| 15 Then the Pharisees also asked him again how he had received his sight. He said to them, "He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I see." 16 Therefore some of the Pharisees said, "This Man is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath." Others said, "How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?" And there was a division among them. 17 They said to the blind man again, "What do you say about Him because He opened your eyes?" He said, "He is a prophet." 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 who had received his sight. 19 And they asked them, saying, "Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?" 20 His parents answered them and said, "We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind; 21 but by what means he now sees we do not know, or who opened his eyes we do not know. He is of age; ask him. He will speak for himself." 22 His parents said these things because they feared the Jews, for the Jews had agreed already that if anyone confessed that He was Christ, he would be put out of the synagogue. 23 Therefore his parents said, "He is of age; ask him." 24 So they again called the man who was blind, and said to him, "Give God the glory! We know that this Man is a sinner." 25 He answered and said, "Whether He is a sinner or not I do not know. One thing I know: that though I was blind, now I see." 26 Then they said to him again, "What did He do to you? How did He open your eyes?" 27 He answered them, "I told you already, and you did not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become His disciples?" 28 Then they reviled him and said, "You are His disciple, but we are Moses' disciples. 29 We know that God spoke to Moses; as for this fellow, we do not know where He is from." 30 The man answered and said to them, "Why, this is a marvelous thing, that you do not know where He is from; yet He has opened my eyes! 31 Now we know that God does not hear sinners; but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does His will, He hears him. 32 Since the world began it has been unheard of that anyone opened the eyes of one who was born blind. 33 If this Man were not from God, He could do nothing." 34 They answered and said to him, "You were completely born in sins, and are you teaching us?" And they cast him out. 35 Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when He had found him, He said to him, "Do you believe in the Son of God?" 36 He answered and said, "Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?" 37 And Jesus said to him, "You have both seen Him and it is He who is talking with you." 38 Then he said, "Lord, I believe!" And he worshiped Him. 39 And Jesus said, "For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind." 40 Then some of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these words, and said to Him, "Are we blind also?" 41 Jesus said to them, "If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you say, 'We see.' Therefore your sin remains. Questions to Consider:
| The Pharisees acted like a team of prosecutors who did not have the slightest interest in the truth, they only wanted evidence that would help them condemn Jesus. They had a predetermined narrative that viewed Jesus as a friend of the devil and an enemy of the Jewish religion. If they could not dig up any evidence to support their narrative, they were determined to manufacture said evidence. The Pharisees asked the blind man how he had received his sight. The formerly blind man gave them the facts: v.15 "He (Jesus) put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I see." This was not what the Pharisees wanted to hear. This answer was also cause for some division among the Pharisees: Some said, "He cannot be from God because He broke the Sabbath." Others argued, "How can a sinner do such miracles?" The Pharisees decided that the blind man probably was never blind. (Once again looking for evidence to debunk the miracle and discredit Jesus) They asked the parents about their son who had been blind. The parents also gave the Pharisees facts that they were not seeking. v.20,21. "We know that this is our son; we know that he was born blind; we do not know how or why he can now see." The parents were intimidated by the Pharisees. The Pharisees had already made the decision to throw out of the synagogue anyone who believed that Jesus was the Christ. If a group is serious about discerning the truth, prosecuting anyone who does not answer your questions the way you want them answered is not a good way to proceed. The Pharisees were clearly not in search of the truth, they were only interested in carrying out their agenda of destroying Jesus. The Pharisees, realizing that the man in question had actually been blind, went to him again and asked the same question. v.26 "What did He do to you? How did He open your eyes?" This is a usual devise used by prosecutors. Keep asking the same question until you get a different answer and then go with the answer that best fits your narrative. I love the formerly blind man's answer: v.27 "I told you already, and you did not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you want to become His disciples?" This is not what the Pharisees wanted to hear. They immediately attacked the key witness and accused him of being a disciple of Christ. (He was not yet a disciple of Christ at this point in time) I think that the blind man was losing patience with the Pharisees, because he launched into a powerful defense of Jesus. v.30-33. He essentially schools the Pharisees in some very basic theology and closes with this argument: "Since the world began it has been unheard of that anyone opened the eyes of one who was born blind. If this Man were not from God, He could do nothing." Once again, this was not the answer the Pharisees were looking for and so they threw the man who was healed out of the synagogue. This was to serve as reminder to anyone who was inclined to follow Jesus to understand that there would be severe consequences. Jesus found the miracle man who was now thrown out of the only religious community he had ever been a part of. Jesus asked him v.35 "Do you believe in the Son of God?" Throughout the Gospels Jesus refers to Himself as "The Son of God" and "The Son of Man." Both of these describe different aspects of Jesus. 1) Son of God refers to Jesus as God the Son; 2nd person of the Trinity; born of the Holy Spirit; sent on a mission by God the Father. 2) Son of Man refers to Jesus as God in the flesh; born of the virgin Mary; who experienced life as a human. (Refer to Hebrews 4:14-16) The man, who had been blind, came to faith when Jesus revealed who He was. v.38 "Lord, I believe!" And he worshiped Him. Jesus ends this story by pointing out the fact that the Pharisees are without excuse for their behavior, because they are not blind. Indeed, the Pharisees were not blind to the truth; they simply rejected it because it did not fit their narrative. |
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