John 9:36 - Printer Friendly

ESV: He answered, "And who is he, sir, that I may believe in him?"

NIV: "Who is he, sir?" the man asked. "Tell me so that I may believe in him."

NASB: He answered by saying, 'And who is He, Sir, that I may believe in Him?'

CSB: "Who is he, Sir, that I may believe in him?" he asked.

NLT: The man answered, 'Who is he, sir? I want to believe in him.'

KJV: He answered and said, Who is he, Lord, that I might believe on him?

NKJV: He answered and said, “Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?”

Jesus was not there when a blind man completed His instructions (John 9:6–7) and obtained vision. All the newly-healed man knows is that someone—sent from God—has given him the sight he'd never had (John 9:1–2, 11). After being insulted and abused by local religious leaders, the man is found again by Jesus.

Christ asked this formerly blind man if he believed in the Son of Man (John 9:35). This phrase is heavily tied to the Jewish concept of the Messiah (Daniel 7:13; 9:25). The now-seeing beggar has admitted that he knows very little about Jesus (John 9:25). Yet he certainly believes Jesus is operating on divine power (John 9:30–33).

Here, the man responds to Jesus' question with an admission of his own ignorance. This statement harmonizes with the cry of the father of a demon-possessed boy: "I believe; help my unbelief!" (Mark 9:24). Here, the healed man wants to follow the truth, but simply does not know how. This is a strong contrast to hard-headed scribes and Pharisees (John 5:39–40); they know more than enough about the Scriptures, but "refuse" to follow them by accepting Christ.

As promised (Matthew 7:7), Jesus will respond to sincere seeking, and give this man the wisdom he needs.

John 9:35–41 shows Jesus meeting with the man He healed, who had been blind since birth. His healing and subsequent conversation with the Pharisees resulted in the man being excommunicated from his synagogue. Jesus reveals His identity to the man and explains how this episode summarized His earthly ministry. The Pharisees again prove their spiritual stubbornness, giving Jesus an opportunity to connect greater knowledge with greater responsibility.

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.