Matthew 9

Jesus got into a boat, crossed over the lake, and came to his own town.

1And he entered into a ship, and passed over, and came into his own city.

Note"A ship" here is a fishing boat on the Sea of Galilee, an inland lake about thirteen miles long, not a seagoing vessel. "His own city" means Capernaum, the lakeside town Jesus had settled in after leaving Nazareth.

2Some men brought him a man who was paralyzed, lying on a mat. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralyzed man, "Cheer up, son. Your sins are forgiven."

2And, behold, they brought to him a man sick of the palsy, lying on a bed: and Jesus seeing their faith said unto the sick of the palsy; Son, be of good cheer; thy sins be forgiven thee.

Note"Palsy" in 1611 English covered paralysis of any kind, not only the shaking that the word suggests now. The "bed" is a light sleeping mat or pallet, thin enough to roll up and carry, which is why the man can pick it up himself in verse 6.

3Some of the scribes, the men trained in the law, said to themselves, "This man is insulting God."

3And, behold, certain of the scribes said within themselves, This man blasphemeth.

NoteTo blaspheme is to speak of God in a way that insults him, or to claim for yourself what belongs to God alone; under the law of Moses it was a capital charge. "Said within themselves" means they thought it rather than said it aloud.

4Jesus knew what they were thinking and said, "Why are you thinking evil things in your hearts?

4And Jesus knowing their thoughts said, Wherefore think ye evil in your hearts?

5Which is easier, to say, 'Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, 'Get up and walk'?

5For whether is easier, to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Arise, and walk?

6But I want you to know that the Son of Man has the right on earth to forgive sins." Then he said to the paralyzed man, "Get up, pick up your mat, and go home."

6But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, (then saith he to the sick of the palsy,) Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto thine house.

Note"Son of man" is the title Jesus uses for himself all through Matthew. In ordinary Aramaic the phrase means simply "a human being," but it is also the figure in Daniel 7:13 who is given lasting authority by God, and both senses are available here. "Power" translates a word meaning authority or right, not physical strength. The King James parenthesis marks a sentence that breaks off before it is finished.

7And the man got up and went home.

7And he arose, and departed to his house.

8When the crowds saw it, they were amazed, and they praised God, who had given such authority to human beings.

8But when the multitudes saw it, they marvelled, and glorified God, which had given such power unto men.

9As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax booth. He said to him, "Follow me." And Matthew got up and followed him.

9And as Jesus passed forth from thence, he saw a man, named Matthew, sitting at the receipt of custom: and he saith unto him, Follow me. And he arose, and followed him.

Note"The receipt of custom" was a tax and customs booth, set on a trade road or at a harbor, where duty was collected on goods passing through. Men bid for the right to run one and made their living from whatever they could take above the required amount.

10Later, while Jesus was eating a meal in the house, many tax collectors and sinners came and sat down to eat with him and his disciples.

10And it came to pass, as Jesus sat at meat in the house, behold, many publicans and sinners came and sat down with him and his disciples.

Note"Sat at meat" means simply was eating a meal; diners reclined on low couches around a table rather than sitting upright on chairs. "Publicans" are tax collectors, local men working inside the Roman revenue system; they were widely regarded as collaborators and cheats, which is why they are paired with "sinners" as one category of the disreputable.

11When the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?"

11And when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto his disciples, Why eateth your Master with publicans and sinners?

NoteThe Pharisees were a lay movement committed to keeping the law of Moses in exact detail, including its rules about food and about who one ate with, which is what makes a shared meal the point at issue. "Master" in 1611 English means teacher or master of a craft, not owner.

12When Jesus heard it, he said to them, "Healthy people do not need a doctor. Sick people do.

12But when Jesus heard that, he said unto them, They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick.

Note"Whole" in the King James means healthy or sound, not complete. The same word runs on into verses 21 and 22, where "made whole" means healed.

13Go and learn what this means: 'I want mercy, not sacrifice.' I did not come to call people who are right with God, but to call sinners to turn from their sins."

13But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.

Note"I will have mercy, and not sacrifice" quotes Hosea 6:6. "I will have" there means "I want" or "I desire," not a prediction about the future. In Hebrew a pairing like this often means "this far more than that" rather than an outright rejection of the second thing.

