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Here's the text from the image, formatted in markdown: ## A Confrontation in the Synagogue The passage in Exodus was a form of harvesting, and therefore not permitted on the Sabbath. They confronted Jesus: "Look, your disciples are doing what is not lawful." But he was not impressed. After citing...

Here's the text from the image, formatted in markdown: ## A Confrontation in the Synagogue The passage in Exodus was a form of harvesting, and therefore not permitted on the Sabbath. They confronted Jesus: "Look, your disciples are doing what is not lawful." But he was not impressed. After citing examples to show that they misread Scripture, he further infuriated them by making an outrageous claim for himself: "The Son of man is lord of the sabbath." As the Pharisees sputtered in indignation, Jesus entered the synagogue, and his adversaries followed, meaning to continue the argument. Inside, however, they encountered a man with a withered hand. Turning to the Pharisees, Jesus demanded, "Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath?" And before they could reply, he declared the answer: ''It is lawful to do good on the sabbath." Then, turning to the afflicted man, he said, "Stretch out your hand." The man extended his withered hand, and suddenly it was strong and whole. The onlookers marveled, while the Pharisees, storming out of the synagogue, began arguing among themselves about how to be rid of Jesus. ## Who Were Jesus' Enemies? Jesus' enemies will play a large role in the rest of his story, so this is a good time to say something about them. We will start with the Pharisees, who appear repeatedly in the Gospels. Not all Pharisees were enemies of Jesus. Many were good, decent people - indeed, among Israel's finest. Nicodemus, the honest inquirer who came to Jesus one night in Jerusalem, was a Pharisee. Other Pharisees passed word to Jesus that Herod Antipas was looking to kill him as he had killed John the Baptist. Nor should the Pharisees be blamed for requiring strict observance of Jewish doctrine and practice, or even for shunning contact with the Roman occupiers. Indeed, in the Judaism of those days, Phar-common people. Many (though not all) of the scribes, learned scholars of the Jewish law who are frequently mentioned in the