JOHN 9

Setting of the chapter
It is important to remember that chapters 7, 8, 9, and chapter 10 up to verse 21, all took place during the week of the feast of tabernacles in Jerusalem and the day following.

There are at least eight matters that would come up for consideration at the feast of tabernacles, and these chapters show us how the Lord Jesus relates to these. We have already seen the following features in chapters 7 and 8:

(a)	It was a family feast
(b)	It involved the reading of the Law
(c)	The water from the rock would be remembered
(d)	They had been led through the wilderness by the pillar of cloud
(e)	The pillar of fire led them by night
(f)	They travelled across the desert to the land that was promised to the seed of Abraham

Now in chapter 9 we have the counterpart of Israel following the ark as it showed them the way through the desert. In chapter 10 there is a reminder that they were led as a flock out of Egypt and through the wilderness.

(g) They followed the ark as it led the way across the desert

As they travelled through the desert, the ark, the symbol of God’s presence with them, went before to search out a resting-place for them, Numbers 10:33,34. So it is that in John chapter 9 a blind man is healed, not only so that he might have a resting-place from the persecution of the Pharisees, but also so that he might follow the Lord Jesus intelligently.

The feast of tabernacles was so called because the people lived in temporary booths made out of the branches of trees. But those trees were specified by God, and were all the sort that grew in the land, Nehemiah 8:14-16. They did not make their booths out of shittim wood, the tree of the desert. The emphasis is on the fact that they had arrived in the land. But Moses had warned the people, just before they arrived in the land the first time, that if they were disobedient to God, then He would curse them in various ways, and one of those curses was, “And thou shalt grope at noonday, as the blind gropeth in darkness”, Deuteronomy 28:29. This is an indication of how they were spiritually, marked by lack of discernment. The Lord Jesus comes into this situation and shows Himself the one who has the answer to the blindness of their ignorance.

Structure of the chapter
The passage consists of seven conversations, all except one of which shows up some form of ignorance:

(a)	Verses 1-7	The ignorance of superstition
(b)	Verses 8-12	The ignorance of bewilderment
(c)	Verses 13-17	The ignorance of misunderstanding
(d)	Verses 18-23	The ignorance of fear
(e)	Verses 24-34	The ignorance of pride
(f)	Verses 35-39	The knowledge of faith
(g)	Verses 40-41	The ignorance of unbelief

(a)  Verses 1-7
The ignorance of superstition

9:1
And as Jesus passed by, he saw a man which was blind from his birth.

And as Jesus passed by- this is a reference to the last verse of the previous chapter, where we read, “Then took they up stones to cast at him: but Jesus hid himself, and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by”, 8:59. So He is rejected by the authorities, but does not leave the temple courts in the same way as He will do later, never to return until He is welcomed when He comes to reign, Matthew 23:38-24:1. He makes Himself available still, and a blind man is blessed, and he, and others, come into the good of His shepherd care, for the narrative runs right on until chapter 10:21, where the healing of the blind man of this chapter is mentioned again. Jesus passed by in 8:59 in judgment, whereas here that same act of passing by causes Him to see and heal the blind man in grace. Those who took up stones to stone Him for claiming Deity by His word, little realised that their action would result in Him demonstrating His Deity by a work.

He saw a man which was blind from his birth-one would naturally conclude that because he had always been blind, then his blindness was not as a result of personal sin. The Lord says nothing to him like “sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee”, as He said to the impotent man, John 5:14. So the man is not a figure of the nation judged of God, as later it will be, (for “blindness in part is happened to Israel”, Romans 11:25; see also John 12:39,40), but rather represents the nation that has inherited blindness because of the failure of the nation historically. At the end of the chapter it becomes clear that the Pharisees were blind, and they were the representatives of the nation.

Notice the contrast between “He saw”, and “blind from his birth”, the All-seeing, all-knowing Saviour has met the never-seeing blind man. By the end of the chapter, the blind man knows as well as sees.

9:2
And his disciples asked him, saying, Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind?

And his disciples asked him- so the first conversation is between Christ and His disciples. Sadly they do not draw the man to the attention of Christ to ask Him to heal him. They are only interested in obscure theological questions. Believers need to balance doctrine with practice, and not be so obsessed with the finer points of Scripture that they forget the plight of humanity all around them. The Lord condemned the Pharisees for being concerned about tithing their herbs, but “omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgement, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone”, Matthew 23:23.

Saying, Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind? Eliphaz the Temanite, one of Job’s comforters, summed up the general feeling about the relationship between illness and calamity, and sin. He said, “Remember, I pray thee, who ever perished, being innocent? Or where were the righteous cut off?” Job 4:7. Yet Ezekiel devoted a long passage to this question, and concluded, “The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him”, Ezekiel 18:20. So it is not some supposed sin of this man when he was in the womb, nor some sin of his parents before he was born that caused him to be born blind. Of course we should remember that the fall of man resulted in man being in the bondage of corruption, and sin in that general sense did bring disease and deformity.

9:3
Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him.

Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents- of course, this is not an absolute statement, for “all have sinned”, but in the context of the disciples’ question, the answer is that the man is not blind because of his sin, so he did not sin and bring this blindness upon himself. Nor did his parents sin and bring this upon him and themselves. Note that the Lord knows, not only the man and his past life, but the past life of his parents as well. This is Divine insight into the hearts and lives of men. The Pharisees are blind, but Christ certainly is not.

But that the works of God should be made manifest in him- this is a very high view of the situation, and the Lord is seeing in this man’s blindness an opportunity to glorify God by healing him. Immediately all questions about who sinned are dispensed with, for God does not incite to sin so that He can work. Rather, He works through His Son when He finds a situation like this.

The works of God are the works given to the Son to do in behalf of His Father. He will say later, “the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works”, John 14:10, so the works are the works of the Father, but done by the Son. Because this is the case, He is justified in saying they were works that none other man did, John 15:24, for they were evidence of the persons of the Godhead working without using agents outside of Themselves. The works of the devil were made manifest in the blind man at first, for he had brought sin and disease into the world, but now the works of God are going to be seen.

9:4
I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work.

I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day; the night cometh, when no man can work- the attempted stoning at the end of the last chapter brings to the mind of Christ the fact that He will soon be rejected by the nation outright, and they will have Him crucified. It is the feast of tabernacles, at the onset of autumn, and He will be crucified the next spring at passover. For Him, and the nation, it is the day of opportunity, they to believe, and He to work; once He has been crucified and buried He will no longer work in their midst, for they will have rejected the light, and it will be night for them. In the night time men cannot work because of physical reasons; He will not be able to work for moral reasons.

9:5
As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.

As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world- so they bring the night upon themselves by ensuring that He leaves the world by way of the cross. “As long as I am in” implies He will soon not be in the world, and things will change. The darkness of ignorance that marks the world can only be dispelled by the knowledge of God He brings. Of course it is true that the people of God are to shine as lights in the world in His absence, Philippians 2:15, But it is the light of testimony, not Deity. Believers only give light because it has been given to them, for they are but lamps; He gives light because He is the source.

9:6
When he had thus spoken, he spat on the ground, and made clay of the spittle, and he anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay,

When he had thus spoken, he spat on the ground, and made clay of the spittle- we should remember that this miracle was done on the sabbath day, as verse 14 informs us. Now the Jews explicitly said that to spit and make clay on the sabbath day was to violate the sabbath, so their regulations are confronted by Christ in this incident.

At the beginning, God had taken of the dust of the ground and made the first man, so he was called Adam, which means “red earth”. As Elihu said to Job, “I also am formed out of the clay”, Job 33:6, meaning that he also was a man. This is a clear indication to the people that the Lord is acting as the Creator acted at the beginning. He had written on the ground in the temple courts, with the dust having meaning in that context. Here it is clay, with its connection with the making of man at the beginning. That the blind man made the connection is seen in verse 32, with its reference to the beginning of the world.

And he anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay- sadly, the nation’s representatives will anoint Christ’s face with spittle, as they mock His claim to be the Messiah, the Anointed One. Isaiah had said that one of the marks of the Messiah was His ability to open the eyes of the blind, Isaiah 35:5, but the nation was blind, and could not see Him for who He was. How comforting it must have been to Him that Mary had anointed Him beforehand with fragrant oil, thus recognising that He was the Messiah, the Anointed One.

It might seem a strange thing to cover his eyes in order to open them, but as the clay began to harden, it would highlight the man’s condition, and also make the subsequent ability to see all the more marked. It is as if he becomes more blind before he begins to see. And the agent by which this happened was the anointing clay. So it is that Christ, the Messiah, the Anointed One, has come into a body of flesh, and He will say at the end of the chapter, “For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind”, verse 39. Just as the clay reinforced the blindness that was already there, so Christ’s coming in flesh and blood was for judgment, to emphasise the nation’s blindness. The word for judgment used here is “krima”, which means a decision. The coming of Christ was the decisive event which showed up man’s inability to see and know He is the Son of God, unless God should  graciously reveal it to them.

9:7
And said unto him, Go, wash in the pool of Siloam, (which is by interpretation, Sent.) He went his way therefore, and washed, and came seeing.

And said unto him, Go, wash in the pool of Siloam- the initiative to heal this blind man was wholly the Lord’s. He did not ask him if he wished to be cured, but He did command him to go and wash. No assistance was offered him, as far as we know, so the blind man made his slow way to the Pool of Siloam. The point is, he obeyed; it was the obedience of faith. His obedience did not cure him, but he would not have been cured without obedience. His obedience had no virtue in itself, for the virtue was in Christ.

The Lord Jesus told the multitudes whom He had fed with loaves, “Labour not for the meat that perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto eternal life”, John 6:27. They then asked “What shall we do, that we might work the works of God?”, verse 28. He went on to say, “This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent”, verse 29. The people spoke of works, meaning their own efforts. The Lord spoke of work, meaning one act, that of faith.

