Jesus Heals a Man Born Blind
"I was blind, but now I see"
Two things you can tap
- A verse number shows the Bible’s exact words.
- An underlined word shows what it means.
Story
What happened?
Tap a verse number, like , to read the Bible’s exact words.
The whole story, in shortWhat happens, start to finish. Open it if you want the ending first.
Jesus's disciples asked whose sin made a man blind from birth, and Jesus said it was no one's. He put mud on the man's eyes and sent him to wash in the Pool of Siloam, and the man came back seeing. The Pharisees questioned him and his frightened parents, and when the man said, "I was blind, but now I see!" and defended Jesus, they threw him out. Jesus found him, and the man said, "Lord, I believe," and worshiped him.
Where it is in the Bible: John 9
Who’s who and what came beforePeople, places, and the story so far. Open it anytime.
Scene Card
Cast
- Jesus: The one the Gospels present as the promised Messiah and the Son of God.
- The man born blind: A man who has never been able to see. He sits and begs for money.
- Jesus's disciples: His followers. They ask a hard question.
- The neighbors: People who knew the man as a beggar.
- The Pharisees: A Jewish group devoted to carefully keeping God's law. They question the man.
- The man's parents: They are afraid of the Pharisees.
Setting
- Jerusalem. A street, the Pool of Siloam, and a meeting with the Pharisees.
When
- A Sabbath day, about 2,000 years ago.
Before the Story
Jesus had said, "I am the light of the world." He said it in Jerusalem (8:12). Light helps people see.
The prophets promised a time when blind people would see. Isaiah wrote, "Then the eyes of the blind will be opened" (Isaiah 35:5).
The Sabbath was a day of rest. God's law said not to work on the seventh day. Some teachers made long lists of what counted as work.
Here's what you know that the man doesn't: The man has never seen Jesus. By the end of the story, he will see him with his own eyes.
Map of the Story
| Scene | Verses | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| 1. "Who sinned?" | 9:1-5 | The disciples ask why the man was born blind |
| 2. Mud and water | 9:6-7 | Jesus heals the man |
| 3. "Isn't this the man?" | 9:8-12 | The neighbors are not sure it's him |
| 4. The Pharisees ask questions | 9:13-17 | They argue about Jesus |
| 5. Afraid parents | 9:18-23 | The parents won't answer |
| 6. "I was blind, but now I see!" | 9:24-34 | The man speaks up and is thrown out |
| 7. Jesus finds him | 9:35-41 | The man sees Jesus and believes |
Plain Retelling
Scene 1 of 7"Who Sinned?"
As Jesus walked along, he saw a man who had been blind since he was born.
His disciples asked a question. "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" (9:2). Rabbi means teacher.
Many people back then thought that if something bad happened to you, it was a punishment for sin.
Jesus said no. "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but this happened so that the works of God would be displayed in him" (9:3).
Jesus said they must do God's work while it is day. "While I am in the world, I am the light of the world" (9:5).
Scene 2 of 7Mud and Water
Then Jesus spit on the ground and made some mud. He put the mud on the man's eyes.
"Go, wash in the Pool of Siloam," Jesus told him (9:7). Siloam means "Sent."
The man went and washed. He came back seeing.
Scene 3 of 7"Isn't This the Man?"
His neighbors were confused. "Isn't this the man who used to sit and beg?" they asked (9:8).
Some said it was him. Others said, "No, he just looks like him."
But the man kept saying, "I am the one" (9:9).
They asked how his eyes were opened. He told them: the man called Jesus made mud, put it on his eyes, and told him to wash. "So I went and washed and received my sight" (9:11).
"Where is He?" they asked. The man said, "I do not know" (9:12).
Scene 4 of 7The Pharisees Ask Questions
They brought the man to the Pharisees.
The day Jesus made the mud and healed the man was a Sabbath.
The Pharisees asked the man how he could see. He told them again.
