What does John 9:30 mean?
The religious leaders of Jerusalem have made it clear they will not accept Jesus, no matter what. Even though His miracles are "signs" of His divinity (John 12:37–38), they instead find excuses to doubt or dismiss them (John 9:16). These men know Scripture but ignore what it says about the Messiah (John 5:39–40). Their problem is not ignorance or a lack of intelligence. The obstacle is pride and hard hearts. They do not want to understand (John 7:17). Worse, they respond with angry insults when someone challenges their prejudice (John 9:28, 34).The same man who sarcastically challenged the scribes and Pharisees earlier (John 9:27) now responds to their insults. Once again, his tone is sardonic, biting, and confrontational. But his point is the same as before (John 9:25). Despite what people might claim they don't know about Jesus, what we do know about Jesus is more than enough to make the right conclusion. The religious leaders are trying to dismiss Jesus for being an outsider; the healed man is pointing out that this is a poor excuse.
The once-blind man isn't done, either. In the face of abuse and interrogation by the religious leaders of his home, this man will proceed to teach the self-styled teachers of Israel what they ought to understand.