And so it is with the blind man. He could not work at all, for he sat and begged. Least of all could he work to cure his blindness. What he was expected to do was obey, and a simple command was given to him to test him. The apostle Paul’s exposition of the gospel, his epistle to the Romans, begins and ends with this principle. In the first chapter he writes, “By whom we have received grace and apostleship, for obedience to the faith among all nations, for his name”, Romans 1:5. Then in the last chapter, “my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ…made known to all nations for the obedience of faith”, 16:25,26. Man fell at the beginning by disobeying the word of God. The man who seeks the Lord, (as opposed to hiding from Him as Adam did), must turn from that disobedience, and exercise faith in obedience. And this the man did, as we see in the next phrase.

It is said that the water for the ceremony which took place during the feast of tabernacles, (and which the Lord used as an illustration of Himself and the Spirit, John 7:37-39), came from the pool of Siloam. There it represented the Spirit of God as that which is drunk by those who have a spiritual thirst, as John makes clear as he records the incident, “This spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified”, John 7:39. So the fulfilment lay in the future, and was realised when the Spirit of God was sent on the day of Pentecost. The apostle Paul’s commentary on this is that we “have been all made to drink into one Spirit”, 1 Corinthians 12:13.

Now, however, the same water is used for washing, and reminds us of the apostle’s words to Titus saying, “But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour”, Titus 3:4-6. Regeneration is the state in which those who have been cleansed from the defilement of sin find themselves. The way the cleansing is applied is by the Spirit of God using the word of God.

(which is by interpretation, Sent.) John helpfully tells us the meaning of the word Siloam. But why does he do this? The name probably originates from the fact that it was the water from this pool that was diverted by Hezekiah into the city of Jerusalem by means of a conduit, 2 Kings 20:20, and was in that sense “sent”. The reason the king did this was because of the threat of siege by the king of Assyria, and he wanted to safeguard his water supplies. It is clear from our chapter that the blind man will have enemies because of his interest in Christ, and he is being diverted from that situation, and brought under the care and protection of the Good Shepherd.

But Christ Himself is the sent one of God, for He had said “the works which my Father hath given me to finish, the same works that I do, bear witness of me, that the Father hath sent me”, John 5:36. Moreover, the Holy Spirit is sent as well, for the Lord spoke to His own in the upper room about “the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name”, John 14:26. Given this four-fold significance, John is justified in translating the name of the pool for us.

He went his way therefore, and washed, and came seeing- this is the result of the obedience of faith. It must have been immediate, or else the clay would have hardened and not washed off. The blindness of ignorance about Christ is completely removed, as the genuineness of the miracle becomes evident. It is good to read that he “came” seeing, for he made the genuine attempt to come back to where he had met Christ. But He was gone, for the man needs to go through an experience at the hands of men which will convince him that his only safety is in Christ; the others, even his parents, are hostile.

The rabbis said that one of the marks of the true Messiah was that he would heal a man who was born blind. Sadly, although the Lord did do this, His claim to Messiahship was rejected. The other two signs were to heal a Jewish leper, and to cast out a spirit that caused dumbness. Christ did both these things also, Mark 1:40-45; and Matthew 9:32,33.

(b)  Verses 8-12
The ignorance of bewilderment

9:8
The neighbours therefore, and they which before had seen him that he was blind, said, Is not this he that sat and begged?

The neighbours therefore, and they which before had seen him that he was blind, said, Is not this he that sat and begged? This highlights one of the main features of blindness, that it prevents meaningful work and deprives of self-respect. Ignorance of God, which is what this blindness symbolises, results in inability to serve Him, and because of this man is not able to reach his full potential as a person.

9:9
Some said, This is he: others said, He is like him: but he said, I am he.

Some said, This is he: others said, He is like him: but he said, I am he- those who come into contact with Christ are radically changed, but they are still the same person. Old things pass away and all things become new as to the spiritual realm, but the links with Adam are still there, for we are still in the body. God in His wisdom allows this so that we may grow strong in the things of Christ. So on the one hand the person who comes into the knowledge of Christ, (the spiritual equivalent of being healed of blindness), has a new standing before God, but on the other hand, he is still the same person. So the neighbours are confused as to whether it is another person or the same one.

So it can be with believers, for sometimes they act like Christ, and are seen to be new people, and sometimes they act like Adam, and revert to the old ways. This is a cause of much misunderstanding on the part of the unsaved, and can bring the name of Christ into disrepute. We need to heed the exhortation of the apostle, “That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; and be renewed in the spirit of your mind; and that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.” Ephesians 4:22-24. He has described our former condition as “Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart”, verse 18. In other words, we were spiritually blind. The parallel passage in Colossians, however, says “And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him”, Colossians 3:10. The blindness of ignorance has gone, and the knowledge of Christ has changed everything.

9:10
Therefore said they unto him, How were thine eyes opened?

Therefore said they unto him, How were thine eyes opened? The apostle Peter exhorts us to “sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear”, 1 Peter 3:15. The word for answer means a logical, reasoned answer, one that comes from an intelligent grasp of principles. The once-blind man will do his best, but he will later become more intelligent as to the person of Christ. His neighbours do not ask “Who opened your eyes?”, for they were simply curious as to the process.

