The Sixth Sign: Healing a Man Born Blind

9 As he was passing by, he saw a man blind from birth. ² His disciples asked him, ‘Rabbi,^(A) who sinned, this man^(B) or his parents,^(C) that he was born blind? ’

³ ‘Neither this man nor his parents sinned,’ Jesus answered. ‘This came about so that God’s works^(D) might be displayed in him. ⁴ We^[a] must do the works^(E) of him who sent me^[b] while it is day.^(F) Night is coming when no one can work. ⁵ As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.’^(G)

⁶ After he said these things he spat on the ground, made some mud^(H) from the saliva, and spread the mud on his eyes. ⁷ ‘Go,’ he told him, ‘wash in the pool of Siloam’^(I) (which means ‘Sent’). So he left, washed, and came back seeing.^(J)

⁸ His neighbours and those who had seen him before as a beggar said, ‘Isn’t this the one who used to sit begging? ’ ⁹ Some said, ‘He’s the one.’ Others were saying, ‘No, but he looks like him.’

He kept saying, ‘I’m the one.’

¹⁰ So they asked him, ‘Then how were your eyes opened? ’

¹¹ He answered, ‘The man called Jesus made mud, spread it on my eyes, and told me, “Go to Siloam^(K) and wash.” So when I went and washed I received my sight.’^(L)

¹² ‘Where is he? ’ they asked.

‘I don’t know,’ he said.

The Healed Man’s Testimony

¹³ They brought the man who used to be blind to the Pharisees.^{(M) 14} The day that Jesus made the mud and opened his eyes was a Sabbath.^{(N) 15} Then the Pharisees asked him again how he received his sight.

‘He put mud on my eyes,’ he told them. ‘I washed and I can see.’

¹⁶ Some of the Pharisees said, ‘This man is not from God,^(O) because he doesn’t keep the Sabbath.’ But others were saying, ‘How can a sinful man^(P) perform such signs? ’ And there was a division^(Q) among them.

¹⁷ Again they asked the blind man, ‘What do you say about him, since he opened your eyes? ’

‘He’s a prophet,’^(R) he said.

¹⁸ The Jews did not believe this about him – that he was blind and received sight – until they summoned the parents of the one who had received his sight.

¹⁹ They asked them, ‘Is this your son, the one you say was born blind? How then does he now see? ’

²⁰ ‘We know this is our son and that he was born blind,’ his parents answered. ²¹ ‘But we don’t know how he now sees, and we don’t know who opened his eyes. Ask him; he’s of age. He will speak for himself.’ ²² His parents said these things because they were afraid of the Jews, since the Jews had already agreed that if anyone confessed him as the Messiah,^(S) he would be banned from the synagogue. ²³ This is why his parents said, ‘He’s of age; ask him.’

²⁴ So a second time they summoned the man who had been blind and told him, ‘Give glory^(T) to God.^(U) We know that this man is a sinner.’

²⁵ He answered, ‘Whether or not he’s a sinner, I don’t know. One thing I do know: I was blind, and now I can see! ’

²⁶ Then they asked him, ‘What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes? ’

²⁷ ‘I already told you,’ he said, ‘and you didn’t listen. Why do you want to hear it again? You don’t want to become his disciples too, do you? ’

²⁸ They ridiculed him: ‘You’re that man’s disciple, but we’re Moses’s^(V) disciples. ²⁹ We know that God has spoken to Moses. But this man – we don’t know where he’s from.’^(W)

³⁰ ‘This is an amazing thing! ’ the man told them. ‘You don’t know where he is from, and yet he opened my eyes. ³¹ We know that God doesn’t listen to sinners,^(X) but if anyone is God-fearing and does his will,^(Y) he listens to him.^{(Z) 32} Throughout history^[c] no one has ever heard of someone opening the eyes of a person born blind.^{(AA) 33} If this man were not from God, he wouldn’t be able to do anything.’^(AB)

³⁴ ‘You were born entirely in sin,’^(AC) they replied, ‘and are you trying to teach us? ’ Then they threw him out.^(AD)

Spiritual Blindness

³⁵ Jesus heard that they had thrown the man out, and when he found him, he asked, ‘Do you believe in the Son of Man? ’^[d](AE)

³⁶ ‘Who is he, Sir,^(AF) that I may believe in him? ’ he asked.

³⁷ Jesus answered, ‘You have seen him; in fact, he is the one speaking with you.’

³⁸ ‘I believe, Lord! ’ he said, and he worshipped him.

³⁹ Jesus said, ‘I came into this world^(AG) for judgement,^(AH) in order that those who do not see will see and those who do see will become blind.’^(AI)

⁴⁰ Some of the Pharisees who were with him heard these things and asked him, ‘We aren’t blind too, are we? ’

⁴¹ ‘If you were blind,’ Jesus told them, ‘you wouldn’t have sin.^(AJ) But now that you say, “We see,” your sin remains.