He entered a boat, made the crossing, and came into his own town. 2 And there people brought to him a paralytic lying on a stretcher. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Courage, child, your sins are forgiven.” 3 At that, some of the scribes said to themselves, “This man is blaspheming.” 4 Jesus knew what they were thinking, and said, “Why do you harbor evil thoughts? 5 Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise and walk’? 6 But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he then said to the paralytic, “Rise, pick up your stretcher, and go home.” 7 He rose and went home. 8 When the crowds saw this they were struck with awe and glorified God who had given such authority to human beings.
Jesus returns by boat to His own town, Capernaum. Jesus was raised in Nazareth, but after John the Baptist was arrested, Jesus withdrew to Galilee and made His home in Capernaum by the sea (Matthew 4:12–13). Matthew presents this move as the fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy that a great light would rise in “Galilee of the Gentiles” (Matthew 4:14–16). That is why Capernaum can be called His own town. Here, in a place closely associated with His public ministry, people bring Him a paralyzed man lying on a stretcher. Matthew does not first tell us about the man’s own faith. He says that Jesus saw “their faith,” meaning the faith of those who brought the man to Him (v. 2). Their action is already a kind of prayer. They cannot heal the man themselves, but they can carry him to the One who can.
Jesus’ first words are unexpected: “Courage, child, your sins are forgiven” (v. 2). The man has been brought to Him for bodily healing, but Jesus goes first to the deeper wound. Every illness is not a direct punishment for personal sin, as Jesus makes clear elsewhere in John 9:2–3. Still, sin is the deepest disorder in the human person because it separates man from God. The healing of the body matters, but reconciliation with God matters more.
The scribes understand the seriousness of Jesus’ words. In the Old Testament, the Lord is the one who forgives iniquity, wipes away offenses, and restores sinners to Himself (Exodus 34:6–7; Psalm 103:2–3; Isaiah 43:25). Since sin is an offense against God, the scribes recognize that Jesus is claiming an authority that belongs to God. That is why they say within themselves, “This man is blaspheming” (v. 3). Their principle is true, but their judgment of Jesus is wrong. They do not yet see that the authority of God to forgive sins is present in Jesus Himself.
Jesus, the Son of God made man, knows their thoughts and answers them directly. He asks, “Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise and walk’?” (v. 5). The forgiveness of sins cannot be seen with the eyes. A bodily healing can be tested immediately. If Jesus commands the man to rise and the man remains paralyzed, His claim is exposed as empty. But if the man rises, the visible healing confirms the invisible authority that Jesus has already exercised.
Jesus then identifies Himself as “the Son of Man” who has “authority on earth to forgive sins” (v. 6). The title “Son of Man” points to the figure in Daniel 7:13–14, who receives dominion from God. In this passage, Jesus shows that His authority is not distant or merely future. It is already present on earth. He speaks forgiveness, commands the paralytic to rise, and the man obeys. The healing of the body reveals Jesus’ authority to heal the soul.
The command is simple: “Rise, pick up your stretcher, and go home” (v. 6). The man who had been carried by others now carries the stretcher on which he had lain. His return home shows restoration. He is not only relieved of paralysis; he is publicly restored before the people who saw him brought helpless to Jesus.
The crowd responds with awe and glorifies God “who had given such authority to human beings” (v. 8). Matthew’s wording points beyond the miracle itself. Jesus possesses the authority to forgive sins, and after His Resurrection He gives this ministry to His apostles when He says, “Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them” (John 20:23). In the Church, forgiveness remains God’s work. Those who minister forgiveness do not forgive by their own power or in their own name. They serve the mercy of God, who forgives through Christ.
This passage invites us to come to Jesus honestly. We may come because of suffering, weakness, guilt, fear, or the concern of others who carry us in prayer. Christ sees the need clearly. He does not ignore bodily suffering, but He also does not stop at the surface. He came to forgive sins, restore communion with God, and raise wounded people to new life.
Lord Jesus, You have authority on earth to forgive sins. Bring us to You when we are weak, heal what is wounded in us, and restore us by the Father’s mercy. Amen.
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Sources and References
- The New American Bible, Revised Edition. Washington, DC: Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, 2011. Matthew 9:1–8 and notes on Matthew 9:1, 9:3, 9:6, and 9:8.
- Hahn, Scott, and Curtis Mitch. The Ignatius Catholic Study Bible: New Testament. San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 2010. Pages 21–22, notes on Matthew 9:1, 9:3, 9:6, and 9:8.
- Casciaro, José María, gen. ed. The Navarre Bible: New Testament, Expanded Edition. Dublin: Four Courts Press; New York: Scepter Publishers, 2008. Pages 75–76, note on Matthew 9:1–8.
- Brown, Raymond E., Joseph A. Fitzmyer, and Roland E. Murphy, eds. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1990. Page 649, paragraph 60.
- Aguilar Chiu, José Enrique, Richard J. Clifford, Carol J. Dempsey, Eileen M. Schuller, Thomas D. Stegman, and Ronald D. Witherup, eds. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. New York: Paulist Press, 2018. Page 926.
- Collins, John J., Gina Hens-Piazza, Barbara Reid OP, and Donald Senior CP, eds. The Jerome Biblical Commentary for the Twenty-First Century. Third Fully Revised Edition, with a Foreword by Pope Francis. London: Bloomsbury T&T Clark, 2022. Page 1189.
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