A Heavy Silence

The Pharisees thought they had it. They brought a crippled man into the synagogue on the holy day, making themselves unclean, but no matter what happened next, they were going to preserve their power. Either this Jesus would choose not to act, in deference to the Sabbath, and the Pharisees would be proved right in all their purity laws...or this Jesus would act, do something, and the Pharisees would show everyone what a sinner He really was - working on the Sabbath; He can't possibly be such a "good" teacher after all. Thus, they remain the best teachers. 

So they shoved the crippled man toward Jesus, and they held their breath, tasting their victory as the saliva built up in their mouths. One way or the other, they were coming out on top. 

And then...

Jesus spoke. 

He asked them about the things that they owned, the things they built their lives on. If one of their animals, which made possible their agricultural work, fell into the ditch on a holy day, wouldn't they go and pull it out? 

*An interesting aside: why would one's working animal fall into a ditch on the Sabbath in the first place? One of two things must be happening - either the animal is working, which means a man set it to working and thus broke the Sabbath already, or the animal is grazing, which implies the presence of a shepherd or guardian who would be tending the animal and thus also already breaking the Sabbath. But no one responds to Jesus's musing by saying that the animal should not fall into a ditch on the Sabbath, for that would mean someone was working. But, you know...details. 

At this point, the Pharisees are the ones who are caught. If they say that they would not pull their animal out, they are guilty of its death, which makes them unclean in God's eyes. If they say that they would pull their animal out, they are guilty of work on the Sabbath, which makes them hypocrites (at the very least) and shows that even they are willing to break the Sabbath for some things. 

You can feel the tension in the air as that saliva that tasted so sweet like victory dries completely up and the Pharisees are left speechless. Jesus has so far done nothing with the crippled man that they planted in the synagogue to preserve their power, and they've already lost it. 

There is no way to respond to His question. 

I imagine Jesus let the tension just hang there for longer than anyone thought was comfortable. I imagine the silence lingering for just enough time to become awkward. I imagine Jesus sneaking a small smile out the side of His mouth toward the crippled man, a smile that says, "Just wait," as He continues to watch the Pharisees, waiting for their reaction. They start to squirm. They start to point fingers. 

But...but...the crippled man, they insist. Enough about us. What are You going to do about the crippled man? 

Jesus smiles. You could hear a pin drop, were it not for the shuffling of the Pharisees' feet under their long, ornate robes. 

Then, Jesus turns to the crippled man, starts to reach out His hand for the man's, but stops. With a quick, knowing glance toward the Pharisees, then back to the man, He speaks again....