Jesus immediately knew in his mind what they were thinking to themselves, so he said, “Why are you thinking such things in your hearts? Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise, pick up your mat and walk’? But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority to forgive sins on earth”—he said to the paralytic, “I say to you, rise, pick up your mat, and go home.” He rose, picked up his mat at once, and went away in the sight of everyone.

Mark tells us that so many people came to see Jesus when he returned to Capernaum, that there was not enough room for them as they crowded around the home where he was staying. As he taught them, friends of a paralyzed man brought him to Jesus but were unable to get to Jesus because of the crowd. They resorted to climbing the roof, breaking through it, and lowering the man down on a mat. "When Jesus saw their faith," Mark tells us, "he said to him, 'Child, your sins are forgiven.'” Jesus knew what the scribes were thinking and responded to them, making clear that as the Son of God, he is able to heal the sick and forgive sins. The miracle takes place before astounded witnesses who glorify God and say, “We have never seen anything like this.”