CHAPTER 2
JESUS HEALS A PARALYTIC
A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum, the people heard that he had come home. They gathered in such large numbers that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and he preached the word to them. Mark 2:1-2
We see here that Jesus had come “home.” Can we imagine such a thing? The King of the Universe had come to dwell in a humble earthly home at Capernaum. The little city would never be the same. In fact, the whole world would never be the same.
Once again great crowds gathered to hear Jesus. They pressed into the house until there was no more room. It is possible that they were trying to all get into the main room of the house and this would have been a difficult task. According to the sketches presented by archaeologist Rami Arav, the main part of Peter’s house at Capernaum would have measured only some 3-4 meters on each side. 1 It would therefore have been only the size of a rather small US bedroom or roughly 9 to13 feet.
It is very possible that some of this activity was taking place in an adjoining courtyard. A quick look around the ruins of Capernaum will reveal that many of the houses had courtyards. In the nearby reconstructed city of ancient Katzrin on the Golan Heights it is possible to walk through the rebuilt houses that existed close to New Testament times. The rooms of such houses were rather small due to the fact that the roof beams had to reach from one stone wall to the next. In Katzrin, some houses also have courtyards that are reconstructed. Much activity went on in the courtyard. The clay ovens were placed in courtyards (for summer usage) as well as inside the main house (for winter usage and heating). Stone flour mills could also be placed there. At Katzrin one can see that portions of the courtyard were covered with makeshift roofs to protect from the hot Summer sun.
“Some men came, bringing to him a paralyzed man, carried by four of them. Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus by digging through it and then lowered the mat the man was lying on” (2:3-4).
Another important part of the ancient house was the roof, which could often be reached from exterior steps. The roofs were usually flat and were constructed with flat beams laid from wall to wall. The small spaces between beams were then packed with brushwood and covered over tightly with clay 2 to seal them from winter rains. At some sites one can still see the large stone rollers that were used to pack down the clay and make a watertight seal. The roof was a place for rest and even for sleeping in the summer months. We see in Deuteronomy 22:8, that it was necessary to build a parapet around the roof lest some person might accidentally fall off or sleep-walk to his or her death. The roof could be used for many other enterprises such as drying fruit or even praying as we see in Acts 10:9.
Into this crowded situation came four men carrying their paralytic friend. Since there was no way they could get into the house they chose to go up on the roof. Even at that point it probably seemed that there was no solution to their dilemma. Perhaps in a flash of inspiration they decided to make a large hole in the roof and let their friend down to Jesus. If they were on the main roof itself their frantic efforts would have made an awful mess for those folks below, including Jesus. We can imagine the people below being suddenly showered and covered with dirt and brush. We can also imagine the ire of the owner, perhaps emotional Peter himself, watching his roof being destroyed.
Perhaps this whole episode took place on the less problematic roof of the courtyard. That area would have been much more conducive to accommodating the large crowd that had assembled and was listening to Jesus preach. Both Jamieson and Utley suggest that the incident may have occurred in the courtyard. 3 The fact that Luke in 5:19 mentions the men removing the tiles (keramos) to let their friend down also seems to speak of the courtyard and not the house. Such an act would not have threatened the structural integrity of the main dwelling. In the courtyard the people could have probably watched this faith drama unfold with a lot of interest and excitement.
Regardless of how the four men brought their friend to Jesus we have to say that it was a bold and incredible operation. It would be wonderful today if we were so intent on getting our friends to Jesus. Stedman says that the whole event reminds us of Matthew 11:12 where Jesus says: “From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been subjected to violence, and violent people have been raiding it.” He adds that we should never lose the ability to defy the “status quo,” which is one of the most deadly things for the church today. It has been expressed as, “Come weal or woe; our status is quo.” 4
“When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralyzed man, ‘Son, your sins are forgiven’” (2:5). Obviously, one thing that greatly impresses Jesus is faith. It is also really nice to have friends who believe and even have faith for us. I have often wondered just how many of the good things we experience are due partly or wholly to believing saints around us. The writer Hugh Hewit remarks how “Friends are the face of God in everyday life.” 5
Faith was the key here, whether the faith of friends or of the man himself, and Jesus immediately makes the proclamation, “Son, your sins are forgiven.” Guzik remarks here: “Whenever there is a problem, almost always, sin is the real problem. Jesus got right to the problem.” 6 We see in the prophets that healing and forgiveness of sins would both be demonstrated in Messianic times. As Fuller Professor Robert Guelich states it, “Healing the sick and forgiving the sinner correspond to the prophetic hope for the age of salvation.” 7
In biblical days many felt that sickness was actually caused by sin. Boston University professor Joel Marcus mentions a rabbinic tradition that seems to relate to this passage. It says, “a sick person does not arise from his sickness until all his sins are forgiven him.” 8 No doubt a lot of sickness is caused by sin, but we see later in Jesus’ words of John 9:1-3, that there is sickness not caused by a person’s sin. We will probably remember that almost all of Job’s comforters blamed his terrible sickness and plagues on the fact that he had sinned somehow. Job denied this to the end and was later exonerated and healed by God.
