They say unto the blind man again, What sayest thou of him, that he hath opened thine eyes? He said, He is a prophet.
The saying belongs to the interrogation that followed Jesus healing a man born blind and restoring his sight. When the Pharisees pressed the healed man about what he thought of the one who had opened his eyes, he answered that Jesus is a prophet. That answer was a testimony to his recognition of the divine significance of the One who had healed him. The giving of sight to one born blind was convincing evidence of a divine mission, yet prejudice and unbelief kept the Pharisees from accepting that evidence and led them to refuse it.
The healed man was despised by the self-righteous Pharisees, while Christ regarded him with compassion and sought his good. Jesus drew the man to Himself through compassion even though the man did not yet know who had healed him. His experience shows that those whom others reject are not beyond God's saving love. Later in the same account Jesus revealed Himself to the man as the Son of God, and the man worshiped Him.
The saying belongs to the interrogation that followed Jesus healing a man born blind and restoring his sight. When the Pharisees pressed the healed man about what he thought of the one who had opened his eyes, he answered that Jesus is a prophet. That answer was a testimony to his recognition of the divine significance of the One who had healed him. The giving of sight to one born blind was convincing evidence of a divine mission, yet prejudice and unbelief kept the Pharisees from accepting that evidence and led them to refuse it.
The healed man was despised by the self-righteous Pharisees, while Christ regarded him with compassion and sought his good. Jesus drew the man to Himself through compassion even though the man did not yet know who had healed him. His experience shows that those whom others reject are not beyond God's saving love. Later in the same account Jesus revealed Himself to the man as the Son of God, and the man worshiped Him.