9:11
He answered and said, A man that is called Jesus made clay, and anointed mine eyes, and said unto me, Go to the pool of Siloam, and wash: and I went and washed, and I received sight.

He answered and said, A man that is called Jesus made clay, and anointed mine eyes- to his credit, the man focuses on the person, and then tells of His work. He must have found out from someone who it was that had given him his sight, but that was the limit of his knowledge at this point. He will soon rise to the worship of Him as the Son of God. The word that is used when God formed man out of the dust of the earth was “formed as a potter”. Here it is God manifest in flesh who is making clay. This has led some to think that the man was born without eyes, and the Lord gives him eyes, as God did to Adam at the beginning.

And said unto me, Go to the pool of Siloam, and wash: and I went and washed, and I received sight- the first part of the verse is God working, the second half is man obeying. The two must be found together if ignorance is to be dispelled. His obedience was exact, for he did just as he was told, despite the difficulties for him as a blind man. Naaman was given an easy thing to do, “Go, wash in Jordan”, and he refused at first because he was looking for “some great thing”, 2 Kings 5:10-13. This man is given a difficult thing for a blind man to do, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam”, but willingly does it without question.

9:12
Then said they unto him, Where is he? He said, I know not.

Then said they unto him, Where is he? He said, I know not- perhaps he came back to where he had been begging, and the Lord was gone. This was deliberate, for he must be subjected to the criticisms of men, culminating in him being put out of the synagogue. It is at that point that the Lord went and found him, verse 35. The impotent man was found by the Lord in the temple, John 5:14, but this man seems to have gone home, hence the mention of his neighbours. The temple has rejected Christ, and this man is about to be associated with a rejected man.

(c)  Verses 13-17
The ignorance of misunderstanding

9:13
They brought to the Pharisees him that aforetime was blind.

They brought to the Pharisees him that aforetime was blind- the “they” may refer to the neighbours of the man, and those who recognised him as one who sat and begged, verse 8. On the other hand, the bringing to the Pharisees may have to do with the fact it was the sabbath, verse 14, and therefore he may have been brought by religious zealots to those who would be most concerned about any violation of their sabbath rules, the Pharisees.

9:14
And it was the sabbath day when Jesus made the clay, and opened his eyes.

And it was the sabbath day when Jesus made the clay, and opened his eyes- there are seven recorded incidents which occurred on the sabbath day. They are as follows, and the Lord’s justification for them if He was criticised:

1. Casting out of unclean spirit, Mark 1:21-28. No criticism.

2. Peter’s wife’s mother healed, Mark 1:29-31. No criticism.

3. Healing of the impotent man, John 5:9. “My Father worketh hitherto, and I work”, verse 17.

4. Plucking ears of corn, Mark 2:23-28. “The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath”, verse 27. “Therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath day”, verse 28.

5. Healing of the blind man, John 9. Pharisees criticise, but have no contact with Christ.

6. Healing of woman bowed down, Luke 13:10-17. An ox is loosed to take to the watering, so why not a human being loosed from infirmity?

7. Man with dropsy healed, Luke 14:1-6. An ass or an ox fallen into a pit is rescued on the sabbath, why not rescue a man?

Notice that John is very open about the Lord making clay, for he knew that was what the Pharisees would be angry about. Their regulations expressly stated that the making of clay broke the sabbath. They would have no problem with the “go and wash”. We are about to have another confrontation between the Lord and the regulations of men, which He condemned as making the law of God of no effect. As the Lawgiver, He cannot sanction that, so He deliberately acts to expose their evil, and to show that, whilst He came under the law, it was the law of God He was subject to, not the law of men.

9:15
Then again the Pharisees also asked him how he had received his sight. He said unto them, He put clay upon mine eyes, and I washed, and do see.

Then again the Pharisees also asked him how he had received his sight- “then again” would refer to the fact that this is the second time the man is questioned. First it was his neighbours and other who knew he was a beggar, and now it is the Pharisees. The Pharisees also asked him, as well as the first group. Those who brought the man to the Pharisees were probably some of those who had questioned him before, and they had discovered that it was “a man that is called Jesus” who had done the miracle.

He said unto them, He put clay upon mine eyes, and I washed, and do see- the fact that the man does not say who the “He” was, shows that the Pharisees knew already that it was the Lord. The once-blind man is shrewd enough to realise that to say, “He made clay”, will arouse their anger. He therefore says “He put clay”.

9:16
Therefore said some of the Pharisees, This man is not of God, because he keepeth not the sabbath day. Others said, How can a man that is a sinner do such miracles? And there was a division among them.

Therefore said some of the Pharisees, This man is not of God, because he keepeth not the sabbath day- the man who gathered sticks on the sabbath day did so in rebellion against the law of God, for God said, “Ye shall kindle no fire throughout your habitations upon the sabbath day”, Exodus 35:3; Numbers 15:32-36. The New Testament comment on that incident is that “He that despised Moses’ law died without mercy under two or three witnesses”, Hebrews 10:28. But what the Lord did is of a completely different character, for it was to relieve the man of his blindness, and therefore was a good work not a sinful one, and was for another’s benefit, not His own. He gives the blind man his sight so that he can meaningfully enjoy the sabbath, instead of begging. The Pharisees, however, would see it as breaking their regulations. As such, He is classed by them as “not of God”, for to them He has gone against God, whereas in fact He had only gone against their petty regulations.