OPPOSITION FLARES UP
Now some teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves, “Why does this fellow talk like that? He’s blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?” Mark 2:6-7
We note in Luke’s version of this story that Pharisees and teachers of the law had gathered from all over Galilee and even Judea to hear Jesus (Lk. 5:17). Several of these were no doubt present and probably sitting on the front row. However, they had immediate problems with Jesus forgiving sin for they felt that no one but God could do so. In their hearts they were certain that Jesus was blaspheming. This was no light thing as we see in Lev. 24:15-16, where scripture states that blasphemy should draw the death penalty.
“Immediately Jesus knew in his spirit that this was what they were thinking in their hearts, and he said to them, ‘Why are you thinking these things?’” (2:8). The Pharisees and teachers had a bigger problem than they knew. Jesus could not only read the heart of the paralyzed man but it quickly became apparent that he could also read their hearts too. Indeed, John’s gospel says of the Master: “…he knew all people. He did not need any testimony about mankind, for he knew what was in each person” (Jn. 2:24-25). All this was probably not a manifestation of his deity but was more likely a gift and working of the Spirit that was powerfully upon him. 9
We know that the forgiveness of sin in the Bible is the exclusive right of God, for all sin is against him in essence (cf. Psa. 51:4). Edwards in citing Dunn notes here: “It is impossible to soften the Christological force of 2:7, 10: Jesus is able and has authority to forgive sins, not merely to declare them forgiven.” 10 All this was like the so-called “elephant in the room” that the Pharisees and teachers were somehow failing to see. It was the sure sign that Jesus was not just some itinerant preacher but the Messiah himself. In Jeremiah 31:34, the Bible speaks of the coming messianic times saying: “…For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.”
Then Jesus, as a great proof of his authority, said to them: “Which is easier: to say to this paralyzed man, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, take your mat and walk’? But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the man, “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home” (2:9-11). Actually, it would be easy for us all to say that someone’s sins are forgiven, for that is an unseen matter. Of course, we do not have that authority to do such a thing and their sins would still remain. It is quite another thing to tell a paralyzed person to get up, walk and even carry his mat.
Jesus here uses the term “Son of Man” for the first time in Mark. It is said to be Jesus’ favorite self-designation. The term did not carry the nationalistic and militaristic concepts of “Messiah” and was much less likely to raise the ire of the Romans. It was a title that both veiled and revealed his dual nature. 11 It meant that Jesus was fully man and yet fully divine (cf. Dan. 7:13; Jn. 6:62). In the role of Son of Man Jesus would later fulfill the role of Suffering Servant mentioned in Isaiah chapters 52 and 53 and would die for the sins of the whole world.
By the great authority of the Son of Man this poor crippled person was healed. “He got up, took his mat and walked out in full view of them all. This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, ‘We have never seen anything like this!’” (2:12). As we have noted, it was impossible to get into the place. Now with this dramatic healing the crowds made way for him and he walked out carrying his bed. He came into the crowd weak and sick but John Lightfoot, the seventeenth century English churchman and rabbinical scholar, describes his exit saying: “he, being not only made whole, but strong and lusty, pressed through the press of the multitude, and stoutly made his way with his bed upon his shoulders.” 12
Pharisees, teachers and people could not miss this great sign. They were amazed and praised God. In all their lives they had never seen anything like it. What a visual sermon declaring the divinity of the Savior! What a visual sermon proclaiming his victory over sin and sickness! (cf. Isa. 35:6).
