THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO JOHN - Chapter 5 - Verse 2

Verse 2. The sheep-market. This might have been rendered the sheep-gate, or the gate through which the sheep were taken into the city for sacrifice. The marginal rendering is gate, and the word "market" is not in the original, nor is a "sheep-market" mentioned in the Scriptures or in any of the Jewish writings. A sheep-gate is repeatedly mentioned by Nehemiah (Ne 3:1,32; 12:39) being that by which sheep and oxen were brought into the city. As these were brought mainly for sacrifice, the gate was doubtless near the temple, and near the present place which is shown as the pool of Bethesda.

A pool. This word may either mean a small lake or pond in which one can swim, or a place for fish, or any waters collected for bathing or washing.

Hebrew tongue. Hebrew language. The language then spoken, which did not differ essentially from the ancient Hebrew.

Bethesda. The house of mercy. It was so called on account of its strong healing properties—the property of restoring health to the sick and infirm.

Five porches. The word porch commonly means a covered place surrounding a building, in which people can walk or sit in hot or wet weather. Here it probably means that there were five covered places, or apartments, in which the sick could remain, from each one of which they could have access to the water. This "pool" is thus described by Professor Hackett (Illustrations of Scripture, p. 291, 292)

"Just to the east of the Turkish garrison, and under

the northern wall of the mosque, is a deep excavation,

supposed by many to be the ancient pool of Bethesda,

into which the sick descended `after the troubling of

the water,' and were healed, Joh 5:1, sq. It is

360 feet long, 130 feet wide, and 75 deep. The evangelist

says that this pool was near the sheep-gate, as the

Greek probably signifies, rather than sheep-market, as

rendered in the English version. That gate, according to

Ne 3:1, sq., was on the north side of the temple,

and hence the situation of this reservoir would agree

with that of Bethesda. The present name, Birket Israil,

Pool of Israil, indicates the opinion of the native

inhabitants in regard to the object of the excavation.

The general opinion of the most accurate travellers

is that the so-called pool was originally part of a

trench or fosse which protected the temple on the

north. Though it contains no water at present except

a little which trickles through the stones at the

west end, it has evidently been used at some period

as a reservoir. It is lined with cement, and adapted

in other respects to hold water."

Dr. Robinson established by personal inspection the fact of the subterranean connection of the pool of Siloam with the Fountain of the Virgin, and made it probable that the fountain under the mosque of Omar is connected with them. This spring is, as he himself witnessed, an intermittent one, and there may have been some artificially constructed basin in connection with this spring to which was given the name of Bethesda. He supposes, however, that there is not the slightest evidence that the place or reservoir now pointed out as Bethesda was the Bethesda of the New Testament (Bib. Res., i. 501,506, 509). In the time of Sandys (1611) the spring was found running, but in small quantities; in the time of Maundrell (1697) the stream did not run. Probably in his time, as now, the water which had formerly filtered through the rocks was dammed up by the rubbish.

{1} "sheep-market", or "gate", Ne 3:1; 12:39