Mark 2:7

Mark 2:7, in plain English

They thought, 'This is blasphemy! Who can forgive sins except God alone?'

Why it's here

They were actually asking the right question. Only God can forgive sins. What they couldn't see was that the answer to their own question was sitting right in front of them.

Who's speaking

Mark reveals the scribes' unspoken accusation: Jesus is claiming to be God.

Where it sits in the story

They had perfect theology in one sense: only God forgives sins. Their mistake wasn't in what they believed about God—it was in failing to recognize that God Himself had just spoken.

The scholarly reading

The scribes internally accused Jesus of blasphemy (blasphēmei), reasoning correctly that only God (eis ho theos) has the prerogative to forgive sins—but failing to consider that Jesus might actually possess divine authority.

Language and setting

Their theology was sound: Isaiah 43:25 declares that God alone blots out transgressions. Their error was not in their doctrine of God but in their failure to recognize God incarnate standing before them.

Voice

Mark reports the scribes' internal theological reasoning, which was doctrinally correct but christologically blind.

Significance

The scribes posed the right question: 'Who can forgive sins but God alone?' The answer they couldn't accept was standing right in front of them, and He was about to prove His authority.

5When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”

6But some of the scribes were sitting there and thinking in their hearts,

7“Why does this man speak like this? He is blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?”

8At once Jesus knew in His spirit that they were thinking this way within themselves. “Why are you thinking these things in your hearts?” He asked.

9“Which is easier: to say to a paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, pick up your mat, and walk’?

Read all of Mark 2 — Jesus forgives sins, eats with outcasts, and lets his disciples skip fasting. The religious leaders can barely keep up with the offenses.