In commenting on this verse the great Augustine once chided his own people accusing them of being paralytics inwardly. He commanded them to take up their beds rather than allow their beds to take charge of them. His advice could apply to us today. 13
JESUS CALLS LEVI
Once again Jesus went out beside the lake. A large crowd came to him, and he began to teach them. Mark 2:13
Since Capernaum was a main harbor on the northwest coast of the Sea of Galilee, the shoreline was quite accessible to Jesus. He must have strolled along it many times. The Sea of Galilee is located in a most pleasant setting. The little sea or lake is the largest fresh-water body in Israel. It is about13 miles (21 km.) in length and 7 miles (11 km.) in width. The climate is semi-tropical and very agreeable for most of the year. In Israel the sea is called the Kinneret. This word is taken from the Hebrew kinor or harp, and in fact the little lake is actually harp-shaped. It is very picturesque.
For four years at our Galilee Study Center in Migdal (near ancient Magdala) my wife and I were able to view almost the whole lake on a daily basis. We were always amazed that it turned so many colors throughout the day, from grey, to pink, to blue, to purple. Through our large living room windows we were able to watch the sun rise on the lake each day and observe the tiny fishing boats and fishermen as they gathered in their nets.
As Jesus strolled along the beautiful lake the ever-present crowd gathered around. They walked with him and he began to teach them. Apparently Jesus soon began to walk along the roadway which is quite near the sea. This road was very important to ancient commerce. Barclay well describes the area with its road saying: “Galilee was one of the great road centers of the ancient world. It has been said that ‘Judea is on the way to nowhere; Galilee is on the way to everywhere’…The great Road of the Sea led from Damascus, by way of Galilee, through Capernaum, down past Carmel, along the Plain of Sharon, through Gaza and on to Egypt… On the way from Philip’s territory to Herod’s domains, Capernaum was the first town to which the traveler came. It was by its very nature a frontier town; because of that it was a custom center…” 14
“As he walked along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax collector’s booth. ‘Follow me,’ Jesus told him, and Levi got up and followed him” (2:14). Jesus apparently walked right up to that customs toll booth. It was there that he encountered a man by the name of Levi son of Alphaeus. Levi of course is a very Jewish name. Today most people with this last name or its many derivatives likely have a remote association with the ancient Jewish tribe of Levi and the priesthood. Levi had another name of Matthew, meaning “gift of God.” With his promising names, Levi was in a most unpromising occupation. Because he was a tax gatherer for the Romans or possibly for the Jewish ruler Herod Antipas, 15 he was a marked and hated man. It was customary under the Roman government for tax positions to go out for bid. The Romans gave a contract to the highest bidder, and once the tax gatherer reached that obligated amount the rest was his to keep. Such a system promoted much graft and dishonesty.
The tax gatherers or publicans as they were called tried to collect all the tax they could get. Their plan of operation may have been much like the shrewd farmer who was teaching his son how to sell a wagon. The father instructed the son to say: “Sir, the wagon is twenty-five dollars.” He advised his son that if the buyer didn’t flinch, he was to continue saying, “the wheels are five dollars.” If the buyer still didn’t flinch, he was to add, “each.” We can imagine that day the hard looks that may have been exchanged between Levi and Jesus’ disciples, who were mostly fishermen. It is thought that tax gatherers also had authority to tax fish that were caught in the lake. 16
Without hesitation Jesus said to Levi “follow me.” He, without hesitation, got up and followed. Barclay describes it, “With one action, in one moment of time, by one swift decision he had put himself out of his job forever, for having left his tax-collector’s job, he would never get it back… Matthew left everything but one thing— he did not leave his pen.” 17 Of course, Levi or Matthew with his pen would go on to write the great gospel by his name, a gospel relating all of Jesus’ wonderful teachings and parables.
Apparently Levi was so happy with his decision that he made a banquet for Jesus and invited all his publican friends to meet the Master. “While Jesus was having dinner at Levi’s house, many tax collectors and ‘sinners’ were eating with him and his disciples, for there were many who followed him” (2:15). Stedman thinks that this was probably a farewell dinner for all his old friends and tax-collecting buddies. He remarks, “What a collection of rascals must have been there that day!” 18 Perhaps he would not be saying goodbye to all, because the text indicates that some were also interested in following after Jesus. We note that with the many tax collectors there were somehow also a few Pharisees who were either dining with him or perhaps looking from the courtyard wall. 19
Some might think Jesus would have been a little nervous in such rogue company. The Bible indicates otherwise. The Greek verb “reclining” (katakeimai) indicates that Jesus was in the customary posture for feasts and festivals. 20 Such festivals expressed friendship and acceptance. The participants would recline on their left elbows and position themselves on the floor around a low horseshoe-shaped table. 21 They would often prop themselves on pillows with their feet and legs stretching out behind them.
