John 5:3

John 5:3 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)In these lay a great multitude of impotent folk, of blind, halt, withered, waiting for the moving of the water.
• English Standard Version (ESV)In these lay a multitude of invalids—blind, lame, and paralyzed.
• New King James Version (NKJV)In these lay a great multitude of sick people, blind, lame, paralyzed, waiting for the moving of the water.
• New Living Translation (NLT)Crowds of sick people—blind, lame, or paralyzed—lay on the porches.

Context of John 5:3

1Some time later, Jesus went up to Jerusalem for one of the Jewish festivals. 2Now there is in Jerusalem near the Sheep Gate a pool, which in Aramaic is called Bethesda and which is surrounded by five covered colonnades. Here a great number of disabled people used to lie—the blind, the lame, the paralyzed. 5One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years.

John 5:3 word by word

ἐν ταύταις κατέκειτο πλῆθος τῶν ἀσθενούντων, τυφλῶν, χωλῶν, ξηρῶνRead the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• ·ὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• Inἐνen · in/on/amongG1722
• theseοὗτοςhoutos houtoi hautē hautai · this/he/she/itG3778
• layκατάκειμαιkatakeimai · to reclineG2621
• aπλῆθοςplēthos · multitudeG4128
• greatπολύςpolus polos · muchG4183
• of impotent folkἀσθενέωastheneō · be weak: illG770
• of blindτυφλόςtuphlos · blindG5185
• haltχωλόςchōlos · lameG5560
• witheredξηρόςxēros · dried up/witheredG3584
• waiting forἐκδέχομαιekdechomai · to wait forG1551
• the movingκίνησιςkinēsis · motionG2796
• of the waterὕδωρhudōr hudatos · waterG5204

Cross-references for John 5:3

• Matthew 15:30Great crowds came to him, bringing the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute and many others, and laid them at his feet; and he healed them.
• Luke 7:22So he replied to the messengers, “Go back and report to John what you have seen and heard: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor.
• 1 Kings 13:4When King Jeroboam heard what the man of God cried out against the altar at Bethel, he stretched out his hand from the altar and said, “Seize him!” But the hand he stretched out toward the man shriveled up, so that he could not pull it back.
• Zechariah 11:17“Woe to the worthless shepherd, who deserts the flock! May the sword strike his arm and his right eye! May his arm be completely withered, his right eye totally blinded!”
• Mark 3:1Another time Jesus went into the synagogue, and a man with a shriveled hand was there.
• Proverbs 8:34Blessed are those who listen to me, watching daily at my doors, waiting at my doorway.
• Lamentations 3:26it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.
• Romans 8:25But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.
• James 5:7Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains.

Commentaries on John 5:3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3Blind, halt, withered - To these the Codex Bezae, three copies of the Itala, and both the Persic, add , paralytic; but they are probably included among the withered. Waiting for the moving of the water - This clause, with the whole of the fourth verse, is wanting in some MSS. and versions; but I think there is no sufficient evidence against their authenticity. Griesbach seems to be of the same opinion; for though he has marked the whole passage with the…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3Impotent folk - Sick people; or people who were weak and feeble by long disease. The word means those who were “feeble” rather than those who were afflicted with “acute” disease. Halt - Lame. Withered - Those who were afflicted with one form of the palsy that withered or dried up the part affected. See the notes at Matthew 4:24. Moving of the water - It appears that this pool had medicinal properties only when it was “agitated” or “stirred.” It is…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3The pool of Bethesda was a place for healing where many sick people gathered. They hoped God would cure them with a miracle. Some later manuscripts include an additional verse, John 5:4, which explains that an angel stirred the water. This verse is not included in the Berean Standard Bible because it does not appear in the earliest manuscripts of the Gospel of John. The added verse reflects an early tradition that helps explain why people gathered at the…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2-32-3. sheep market--The supplement should be (as in Margin) "sheep [gate]," mentioned in Ne 3:1, 32. Bethesda--that is, "house (place) of mercy," from the cures wrought there. five porches--for shelter to the patients.Read the comment

Topics related to John 5:3

• Jesus, the Christ
• Miracles

In the dictionaries

• Blind
• Folk
• Judgment
• Lest
• Light
• Step
• Trouble
• Troubling
• Witness
• Bath; Bathing

Commentaries on John 5

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Catena Aurea
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• John Lightfoot Commentary
• Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• The Fourfold Gospel and Commentary on Acts
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings