John 9-10 (Contemporary English Version)

John 9

Jesus Heals a Man Born Blind

 ¹As Jesus walked along, he saw a man who had been blind since birth. ²Jesus' disciples asked, "Teacher, why was this man born blind? Was it because he or his parents sinned?"

    ³"No, it wasn't!" Jesus answered. "But because of his blindness, you will see God work a miracle for him. ⁴As long as it is day, we must do what the one who sent me wants me to do. When night comes, no one can work. ⁵While I am in the world, I am the light for the world."

    ⁶After Jesus said this, he spit on the ground. He made some mud and smeared it on the man's eyes. ⁷Then he said, "Go and wash off the mud in Siloam Pool." The man went and washed in Siloam, which means "One Who Is Sent." When he had washed off the mud, he could see.

    ⁸The man's neighbors and the people who had seen him begging wondered if he really could be the same man. ⁹Some of them said he was the same beggar, while others said he only looked like him. But he told them, "I am that man."

    ¹⁰"Then how can you see?" they asked.

    ¹¹He answered, "Someone named Jesus made some mud and smeared it on my eyes. He told me to go and wash it off in Siloam Pool. When I did, I could see."

    ¹²"Where is he now?" they asked.

   "I don't know," he answered.

   

The Pharisees Try To Find Out What Happened

 ^13-14The day when Jesus made the mud and healed the man was a Sabbath. So the people took the man to the Pharisees. ¹⁵They asked him how he was able to see, and he answered, "Jesus made some mud and smeared it on my eyes. Then after I washed it off, I could see."

    ¹⁶Some of the Pharisees said, "This man Jesus doesn't come from God. If he did, he would not break the law of the Sabbath."

   Others asked, "How could someone who is a sinner work such a miracle?" ^[a] Since the Pharisees could not agree among themselves, ¹⁷they asked the man, "What do you say about this one who healed your eyes?"

   "He is a prophet!" the man told them.

    ¹⁸But the Jewish leaders would not believe that the man had once been blind. They sent for his parents ¹⁹and asked them, "Is this the son that you said was born blind? How can he now see?"

    ²⁰The man's parents answered, "We are certain that he is our son, and we know that he was born blind. ²¹But we don't know how he got his sight or who gave it to him. Ask him! He is old enough to speak for himself."

    ^22-23The man's parents said this because they were afraid of the Jewish leaders. The leaders had already agreed that no one was to have anything to do with anyone who said Jesus was the Messiah.

    ²⁴The leaders called the man back and said, "Swear by God to tell the truth! We know that Jesus is a sinner."

    ²⁵The man replied, "I don't know if he is a sinner or not. All I know is that I used to be blind, but now I can see!"

    ²⁶"What did he do to you?" the Jewish leaders asked. "How did he heal your eyes?"

    ²⁷The man answered, "I have already told you once, and you refused to listen. Why do you want me to tell you again? Do you also want to become his disciples?"

    ²⁸The leaders insulted the man and said, "You are his follower! We are followers of Moses. ²⁹We are sure that God spoke to Moses, but we don't even know where Jesus comes from."

    ³⁰"How strange!" the man replied. "He healed my eyes, and yet you don't know where he comes from. ³¹We know that God listens only to people who love and obey him. God doesn't listen to sinners. ³²And this is the first time in history that anyone has ever given sight to someone born blind. ³³Jesus could not do anything unless he came from God."

    ³⁴The leaders told the man, "You have been a sinner since the day you were born! Do you think you can teach us anything?" Then they said, "You can never come back into any of our meeting places!"

    ³⁵When Jesus heard what had happened, he went and found the man. Then Jesus asked, "Do you have faith in the Son of Man?"

    ³⁶He replied, "Sir, if you will tell me who he is, I will put my faith in him."

    ³⁷"You have already seen him," Jesus answered, "and right now he is talking with you."

    ³⁸The man said, "Lord, I put my faith in you!" Then he worshiped Jesus.

    ³⁹Jesus told him, "I came to judge the people of this world. I am here to give sight to the blind and to make blind everyone who can see."

    ⁴⁰When the Pharisees heard Jesus say this, they asked, "Are we blind?"

