Read the Gospels in 40 Days
Jesus Heals a Man Born Blind
9 As Jesus ·was walking along [passed by; went along], he saw a man who had been born blind. 2 His ·followers [disciples] asked him, “·Teacher [L Rabbi], whose sin caused this man to be born blind—his own sin or his parents’ sin?” [C The disciples, like the friends of Job, viewed suffering as the result of a person’s own sins.]
3 Jesus answered, “It is not this man’s sin or his parents’ sin that made him blind. This man was born blind so that God’s ·power [L works] could be ·shown [displayed; revealed; manifest] in him. 4 While it is daytime, we must continue doing the work of the One who sent me. Night is coming [C Jesus’ death], when no one can work. 5 While I am in the world, I am the light of the world [see 8:12].”
6 After Jesus said this, he spit on the ground and made some mud with ·it [L the saliva] and ·put [spread; anointed] the mud on the man’s eyes [C the significance of the mud made with spit is unclear]. 7 Then he told the man, “Go and wash in the Pool of Siloam.” (Siloam [C from a Hebrew word] means Sent.) So the man went, washed, and came back seeing.
8 The neighbors and some people who had earlier seen this man begging said, “Isn’t this the same man who used to sit and beg?”
9 Some said, “He is the one,” but others said, “No, he only looks like him.”
The man himself said, “I am the man.”
10 [L Therefore] They asked him, “How [L then] ·did you get your sight [L were your eyes opened]?”
11 He answered, “The man named Jesus made some mud and ·put [spread; anointed] it on my eyes. Then he told me to go to Siloam and wash. So I went and washed, and then I could see.”
12 They asked him, “Where is this man?”
“I don’t know,” he answered.
Pharisees Question the Healing
13 Then the people took to the Pharisees [C a religious party which strictly observed OT laws and later customs] the man who had been blind. 14 The day Jesus had made mud and healed his eyes was a Sabbath day [C on which no work was allowed]. 15 So now the Pharisees asked the man, “How did you get your sight?”
He answered, “He put mud on my eyes, I washed, and now I see.”
16 So some of the Pharisees were saying, “This man does not keep the Sabbath day [C according to rabbinic tradition neither kneading nor healing were permitted on the Sabbath], so he is not from God.”
But others said, “·A man who is a sinner can’t [L How can a man who is a sinner…?] do ·miracles [L signs] like these.” So ·they could not agree with each other [L there was a division among them].
17 [L Therefore; So; Then] They asked the man again, “What do you say about him, since it was your eyes he opened?”
The man answered, “He is a prophet.”
18 ·These leaders [L The Jews; C the Pharisees] did not believe that he had been blind and could now see again. So they sent for the ·man’s parents [L parents of the man who could now see] 19 and asked them, “Is this your son who you say was born blind? Then how does he now see?”
20 [L Therefore; So] His parents answered, “We know that this is our son and that he was born blind. 21 But we don’t know how he can now see. We don’t know who opened his eyes. Ask him. He is old enough to speak for himself [C of legal age to give testimony].” 22 His parents said this because they were afraid of the ·elders [Jewish leaders; L Jews], who had already decided that anyone who ·said [confessed; acknowledged] Jesus was the ·Christ [Messiah] would be ·avoided [L put out of the synagogue; C an act of expulsion or excommunication]. 23 That is why his parents said, “He is old enough. Ask him.”
24 So for the second time, they called the man who had been blind. They said, “·You should give God the glory by telling the truth [L Give God the glory; C see Josh. 7:19 where this phrase is a command to tell the truth]. We know that this man is a sinner.”
25 [L So; Then] He answered, “I don’t know if he is a sinner. One thing I do know: I was blind, and now I see.”
26 [L So; Then] They asked, “What did he do to you? How did he ·make you see again [L open your eyes]?”
27 He answered them, “I already told you, and you didn’t listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you want to become his ·followers [disciples] too?”
