Verse-by-Verse Commentary
The Book of Matthew
Chapter 9: Friend of Sinners
The mighty works continue, and with them the heart of the King is revealed. Jesus forgives a paralytic before He heals him, showing His authority reaches even to sin. He calls Matthew the tax collector from his booth and sits down to eat with tax collectors and sinners, answering the critics: I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance. He heals a woman who touched the hem of His garment and raises a ruler's daughter, and, moved with compassion for the weary crowds, tells His disciples the harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few. Matthew 9 shows the Savior who came for the sick, the sinful, and the lost.
About This Commentary
This is a verse-by-verse study of Matthew chapter 9. For each section you will find the KJV text, word studies that sharpen the meaning, plain explanation, and a Gospel Focus. The miracles continue and the compassion of Christ for sinners shines out. Every Scripture quotation is from the King James Version.
Setting the Stage
Forgiven First
When friends bring a paralyzed man, Jesus first forgives his sins, then heals his body, proving He has authority on earth to forgive.
Matthew and the Sinners
Jesus calls Matthew the tax collector and eats with sinners, declaring He came to call not the righteous but sinners to repentance.
Faith That Touches
A woman is healed by touching His garment in faith, a ruler's dead daughter is raised, and the blind and mute are restored.
The Plentiful Harvest
Moved with compassion for the weary and scattered crowds, Jesus calls His disciples to pray the Lord of the harvest to send laborers.
Your Sins Are Forgiven (Matthew 9:2)
Jesus meets the deepest need before the visible one.
Son, Be of Good Cheer
"And he entered into a ship, and passed over, and came into his own city. And, behold, they brought to him a man sick of the palsy, lying on a bed: and Jesus seeing their faith said unto the sick of the palsy; Son, be of good cheer; thy sins be forgiven thee. And, behold, certain of the scribes said within themselves, This man blasphemeth. And Jesus knowing their thoughts said, Wherefore think ye evil in your hearts? For whether is easier, to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Arise, and walk? But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, (then saith he to the sick of the palsy,) Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto thine house. And he arose, and departed to his house. But when the multitudes saw it, they marvelled, and glorified God, which had given such power unto men. And as Jesus passed forth from thence, he saw a man, named Matthew, sitting at the receipt of custom: and he saith unto him, Follow me. And he arose, and followed him. And it came to pass, as Jesus sat at meat in the house, behold, many publicans and sinners came and sat down with him and his disciples. And when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto his disciples, Why eateth your Master with publicans and sinners?"
Greek Study
To the paralytic Jesus says, "thy sins be forgiven thee" -- aphientai, are sent away, released. The scribes rightly know that only God can forgive sins ("this man blasphemeth"), yet wrongly conclude He is a blasphemer. Jesus proves His authority by healing the body -- the visible sign of the invisible pardon -- and calls Himself "the Son of man" who "hath power (exousia) on earth to forgive sins." He does not pray for the man's forgiveness; He forgives, as God forgives.
Explanation
The scribes' theology is correct -- no one can forgive sins but God alone -- which makes Jesus' action a claim to deity, not a denial of it. He does not correct their premise; He meets it head-on by doing what only God can do, and then authenticates it with a miracle no man could fake. Here, early in the Gospel, the deity of Christ is asserted at the point that matters most to sinners: the One walking among them can wipe away sin itself. The paralytic goes home forgiven and walking, a living parable that the Man who heals bodies is the God who pardons souls.
Gospel Focus
The man was brought for healing, but Jesus first spoke to a deeper need: "your sins are forgiven you." He saw beneath the paralyzed body to the paralyzed soul, and met the greater need first. This tells us where our truest problem lies; the worst paralysis is not of the limbs but of a life bound by sin and separated from God. When the scribes objected that only God can forgive sins, they were right about the principle but blind to the Person, for the One before them was God in flesh. So Jesus proved His invisible authority to forgive by a visible act: "that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins" (verse 6), He commanded the man to rise and walk, and he did. Notice too that "Jesus saw their faith", the faith of the friends who brought him. Christ still forgives and heals; He still meets the deepest need first; and He still honors the faith that brings the helpless to Him. Be of good cheer: in Christ, sins are forgiven.
