Home > Jesus is God in Mark's Gospel
Jesus heals a paralyzed man and declares, 'Son, your sins are forgiven.'
Mark 2:5–12 - And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.” Now some of the scribes were sitting there, questioning in their hearts, “Why does this man speak like that? He is blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?” And immediately Jesus, perceiving in his spirit that they thus questioned within themselves, said to them, “Why do you question these things in your hearts? Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise, take up your bed and walk’? But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he said to the paralytic— “I say to you, rise, pick up your bed, and go home.” And he rose and immediately picked up his bed and went out before them all, so that they were all amazed and glorified God, saying, “We never saw anything like this!”
“The scribes” - “Who can forgive sins but God alone?” - The scribes rightly ask, "Who can forgive sins but God alone?" By doing so, Jesus claims a divine prerogative. In the Second Temple Jewish worldview, sin was an offense against God; therefore, only the offended party (God) could grant absolution. When the scribes question his authority, Jesus proves his divine power to forgive sins—an act only God can perform—by healing the man instantly. Jesus does not correct their premise; he confirms it. He performs a visible miracle (healing the legs) to prove an invisible reality (healing the soul). Jesus refers to Himself as the "Son of Man" here for the first time in Mark. Commentators note this is a direct link to Daniel 7 where the “Son of Man” is a divine-human figure given "everlasting dominion" by the Ancient of Days.
“Authority” - "Exousia" - Mark 1-2 - Jesus can command in teaching (1:22), Demons (1:27), Sin (2:10) and Covenant (2:28). Understanding the nuance of exousia is vital for refuting the idea that Jesus was merely a commissioned prophet or a high-ranking angel. It literally means "out of one's own being." When Jesus acts with exousia, He is not acting on delegated authority (like a policeman or a priest), but on inherent authority—power that flows from His very nature.
“They were all amazed and glorified God” - Many people in history have had "power" (dynamis), but only the King of Kings has the "authority" (exousia) to forgive sins and rewrite the laws of the universe. In Mark, Jesus’ miracles are the dynamis that proves His exousia. It denotes “the warrant or the right to do something,” while dynamis signifies only physical power, exousia properly denotes power that is lawful. Exousia presumes dynamis, but not vice-versa—one can possess raw power without legitimate authority to exercise it. In the New Testament, exousia refers to God’s rule in nature and the spiritual realm, and the freedom Christ grants to his apostles.While exousia operates over sickness, natural forces, and demons, Jesus explicitly rejects any political application of this authority.
The distinction becomes clear in the Simon Magus episode in Acts 8:9-24. Though Simon possessed dynamis for healing, upon conversion he recognised its insufficiency and sought exousia—the authority to lay on hands. The apostles’ refusal to grant him this authority revealed their judgment that his motives disqualified him. Similarly, when questioned about forgiving sins, Jesus avoided the term dynamis in his response, instead claiming exousia to both heal and forgive.
Exousia remains intrinsically connected to the Logos—nothing occurs apart from Jesus’ authority, and this freedom given to the community cannot be used arbitrarily. Unlike dynamis, which can be possessed or transferred, exousia emerges through practice and cannot be bestowed as a commodity.
Related References:
M. Therese Lysaught, Joseph Kotva, et al., On Moral Medicine: Theological Perspectives on Medical Ethics (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2012).
J. I. Packer, “Authority,” in New Bible Dictionary, ed. D. R. W. Wood et al. (Leicester, England; Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1996), 105.