New International Reader s Version - NIrV - 1996
John 9
1
As Jesus went along, he saw a man who was blind. He had been blind since he was born.
2
Jesus' disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned? Was this man born blind because he sinned? Or did his parents sin?"
Reference
3
"It isn't because this man sinned," said Jesus. "It isn't because his parents sinned. This happened so that God's work could be shown in his life.
Reference
4
While it is still day, we must do the work of the One who sent me. Night is coming. Then no one can work.
Reference
5
While I am in the world, I am the light of the world."
Reference
Light
John 8:12
John 12:46
Acts 13:47
Acts 26:18
Ephesians 5:14
Revelation 21:23
Matthew 4:16
Isaiah 49:6
Acts 26:23
Parallel theme
Malachi 4:2
6
After he said this, he spit on the ground. He made some mud with the spit. Then he put the mud on the man's eyes.
Reference
7
"Go," he told him. "Wash in the Pool of Siloam." Siloam means Sent. So the man went and washed. And he came home able to see.
Reference
8
His neighbors and those who had earlier seen him begging asked questions. "Isn't this the same man who used to sit and beg?" they asked.
Reference
Parallel theme
1 Samuel 2:8
9
Some claimed that he was. Others said, "No. He only looks like him." But the man who had been blind kept saying, "I am the man."
10
"Then how were your eyes opened?" they asked.
11
He replied, "The man they call Jesus made some mud and put it on my eyes. He told me to go to Siloam and wash. So I went and washed. Then I could see."
12
"Where is this man?" they asked him. "I don't know," he said.
13
They brought to the Pharisees the man who had been blind.
15
So the Pharisees also asked him how he was able to see. "He put mud on my eyes," the man replied. "Then I washed. And now I can see."
16
Some of the Pharisees said, "Jesus has not come from God. He does not keep the Sabbath day." But others asked, "How can a sinner do such miraculous signs?" So the Pharisees did not agree with each other.
Reference
17
Finally they turned again to the blind man. "What do you have to say about him?" they asked. "It was your eyes he opened." The man replied, "He is a prophet."
Reference
18
The Jews still did not believe that the man had been blind and now could see. So they sent for his parents.
19
"Is this your son?" they asked. "Is this the one you say was born blind? How is it that now he can see?"
20
"We know he is our son," the parents answered. "And we know he was born blind.
21
But we don't know how he can now see. And we don't know who opened his eyes. Ask him. He is an adult. He can speak for himself."
22
His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jews. The Jews had already decided that anyone who said Jesus was the Christ would be put out of the synagogue.
Reference
23
That was why the man's parents said, "He is an adult. Ask him."
Reference
Parallel theme
John 9:21
24
Again they called the man who had been blind to come to them. "Give glory to God by telling the truth!" they said. "We know that the man who healed you is a sinner."
Reference
25
He replied, "I don't know if he is a sinner or not. I do know one thing. I was blind, but now I can see!"
Reference
26
Then they asked him, "What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?"
27
He answered, "I have already told you. But you didn't listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you want to become his disciples too?"
28
Then they began to attack him with their words. "You are this fellow's disciple!" they said. "We are disciples of Moses!
Reference
Parallel theme
Romans 2:17
29
We know that God spoke to Moses. But we don't even know where this fellow comes from."
Reference
Parallel theme
John 8:14
30
The man answered, "That is really surprising! You don't know where he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes.
Reference
31
We know that God does not listen to sinners. He listens to godly people who do what he wants them to do.
Reference
32
Nobody has ever heard of anyone opening the eyes of a person born blind.
Reference
Sin
Isaiah 64:4
34
Then the Pharisees replied, "When you were born, you were already deep in sin. How dare you talk like that to us!" And they threw him out of the synagogue.
Reference
35
Jesus heard that the Pharisees had thrown the man out. When he found him, he said, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?"
Reference
36
"Who is he, sir?" the man asked. "Tell me, so I can believe in him."
Reference
Faith
Romans 10:14
37
Jesus said, "You have now seen him. In fact, he is the one speaking with you."
Reference
References Jesus
John 4:26
39
Jesus said, "I have come into this world to judge it. I have come so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind."
Reference
Parallel theme
John 3:19
John 12:46
Acts 26:18
1 John 2:11
Luke 4:18
Luke 1:79
References Jesus
John 8:12
40
Some Pharisees who were with him heard him say this. They asked, "What? Are we blind too?"
Reference
Parallel theme
Revelation 3:17
Chapter Summary
John 9 tells the story of Jesus healing a man who had been blind from birth, but the miracle becomes much more than a physical restoration because it reveals the difference between people who are willing to recognize God's work and people who remain spiritually blind despite having witnessed it.
As Jesus passes by, His disciples ask whether the man's blindness resulted from his own sin or the sin of his parents.