Some Pharisees said, "This man is not from God, for He does not keep the Sabbath" (9:16). They thought making mud and healing counted as work.
Others said, "How can a sinful man perform such signs?" (9:16). They were divided.
They asked the man what he thought of Jesus. "He is a prophet," the man said (9:17). A prophet is someone who speaks for God.
Scene 5 of 7Afraid Parents
The leaders still did not believe the man had been blind. So they called his parents.
"Is this your son, the one you say was born blind? So how is it that he can now see?" (9:19).
His parents said, "We know he is our son. We know he was born blind. But we don't know how he can see now. Ask him. He is old enough to speak for himself."
They said this because they were afraid. The leaders had decided that anyone who said Jesus was the Christ would be put out of the synagogue. The synagogue was the place where people met to pray and hear God's word.
Scene 6 of 7"I Was Blind, but Now I See!"
The leaders called the man back a second time. "Give glory to God! We know that this man is a sinner" (9:24).
The man answered, "Whether He is a sinner I do not know. There is one thing I do know: I was blind, but now I see!" (9:25).
They asked him again how it happened. He said, "I already told you, and you did not listen." Then he asked, "Do you also want to become His disciples?" (9:27).
They insulted him. "You are His disciple; we are disciples of Moses" (9:28). They said they did not know where Jesus came from.
The man was amazed. They didn't know where Jesus came from, but Jesus had opened his eyes!
He said that God listens to people who worship him and do his will. "Never before has anyone heard of opening the eyes of a man born blind" (9:32). If Jesus were not from God, he could not do it.
The leaders were angry. "You were born in utter sin, and you are instructing us?" (9:34). And they threw him out.
Scene 7 of 7Jesus Finds Him
Jesus heard that they had thrown the man out. So Jesus went and found him.
"Do you believe in the Son of Man?" Jesus asked (9:35). "Son of Man" is a name Jesus used for himself.
"Who is He, Sir?" the man asked. "Tell me so that I may believe in Him" (9:36).
"You have already seen Him," Jesus said. "He is the One speaking with you" (9:37).
The man had never seen Jesus before. Now he looked at him.
"Lord, I believe," he said (9:38). And he worshiped Jesus.
Then Jesus said that he came so that blind people would see, and people who think they see would become blind.
Some Pharisees heard him. "Are we blind too?" they asked (9:40). Jesus said that because they claimed they could see, their guilt remained.
Meaning
What does it mean?
Read It
What Does This Mean?
| The text says | It means |
|---|---|
| "Who sinned, this man or his parents" (9:2) | The disciples thought blindness had to be someone's fault. |
| "Neither this man nor his parents sinned" (9:3) | Jesus said no. The man's blindness was not a punishment. |
| "I am the light of the world" (9:5) | Jesus gives sight to eyes and to hearts. |
| "Go, wash in the Pool of Siloam" (9:7) | Siloam means "Sent." Jesus is the one the Father sent. The man washed, and he was healed. |
| "I was blind, but now I see!" (9:25) | The man didn't know everything. He told what he knew. |
| "They threw him out" (9:34) | Telling the truth about Jesus cost him his place in the synagogue. |
| "He found the man" (9:35) | Jesus went looking for the man who had been thrown out. |
| "Lord, I believe" (9:38) | Now the man could see Jesus with his eyes, and believe in him with his heart. |
Back Then
Blind people had very few ways to earn money. Many had to sit by the road and beg (9:8).
The Pool of Siloam was in the southern part of Jerusalem. Water flowed into it through a tunnel cut by King Hezekiah (Easton's Bible Dictionary). In 2004, workers in Jerusalem found steps of a large pool from Jesus's time that many think is the Pool of Siloam.
Some teachers counted kneading as work. Making mud is a little like kneading dough. Some teachers said that kind of work broke the Sabbath.
Literal Reader Alert
Is disability a punishment from God? No. Jesus said plainly that neither the man nor his parents sinned (9:3). Being blind, or having any disability or illness, is not a punishment. If anyone has told you that, they were wrong.
