Mark 3:1-6
Stretch Out Your Hand
Read the passage
1Once again Jesus entered the synagogue, and a man with a withered hand was there.
2In order to accuse Jesus, they were watching to see if He would heal on the Sabbath.
3Then Jesus said to the man with the withered hand, “Stand up among us.”
4And He asked them, “Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to destroy it?” But they were silent.
5Jesus looked around at them with anger and sorrow at their hardness of heart. Then He said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” So he stretched it out, and it was restored.
6At this, the Pharisees went out and began plotting with the Herodians how they might kill Jesus.
Berean Standard Bible
Read aloud
A man with a withered hand is in the synagogue when Jesus enters. Others watch to see whether He will heal on the Sabbath, hoping to accuse Him. The man’s need has become an occasion for testing Jesus rather than a reason to seek help.
Jesus calls him to stand among them and asks whether the Sabbath permits doing good or evil, saving life or destroying it. They remain silent. His question refuses to separate faithful observance from the good of the person standing before them.
Mark names both anger and sorrow in Jesus’ response to their hard hearts. He is neither indifferent to their refusal nor pleased by it. He tells the man to stretch out his hand, and it is restored.
The Pharisees then begin plotting with the Herodians to kill Jesus. He has asked about saving or destroying life; their response gives that question terrible force. They seek an accusation over healing while beginning a plan for death. The restored hand displays His mercy, and the plot exposes how far resistance to Him can go.
Questions
1 Why are the watchers interested in whether Jesus heals?
AnswerThey want grounds to accuse Him over the Sabbath. Their purpose turns a person’s need into an opportunity to oppose the One who can help.
2 What question does Jesus put before them?
AnswerWhether it is lawful on the Sabbath to do good or evil, to save life or destroy it. They remain silent instead of answering the moral choice He makes clear.
3 How does the ending sharpen that question?
AnswerJesus restores the hand, but His opponents begin planning His death. Their response sets an act of mercy beside a decision to destroy life.
4 What can keep a disagreement from making us overlook a person’s need?
AnswerWe can listen to the person affected and consider what help is actually possible. Defending a position should never become an excuse to ignore the good we are able to do.
What This Means for Us
Jesus’ anger and sorrow belong together. He takes hard-heartedness seriously while grieving it. We can ask Him to correct the sort of certainty that becomes pleased when someone else is exposed or prevented from receiving help.
During a disagreement, attend to the person whose need may be getting lost. A child waiting for care or a neighbor needing assistance should not become evidence in our effort to win. Jesus restores the man before Him. Receiving His mercy should make us more willing to do good, not more skilled at explaining why another person can wait.
Prayer
Lord Jesus, forgive the hardness that makes us overlook people while defending ourselves. Give us compassion that acts and humility that listens. Thank You for the mercy that restored this man and still calls us away from pride. Amen.