Divine Anger & Grief | Mark 3:1-6
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1 And He entered the synagogue again, and a man was there who had a withered hand. 2 So they watched Him closely, whether He would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse Him. 3 And He said to the man who had the withered hand, “Step forward.” 4 Then He said to them, “Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” But they kept silent. 5 And when He had looked around at them with anger, being grieved by the hardness of their hearts, He said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored as whole as the other. 6 Then the Pharisees went out and immediately plotted with the Herodians against Him, how they might destroy Him. (Mark 3:1-6 NKJV)
Mark 3:1-2
The opening scene is one we have witnessed before in Mark’s gospel. Christ enters the synagogue and finds there someone who bears in his body the effects of the Fall and demonic dominion, namely, corruption — in this case, the corruption of a limb. The pattern of Christ’s ministry leaves no room for doubt about what to expect: Surely, Christ will undo the corruption, restoring the man to his proper form.
The pattern is obvious to any who have observed Christ’s ministry, including the Pharisees, which is why they watch Christ closely, waiting to see if he will heal the man. Notice the tragedy of their hardness of heart. Seeing one who suffers from corruption and the work of the Devil, they fully expect that Christ will undo this evil — Christ being one who makes the unclean clean, who drives away sickness and infirmity, who makes whole that which is broken. But their hearts are so hard that they cannot see that the undoing of evil is an act of God. Instead, they see only the violation of their rigid application of the Law, not understanding the true purpose of the Law.
Cyril of Alexandria sees in the Pharisees, not only envy, but the maddening effect of envy. He writes, “But the Pharisees watched Him, to see if He would heal on the sabbath: for such is the nature of an envious man, that he makes the praises of others food for his own disease, and wickedly is maddened by their reputation” (Hom. 23, Lk.).
Mark 3:3-4
Christ calls the man forward for all to see. The great irony, of course, is that the Pharisees watch Christ carefully, as if he might secretly perform a miracle in (supposed) violation of the Sabbath. Yet, far from hiding his divine work, Christ draws the attention to it. Why? At least three reasons present themselves.
As discussed previously (see Mark 1:32-45), Christ silences all witnesses to his identity, save three: John the Baptist, the Father at his baptism, and divine energies themselves, these offering their own proclamation of his divine nature. Hence, he performs these divine works before all, so that those with eyes to see might see.
Cyril of Alexandria offers yet another reason. He believes that Christ wishes to stir pity in the Pharisees by drawing attention to the man’s condition. Once again (cf. Mark 2:13-7), the Eastern fathers recognize that Christ’s love of all includes the Pharisees, for whose sake, too, he came into the world. — The point will be evident when considering Christ’s reaction to their hardness of heart, below. — Cyril writes, “And why did He do this? It might perhaps be to move the cruel and unpitying Pharisee to compassion: the man’s malady perhaps might shame them, and persuade them to allay the flames of envy” (ibid).
The third is the lesson itself. In the previous two stories, we have seen that Christ is beginning the transition from the old to the new, a transition that is beginning with his disciples. In Mark 2:18-22, he teaches that his disciples cannot fast because the bridegroom has arrived, but the new mode of fasting will commence with his departure. In Mark 2:23-8, Christ slowly introduces his disciples to the true purpose of the Sabbath, namely, the good of man, which is why their need permits the lifting of restriction. And here, the teaching is even more pronounced: What is lawful on the Sabbath is to do good, not evil, to save life, not kill. Though the Pharisees will prove resistant to the lesson, no doubt Christ recognizes that some will see and understand. So continues his stretching of the new wine skins, helping those with eyes to see the true purpose of the Law.