Lk 6:6-11
6On another sabbath [Jesus] went into the synagogue and taught, and there was a man there whose right hand was withered. 7The scribes and the Pharisees watched him closely to see if he would cure on the sabbath so that they might discover a reason to accuse him. 8But he realized their intentions and said to the man with the withered hand, “Come up and stand before us.” And he rose and stood there. 9Then Jesus said to them, “I ask you, is it lawful to do good on the sabbath rather than to do evil, to save life rather than to destroy it?” 10Looking around at them all, he then said to him, “Stretch out your hand.” He did so and his hand was restored. 11But they became enraged and discussed together what they might do to Jesus.
Do Good on the Sabbath: Sabbath is a sacred day for the Israelites, a day of abstention from all labor. In the initial stages, especially among the primitive peoples, the sabbath might have been thought as a day during which physical labor was taboo or unlucky, under the control of the gods. But in Israel, the cessation from labor would be explained by the tradition that God rested on the seventh day from his work of creation, sanctified it, and bade Israel also to rest (Gn 1:1—2:3). At the period of consolidation that followed the Babylonian exile, sabbath observance was strictly imposed and extreme penalties were prescribed for its violation. Prior to the Maccabean wars, pious Jews would not bear arms on the sabbath, even in self-defense (1 Mc 2:32-36). Mattathias, the father of the Maccabees, however, made a rule that the Jews should defend themselves actively even on the sabbath.
The rabbis in Jesus’ time taught that only in extreme need—like when life is in danger—would the priority of the sabbath be disturbed. Clearly, the man with the withered right hand in the Gospel reading is not in grave danger. The scribes and the Pharisees can then say that he can always come back to Jesus at any other day. But for Jesus, the sabbath is the day on which God’s goodness is to be noted, and there is no better way for him to display that goodness than to deliver the man from his oppression. Healing belongs to the sphere of good deeds that must be allowed on the sabbath. Not to heal in time of need is acting in bad faith, which must be condemned.