John 9:3 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Jesus answered, "It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him.

NIV: "Neither this man nor his parents sinned," said Jesus, "but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him.

NASB: Jesus answered, 'It was neither that this man sinned, nor his parents; but it was so that the works of God might be displayed in him.

CSB: "Neither this man nor his parents sinned," Jesus answered. "This came about so that God’s works might be displayed in him.

NLT: It was not because of his sins or his parents’ sins,' Jesus answered. 'This happened so the power of God could be seen in him.

KJV: Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him.

NKJV: Jesus answered, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him.

This counters a misconception common in Jesus' era, which is also a cornerstone of many religions today. Jesus' disciples assume the man they've encountered (John 9:1–2) suffers blindness as punishment for something. This raises a difficult question: did the man somehow sin before he was born? Is he being punished for his parents' sin? The disciples' attitude parallels the concept of karma, which implies that all earthly suffering is payment or punishment for prior acts of wrongdoing. Jesus' answer definitively refutes that idea.

In a very broad sense, all human suffering is the result of sin. Adam's disobedience brought death and destruction to the entire human race (Romans 5:12). In fact, it brought death to all of creation (Romans 8:20–22). Much suffering results simply from living in a fallen world. It is also true that much suffering can be directly linked to personal sin, whether experiencing the consequences of our own sin or being affected by the sins of others. Violence, starvation, crime, broken homes, and other effects of sin can impinge on people not directly to blame.

Jesus' words prove that not all suffering is punishment for the sins of the one who suffers, nor is their suffering a punishment for the sins of someone else. This blind man did not experience blindness as a judgment on sin, either his or someone else's.

A common interpretation of this verse is that the man was born blind specifically so Jesus could perform this miracle. This would harmonize with verses such as 2 Corinthians 12:7–9 and Exodus 4:11. However, it's also true that New Testament Greek was not written using punctuation. Based on the context, it's also possible that Jesus meant His comments about sin and the parents separately from His remarks on the works of God. That is, one could reasonably punctuate this passage as "…or his parents. But, that the works of God might be displayed in him, we must work…"

Either way, the emphasis here is refuting that the man's sin was responsible for his condition.

John 9:1–12 contains the sixth of this gospel's seven miraculous ''signs'' of Jesus' divinity. This miracle is the healing of a man who has been blind since birth. Jesus corrects His disciples' misconceptions about sin and suffering, then grants this man an ability he has never had before. This will lead to more angry confrontations with local religious leaders. Critics continue to purposefully ignore the spiritual message being proven by Jesus' works.

Jesus encounters a man who has been blind his entire life. Consistent with notions of that era, the disciples assume the disability is due to some specific sin: either the man's or his parents'. Jesus challenges this idea and heals the man. His restoration leads to interrogation. The Pharisees try to discredit Jesus' miraculous work. The healed man's simple, straightforward perspective embarrasses the religious leaders, who excommunicate him in frustration. Jesus meets with the healed man, explaining more about His identity and the purpose of His ministry. Jesus also reminds the Pharisees that those who ought to know better, spiritually, will be held more accountable as a result.

Jesus has begun to actively confront the false teachings of local religious leaders. His most recent debate included a heated exchange with the Pharisees. There, Jesus claimed to have existed before Abraham. This resulted in an attempted stoning for blasphemy (John 8). Here, Jesus continues to antagonize religious hypocrites by healing a man who was born blind. The ensuing ruckus further exposes Jerusalem's religious leaders as shallow, prejudiced, and false. This event launches Jesus into another lengthy discussion of His ministry. That, recorded in chapter 10, includes several crucial teachings on His role as Shepherd.

The disciple John wrote the gospel of John decades after the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke were written. The author assumes that a reader is already familiar with the content of these other works. So, John presents a different perspective, with a greater emphasis on meaning. John uses seven miracles—which he calls "signs"— to prove that Jesus is, in fact, God incarnate. Some of the most well-known verses in the Bible are found here. None is more famous than the one-sentence summary of the gospel found in John 3:16.