Jesus at the Pool of Bethesda
Healing a man who had been sick a long time
In Jerusalem, there was a place called the Pool of Bethesda. People believed that this pool had healing powers. Many people who were sick, blind, or unable to walk came to this pool.
The people believed that, at certain times, an angel came down and stirred the waters of the pool. The first person to get into the water after it was stirred would be healed of any sickness they had. Many people tried to be the first one in the pool.
One of the people at the pool was a man who could not walk. He had been sick for 38 years. He wanted to get into the pool to be healed, but whenever he tried, someone else got in first.
One Sabbath day, Jesus was in Jerusalem. As He walked through the city, He came to the Pool of Bethesda and saw the man lying there.
Jesus knew that the man had been sick for a very long time and couldn’t walk. Jesus asked him if he wanted to be healed.
The man told Jesus that there was no one to help him get into the pool, and when the water got stirred, others would always get in before him.
Jesus said to the man, “Rise, take up thy bed, and walk.” Immediately, the man was healed! He then stood up and picked up his bed. For the first time in 38 years, he could walk!
The leaders of the Jews saw the man carrying his bed. They said that he was not honoring the Sabbath day, because they thought that carrying his bed was like working. The man explained that he had just been healed, and the person who healed him told him to carry his bed.
The leaders found out that it was Jesus who had healed the man and told him to carry his bed on the Sabbath. They were angry with Jesus and wanted to kill Him. Jesus told them He was only doing the things His Father in Heaven had taught Him to do.