He answered and said, Whether he be a sinner or no, I know not: one thing I know, that, whereas I was blind, now I see.
The healed man refuses to decide whether Jesus is a sinner, drawing a clear line between what he does not know and what he knows from his own experience, that he was blind and now he sees. When the Pharisees press him to call Jesus a sinner and to deny Jesus' part in his healing, he holds to that single fact and answers plainly from what he knows. His answer stands firm and certain despite their efforts to confuse him, silence him, deny the miracle, and explain it away.
His restored sight is direct firsthand testimony to the miracle Jesus worked for him. That wonderful opening of his eyes is certain evidence of the truth of Christ's mission and divine commission. In contrast the Jewish leaders are spiritually blind through prejudice and unbelief and through envy and jealousy over Christ's popularity and wonderful miracles. They make no effort to receive enlightenment but choose to remain in darkness, hardening themselves and becoming even blinder, unwilling to receive the truth. Not content with closing their own eyes, they try to close his eyes, smother his testimony, and scatter the sheep, because they hate Jesus for His wonderful works and fear He will be honored above them, and by this they expose themselves as false shepherds.
He is a poor wandering sheep far from the fold, yet all heaven's sympathy is enlisted for him and the Lord is anxious to save him. The self-righteous leaders hold him in contempt as worthy only of sneers and hatred, despising the purchase of Christ's blood, while Christ shows him compassionate care as a shepherd. He is able to testify to the work done for him even though he does not yet know his Healer. Jesus afterward reveals Himself to him as the Son of God and he worships Him, showing that Christ's compassion reaches people who do not yet know Him.
The verse pictures the truly converted soul whose spiritual blindness is removed through Christ's transforming grace so that the person now sees. With Satan's delusions broken the sinner looks to Calvary and the costly offering given to save an apostate and ruined race. Contemplating the love of God, the sinner is deeply moved and becomes repentant. By beholding Christ the person is changed and transformed in character from glory to glory, entering the conflict between light and darkness by looking to the cross. The same movement from spiritual blindness to sight describes those who after living in disobedience to God's commandments accept the fourth commandment. They rejoice that they were not cut down as cumberers of the ground while disobedient but were spared until enlightened, when a vast reformation is wrought in their whole religious life. The image of a man who was blind and recovered his sight is also used as a comparison for a claim to be thoroughly transformed, presented in that instance as a deceptive claim.
The healed man refuses to decide whether Jesus is a sinner, drawing a clear line between what he does not know and what he knows from his own experience, that he was blind and now he sees. When the Pharisees press him to call Jesus a sinner and to deny Jesus' part in his healing, he holds to that single fact and answers plainly from what he knows. His answer stands firm and certain despite their efforts to confuse him, silence him, deny the miracle, and explain it away.
His restored sight is direct firsthand testimony to the miracle Jesus worked for him. That wonderful opening of his eyes is certain evidence of the truth of Christ's mission and divine commission. In contrast the Jewish leaders are spiritually blind through prejudice and unbelief and through envy and jealousy over Christ's popularity and wonderful miracles. They make no effort to receive enlightenment but choose to remain in darkness, hardening themselves and becoming even blinder, unwilling to receive the truth. Not content with closing their own eyes, they try to close his eyes, smother his testimony, and scatter the sheep, because they hate Jesus for His wonderful works and fear He will be honored above them, and by this they expose themselves as false shepherds.
He is a poor wandering sheep far from the fold, yet all heaven's sympathy is enlisted for him and the Lord is anxious to save him. The self-righteous leaders hold him in contempt as worthy only of sneers and hatred, despising the purchase of Christ's blood, while Christ shows him compassionate care as a shepherd. He is able to testify to the work done for him even though he does not yet know his Healer. Jesus afterward reveals Himself to him as the Son of God and he worships Him, showing that Christ's compassion reaches people who do not yet know Him.
The verse pictures the truly converted soul whose spiritual blindness is removed through Christ's transforming grace so that the person now sees. With Satan's delusions broken the sinner looks to Calvary and the costly offering given to save an apostate and ruined race. Contemplating the love of God, the sinner is deeply moved and becomes repentant. By beholding Christ the person is changed and transformed in character from glory to glory, entering the conflict between light and darkness by looking to the cross. The same movement from spiritual blindness to sight describes those who after living in disobedience to God's commandments accept the fourth commandment. They rejoice that they were not cut down as cumberers of the ground while disobedient but were spared until enlightened, when a vast reformation is wrought in their whole religious life. The image of a man who was blind and recovered his sight is also used as a comparison for a claim to be thoroughly transformed, presented in that instance as a deceptive claim.