Jesus rejects the assumption that his suffering was simply the result of personal wrongdoing and explains that the situation provides an opportunity for God's works to be revealed.
Jesus then makes mud, places it on the man's eyes, and tells him to wash in the Pool of Siloam.
The man obeys and returns with his sight restored.
His neighbors are so surprised by the transformation that they debate whether he is actually the same person who had previously been blind and dependent on begging.
When the man confirms that he is the one who was healed, they ask how it happened, and he simply explains what Jesus did.
The miracle becomes controversial because Jesus performed it on the Sabbath.
The man is brought before the Pharisees, who question him repeatedly about the healing.
Some Pharisees argue that Jesus cannot be from God because He does not observe the Sabbath according to their interpretation, while others struggle to understand how a sinful man could perform such a remarkable sign.
The healed man initially describes Jesus simply as a prophet, but as the questioning continues, his understanding becomes stronger.
The religious leaders then question his parents, who confirm that he was born blind but refuse to explain how he received his sight because they are afraid of being expelled from the synagogue.
The authorities summon the man again and attempt to pressure him into condemning Jesus.
Instead, the man gives one of the simplest and strongest testimonies in the chapter: whatever the leaders may think about Jesus, he knows that he was blind and now he can see.
When the leaders continue questioning him, the man becomes increasingly confident and points out the obvious contradiction in their position: Jesus has performed an extraordinary miracle, yet they refuse to consider that He might have come from God.
The man's reasoning becomes so direct that the leaders become angry, insult him, and throw him out.
Jesus then finds the man.
When Jesus reveals Himself as the Son of Man, the man believes in Him and worships Him.
His journey is therefore complete: he moves from physical blindness to physical sight and then from spiritual uncertainty to spiritual faith.
Jesus then explains the deeper meaning of the event, saying that He has come so that the blind may see and those who claim to see may become blind.
The Pharisees ask whether He is saying that they are blind, and Jesus explains that their problem is precisely that they claim to see.
Because they believe they already understand God and truth, they refuse to recognize what is directly before them.
John 9 therefore presents a powerful contrast between the man who begins with almost no understanding of Jesus but gradually recognizes Him, and the religious leaders who possess extensive religious knowledge yet refuse to recognize what Jesus has done.
The chapter's central message is that physical sight does not necessarily produce spiritual understanding, while genuine faith can grow from a simple encounter with God's work into a clear recognition of who Jesus is.
As Jesus passes by, His disciples ask whether the man's blindness resulted from his own sin or the sin of his parents.
Jesus rejects the assumption that his suffering was simply the result of personal wrongdoing and explains that the situation provides an opportunity for God's works to be revealed.
Jesus then makes mud, places it on the man's eyes, and tells him to wash in the Pool of Siloam.
The man obeys and returns with his sight restored.
His neighbors are so surprised by the transformation that they debate whether he is actually the same person who had previously been blind and dependent on begging.
When the man confirms that he is the one who was healed, they ask how it happened, and he simply explains what Jesus did.
The miracle becomes controversial because Jesus performed it on the Sabbath.
The man is brought before the Pharisees, who question him repeatedly about the healing.
Some Pharisees argue that Jesus cannot be from God because He does not observe the Sabbath according to their interpretation, while others struggle to understand how a sinful man could perform such a remarkable sign.
The healed man initially describes Jesus simply as a prophet, but as the questioning continues, his understanding becomes stronger.
The religious leaders then question his parents, who confirm that he was born blind but refuse to explain how he received his sight because they are afraid of being expelled from the synagogue.
The authorities summon the man again and attempt to pressure him into condemning Jesus.
Instead, the man gives one of the simplest and strongest testimonies in the chapter: whatever the leaders may think about Jesus, he knows that he was blind and now he can see.
When the leaders continue questioning him, the man becomes increasingly confident and points out the obvious contradiction in their position: Jesus has performed an extraordinary miracle, yet they refuse to consider that He might have come from God.
The man's reasoning becomes so direct that the leaders become angry, insult him, and throw him out.
Jesus then finds the man.
When Jesus reveals Himself as the Son of Man, the man believes in Him and worships Him.
His journey is therefore complete: he moves from physical blindness to physical sight and then from spiritual uncertainty to spiritual faith.
Jesus then explains the deeper meaning of the event, saying that He has come so that the blind may see and those who claim to see may become blind.
The Pharisees ask whether He is saying that they are blind, and Jesus explains that their problem is precisely that they claim to see.
Because they believe they already understand God and truth, they refuse to recognize what is directly before them.
John 9 therefore presents a powerful contrast between the man who begins with almost no understanding of Jesus but gradually recognizes Him, and the religious leaders who possess extensive religious knowledge yet refuse to recognize what Jesus has done.
The chapter's central message is that physical sight does not necessarily produce spiritual understanding, while genuine faith can grow from a simple encounter with God's work into a clear recognition of who Jesus is.