“When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw him eating with the ‘sinners’ and tax collectors, they asked his disciples: ‘Why does he eat with tax collectors and ‘sinners’?” (2:16). In his ministry Jesus kept running into Pharisees (perushim or “separated ones” in Hebrew). They were never very happy with Jesus’s teaching or his conduct. This sect of Judaism had originated in the second century BC and placed much emphasis not just on the law but upon the oral traditions (which later became the Talmud). They were the strict religionists of the day and were the only major sect to survive the destruction of the temple in AD 70. The group continues on today, making up the basis of Rabbinic Judaism.
Jesus did not accept their criticism for a moment: “On hearing this, Jesus said to them, ‘It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners’” (2:17). It appears that the Pharisees were scandalized because Jesus did not insist on moral repentance and make it a precondition for his love and acceptance. 22 Jesus reminded them that as a physician he had come to heal the sick not the well. It is plainly apparent that the Pharisees were not really well or righteous, but they only thought themselves so, and thus excluded themselves from Jesus’ ministry. 23
Some today may still have questions as to why Jesus fellowshipped with this type of people. The great British missionary to China, C.T. Studd (1860-1931), left us with these lines that might help us better understand the heart of Jesus in his outreach:
Some want to live within the sound
Of church or chapel bell;
I want to run a rescue shop
Within a yard of hell. 24
TO FAST, OR NOT TO FAST
Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. Some people came and asked Jesus, “How is it that John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees are fasting, but yours are not?” Mark 2:18
Fasting was always a part of the biblical faith and was considered a means of abasing oneself and seeking the face of God. We see here that both the Pharisees and John’s disciples fasted. The only fast commanded in Old Testament times was on the great Day of Atonement (Lev. 23:27). This was an awesome day when abstinence from both food and water was required. Even today religious Jews continue to keep this fast, although in modern times, with its many demands, it is sometimes quite difficult. As time went on, there were other fast days added to the religious calendar (cf. Zech. 8:19). By the time of Jesus, the strict Jews fasted twice each week, on Mondays and Thursdays (cf. Lk. 18:12). These daily fasts lasted from 6 AM to 6 PM. 25 We have much evidence in the New Testament that the Pharisees and other religious people abused these fasts and went to great lengths to attract much attention to themselves as well as to their self-imposed abasement and suffering (Mt. 6:16-18).
By the time of the great prophet Isaiah we can see that some guidelines for a true fast were being given. In Isaiah 58:6-7 we read: “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter— when you see the naked, to clothe them, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?” Obviously, by the time of Jesus many had forgotten Isaiah’s instructions. From the scriptures we know that Jesus fasted (Matt. 4:2) and later the early church fasted (Acts 13:2-3; 14:23). However, over the centuries fasting got out of hand. Just before the time of the Reformation in Germany it is said that there were no less than 161 days each year that the pious were expected to fast or abstain from certain
foods. 26
“Jesus answered, ‘How can the guests of the bridegroom fast while he is with them? They cannot, so long as they have him with them. But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them, and on that day they will fast’” (2:19-20 ). It is as if Jesus rebuked them all saying: “You’ve misunderstood entirely the nature of the occasion. You think it is a funeral, but it’s not; it’s a wedding. A bridegroom is here. And at a wedding nobody fasts.” 27 There were some teachings in Judaism that a wedding was a time of celebration and not a time of fasting. One Rabbinic ruling read, “All in attendance on the bridegroom are relieved of all religious observances which would lessen their joy.” 28
Edwards describes for us what a normal Jewish wedding in biblical times was like. He says, “A wedding celebration in a Jewish village normally lasted seven days for a virgin bride or three days for a remarried widow…There was an abundance of food and wine, as well as song, dance, and fun both in the house and on the street.” 29 In John 2:1-7, the disciple relates how Jesus and his followers were invited to just such an event. Unfortunately, during the days of merriment the wine ran out. John tells us that Jesus worked his first miracle that day by having six large stone purification vessels filled with water and then turning all the water into wine. Jesus and his disciples were certainly not fasting on that occasion but were joining in the wedding celebration.
