Strong’s Greek 2895 (krabattos) designates the portable mat, pallet, or straw-filled mattress on which the poor, the sick, or travelers lay. Every New Testament occurrence is set in scenes of physical weakness confronted by divine power, so the humble pallet becomes a quiet witness to Christ’s authority and to the continuing healing ministry of the apostles.

Cultural and Historical Background

• In first-century Galilee and Judea most common people owned no fixed bedstead; the krabattos—a roll-up mat of rushes, wool, or patched cloth—served by night and was easily carried by day.
• The word usually marks poverty; wealthier homes used the kline, a framed couch (Luke 5:18). Thus the evangelists subtly emphasize the social standing of those healed: marginalized, dependent, and unable to improve their lot without outside intervention.
• Because the mat could be folded and shouldered, any order to “pick up” the krabattos instantly tested the reality of a cure: if the lame can carry what once carried them, true healing has occurred.

New Testament Occurrences and Theological Themes

1. Mark 2:1-12; parallels in Matthew 9 and Luke 5

Four friends lower a paralyzed man “lying on a mat” (Mark 2:4). Jesus first grants forgiveness, then commands, “‘I tell you, get up, pick up your mat, and go home.’” (Mark 2:11). The pallet becomes the physical proof that the Son of Man has authority both to forgive sins and to reverse physical paralysis. The episode also spotlights communal faith: the bearers’ determination parallels the burden-bearing urged in Galatians 6:2.

2. John 5:1-15

At Bethesda a sufferer of thirty-eight years hears, “‘Get up, pick up your mat, and walk.’” (John 5:8). The once-hopeless krabattos is now carried through the temple precincts, provoking debate about Sabbath law. The pallet thus testifies to the priority of mercy over ritual and foreshadows the controversy that will culminate in the cross.

3. Mark 6:55

After the feeding of the five thousand, villagers “carried the sick on mats wherever they heard He was.” The krabattos becomes a vehicle of expectation; entire communities mobilize to place their needy within reach of Jesus.

4. Acts 5:15

In Jerusalem, the people “brought the sick out into the streets and laid them on cots and mats so that Peter’s shadow might fall on some of them.” The narrative links the apostles’ ministry directly to the healing works of Christ, with the pallet again identifying the afflicted and showcasing God’s compassion.

5. Acts 9:33-35

Aeneas has been bedridden for eight years when Peter says, “‘Aeneas, Jesus Christ heals you. Get up and put away your mat.’” (Acts 9:34). The mat is now “put away,” signaling a permanent deliverance that causes “all who lived in Lydda and Sharon” to “turn to the Lord” (Acts 9:35).

Symbolic Significance

• Human Frailty: The krabattos represents the helpless estate of fallen humanity—incapable of self-rescue.
• Divine Authority: Repeated commands to lift or remove the mat underscore sovereign power over both sin and its bodily consequences.
• Visible Testimony: Carried mats function as portable billboards proclaiming fulfilled prophecy (Isaiah 35:6).
• Community Involvement: Whether friends (Mark 2), townsfolk (Mark 6), or the church (Acts 5), believers act as stretcher-bearers, modeling intercession and practical care.

Practical Ministry Applications

• Pastoral Care: Encourage congregations to identify the “mats” in their midst—addictions, sickness, poverty—and to bring those needs deliberately to Christ through prayer and service.
• Evangelism: Like the healed paralytic, believers can use former liabilities as testimonies of grace, “taking up” the very past that once bound them.
• Sabbath and Mercy: The Bethesda account warns against allowing tradition to eclipse compassion; church programs must remain flexible to meet pressing human need.

Christological Focus

Each occurrence magnifies Jesus’ messianic credentials. He does what only Yahweh can do—heal with a word—and then delegates similar authority to His apostles, confirming the truth of the gospel message (Hebrews 2:3-4).

Eschatological Foretaste

The instant discarding of the krabattos anticipates the resurrection body, when frailty will yield to immortality (1 Corinthians 15:42-44). Present healings are samples of the future wholeness awaiting all who belong to Christ.

Related Terms and Concepts

Bed; Couch (kline, Strong’s 2825); Healing; Faith; Apostolic Signs; Sabbath Controversy; Compassion.

Summary

Though merely a poor man’s mattress, the krabattos threads through the Gospels and Acts as a silent partner in some of Scripture’s most vivid healings. Each time it is lifted, set aside, or borne aloft, the mat announces that the kingdom of God has drawn near, turning weakness into witness and affliction into an occasion for praise.