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?”

Earlier, Jesus healed a man who had been born blind, but was not there when the man completed Jesus' instructions (John 9:6–7). 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.

In the prior verse, Jesus asked this formerly-blind man if he believed in the Son of Man. This is a phrase heavily tied to the Jewish concept of the Messiah. The now-seeing beggar has admitted that he knows very little about Jesus (John 9:25), but he certainly believes that Jesus is operating on divine power (John 9:30–31).

Here, the man responds to Jesus' question with an admission of his own ignorance. This statement is similar to the cry of the father of a demon-possessed boy in Mark 9:24: "I believe; help my unbelief!" Here, the healed man wants to follow the truth, but simply does not know how. This is a strong contrast to the hard-headed scribes and Pharisees (John 5:39–40), who 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 has healed, formerly blind since birth. His healing, and subsequent conversation with the Pharisees, has 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, once 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. 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.