Jesus makes plain that because he is still with his disciples they could not fast. He was the bridegroom and the wedding was in preparation. However, Jesus as the Son of Man and Suffering Servant would soon be taken away from them and then they would fast.
PATCHING UP OLD RELIGION
No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. Otherwise, the new piece will pull away from the old, making the tear worse. Mark 2:21
Sometimes it is necessary to patch a garment to get a little more use out of it. Yet, here Jesus warns that patching can go only so far and we must be careful what and how we patch.
It was a big mistake in olden days to use un-shrunk cloth for the patch. Obviously, when the garment was washed the patch would shrink and make a mess of the garment. Jesus gave us this homespun illustration because he knew it applied directly to matters of religion. We cannot take something new like the gospel and make it work with the old ideas of religion.
For instance, Jesus worshipped in the temple and in the synagogues. He even proclaimed the temple as his Father’s House (Jn. 2:16). Yet, Jesus told the Samaritan woman that someday people would not worship in a house but would worship God in spirit and in truth (Jn. 4:23-24). Jesus observed the Sabbath and went to the synagogue with all other observant Jews.30 Yet, he cast out demons and healed at the synagogue. Such things were not permitted on the Sabbath according to the Pharisees and other groups. Jesus taught that the Sabbath was made for man and not vice-versa (Mk. 2:27-28). He taught that the Sabbath was a day to do good things as we will soon see. Jesus honored the old law which said “You shall not commit adultery” (Exo. 20:14), but he taught that adultery could also be committed by an unclean look or thought (Matt. 5:27-28).
The gospel is brand new. We cannot mix it with old ideas or try to patch it up with these older concepts such as fasting. London’s Dr. Peter Pett says that on that last day if one does not have a proper wedding garment he will be cast out (Matt. 22:11-12; cf. Rev. 3:5, 18: 19:8). We cannot get into the wedding with a patched up gown. 31
Jesus continues with another illustration in Mark 2:22: “And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins.” This is the same idea with a different picture. This was the day before wine bottles. In olden times a goat was skinned carefully so that the skin could contain liquids. 32 This made the transportation of wine much more convenient and avoided needless breakage and spills. Unfortunately, as time went on the old skins became stiff and the former elasticity was soon gone. It was therefore a big mistake to put new fermenting wine into and old skin. The wine would literally blow up the skin and both the wine and the skin would be lost.
The message is that old containers cannot hold new ideas and new revelation. The gospel being the new wine would require a new container. It would break forth out of Judaism and would be expressed in the church. In that new vessel the saving gospel would reach to the ends of the earth. But as the centuries passed, even the church forms would become inflexible and would no longer respond to the Holy Spirit’s moves. As centuries passed the gospel did indeed have to break out of the old stiff forms of Christianity and be expressed in new more flexible forms of the church. Of course, this was exactly what happened in the Great Reformation under Martin Luther and others.
JESUS AND THE SABBATH
One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and as his disciples walked along, they began to pick some heads of grain. The Pharisees said to him, “Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?” Mark 2:23-24
This next pericope pictures Jesus and his disciples in the grain fields of the Galilee. The areas around Capernaum and Chorazin were famous for their grain. In the Talmud both cities are praised for the quality of their wheat. Farmers in the area were first on the market with their grain due to what is called “insolation.” This is brought about by a combination of the black basalt soil and the steep angle going up from Capernaum to Korazin. All this allows more solar light and warmth from the sun to be absorbed into the soil, and greatly induces early ripening of the crops. 33
We note in this story that when religion gets too structured and legalistic it is almost impossible to move without breaking some rule. Here Jesus and his disciples were strolling along the footpaths or waysides in the grain fields of ripe wheat or barley. The disciples were apparently hungry so they were taking advantage of the bounty by picking a few heads, rubbing them in their hands and eating some of the grains. The Pharisees seeing this immediately cried “foul” and began to accuse them of breaking the Sabbath.