Did God make the man blind just so Jesus could heal him? The Bible doesn't explain everything about why people suffer. Jesus didn't answer "whose fault is it?" He did God's work right then. He saw the man and helped him.
Why did Jesus use mud and spit? John doesn't say why. Jesus healed in different ways at different times. Some readers remember that God made the first man from the dust of the ground (Genesis 2:7).
Why did his parents seem not to care? They were afraid. Being put out of the synagogue meant being cut off from their community. Fear can make people do things they wouldn't normally do.
Does everyone need to be healed to be close to Jesus? No. Jesus healed this man's eyes. Many people who love Jesus live with blindness and other disabilities. The bigger gift in this story is that the man came to know Jesus.
How People Feel
| Who | Feeling | Why |
|---|---|---|
| The man | Amazed | He could see for the first time (9:7) |
| The neighbors | Confused | They weren't sure it was really him (9:9) |
| The parents | Afraid | They feared being put out of the synagogue (9:22) |
| The man | Brave | He kept telling the truth to the leaders (9:25, 9:30-33) |
| The Pharisees | Angry | They threw the man out (9:34) |
| The man | Grateful | Jesus found him, and he believed (9:38) |
For you
What does it mean for me?
Your Turn
What do you know for sure about Jesus? Tap one.
Just one thing
That's how the man started. "One thing I do know." You don't have to know everything to tell what's true.
He found me
Jesus went looking for the man who was thrown out. He still goes looking.
I've been left out
The man was thrown out too. Jesus came and found him. You are not forgotten.
I can't see it yet
Jesus gives sight. Keep looking at him in the stories. Ask him to help you see.
You Might Have Heard
"If something bad happens to you, you must have done something wrong."
What's true: Sin does hurt people, and our choices matter.
What the story is mainly about: Jesus said the man's blindness was not anyone's fault (9:3). Then he healed him. In this story, the people who were really blind were the ones who thought they could see.
Where Jesus is: Stopping for a man everyone else walked past. And then finding him again after he was thrown out.
Good News
The man didn't go looking for Jesus. Jesus saw him first. And when the man was thrown out, Jesus found him again.
"You have already seen Him... He is the One speaking with you" (9:37).
Jesus is the light of the world. He opens eyes, and he finds people who have been left out.
Jesus sees you, and he comes looking for you. He opens blind eyes so we can see him.
Big Idea
Jesus is the light of the world. He opened the eyes of a man born blind, and he found him when everyone else threw him out.
If this story brings up big feelings, talk with someone you trust, like a parent, pastor, or counselor.
For leaders and parentsLuther, church readings, and notes for teaching.
From Luther
In the Small Catechism, Luther explains the Third Article of the Creed. He teaches that the Holy Spirit calls us by the gospel and enlightens us with his gifts. To enlighten means to give light so we can see. Like the man born blind, we cannot open our own eyes to see Jesus. God gives the light.
In Church
Many churches follow the Revised Common Lectionary. It reads John 9:1-41 on the Fourth Sunday in Lent in Year A. Some churches have used it to teach people preparing for Baptism, because in Baptism God opens our eyes to Jesus.
We quote Luther for what he got right about grace. He also wrote terrible things about Jewish people. Read our note on that.
Memorize
How do I keep it?
One line from this story to learn by heart. Practice a little now. It will come back later so it sticks.
I was blind, but now I see!
How did that feel?
You finished Jesus Heals a Man Born Blind.
Using this at church
Read in church on
- Fourth Sunday in Lent Year AGospel, John 9:1–41
For a newsletter or sermon notes
Jesus Heals a Man Born Blind, explained in plain words. Everyone asks whose fault it is. Jesus opens the man's eyes. About 13 minutes. https://freescripture.org/stories/jesus-heals-a-man-born-blind/
Lines for the next eight Sundays, on Digital Lutheran Church