Th man with the withered hand

Another time Jesus went into the synagogue, and a man with a shrivelled hand was there. ² Some of them were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they watched him closely to see if he would heal him on the Sabbath. ³ Jesus said to the man with the shrivelled hand, “Stand up in front of everyone.”

⁴ Then Jesus asked them, “Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” But they remained silent.

⁵ He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored. ⁶ Then the Pharisees went out and began to plot with the Herodians how they might kill Jesus. Mark 3:1-6

We talk a lot about the love of Jesus – and rightly so, of course. We talk less about his anger, for while it could be fierce it is not so central to his personality as his love. But there are times when it flashes out, and this incident of “the man with the withered hand” is a vivid example.

Matthew, Mark and Luke all give us the story, though in slightly varying forms, but it’s Mark in particular who draws attention to his anger. In verse 5 we read that he “looked at them (that’s the religious die-hards in the synagogue) in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, ‘Stretch out your hand…’”. Whereupon he healed him.

I don’t think Jesus ever aimed to be aggressive or confrontational, but here it’s almost as if he is indeed looking for a show-down. Look at the sequence of events…

As he enters the synagogue that day he perhaps senses a “put-up job”: the man with the withered hand is “there”, in full view of the congregation… he is aware of being “closely watched” by his opponents, and he realises they want to make an issue about sabbath-observance (they’re “looking for a reason to accuse him”)… so he boldly asks the man to “stand up in front of everyone”. Picture the scene, and the hush that must have descended on the place.

And then Jesus asks his opponents a direct and very provocative question: “Which is lawful on the sabbath: to do good, or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” It’s as if he is saying: “I see you watching me! I know very well what you’re after! All right then, if it’s a confrontation you want, by all means lets have a confrontation!” And he puts them fairly and squarely on the spot.

There follows the most telling sentence in the story: “they remained silent”.

Well, of course they did! What could they say? Can you see them, looking at him with deep animosity, but knowing that they haven’t a leg to stand on? They can’t answer “To do evil”, because even they wouldn’t want that; they were no doubt good and devout men. But neither can they say, “To do good”, because that would give Jesus the green light to do a “work” which, in their understanding, would mean breaking the sabbath, something that was unthinkable.

Have you ever been struck dumb by someone who exposes your hypocrisy or dishonesty with an unanswerable remark? (Perhaps you were caught out in a lie.) If so, you’ll know how Jesus’ enemies felt that day. And if, like them, you were too stubborn to say frankly, “Yes, I’m sorry, you’re right, of course, and I must change my view”, you will know how humiliated they felt. But it doesn’t stop them burning for revenge: “they began to plot… how they might kill Jesus”. It only drives them deeper into sin.

The great tragedy of the story is that those people, in spite of being so exposed by Jesus’ words and actions, persisted in their stubborn refusal to accept the liberating truth he brought. It was that hardness of heart which ultimately led to the cross.

This is a word to all of us. To humble ourselves, to admit that we were wrong, to change our attitudes and ways, can certainly be humiliating. But, oh how liberating as well! No wonder Jesus spoke of yielding to him as being “born again”! A whole new life – clean, fresh, peaceful, joyful - begins. And it’s a life that never ends.

Is it time you came to kneel humbly at the foot of the cross?

A wonderful story. But wait a minute… haven’t we forgotten somebody? This isn’t just an account of an acrimonious debate about religious differences. Doesn’t somebody get healed in the midst of it? What about the man with the withered arm?

We don’t know his name or anything else about him. He says nothing; he does nothing except to stretch out that arm for healing. But he isn’t just a pawn being manipulated by powerful parties, by Jesus and his enemies. No; he is a man, a human being, with feelings, very likely a neighbour of many of the people in the synagogue that day: somebody’s son, somebody’s husband, somebody’s father. And for him life changed radically that day.

And so we are reminded that Jesus loved and was concerned for the ordinary people, the non-entities, men, women and children, those who have no voice, no power, no influence – and those over whose heads debates about the sabbath day and many other high-sounding things floated unnoticed.

We have seen that Jesus is explicitly said by Mark to be “angry” with his opponents. It’s worth reflecting on the fact that such a thing is never said by Matthew, Mark or Luke about people like that unknown man – the man with the withered arm. No. For them he has nothing but compassion and a desire to show them the perfect love of God. Isn’t that exactly why the gospel is “good news”?

Father, thank you for the tender love of Jesus for even the most ordinary of people. Please give me grace and wisdom never to fall out with fellow-believers unless it is over something really important – always to focus on his tender compassion. Amen.