14Then John's disciples came to him and asked, "Why do we and the Pharisees go without food so often, but your disciples do not?"

14Then came to him the disciples of John, saying, Why do we and the Pharisees fast oft, but thy disciples fast not?

NoteFasting meant going without food for a set stretch of time as an act of mourning or devotion. The law of Moses required it on only one day a year, but strict Pharisees fasted twice a week by custom, and John's followers kept a similarly severe discipline. John is John the Baptist, who had a circle of disciples of his own.

15Jesus said to them, "Can the wedding guests be sad while the groom is still with them? But the time will come when the groom will be taken away from them, and then they will go without food.

15And Jesus said unto them, Can the children of the bridechamber mourn, as long as the bridegroom is with them? but the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken from them, and then shall they fast.

Note"The children of the bridechamber" is a Hebrew style phrase for the groom's wedding party, the friends who attended him and kept the celebration going. A village wedding feast ran about a week, and taking part in it set aside the usual religious obligations, fasting included.

16No one sews a piece of new cloth onto an old coat. The patch pulls away from the coat, and the tear gets worse.

16No man putteth a piece of new cloth unto an old garment, for that which is put in to fill it up taketh from the garment, and the rent is made worse.

Note"New cloth" means cloth that has not yet been shrunk. Sewn onto a garment that has already been washed and shrunk, it pulls tight the first time it gets wet and rips away, taking the old fabric with it. "The rent" means the tear.

17People do not pour new wine into old wine bags either. If they do, the bags split open, the wine spills out, and the bags are ruined. Instead, they pour new wine into new bags, and both are kept safe."

17Neither do men put new wine into old bottles: else the bottles break, and the wine runneth out, and the bottles perish: but they put new wine into new bottles, and both are preserved.

Note"Bottles" here are wineskins, bags sewn from whole animal hides. Wine that is still fermenting gives off gas and stretches whatever holds it. A new skin still has give in it; one already stretched by an earlier batch has gone stiff and splits.

18While he was saying these things to them, a ruler came and knelt before him. He said, "My daughter has just died. But come and lay your hand on her, and she will live."

18While he spake these things unto them, behold, there came a certain ruler, and worshipped him, saying, My daughter is even now dead: but come and lay thy hand upon her, and she shall live.

NoteThis "ruler" is an official of the local synagogue, a layman responsible for the building and for the order of its meetings, and a man of standing in the town. Mark's account of the same event names him Jairus. "Worshipped him" in the King James often means no more than kneeling or bowing low before a superior, the ordinary posture of someone making a request.

19So Jesus got up and went with him, and his disciples went too.

19And Jesus arose, and followed him, and so did his disciples.

20Just then a woman who had been bleeding for twelve years came up behind him and touched the edge of his robe.

20And, behold, a woman, which was diseased with an issue of blood twelve years, came behind him, and touched the hem of his garment:

Note"An issue of blood" is a continuous flow of blood from the womb. Under the law of Moses (Leviticus 15) such a discharge left a woman ritually unclean for as long as it lasted, and whatever she touched became unclean as well, which is why she comes up from behind and says nothing. "The hem of his garment" is the tassel at the corner of the outer cloak, which Israelite men wore at the command of Numbers 15:38.

21She said to herself, "If I can only touch his robe, I will be healed."

21For she said within herself, If I may but touch his garment, I shall be whole.

22Jesus turned around, and when he saw her he said, "Cheer up, daughter. Your faith has healed you." And the woman was well from that hour on.

22But Jesus turned him about, and when he saw her, he said, Daughter, be of good comfort; thy faith hath made thee whole. And the woman was made whole from that hour.

Note"Made thee whole" translates a single Greek verb that covers rescuing, healing and saving. English has to choose one of the three; "healed" catches only part of what the word carries.

23When Jesus came into the ruler's house, he saw the flute players and the crowd making a loud noise.

23And when Jesus came into the ruler’s house, and saw the minstrels and the people making a noise,

Note"Minstrels" are flute players. Hired musicians and professional mourners were expected at a death, and even a poor household was held to owe at least two flutes and one wailing woman. The noise is the formal beginning of mourning, and it shows that the household already counts the girl as dead.

