Some of the scribes who were sitting there were reasoning in their hearts.
This verse introduces the inner contrast that often appears in the Gospels. On the one hand, there are people who, with faith, bring the sick man to Christ; on the other hand, there are scribes who are outwardly silent, yet inwardly judge and oppose. Their sitting seems to show a fixed and self-assured stance, while others were moving with faith and effort. Here the Gospel reveals the difference of hearts: a person can be very close to holiness outwardly, yet very far away in heart. As we will see next, the scribes’ inner thoughts testify that spiritual blindness often begins when a person has a standard by which to judge others, but does not see his own heart before God.