Others said, How can a man that is a sinner do such miracles? By “sinner” they mean, “violator of the sabbath”. They assess Him in the light of their laws, and not God’s. They reason that the ability to do miracles must only come from God, but in this they are wrong, for the false prophet will perform miracles in the future, Revelation 13:14.

And there was a division among them- the Lord came to bring division, for He exposed the faulty reasoning of men. See Matthew 10:32-37, where confession of Christ means that even members of one’s own family may turn against you.

9:17
They say unto the blind man again, What sayest thou of him, that he hath opened thine eyes? He said, He is a prophet.

They say unto the blind man again, What sayest thou of him, that he hath opened thine eyes? This is not a double question, but could be rendered, “What sayest thou concerning Him, since He hath opened thine eyes?” These men are wickedly trying to divert attention from their own dilemma. They are not genuinely interested in the answer, since they do not respond when the man gives his answer.

He said, He is a prophet- it was commonly thought in Israel that a specially holy man could perform miracles. The man concludes that Christ must be a prophet, since they were known as holy men in touch with God, 2 Peter 1:21. We note a progression in the appreciation of the blind man throughout the chapter, for although his physical blindness was cured in an instant, nevertheless his grasp of who Christ is was gradual. It is pleasing to note that he arrived at full knowledge at the end of the chapter. So in verse 11 it is “a man that is called Jesus”; in this verse, “he is a prophet”; then he seems to go backwards a little, for in verse 25 he says, “whether he be a sinner or no, I know not”; in verse 31 he calls Him “a worshipper of God”; in verse 33, “of God”; finally, he recognizes He is the Son of God, verse 35, by calling Him “Lord”, verse 36.

(d)  Verses 18-23
The ignorance of fear

9:18
But the Jews did not believe concerning him, that he had been blind, and received his sight, until they called the parents of him that had received his sight.

But the Jews did not believe concerning him, that he had been blind, and received his sight- rather than consider whether the blind man is right in saying that Jesus is a prophet, they begin to doubt if he is telling the truth. If they can suggest that he was never blind in the first place, they can dismiss the story about the man called Jesus. After all, he had said in verse 12 that he knew not where He was. Was this man a figment of the blind man’s imagination? Had this man pretended to be blind so that people would sympathise and give him money?

Until they called the parents of him that had received his sight- the law demanded the testimony of two or three witnesses to establish truth, so who better in this situation than the man’s parents?

9:19
And they asked them, saying, Is this your son, who ye say was born blind? how then doth he now see?

And they asked them, saying, Is this your son, who ye say was born blind? This couple claim to have a son who was born blind, but is this the son? Again, they are doubting the word of those who have no motive for lying about this matter. They will employ any means to avoid recognising Christ for who He is.

How then doth he now see? If the man had gone home after his cure, as is suggested by the mention of neighbours in verse 8, it is very likely that these parents know what the neighbours know, that a man that is called Jesus healed his blindness, verse 10,11. They are afraid of the authorities, who have just recently tried to stone Christ; to be sympathetic to Him is dangerous.

9:20
His parents answered them and said, We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind:

His parents answered them and said, We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind- they know two things on a natural level.

9:21
But by what means he now seeth, we know not; or who hath opened his eyes, we know not: he is of age; ask him: he shall speak for himself.

But by what means he now seeth, we know not; or who hath opened his eyes, we know not- these statements may or may not be true. Perhaps they are afraid to tell what they know. They claim not to know the means, nor the person who used the means. But the man could have spontaneously regained sight, and no man therefore opened his eyes, so why do they speak of means, and not knowing who healed him? By their answer they show they know more than they are prepared to admit.

He is of age; ask him: he shall speak for himself- they shift the responsibility onto their son, to avoid any consequences for themselves. The reason for this is given by John in the next two verses.

9:22
These words spake his parents, because they feared the Jews: for the Jews had agreed already, that if any man did confess that he was Christ, he should be put out of the synagogue.

These words spake his parents, because they feared the Jews- in John’s gospel, “Jews” means the Jewish authorities. How sad that those who should have fostered the spiritual welfare of the nation are opposed to Christ, who came to bring them the highest good.

For the Jews had agreed already, that if any man did confess that He was Christ, he should be put out of the synagogue. what an ironic situation, for the prophet Isaiah had foretold that the Messiah would open the eyes of the blind, 35:5, and yet, such was their unbelief, they ignore the fact that this man could now see was proof of Christ’s Messiahship. They are truly blind, as the Lord will tell them at the end of the incident, verses 39-41. They are afraid of a popular uprising in favour of Christ, in which case they will lose their position and power over the nation. To be put out of the synagogue was a severe punishment, as it meant they would suffer socially, religiously and economically. It was the equivalent of being put outside of the camp in Old Testament times.