28 Then they ·insulted [ridiculed; reviled] him and said, “You are his ·follower [disciple], but we are ·followers [disciples] of Moses. 29 We know that God spoke to Moses [Ex. 33:11; Num. 12:8; Deut. 34:10], but we don’t even know where this man comes from.”
30 The man answered, “This is a very ·strange [astonishing; marvelous] thing. You don’t know where he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes. 31 We all know that God does not listen to sinners, but he listens to anyone who ·worships [is devout; is godfearing] and ·obeys him [L does his will]. 32 Nobody has ·ever [or since the beginning of the world; L from the age/eternity] heard of anyone giving sight to a man born blind. 33 If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.”
34 They answered, “You were born ·full of sin [or in utter sinfulness]! Are you trying to teach us?” And they threw him out [C of the synagogue; an act of excommunication].
Spiritual Blindness
35 When Jesus heard that they had ·thrown [cast; driven] him out [C of the synagogue], Jesus found him and said, “Do you ·believe [trust] in the Son of Man [C a title for the Messiah; Dan. 7:13–14]?”
36 He asked, “Who is ·the Son of Man [L he], sir, so that I can ·believe [trust] in him?”
37 Jesus said to him, “You have seen him. ·The Son of Man [L He] is the one talking with you.”
38 He said, “·Lord [C the same word is rendered “sir” in v. 36, but here may have a more solemn sense], I ·believe [trust]!” Then the man ·worshiped [prostrated himself before] Jesus.
39 Jesus said, “I came into this world ·so that the world could be judged [L for judgment]. I came so that the blind would see and so that those who see will become blind.” [C Those who acknowledge they are spiritually blind will see the truth; and those who think they see spiritually (the Jewish religious leaders) are actually blind; Is. 6:10; 42:19.]
40 Some of the Pharisees who were nearby heard Jesus say this and asked, “Are you saying we are blind, too?”
41 Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin. But since you keep saying you see, your ·guilt [or sin] remains.”
The Shepherd and His Sheep
10 Jesus said, “·I tell you the truth [L Truly, truly I say to you], the person who does not enter the ·sheepfold [sheep pen] by the ·door [gate], but climbs in some other way, is a thief and a robber. [C The sheep represent the people of God; the thief/robber stands for those who would lead them astray; Ps. 23; Ezek. 34.] 2 The one who enters by the ·door [gate] is the shepherd of the sheep. 3 The ·one who guards the door [gatekeeper; watchman] opens it for him. And the sheep listen to the voice of the shepherd. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out [compare Num. 27:15–17]. 4 When he brings all his sheep out, he goes ahead of them, and they follow him because they know his voice. 5 But they will never follow a stranger. They will run away from him because they don’t know his voice.” 6 Jesus told the people this ·story [figure of speech; illustration; parable], but they did not understand what ·it meant [he was telling them].
Jesus Is the Good Shepherd
7 So Jesus said again, “·I tell you the truth [L Truly, truly I say to you], I am the ·door [gate] for the sheep. [C Jesus now refers to himself as the door rather than the shepherd.] 8 All the people who came before me were thieves and robbers [C others who claimed to be the Messiah]. The sheep did not listen to them. 9 I am the ·door [gate], and the person who enters through me will be saved and will be able to come in and go out and find pasture [compare Ps. 118:20]. 10 A thief comes [L only] to steal and kill and destroy, but I came ·to give life [L that they might have life]—life in all its ·fullness [abundance].
11 “I am the good shepherd [contrast Zech. 11:17]. The good shepherd ·gives [lays down] his life for the sheep. 12 The ·worker who is paid to keep the sheep [L hired hand] is different from the shepherd who owns them. When the worker sees a wolf coming, he runs away and leaves the sheep alone. Then the wolf ·attacks [or snatches; seizes] the sheep and scatters them. 13 The man runs away because he is only a ·paid worker [hired hand] and does not really care about the sheep.