I Came to Call Sinners (Matthew 9:12-13)
Jesus answers His critics with the very purpose of His coming.
Not the Righteous, but Sinners
"But when Jesus heard that, he said unto them, They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick. But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. Then came to him the disciples of John, saying, Why do we and the Pharisees fast oft, but thy disciples fast not? And Jesus said unto them, Can the children of the bridechamber mourn, as long as the bridegroom is with them? but the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken from them, and then shall they fast. No man putteth a piece of new cloth unto an old garment, for that which is put in to fill it up taketh from the garment, and the rent is made worse. Neither do men put new wine into old bottles: else the bottles break, and the wine runneth out, and the bottles perish: but they put new wine into new bottles, and both are preserved. While he spake these things unto them, behold, there came a certain ruler, and worshipped him, saying, My daughter is even now dead: but come and lay thy hand upon her, and she shall live. And Jesus arose, and followed him, and so did his disciples. And, behold, a woman, which was diseased with an issue of blood twelve years, came behind him, and touched the hem of his garment: For she said within herself, If I may but touch his garment, I shall be whole. But Jesus turned him about, and when he saw her, he said, Daughter, be of good comfort; thy faith hath made thee whole. And the woman was made whole from that hour. And when Jesus came into the ruler's house, and saw the minstrels and the people making a noise, He said unto them, Give place: for the maid is not dead, but sleepeth. And they laughed him to scorn. But when the people were put forth, he went in, and took her by the hand, and the maid arose. And the fame hereof went abroad into all that land. And when Jesus departed thence, two blind men followed him, crying, and saying, Thou Son of David, have mercy on us. And when he was come into the house, the blind men came to him: and Jesus saith unto them, Believe ye that I am able to do this? They said unto him, Yea, Lord. Then touched he their eyes, saying, According to your faith be it unto you. And their eyes were opened; and Jesus straitly charged them, saying, See that no man know it. But they, when they were departed, spread abroad his fame in all that country. As they went out, behold, they brought to him a dumb man possessed with a devil. And when the devil was cast out, the dumb spake: and the multitudes marvelled, saying, It was never so seen in Israel. But the Pharisees said, He casteth out devils through the prince of the devils. And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people. But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd."
Greek Study
Eating with tax collectors and sinners, Jesus answers, "They that be whole need not a physician (iatros), but they that are sick." Then He sends the critics to school: "go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice" (Matthew 9:13, citing Hosea 6:6). The word behind "mercy" is eleos, covenant lovingkindness, the chesed of the Old Testament. "I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance" -- the Physician goes where the sickness is.
Explanation
Jesus defines His whole mission by the image of the Physician: He comes not for the self-satisfied "righteous" but for those who know they are sick with sin. The Pharisees, quarantined behind their rules, would never touch a sinner; the Great Physician sits down at their table. This is why the section ends with Jesus "moved with compassion" for the crowds, "as sheep having no shepherd" (v. 36). The mercy God desired above sacrifice takes flesh in the One who eats with sinners to make them well.
Gospel Focus
When the Pharisees sneered that Jesus ate "with publicans and sinners" (verse 11), He answered with a picture: "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick." A doctor goes where the sickness is; the Savior came for sinners because sinners are the ones who need saving. His words expose the fatal error of the self-righteous: those who think themselves well will never seek the Physician. Jesus quotes Hosea, "I desire mercy and not sacrifice", God cares more for a heart of mercy than for religious ceremony that leaves the heart untouched. And He states His mission plainly: "I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance." This is unspeakably good news, for there are no truly righteous to call (Romans 3:10); the call goes out to sinners, and it calls them to repentance. Christ is the friend of sinners, not because He excuses sin, but because He came to save them from it. If you know you are sick with sin, you are exactly the one He came to call.
