Matthew 12:10

καὶ ἰδοὺ, here, as in Matthew 8:2; Matthew 9:2, introducing in a lively manner the story. ξηράν, a dry hand, possibly a familiar expression in Hebrew pathology (De Wette); useless, therefore a serious enough affliction for a working man (a mason, according to Hebrew Gospel, Jerome ad loc.), especially if it was the right hand, as Luke states. But the cure was not urgent for a day, could stand over; therefore a good test case as between rival conceptions of Sabbath law. ἐπηρώτησαν. The Pharisees asked a question suggested by the case, as if eager to provoke Jesus and put Him to the proof. Mark says they observed Him, waiting for Him to take the initiative. The former alternative suits the hypothesis of immediate temporal sequence. εἰ ἔξεστιν, etc. After λέγοντες we expect, according to classic usage, a direct question without εἰ. The εἰ is in its place in Mark (Mark 12:2), and the influence of his text may be suspected (Weiss) as explaining the incorrectness in Matthew. But εἰ in direct questions is not unusual in N. T. (Matthew 19:3; Luke 13:23; Luke 22:49), vide Winer, § 57, 2, and Meyer ad loc. In Mark's account Christ, not the Pharisees, puts the question.