11 He answered them, “He who made me well said to me, ‘Take up your bed and walk.’ ” 12 Then they asked him, “Who is the Man who said to you, ‘Take up your bed and walk’?” 13 But the one who was healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had withdrawn, a multitude being in that place.
Verses 11-13 bring dramatic tension to the story of the healing of the paralytic man. He gave no gratitude to Jesus but instead betrayed Him.
5:11
He answered them,
The man whom Jesus healed tried to evade personal responsibility for carrying his bed and attempted to deflect the issue onto the person who healed him.
“He who made me well said to me, ‘Take up your bed [pallet] and walk.’”
It may have been that the formerly paralyzed man did not understand who and what Jesus was. Nevertheless, he attempted to shift the blame to the person who healed him. He was not courageous but feared leaders of the prevailing culture.
5:12
Then they asked him, “Who is the Man
The Pharisees wanted to find the “Man” who told the lame man to work on the Sabbath. This question betrayed their bias toward anyone who might challenge their authority. They were not open to a reasonable case for Christ. Instead, they carried an air of contempt in their question.
who said to you, ‘Take up your bed and walk’?”
These Jewish leaders had the audacity to completely disregard the fact that this paralyzed man walked after decades of lying on a pallet waiting to be healed. Their only issue was about who breached their view of the law.
5:13
But the one who was healed did not know who it was,
The paralyzed man did not understand the significance of who Jesus was. He did not even know His name.
for Jesus had withdrawn, a multitude being in that place.
Jesus slipped away quickly because of the size of the crowd. This explains why the paralytic did not know who healed him.
PRINCIPLE:
There are always those who will accept the gift but ignore the giver.
APPLICATION:
The lame man did not know who healed him, indicating it was not his faith that healed him. Jesus had come and gone without his knowing who He was.
None of us should be surprised by his lack of gratitude. It is a sad thing to accept the gift and ignore the giver.