The Harvest Is Plentiful (Matthew 9:37-38)
The compassion of Christ becomes a call to prayer and to labor.
Pray the Lord of the Harvest
"Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few; Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest."
Greek Study
Jesus surveys the shepherdless crowds and frames the need agriculturally: "The harvest (therismos) truly is plenteous, but the labourers (ergatai) are few." The problem is not a shortage of harvest but of harvesters. His command is to "pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth (ekballe, thrust out) labourers into his harvest." The mission begins on the knees, asking the Owner of the field to drive out workers.
Explanation
Compassion for the multitudes (v. 36) turns immediately into a call to prayer for workers -- and in the next chapter, the disciples who are told to pray for labourers become the answer, sent out themselves. This is how the Lord fills His harvest: those who feel His compassion and pray His prayer are the ones He thrusts into the field. The harvest is His, the field is His, the sending is His -- and the disciple's part is to ask, and then to go. Every generation of the shepherdless crowd waits on labourers the Lord of the harvest is still sending.
Gospel Focus
Jesus looked on the multitudes and "was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd" (verse 36). Out of that compassion came this call. First, He names the situation: "The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few." The need is not a shortage of souls ready to be gathered, but a shortage of workers to gather them. And His command is striking: before "Go," He says "pray." "Pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest." The work of reaching the lost begins on our knees, asking God to raise up and thrust out workers. Notice it is His harvest and He is the Lord of it; we labor in a field that belongs to Him, at His sending. This is the heart of Christ for a lost world, and it must become ours: to see the crowds with compassion, to pray earnestly for laborers, and to be willing to be sent ourselves into the ripe and waiting harvest.
Chapter 9 in Review
Matthew 9 continues the mighty works of the King and unveils His heart for the lost. He forgives a paralytic before healing him, proving the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins. He calls Matthew the tax collector and eats with sinners, declaring, "I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance," for the well have no need of a physician. He heals a woman who touched His garment in faith, raises a ruler's daughter, and opens blind eyes. And moved with compassion for the weary crowds, He tells His disciples the harvest is plentiful but the laborers few, and to pray the Lord of the harvest to send out workers.
For the Apostolic reader, this chapter reveals the compassion at the center of Christ's mission. He meets the deepest need first, forgiving sin before healing the body. He is the friend of sinners, come not for those who think themselves righteous but for those who know they are sick and need saving. And His compassion for the lost is not sentiment only but a summons: to pray for laborers and to go. The Savior who forgave the paralytic and called Matthew still calls sinners to repentance today, and still sends His people into the plentiful harvest.
- Christ meets the deepest need first: He forgave the paralytic's sins before healing his body.
- Jesus came to call sinners, not the self-righteous; the sick are the ones who seek the Physician.
- God desires mercy, not mere sacrifice; ceremony without a changed heart is empty (Hosea 6:6).
- The harvest is plentiful but laborers few; the work begins with prayer to the Lord of the harvest.
Questions for Reflection
- Do you know yourself to be sick with sin and in need of the Physician, or do you count yourself well?
- Jesus is the friend of sinners. Does your heart welcome sinners toward Him, as His did?
- Are you praying the Lord of the harvest for laborers, and willing to be sent yourself?
References & Sources
Scripture is quoted from the King James Version (KJV). Supporting passages are listed so every claim can be verified in its own setting. If anything here does not look right, a verse, a reference, or a wording, please tell us at info@FruitBearers.net. Thank you for helping us keep Bible Learning error free.
- The paralytic forgiven and healed: Matthew 9:1-8; Mark 2:1-12.
- The call of Matthew; eating with sinners: Matthew 9:9-13; Luke 5:27-32.
- God desiring mercy, not sacrifice: Hosea 6:6; Matthew 12:7.
- The woman healed and the ruler's daughter raised: Matthew 9:18-26; Mark 5:21-43.
- Compassion for the crowds; the plentiful harvest: Matthew 9:35-38; Luke 10:2.