And, behold, there was a certain man before him which had the dropsy.
And, behold, there was a certain man before him which had the dropsy.
And behold, there was before him a certain man that had the dropsy.
And a certain man was there who had a disease.
And behold, there was a certain man before him who had the dropsy.
Behold, a certain man who had dropsy was in front of him.
And behold, there was before him a certain man which had the dropsy.
The dropsy - Ὑδρωπικος, dropsical; from ὑδωρ, water, and ωψ, the countenance, because in this disorder the face of the patient is often very much bloated. Probably the insidious Pharisee had brought this dropsical man to the place, not doubting that our Lord's eye would affect his heart, and that he would instantly cure him; and then he could most plausibly accuse him for a breach of the Sabbath. If this were the case, and it is likely, how deep must have been the perfidy and malice of the Pharisee!
A certain man before him - In what way he came there we know not. He might have been one of the Pharisee's family, or might have been placed there by the Pharisees to see whether he would heal him. This last supposition is not improbable, since it is said in Luke 14:1 that they watched him.
The dropsy - A disease produced by the accumulation of water in various parts of the body; very distressing, and commonly incurable.
14:2 There was a certain man before him - It does not appear that he was come thither with any insidious design. Probably he came, hoping for a cure, or perhaps was one of the family.