Read John 5 here (text coming …) or at Bible Gateway.
Joh 5:1-6:1 Chiastic Structure:
Note the central axis: Jesus made Himself equal with God. He is the Word of God made flesh, and is God. When people say that Jesus never claimed to be divine, that is a false statement.
Therefore the Jews sought all the more to kill Him, because He not only broke the Sabbath, but also said that God was His Father, making Himself equal with God. Joh 5:18
Did John here confess that Jesus had in fact broken the Sabbath commandment, agreeing with the accusation of the Pharisees? Whenever I read something in English translation that contradicts something the Scripture has already shown by multiple witnesses, I go back to the Hebrew and Greek, to see what was really said.
The Greek word translated “broke” in Joh 5:18 is Strong’s G3089 λύω, lyo, a verbal root. It means, “to loose any person or thing tied or fastened; to release from bonds, to set free.” You could say it means broke, but only if you clarify “broke” to mean “broke out of prison.” John is saying that Jesus released the Sabbath commandment from the bonds in which the Pharisees had entangled it.
If there are questions, this is a good resource:
Sabbath Index of Studies – Christine Miller
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