Catholic Commentary on John 9

"One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see." (John 9:25)

Who Sinned?

The disciples ask the question that every culture asks when confronted with suffering: whose fault is this? Was it this man's sin, or his parents'? Jesus refuses the premise of the question entirely. Neither this man nor his parents sinned (v.3). This does not mean sin has no consequences. It means that God's purposes in a particular life cannot be reduced to a ledger of cause and effect. This man was born blind so that the works of God might be displayed in him. Suffering, in God's hands, becomes the canvas for glory.

Jesus makes clay with spittle and earth, the same elements from which Adam was formed, and anoints the man's eyes. He sends him to the Pool of Siloam to wash. The man obeys, and he comes back seeing. St. Irenaeus saw in this action a recapitulation of creation itself: the hands that formed man from clay in Genesis are the same hands that restore sight to this man by the Pool of Siloam. The Catechism connects this sign directly to the illumination given in Baptism, which the early Church called photismos, enlightenment (CCC 1216).

A Testimony That Cannot Be Argued Away

The Pharisees interrogate the man, then his parents, then the man again. They want to explain away the miracle. The man born blind has no theological training. He cannot engage their arguments about Sabbath observance. But he has something no argument can defeat: personal experience. One thing I do know: I was blind but now I see. Seven words. Unanswerable. The simplest, strongest testimony in the New Testament.

Notice the progression of his faith: he calls Jesus "the man" (v.11), then "a prophet" (v.17), then confesses him as Lord and worships him (v.38). Encounter with Christ does not happen all at once. It deepens over time, especially when we are pressed to give an account of what he has done for us.

Living the Word

Brothers and sisters, Jesus says, For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind (v.39). The tragedy of this chapter is not the man born blind but the Pharisees who had physical sight and chose spiritual blindness. Pride is the great blinder. Certainty about our own righteousness closes the eyes more surely than any disease. Ask the Lord today to open your eyes to whatever you have not been willing to see.

Prayer

Lord Jesus, who opened the eyes of the man born blind: open our eyes also to your truth, your presence, and your will for our lives. Where pride has blinded us, grant humility. Where fear has kept us silent, give us the courage of that healed man to say simply: I was blind, but now I see. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

9
Jesus Heals the Man Born Blind
1 Now as Jesus was passing by, He saw a man blind from birth, 2 and His disciples asked Him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”
 
3 Jesus answered, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but this happened so that the works of God would be displayed in him. 4 While it is daytime, we must do * 9:4 BYZ and TR I must do the works of Him who sent Me. Night is coming, when no one can work. 5 While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”
 
6 When Jesus had said this, He spit on the ground, made some mud, and applied it to the man’s eyes. 7 Then He told him, “Go, wash in the Pool of Siloam” (which means “Sent”). So the man went and washed, and came back seeing.
 
8 At this, his neighbors and those who had formerly seen him begging began to ask, “Isn’t this the man who used to sit and beg?”
 
9 Some claimed that he was, but others said, “No, he just looks like him.”
 
But the man kept saying, “I am the one.”
 
10 “How then were your eyes opened?” they asked.
 
11 He answered, “The man they call Jesus made some mud and anointed my eyes, and He told me to go to Siloam and wash. So I went and washed and received my sight.”
 
12 “Where is He?” they asked.
 
“I do not know,” he answered.
The Pharisees Investigate the Healing
 
13 They brought to the Pharisees the man who had been blind. 14 Now the day on which Jesus had made the mud and opened his eyes was a Sabbath. 15 So the Pharisees also asked him how he had received his sight.
 
The man answered, “He put mud on my eyes, and I washed, and now I can see.”
 
16 Because of this, some of the Pharisees said, “This man is not from God, for He does not keep the Sabbath.”
 
But others said, “How can a sinful man perform such signs?”
 
And there was division among them. 17 So once again they asked the man who had been blind, “What do you say about Him, since it was your eyes He opened?”
 
“He is a prophet,” the man replied.
 
18 The Jews still did not believe that the man had been blind and had received his sight until they summoned his parents 19 and asked, “Is this your son, the one you say was born blind? So how is it that he can now see?”
 
20 His parents answered, “We know he is our son, and we know he was born blind. 21 But how he can now see or who opened his eyes, we do not know. Ask him. He is old enough to speak for himself.”
 
22 His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jews. For the Jews had already determined that anyone who confessed Jesus as the Christ would be put out of the synagogue. 23 That was why his parents said, “He is old enough. Ask him.”
 
24 So a second time they called for the man who had been blind and said, “Give glory to God! We know that this man is a sinner.”
 
25 He answered, “Whether He is a sinner I do not know. There is one thing I do know: I was blind, but now I see!”
 
26 “What did He do to you?” they asked. “How did He open your eyes?”
 
27 He replied, “I already told you, and you did not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become His disciples?”
 
28 Then they heaped insults on him and said, “You are His disciple; we are disciples of Moses. 29 We know that God spoke to Moses, but we do not know where this man is from.”
 
30 “That is remarkable indeed!” the man said. “You do not know where He is from, and yet He opened my eyes. 31 We know that God does not listen to sinners, but He does listen to the one who worships Him and does His will. 32 Never before has anyone heard of opening the eyes of a man born blind. 33 If this man were not from God, He could do no such thing.”
 
34 They replied, “You were born in utter sin, and you are instructing us?” And they threw him out.
Spiritual Blindness
 
35 When Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, He found the man and said, “Do you believe in the Son of Man † 9:35 BYZ and TR the Son of God?”
 
36 “Who is He, Sir?” he replied. “Tell me so that I may believe in Him.”
 
37 “You have already seen Him,” Jesus answered. “He is the One speaking with you.”
 
38 “Lord, I believe,” he said. And he worshiped Jesus.
 
39 Then Jesus declared, “For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind may see and those who see may become blind.”‡ 9:39 Literally so that those not seeing may see and those seeing may become blind. Some manuscripts do not include 38 “Lord, I believe.”... 39 Then Jesus declared.
 
40 Some of the Pharisees who were with Him heard this, and they asked Him, “Are we blind too?”
 
41 “If you were blind,” Jesus replied, “you would not be guilty of sin. But since you claim you can see, your guilt remains.”

*9:4 9:4 BYZ and TR I must do

†9:35 9:35 BYZ and TR the Son of God

‡9:39 9:39 Literally so that those not seeing may see and those seeing may become blind. Some manuscripts do not include 38 “Lord, I believe.”... 39 Then Jesus declared.

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