy bed, and walk.
BSB: Then Jesus told him, “Get up, pick up your mat, and walk.”
Koinōnos: Jesus said to him, "Rise, take up your mat, and walk.

JHN 5:9

KJV: And immediately the man was made whole, and took up his bed, and walked: and on the same day was the sabbath.
BSB: Immediately the man was made well, and he picked up his mat and began to walk. Now this happened on the Sabbath day,
Koinōnos: And immediately the man was made well, and he took up his mat and walked. Now that day was a Sabbath.

JHN 5:10

KJV: The Jews therefore said unto him that was cured, It is the sabbath day: it is not lawful for thee to carry thy bed.
BSB: so the Jews said to the man who had been healed, “This is the Sabbath! It is unlawful for you to carry your mat.”
Koinōnos: So the Jews said to the man who had been healed, "It is a Sabbath — it is not permitted for you to carry your mat.

JHN 5:11

KJV: He answered them, He that made me whole, the same said unto me, Take up thy bed, and walk.
BSB: But he answered, “The man who made me well told me, ‘Pick up your mat and walk.’”
Koinōnos: But he answered them, "The one who made me well said to me, 'Take up your mat and walk.'

JHN 5:12

KJV: Then asked they him, What man is that which said unto thee, Take up thy bed, and walk?
BSB: “Who is this man who told you to pick it up and walk?” they asked.
Koinōnos: They asked him, "Who is the man who said to you, 'Take it up and walk'?

JHN 5:13

KJV: And he that was healed wist not who it was: for Jesus had conveyed himself away, a multitude being in that place.
BSB: But the man who was healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had slipped away while the crowd was there.
Koinōnos: But the man who had been healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had withdrawn, as there was a crowd in that place.

JHN 5:14

KJV: Afterward Jesus findeth him in the temple, and said unto him, Behold, thou art made whole: sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee.
BSB: Afterward, Jesus found the man at the temple and said to him, “See, you have been made well. Stop sinning, or something worse may happen to you.”
Koinōnos: After these things Jesus found him in the temple and said to him, "Look, you have been made well. Stop sinning habitually, so that nothing worse may come upon you.

JHN 5:15

KJV: The man departed, and told the Jews that it was Jesus, which had made him whole.
BSB: And the man went away and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well.
Koinōnos: The man went away and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well.

Only verses where the wording diverges meaningfully are shown. Identical phrasings are suppressed.

Translator's notes

JHN 5:2

Bethzatha,:The name of this pool, 'Bethzatha,' means 'House of Mercy' or 'House of Grace,' reflecting its reputation as a place of healing.

JHN 5:3

of those:The word translated 'of those' here refers specifically to people suffering from various physical weaknesses, illnesses, or infirmities, highlighting their vulnerable state.

JHN 5:8

mat:The term translated 'mat' refers to a simple, portable pallet or bed, often used by the poor or infirm, emphasizing the man's humble circumstances.

JHN 5:14

do sin:The phrase 'do sin' implies a continuous or habitual action of sinning, rather than a single, isolated act, suggesting a pattern of behavior.