9:23
Therefore said his parents, He is of age; ask him.

Therefore said his parents, He is of age; ask him- the Scripture says “The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the Lord shall be safe.” Proverbs 29:25. By fearing the authorities more than the Lord, they lay a snare for their own feet, for they are not said to believe in Christ, despite having the evidence of His Messiahship in their own family in the form of their own son, now no longer blind. It was they who were blind now.

(e)  Verses 24-34
The ignorance of pride

9:24
Then again called they the man that was blind, and said unto him, Give God the praise: we know that this man is a sinner.

Then again called they the man that was blind, and said unto him, Give God the praise- they strongly imply that the man’s cure was simply the result of God intervening, and therefore he should give praise to Him for it, not the man called Jesus.

We know that this man is a sinner- again they claim knowledge of the situation, and have concluded that since Jesus made clay on the sabbath He has sinned against the sabbath law.

9:25
He answered and said, Whether he be a sinner or no, I know not: one thing I know, that, whereas I was blind, now I see.

He answered and said, Whether he be a sinner or no, I know not- the man ventures no opinion on the sabbath regulations of the rabbis, and whether breaking them is a sin. No doubt he does not wish to become involved in case he is put out of the synagogue.

One thing I know, that, whereas I was blind, now I see- his ability to see is clear evidence that what the man called Jesus did was effective, leaving aside whether it was illegal.

9:26
Then said they to him again, What did he to thee? how opened he thine eyes?

Then said they to him again, What did he to thee? how opened he thine eyes? They are forced to admit that Jesus did something, so they now are changing their tactic, trying to suggest that perhaps He had magical abilities, able to work on the man by the powers of evil.

9:27
He answered them, I have told you already, and ye did not hear: wherefore would ye hear it again? will ye also be his disciples?

He answered them, I have told you already, and ye did not hear- the man is becoming bolder as he senses that they have evil motives in their questioning of him. He has told them twice already, verses 11 and 15, but they did not believe him, for they asked his parents too. Perhaps they are trying to make him say “He made clay”, rather that “He put clay”, because the former statement would mean He had broken their sabbath law.

Wherefore would ye hear it again? will ye also be his disciples? The man becomes bolder still, and suggests that their constant questioning is because they wish to become the disciples of Jesus. He knew that this was not the case, but he cannot resist taunting them. This shows that the contempt that the authorities had for the common people, (“But this people who knoweth not the law are cursed.” John 7:49), was mutual. The Pharisees have clearly lost the trust of the people, and the incident justifies the Lord’s description of them in the next chapter as thieves and robbers, 10:1. For his part, the man shows that he will not run when he sees the wolf coming, as the hireling does, 10:12; he is being prepared for shepherd work. 

9:28
Then they reviled him, and said, Thou art his disciple; but we are Moses’ disciples.

Then they reviled him, and said, Thou art his disciple- this is an ominous statement as far as the man is concerned, given what verse 22 has told us about their intention to put out of the synagogue those who believed that Jesus was the Messiah.

But we are Moses’ disciples- in their arrogance they put their regulations on the same level as the law of Moses, which they claimed to obey. In fact, by keeping their traditions they transgressed the commandment of God, Matthew 15:3, and by those traditions made the commandment of God of none effect, verse 6. So if the Lord had obeyed the traditions of the Pharisees, and not made the clay on the sabbath day, then He would have been transgressing the commandment of God which said that a man should love his neighbour as himself. To see a blind man, and to possess the power to cure him but refrain from doing so, would not have been love to him. After all, “love is the fulfilling of the law”, Romans 13:10.

9:29
We know that God spake unto Moses: as for this fellow, we know not from whence he is.

We know that God spake unto Moses- they are sure that the law of Moses was direct from God as He spoke to Moses on Sinai. They still put their tradition on a level with the law of Moses, even though God did not speak to them to give them their traditions, for by their own admission they were the traditions of the elders, not of God, Matthew 15:3.

As for this fellow, we know not from whence he is- they had a conversation about His origins the previous day in the temple courts. They seem to be confused about where the Messiah would come from. The tradition had grown up amongst them that the Messiah would burst upon the scene without warning, so that they would not have the opportunity to know Him during His life. “The Lord whom ye seek shall suddenly come to His temple”, Malachi 3:1, was the sort of text they would quote to support this idea. Perhaps the temptation by the devil to throw Himself from the pinnacle of the temple was a reference to this tradition, see Matthew 4:5,6. They must have forgotten Micah 5:2 which states clearly that the Messiah would come from Bethlehem.

He had declared that He was sent of the Father in 5:36-38, and thus they knew Him intellectually, but not personally. The fact that He had not appeared unsent amongst them was a sign that His mission was of the utmost importance, and therefore any denial of the truth God was setting before them in Christ was serious indeed. Because they knew not the true God who had sent Him, they knew not the truth that God disclosed to them through Him.

He teaches from a position of full insight into the things of God, because He, as the Son, has intimate knowledge of the Father, as He said in 7:29 “But I know him: for I am from him, and he hath sent me”. They, however, are in wilful ignorance of Him.