24He said to them, "Leave. The girl is not dead. She is asleep." And they laughed at him.

24He said unto them, Give place: for the maid is not dead, but sleepeth. And they laughed him to scorn.

Note"Give place" means make room, get out. "The maid" means simply the girl, an unmarried young female. "Laughed him to scorn" means mocked him openly.

25But when the crowd had been sent outside, he went in and took her by the hand, and the girl got up.

25But when the people were put forth, he went in, and took her by the hand, and the maid arose.

26And the news about this spread through that whole region.

26And the fame hereof went abroad into all that land.

Note"The fame hereof went abroad" means the report of it spread through the district. "Fame" in 1611 English is news or rumor, not celebrity, and "abroad" means widely, not overseas.

27As Jesus left there, two blind men followed him, calling out, "Son of David, have mercy on us!"

27And when Jesus departed thence, two blind men followed him, crying, and saying, Thou son of David, have mercy on us.

Note"Thou son of David" addresses Jesus as the promised king descended from David, the line God had promised would rule Israel. It is a claim about who he is, not a remark about his family tree.

28When he had gone into the house, the blind men came to him. Jesus said to them, "Do you believe that I am able to do this?" They said to him, "Yes, Lord."

28And when he was come into the house, the blind men came to him: and Jesus saith unto them, Believe ye that I am able to do this? They said unto him, Yea, Lord.

29Then he touched their eyes and said, "Let it happen to you in keeping with your faith."

29Then touched he their eyes, saying, According to your faith be it unto you.

30And their eyes were opened. Jesus warned them sternly, "See that no one finds out about this."

30And their eyes were opened; and Jesus straitly charged them, saying, See that no man know it.

Note"Straitly charged" means ordered sternly. "Straitly" comes from "strait," meaning narrow or tight, and has nothing to do with "straight."

31But when they left, they spread the news about him through that whole area.

31But they, when they were departed, spread abroad his fame in all that country.

32As they were going out, some people brought Jesus a man who could not speak because a demon controlled him.

32As they went out, behold, they brought to him a dumb man possessed with a devil.

Note"Dumb" in 1611 English means unable to speak and carries no suggestion of stupidity. The King James writes "devil" where the Greek has "demon," a lesser hostile spirit, distinct from the single figure called Satan.

33When the demon was driven out, the man who could not speak began to talk. The crowds were amazed and said, "Nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel."

33And when the devil was cast out, the dumb spake: and the multitudes marvelled, saying, It was never so seen in Israel.

34But the Pharisees said, "He drives out demons by the power of the ruler of the demons."

34But the Pharisees said, He casteth out devils through the prince of the devils.

Note"The prince of the devils" means the chief or ruler of the demons. The charge is that Jesus's power over them comes from being in league with their leader rather than from God. At 12:24 Matthew supplies the name used for him, Beelzebub.

35Jesus traveled through all the towns and villages. He taught in their synagogues, announced the good news of the kingdom, and healed every sickness and every disease among the people.

35And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people.

NoteA synagogue is the local assembly and the building it met in, where the community gathered on the sabbath to read and discuss the scriptures; a visiting man of standing could be invited to speak, which is how Jesus gets a hearing town by town. "Gospel" translates a word meaning good news or public announcement, the sort of report a herald brings.

36When he saw the crowds, he felt deep pity for them, because they were worn down and helpless, like sheep with no shepherd.

36But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd.

Note"They fainted, and were scattered abroad" renders two Greek words meaning harassed or mauled, and thrown down and left lying. The picture is sheep torn at by predators and abandoned where they fall, not people who have merely grown tired.

37Then he said to his disciples, "The harvest is large, but there are few workers.

37Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few;

NoteHarvest was urgent seasonal work: a ripe crop stands only a short while, and a farmer short of hands loses it. "Labourers" are the hired day workers a landowner takes on for the reaping.

38So ask the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into his harvest."

38Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest.

Note"The Lord of the harvest" is the owner of the field, the one with the standing to hire the reapers and send them out.