14 “I am the good shepherd. I know my ·sheep [L own], and my ·sheep [L own] know me, 15 just as the Father knows me, and I know the Father. I ·give [lay down] my life for the sheep. 16 I have other sheep that are not in this ·flock [fold; pen; C a reference to future Gentile followers of Christ], and I must bring them also. They will listen to my voice, and there will be one flock and one shepherd. 17 The Father loves me because I ·give [lay down] my life so that I can ·take [receive] it back again. 18 No one takes it away from me; I ·give [lay down] my own life ·freely [voluntarily; of my own free will]. I have the ·right [power; authority] to ·give [lay down] my life, and I have the ·right [power; authority] to ·take [receive] it back. This is what my Father commanded me to do.”
19 Again ·the leaders did not agree with each other [L there was a division among the Jews] because of these words of Jesus. 20 Many of them said, “·A demon has come into him and made him crazy [L He has a demon and is crazy]. Why listen to him?”
21 But others said, “A man who is ·crazy with a demon [L demon-possessed] does not say things like this. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?”
Jesus Is Rejected
22 The time came for the ·Feast of Dedication [C also called Hanukkah or the Feast of Lights, recalling the rededication of the Temple in 164 bc] at Jerusalem. It was winter, 23 and Jesus was walking in the Temple in Solomon’s ·Porch [Portico; Colonnade; C on the eastern side of the Temple area; at a later time Christians gathered there to worship; Acts 3:11; 5:12]. 24 ·Some people [The Jewish leaders; L The Jews] gathered around him and said, “How long will you ·make us wonder [keep us in suspense] about you? If you are the ·Christ [Messiah], tell us plainly.”
25 Jesus answered them, “I told you already, but you did not believe. The ·miracles [L works] I do in my Father’s name ·show who I am [testify/bear witness about me]. 26 But you don’t believe, because you are not my sheep. 27 My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they will never ·die [perish], and no one can ·steal [snatch] them out of my hand. 29 My Father gave my sheep to me. He is greater than all, and no person can ·steal [snatch] my sheep out of my Father’s hand. 30 The Father and I are one.”
31 Again some of the ·people [Jewish leaders; L Jews] picked up stones to ·kill [L stone] Jesus. 32 But he ·said to [answered] them, “I have ·done [L shown you] many good works from the Father. Which of these good works are you ·killing [L stoning] me for?”
33 ·They [The Jewish leaders; L The Jews] answered him, “We are not ·killing [L stoning] you because of any good work you did, but ·because you speak against God [L for blasphemy]. You are only a human, but you ·say you are the same as God [claim to be God; L make yourself God]!”
34 Jesus answered them, “·It is written [L Is it not written…?] in your law that God said, ‘I said, you are gods’ [Ps. 82:6; C the “gods” here may be Israel’s judges, or the Israelites generally, or angelic powers]. 35 This Scripture called those people gods who received God’s ·message [word], and Scripture ·is always true [L cannot be broken/annulled/set aside]. 36 So why do you say that I ·speak against God [L blaspheme] because I said, ‘I am God’s Son’? [C Jesus is not denying he is God, but is making a lesser-to-greater argument; if Scripture calls lesser beings “gods,” why should they object that he—the One God sent—calls himself the Son of God?] I am the one ·God [L the Father] ·chose [consecrated; set apart] and sent into the world. 37 If I don’t do ·what my Father does [L the works of my Father], then don’t believe me. 38 But if I do ·what my Father does [the works of my Father; L them], even though you don’t believe in me, believe ·what I do [L the works]. Then you will ·know [recognize; learn] and understand that the Father is in me and I am in the Father.”
39 [L So] They tried to ·take [seize; arrest] Jesus again [see 7:30], but he escaped from ·them [L their hands].
40 Then he went back across the Jordan River to the place where John had ·first [or earlier] baptized. Jesus stayed there, 41 and many people came to him and said, “John never did a ·miracle [L sign], but everything John said about this man is true.” 42 And in that place many believed in Jesus.
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