Here, numbers of sick people congregated, for there was a wonderful thing happened there, and the poor sick people watched eagerly to see if that wonderful thing was going to happen that day!
If you have never heard the story, you will wonder very much what that could be!
It was, that God sent an angel down at a certain season to stir the water in that Pool; and whoever was fortunate enough to step down first into the Pool, after the water was stirred, was made quite well of whatever disease he had.
One day, our Lord Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, and on His way, He passed this Pool of Bethesda.
Looking round on the sick people, He saw the man He had come to seek.
The Bible says: "Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he had been a long time in that case."
So He came close to him, and said, "Wilt thou be made whole?"
Ah! the poor man could not answer that question straight off! There was only one remedy he knew of, and that was impossible.
So he looked up into the face of Jesus, and gave a very pitiful and simple answer, in words like these:
"Sir," he said, "I am lying here helpless, and when the water is stirred, there are numbers of others who can step down into the water before me, and I am left behind!"