According to their myriads of Sabbath laws there were probably two things they could have accused them of doing. Since they were apparently on a journey, they had probably walked more than 1,999 paces (2624 ft. or 800 meters). According to the Sabbath rules this would have qualified as a “journey.” In addition, the disciples were guilty of “reaping” (Exo. 31:13-17; 34:21). 34 James Burton Coffman, the influential Church of Christ scholar, remarks here with tongue in cheek: “It would have been just as reasonable, if they had knocked off a little dew on the ground as they walked along, to have charged them with irrigating land on the Sabbath!” 35
We might think today that they shouldn’t have been out there picking grain from someone’s field. However, God made such allowances in the Torah. In Deuteronomy 23:25 we read: “If you enter your neighbor’s grainfield, you may pick kernels with your hands, but you must not put a sickle to their standing grain.” God is a merciful God and he made plenty of provisions in his law for hungry people to be satisfied.
“He answered, ‘Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were hungry and in need?’” (2:25). The Pharisees were the supposed experts in the law. Jesus had an interesting way of humiliating these self-declared experts by pointing out their gross ignorance of scriptures. Or as Stedman puts it, “Jesus skewered them on their
own sword.” 36
“In the days of Abiathar the high priest, he entered the house of God and ate the consecrated bread, which is lawful only for priests to eat. And he also gave some to his companions” (2:26). Jesus referred them back to the days of David as he was fleeing from the tyrant King Saul (1 Sam. 21:1-9). David fled at first to Nob where the tabernacle was located. Since he was famished he asked the priest for bread. The priest had no bread except the shewbread or bread of the presence that was changed every Sabbath. This bread was only to be eaten by the priests according to God’s law. David took the bread and since he was without weapons he took the sword of the giant Goliath whom he had slain in battle as a child. This meeting was to be fateful for the priests at Nob. When Saul heard of it he had the priests there executed because of their apparent complicity with David.
This account illustrates that the need of man can generally override the holy rules of God. No one was supposed to eat the holy bread but the priests and yet it was given to David in his need although he was not from the priestly line. Guzik quoting Morgan here says “Any application of the Sabbath Law which operates to the detriment of man is out of harmony with God’s purpose.” 37 God our Father is a God of love and is intimately concerned with our day to day needs, whether it be bread or a few grains of wheat.
Commentators through the ages have noted what seems to be a discrepancy in this account. From the scripture we note that it was actually Abimelech (1 Sam. 21:1), also called Ahimelech, from whom David procured the loaves. How do we reconcile the mention of Abiathar in our verse? It would be absolutely unthinkable that Jesus would misquote the scripture, and especially at the same time he was chiding the teachers of the law about misunderstanding it. 38 The Pharisees would have surely latched on to such a blunder of Jesus and mocked him – “Nah, nah, nah, nah, nah – Jesus made a boo, boo!” Neither the Pharisees nor the gospel writers thought there was a problem here. 39
How could that be? It could simply have been a statement that the event happened in the “days of Abiathar,” or while he was alive, although he was not at the time holding the high priestly office. 40 Since Abiathar, son of Abimelech escaped the slaughter and later served as the high priest under King David, his name would have naturally been the most important and best-remembered.
Jesus ends this section with the summary statement, “Then he said to them, ‘The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath’” (2:27-28). Today in our busy world we have forgotten the Sabbath with its rest and refreshing. We have also forgotten the important title of Jesus as “Lord of the Sabbath.” Jesus is greater than the law because he is in fact the Living Law. He is greater than the Sabbath because the Sabbath was only a type, shadow and pattern of Jesus and his rest.
Albert Barnes, the Presbyterian great, in his reflections on the Christian Sabbath says:
It was a kind provision for man that he might refresh his body by relaxing his labours; that he might have undisturbed time to seek the consolations of religion to cheer him in the anxieties and sorrows of a troubled world; and that he might render to God that homage which is most justly due to him as the Creator, Preserver, Benefactor, and Redeemer of the world. And it is easily capable of proof, that no institution has been more signally blessed to man’s welfare than the Christian Sabbath. To that we owe, more than to anything else, the peace and order of a civilized community. Where there is no Sabbath, there is ignorance, vice, disorder, and crime. On that holy day, the poor, and the ignorant, as well as the learned, have undisturbed time to learn the requirements of religion, the nature of morals, the law of God, and the way of salvation…The Sabbath was, therefore, pre-eminently intended for man’s welfare. 41