9:30
The man answered and said unto them, Why herein is a marvellous thing, that ye know not from whence he is, and yet he hath opened mine eyes.

The man answered and said unto them, Why herein is a marvellous thing, that ye know not from whence he is, and yet he hath opened mine eyes- the man is becoming even bolder, and begins to criticise the Pharisees, which was a very dangerous thing to do, as he is soon to find out. He does not know where Jesus is from as yet, but he can see that if He is able to open the eyes of the blind, He must have some special powers. He is perplexed as to why the Pharisees cannot see the logic of that. The fact is that they can, but refuse to acknowledge the truth about Christ, and will do everything in their power to avoid recognising Him. There are few things more sad than wilful ignorance.

9:31
Now we know that God heareth not sinners: but if any man be a worshipper of God, and doeth his will, him he heareth.

Now we know that God heareth not sinners- the psalmist had written, “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me”, Psalm 66:18. God does hear the prayer of sinners when they say such things as “God, be merciful to me a sinner”, Luke 18:13. The man is saying that to be out of fellowship with God is to not be able to work for God.

But if any man be a worshipper of God, and doeth his will, him he heareth- the man is depending on the Jewish idea that a particularly holy man might be able to appeal to God for the ability to work miracles. At present this is all the man can rise to as far as the person of Christ is concerned, but his attitude is much better than that of the Pharisees. The principle being worked out here is, “For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath.” Matthew 13:12. The blind man has certain things in his mind, and he shows readiness to know more. The Pharisees, on the other hand had not this readiness, so in His governmental judgment God would take away from them the opportunity to know more. Isaiah had prophesied that this would happen if they rejected Christ, for God would close their eyes to the truth, Isaiah 6:10; John 12:39-41.

9:32
Since the world began was it not heard that any man opened the eyes of one that was born blind.

9:33
If this man were not of God, he could do nothing.

Since the world began was it not heard that any man opened the eyes of one that was born blind. If this man were not of God, he could do nothing- he would know the words of Psalm 146:8, “The Lord openeth the eyes of the blind”, and drew the correct conclusion that only if a man was “of God”, (which as far as he was concerned only meant He was in touch with God), could He do what God alone could do in the final analysis. He has not yet been told that the one who healed him is equal with God, and therefore works as God works.

9:34
They answered and said unto him, Thou wast altogether born in sins, and dost thou teach us? And they cast him out.

They answered and said unto him, Thou wast altogether born in sins, and dost thou teach us? The Pharisees have no answer for the logic of this man’s argument. In fact, they really compliment him, for they class what he says as teaching. They are so set against Christ, however, that they refuse even this man’s partial insights into the true situation. They claim to be the teachers of Israel, and cannot conceive that an ordinary beggar has more light that they have. Such is their arrogance.

They seem to hold the same notion as the disciples, who had implied in verse 2 that the man’s blindness was either because of the sins of his parents before he was born, or the sins of the man himself, either in a former existence, or in the womb. The Pharisees claim to know about this man, and go so far as to suggest that his blindness is a sign that he is totally corrupt.  How could such a person teach them the truth?

And they cast him out- this is the same word as is used in the next chapter by the Lord Himself, when He says He “putteth forth” His own sheep, 10:4. In His case, however, it was an act of grace and truth. The Pharisees are acting in jealousy and spite. We know from verse 22 that the parents of the man were afraid of being put out of the synagogue, for that would mean total exclusion from the affairs of the nation. This they would do to those who confess that Jesus was the Christ, because in their eyes this was to be complicit in His blasphemy, for they did not believe Him to be of God. The blind man is not in a position to confess Christ yet, and so they simply thrust him from them in contempt. It is such people that the good shepherd gathers to himself, and the man would know the experience of the psalmist when he said, “When my father and my mother forsake me, then the Lord will take me up.” Psalm 27:10. The psalmist went on to say, “Teach me thy way, O Lord, and lead me in a plain path, because of mine enemies.” verse 11. The blind man would know this as well, as he listened to the Lord’s discourse about Himself as the Good Shepherd in chapter 10.

(f)  Verses 35-39
The knowledge of faith

9:35
Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when he had found him, he said unto him, Dost thou believe on the Son of God?

Jesus heard that they had cast him out- clearly the Lord maintained an interest in the man, but had let him go through his experiences at the hands of men, whether his neighbours, or the Pharisees, or his parents, so that he would afterwards appreciate His shepherd care the more.

And when he had found him, he said unto him, Dost thou believe on the Son of God? It is one of the leading features of a shepherd that he seeks until he finds, Luke 15:4, and such is the case here.

Notice that there is no preparation for this question, for the preparation has already been done as the enemies of Christ have confronted him. He has gradually moved from simply calling Him “a man that is called Jesus”, to “a prophet”, to “a worshipper of God”, and finally, “of God”. The answer to the question now posed will determine whether he is one of the sheep, for the Good Shepherd will say to the Jews in the next chapter, “But ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you.” 10:26.

