Mark 3:1-6

Again he entered the synagogue, and a man was there with a withered hand. And they watched Jesus, to see whether he would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him. And he said to the man with the withered hand, “Come here.” And he said to them, “Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to kill?” But they were silent. And he looked round at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, and said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was restored. The Pharisees went out and immediately held counsel with the Herodians against him, how to destroy him.

Yeshu knew full well why the Pharisees were present in the synagogue; it was for envy. It was because he was good, and popular with the people on account of his healings and teachings. Yet for them there was loss of face, for Yeshu was just a carpenter, one of ‘the common people’ who lacked religious training; and he was a Galilean too, so unlikely even to be of pure Jewish stock.

So what to do? He had already shown himself better than they at interpreting the scriptures. Ah! he could be discredited if he were found to break the religious Rest Day laws!

But even then, on this occasion, he interpreted the scriptures better than they did, saying that right deeds are more important than right thinking.

Defeated again, they decide that he must be killed.