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 verse counters a misconception common in Jesus' era, and still part of "eastern" religions today. Jesus' disciples assume that the man they've passed by (John 9:1–2) must be blind as a punishment for something. For them, this raises a difficult question: did the man somehow sin before he was born, or is he being punished for his parents' sin? This suggests the concept of karma, which implies that all suffering in this life is payment, or punishment, for prior acts of wrongdoing.

Jesus' answer clearly and definitively refutes these ideas. In a very broad sense, it's true that all human suffering is the result of sin. Adam's disobedience brought death and destruction to the entire human race (Romans 5:12). It's also true that most of the pain we experience in life is caused by the sin of people—either ourselves or others. Violence, starvation, crime, broken homes, and other effects of sin can impinge on people who are not directly to blame. More specifically, though, Jesus' words prove that not all suffering is punishment for sin. This man, in particular, did not experience blindness as any sort of judgment on sin, either his or someone else's.

A classic interpretation of this verse is 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 the gospel of John'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, as they purposefully ignore the spiritual message being proven by Jesus' works.

Jesus encounters a man who has been blind his entire life. In typical fashion for that era, the disciples assume this condition is due to some specific sin--either the man's sin or his parents' sin. Jesus challenges this idea, and heals the man. His restoration leads to interrogation, as 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 is able to meet with the 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, where Jesus claimed to have existed before Abraham. This resulted in an attempted stoning for blasphemy. 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, recorded in chapter 10, including several crucial teachings on His role as Shepherd.

The gospel of John was written by the disciple John, decades later than the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. 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”—in order to prove that Jesus is, in fact, God incarnate. Some of the most well-known verses in all of the Bible are found here. None is more famous than the one-sentence summary of the gospel found in John 3:16.