9:36
He answered and said, Who is he, Lord, that I might believe on him?

He answered and said, Who is he, Lord, that I might believe on him? Notice the respect this man has, even though he does not yet know he is speaking with the Son of God. There must have been something about the demeanour and bearing of the Lord Jesus that commanded respect. Of course, after he has confessed Him as the Son of God, he will realise that He is indeed Lord in the highest sense.

The man shows a commendable readiness to believe once he has the facts before him. There has been no connection made between the man called Jesus and the Son of God. We have the benefit of hindsight as we read the account, but he is going to believe on the Son of God for His own sake, not for the sake of the benefit he has derived from Him in terms of his sight. Sinners are called to believe on the Son of God whether they will receive any blessing or not. Of course in His rich grace God gives the highest blessings to those who believe on His Son, but it is still true that He is worthy of faith regardless of any benefit to the one believing.

9:37
And Jesus said unto him, Thou hast both seen him, and it is he that talketh with thee.

And Jesus said unto him, Thou hast both seen him- we must not forget that this man had never seen the Lord Jesus before, for he was blind from birth, and so the fact that he could see Him emphasises that his blindness has been dealt with. The man is intelligent enough, no doubt, to make the connection between the man called Jesus who restored his sight, and the Son of God. He no doubt recognises His voice in a physical way, but also in a spiritual, for as the Good Shepherd will say in the next chapter, “and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice”.

And it is he that talketh with thee- to have seen Him speaks of physical sight, but spiritual sight comes as he realises that the one who asks him this question, the one he can see standing before him, is none other than the Son of God. The man has suffered from the interrogation and contempt of the Pharisees as they spoke with him, but this man is clearly different in His attitude and speech.

9:38
And he said, Lord, I believe. And he worshipped him.

And he said, Lord, I believe- there is still no obvious connection made between the Son of God and the miracle. He believes the report Christ gives of Himself on its own merits. He has declared that the one who heals blind men must be of God, and he now knows he is correct in his thinking.

And he worshipped him- he had said that one who opens men’s eyes must be a worshipper of God and in close touch with God. Now he goes further and realises that not only is Jesus a worshipper of God as a true man, but He is also the Son of God, and therefore deserves worship Himself. He is being introduced to the great mystery of godliness, that God was manifest in the flesh, 1 Timothy 3:16. As God He is worthy of worship, as one in the flesh, He worships God.

When David blessed and worshipped God before the people he said, “thou art exalted as head above all”, 1 Chronicles 29:11. So the headship of God calls for worship from those who are subject. We read “the head of Christ is God”, 1 Corinthians 11:3, so as a subject man He was a worshipper. When He spoke to the woman of Samaria He not only said that the hour was coming when the true worshippers would worship the Father, but He added, “and now is”, John 4:23. The hour was coming for people like the Samaritan woman, but the hour had already come for Him the moment He came into manhood. So now we know what He was doing as He sat on the well before the woman came along. His service to her was the outflow of His worship of the Father.

9:39
And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind.

And Jesus said, For judgement I am come into this world- it could not be that the Son of God should be in this world without showing up the state of man. Job said to God, “I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear: but now mine eye seeth thee. Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes.” Job 42:5,6. No sooner had God manifest in flesh come into public ministry, He exposed the darkness of the heart of man. He did this not just by words, but by manifesting Himself in all His purity and holiness. He Himself said, “And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.” John 3:19,20.

That they which see not might see- so the blind man of this chapter becomes an illustration of the spiritual state of man in his ignorance of Christ. But just as the man was enabled to see, so the spiritually blind may also come into the knowledge of God through Jesus Christ. Those whose minds are blinded by the god of this world may have the light of the knowledge of the glory of God as seen in the face of Jesus Christ, 2 Corinthians 4:4,6.

And that they which see might be made blind- there are those, like the Pharisees of this chapter, who claim spiritual insight into matters. They say, “This man is not of God”, and “He keepeth not the sabbath day”, verse 16. Then again, “We know that this man is a sinner”, verse 24. The presence of Christ has brought out this ignorance, which passes itself off as knowledge. To wilfully remain in this state of ignorance, even when the knowledge of His person is being made known through a miracle, is to be shown up as being blind. So there are three sorts of blindness in the chapter, physical, spiritual, and wilful.

(g)  Verses 40-41
The ignorance of unbelief

9:40
And some of the Pharisees which were with him heard these words, and said unto Him, Are we blind also?

And some of the Pharisees which were with him heard these words, and said unto him, Are we blind also? They have related the words about being blind to the common people, thinking that they themselves were full of the knowledge of religious matters and therefore not blind. Then some had second thoughts, and realised that the Lord’s phrase, “I am come into this world”, verse 39, was of universal application, and therefore included them.

9:41
Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth.

Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin- if they had been merely and simply in a state of acknowledged ignorance about Christ, they would not be in guilty of the sin of rejecting Him and His claims.

But now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth- sadly, these religious men claimed to have knowledge about Christ that caused them to reject His claims, and because they claimed to be able to see these things, then they continued in their rejection of Him and so continued with the sin of wilful ignorance.