    ⁴¹Jesus answered, "If you were blind, you would not be guilty. But now that you claim to see, you will keep on being guilty."

   

John 10

A Story about Sheep

 ¹Jesus said:

   I tell you for certain that only thieves and robbers climb over the fence instead of going in through the gate to the sheep pen. ^2-3But the gatekeeper opens the gate for the shepherd, and he goes in through it. The sheep know their shepherd's voice. He calls each of them by name and leads them out.

    ⁴When he has led out all of his sheep, he walks in front of them, and they follow, because they know his voice. ⁵The sheep will not follow strangers. They don't recognize a stranger's voice, and they run away.

    ⁶Jesus told the people this story. But they did not understand what he was talking about.

   

Jesus Is the Good Shepherd

 ⁷Jesus said:

   I tell you for certain that I am the gate for the sheep. ⁸Everyone who came before me was a thief or a robber, and the sheep did not listen to any of them. ⁹I am the gate. All who come in through me will be saved. Through me they will come and go and find pasture.

    ¹⁰A thief comes only to rob, kill, and destroy. I came so that everyone would have life, and have it in its fullest. ¹¹I am the good shepherd, and the good shepherd gives up his life for his sheep. ¹²Hired workers are not like the shepherd. They don't own the sheep, and when they see a wolf coming, they run off and leave the sheep. Then the wolf attacks and scatters the flock. ¹³Hired workers run away because they don't care about the sheep.

    ¹⁴I am the good shepherd. I know my sheep, and they know me. ¹⁵Just as the Father knows me, I know the Father, and I give up my life for my sheep. ¹⁶I have other sheep that are not in this sheep pen. I must bring them together too, when they hear my voice. Then there will be one flock of sheep and one shepherd.

    ¹⁷The Father loves me, because I give up my life, so that I may receive it back again. ¹⁸No one takes my life from me. I give it up willingly! I have the power to give it up and the power to receive it back again, just as my Father commanded me to do.

    ¹⁹The people took sides because of what Jesus had told them. ²⁰Many of them said, "He has a demon in him! He is crazy! Why listen to him?"

    ²¹But others said, "How could anyone with a demon in him say these things? No one like that could give sight to a blind person!"

   

Jesus Is Rejected

 ²²That winter, Jesus was in Jerusalem for the Temple Festival. ²³One day he was walking in that part of the temple known as Solomon's Porch, ^{[b] 24}and the people gathered all around him. They said, "How long are you going to keep us guessing? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly!" ²⁵Jesus answered:

   I have told you, and you refused to believe me. The things I do by my Father's authority show who I am. ²⁶But since you are not my sheep, you don't believe me. ²⁷My sheep know my voice, and I know them. They follow me, ²⁸and I give them eternal life, so that they will never be lost. No one can snatch them out of my hand. ²⁹My Father gave them to me, and he is greater than all others. ^[c] No one can snatch them from his hands, ³⁰and I am one with the Father. ³¹Once again the Jewish leaders picked up stones in order to kill Jesus. ³²But he said, "I have shown you many good things that my Father sent me to do. Which one are you going to stone me for?"

    ³³They answered, "We are not stoning you because of any good thing you did. We are stoning you because you did a terrible thing. You are just a man, and here you are claiming to be God!"

    ³⁴Jesus replied:

   In your Scriptures doesn't God say, "You are gods"? ³⁵You can't argue with the Scriptures, and God spoke to those people and called them gods. ³⁶So why do you accuse me of a terrible sin for saying that I am the Son of God? After all, it is the Father who prepared me for this work. He is also the one who sent me into the world. ³⁷If I don't do as my Father does, you should not believe me. ³⁸But if I do what my Father does, you should believe because of that, even if you don't have faith in me. Then you will know for certain that the Father is one with me, and I am one with the Father.

    ³⁹Again they wanted to arrest Jesus. But he escaped ⁴⁰and crossed the Jordan to the place where John had earlier been baptizing. While Jesus was there, ⁴¹many people came to him. They were saying, "John didn't work any miracles, but everything he said about Jesus is true." ⁴²A lot of those people also put their faith in Jesus.