5.1

After this there was a feast of the Jews; and Jesus went up to Jerusalem John here doesn't specify what feast, so we can't attempt to say which feast it was. Many speculate that this was the Passover. What is evident is that the feast was important enough to warrant a large gathering of Jews, and Jesus felt a need from the Holy Spirit to go.

5.2

Now there is at Jerusalem by the sheep market This is better known as the Sheep Gate, one of the major gates in the Jerusalem wall and the first to be restored during Nehemiah. John gives significant detail for the reader to affirm the book's accuracy.

Nehemiah 3:1 Then Eliashib the high priest rose up with his brethren the priests and built the Sheep Gate; they consecrated it and hung its doors.

5.2.1

There are many symbolic points here: Jesus is the Lamb of God John 1:29; Jesus is the door to the sheepfold John 10:7; Jesus is the good shepherd of the sheep John 10:11

5.2.2

a pool, which is called in the Hebrew tongue Bethesda Bethesda is translated to "pool of grace" or "pool of mercy." Firstly, it is the pool of mercy because the Lord mercifully sends His angel to stir the pool and heal the sick, as we see in verse 4. Secondly, because of Christ's mercy while there, as well.

5.2.2

having five porches It had five porticos, better described as five walkways covered with a roof and supported with columns. These were important as protection from the elements, such as the direct heat of the sun and rain.

5.3

In these lay a great multitude of impotent folk, of blind, halt, withered, waiting for the moving of the water. Multitude by itself already means "a great number," yet for John to add that it was a "great multitude" signifies the magnitude of the crowd.

5.3.1

It was a great multitude of what? Impotent folks. Impotent translates to weak, feeble, sickly, and powerless.

• Blind: Unable to see as God intended.
• Halt: Lame; Unable to walk or move as God intended.
• Withered: Shrunken; Dried; Not in the condition God intended.

5.4

For an angel went down at a certain season into the pool, and troubled the water The humble work of God's heavenly angel is simply to stir a pool. Any of us could do this, but in conjunction with the command of the Lord, the angel's stirring causes healing. I loved a comment made by Matthew Henry, "Let nothing in this world be beneath us except sin." If God wants you only to be the cleaner, then let us take up our mop and broom with pride! David, the most powerful king in His time, and rich beyond measure, says, "I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the [dwelling place] of wickedness."

5.5

And a certain man was there, which had an infirmity thirty and eight years. Now, we begin to see the focal point of the story. A man with a sickness that caused him to be unable to walk for thirty-eight years was by the pool. Can you imagine having an infirmity like this for thirty-eight years? He was there longer than some people live.

5.6

When Jesus saw him lie, and knew that Jesus knows all. Hebrews 4:13 Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do.

5.6.1

Wilt thou be made whole? Do you want to be, literally translated, sound?

5.7

Sir, I have no man... while I am coming, another steppeth down before me. What a life of strife to be so near to your healing yet so far away. This emphasizes God's desire for earthly unity and friendship, for if the man had just had a friend, his healing would have occurred long ago. But, in this, we also see an opportunity for Jesus to be glorified in man's healing. He, being sick for thirty-eight years and assuredly a familiar face at the pool, probably had many believe he would never be healed and would die there. Yet, with Jesus, anything is possible.

Psalms 72:12 For He shall deliver the needy when he crieth; the poor also, and him that hath no helper.

5.8

Jesus saith unto him, Rise, take up thy bed, and walk. The simplicity of the command and healing, rise, take up thy bed, and walk. Why didn't Jesus question or emphasize the man's faith as He does many times throughout the gospels? In a way, the man already showed a sense of faith since he knew the Lord could heal if he could get in the pool in the right season.

5.9

And immediately the man was made whole, and took up his bed, and walked

The same thing that once had him bound to it no longer has that authority. The bed once held him, day after day, night after night; however, now he holds the bed. Many situations in our lives cause us to lose control and have little to no say at all. I love how God works because sometimes He says, "Give it to me," and other times, "I give you the power to pick this situation up."

5.10

The Jews therefore said to him who was cured, “It is the Sabbath; it is not lawful for you to carry your bed.” Be aware of moments like this: when God gives you instructions, you must follow God over man's counters 1 Kings 13:8.

5.11

‌“He who made me well said to me, ‘Take up your bed and walk.’” The man who had the authority to heal me of my thirty-eight-year affliction gave him an instruction that he would follow. Surely Jesus, who is God in the flesh, would not tell the man to do something that would transgress Him.

5.12

‌Who is the Man They are eager to stand against the Man who would tell such a command that went against their teachings.

5.13

And he that was healed wist not who it was Isn't it amazing that the Lord we serve is willing to perform miracles, even for those who don't know Him? Isaiah 45:4-5 For Jacob My servant’s sake, And Israel My elect, I have even called you by your name; I have named you, though you have not known Me. I am the LORD, and there is no other; There is no God besides Me. I will gird you, though you have not known Me

5.14

Afterward Jesus found him in the temple, and said to him, “See, you have been made well. Sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you.” We took a moment earlier to compare the affliction of Job to the man at the pool. In Job 1:8, we read Then the LORD said to Satan, “Have you considered My servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil?” So Job's affliction arises as a test to prove Satan wrong about him. However, Jesus points to a different circumstance for the man's affliction: sin.

5.14.1

Jesus subtly informs us that sins have consequences. Be not fooled by the seemingly good lives of the wicked, Proverbs 11:31 If the righteous will be recompensed on the earth, How much more the ungodly and the sinner.