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.
• New International Version (NIV)Here a great number of disabled people used to lie—the blind, the lame, the paralyzed.
• 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.

Context of John 5:3

1Afterward Jesus returned to Jerusalem for one of the Jewish holy days. 2Inside the city, near the Sheep Gate, was the pool of Bethesda, with five covered porches. Crowds of sick people—blind, lame, or paralyzed—lay on the porches. 5One of the men lying there had been sick 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 15:30A vast crowd brought to him people who were lame, blind, crippled, those who couldn’t speak, and many others. They laid them before Jesus, and he healed them all.
• Luke 7:22Then he told John’s disciples, “Go back to John and tell him what you have seen and heard—the blind see, the lame walk, those with leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised to life, and the Good News is being preached to the poor.”
• 1 Kings 13:4When King Jeroboam heard the man of God speaking against the altar at Bethel, he pointed at him and shouted, “Seize that man!” But instantly the king’s hand became paralyzed in that position, and he couldn’t pull it back.
• Zechariah 11:17“What sorrow awaits this worthless shepherd who abandons the flock! The sword will cut his arm and pierce his right eye. His arm will become useless, and his right eye completely blind.”
• Mark 3:1Jesus went into the synagogue again and noticed a man with a deformed hand.
• Proverbs 8:34Joyful are those who listen to me, watching for me daily at my gates, waiting for me outside my home!
• Lamentations 3:26So it is good to wait quietly for salvation from the Lord.
• Romans 8:25But if we look forward to something we don’t yet have, we must wait patiently and confidently.)
• James 5:7Dear brothers and sisters, be patient as you wait for the Lord’s return. Consider the farmers who patiently wait for the rains in the fall and in the spring. They eagerly look for the valuable harvest to ripen.

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