The man is questioned by the sanhedrim as to his cure. is called Jesus, made 73 CXXX. John to have been blind? Could any medicine have SECT. 11 He answered so strange an effect? And he replied, A cerand said, A man that tain man, who is called Jesus, and who is famous clay, and anointed for many other extraordinary works, made clay ix. 11, mine eyes, and said by spitting on the ground, and, having anointed urto me, Go to the mine eyes with it, said to me, Go to the pool of wash and I went and Siloam, and wash there and accordingly I went washed, and I received and washed, and immediately received my sight; and this is, in a few words, a true and exact account of this wonderful fact. pool of Siloam, and * sight. 12 Then said they he? He said, I know Then said they to him, Where is he that per- 12 unto him, Where is formed this, and gave thee such directions? And he said, I do not know; for I have never yet seen him, nor ever conversed with him, otherwise than as I just now told you. not. 13 They brought to the Pharisees him that afore-time was blind. 14 And it was the sabbath-day when Jesus made the clay, and opened his eyes. And they brought him who had formerly been 13 blind to the Pharisees in the grand sanhedrim, that he might be examined by them; that so, if there was any fraud in the matter, they might discover and expose it. Now it was on the 14 Sabbath-day when Jesus made the clay, in the manner before related, and opened his eyes; which was a circumstance that some of these hypocritical rulers pretended to take great offence at. 15 Then again the The Pharisees therefore, disposed to find all the 15 Pharisees also asked fault they could, asked him again, how, or by ceived his sight. He what means, he received his sight. And he said said unto them, He to them, exactly as he had before declared to the eyes, and I washed, people, He only put clay upon mine eyes, and I then, according to his command, went and washed at the neighbouring pool of Siloam, and, behold, I do now see perfectly well. him, how he had re put clay upon mine and do see. 16 Therefore said This man is not of God, Then said some of the Pharisees, This man, 16 some of the Pharisees, though apparently possessed of some extraordibecause he keepeth nary power, is not, to be sure, a messenger of not the sabbath-day. God, nor can he perform these works by a Divine Others said, How can agency, because he observeth not the sacred rest such miracles? of the sabbath, which the law of God so expressAnd ly enjoins. But others more wisely said, How a man that is a sinner, do can a man that is a notorious sinner and sabbath- 74 CXXX. His parents are called, and examined concerning him. SECT. the marks of a divine original that can be ima- And there was a divi gined? And there was a warm debate and division among them. John sion among them on this important question; the IX. 16. few friends of Christ among them not failing to the blind man again, urge so great an advantage against the rest h 17 But, to prevent the offence that might be taken 17 They say unto at their dispute, they turned and said again to what sayest thou of the blind man (that is, to him who had been him, that he hath openblind, and still was spoken of by that title), ed thine eyes? He What sayest thou concerning him, since he hath said, He is a Prophet. as thou declarest, opened thine eyes? And he freely said, It is clear to me that he is a most illustrious Prophet; for surely otherwise he would have been unable to perform so great a miracle. 18 18 But the Jews did not believe concerning him, that he had been blind, and received his sight, until they called the parents of him that had received his sight. 19 And they ask The Jews therefore of this great council, being generally displeased with his reply, and yet unable to invalidate it if the miracle was allowed, would not believe concerning him on his own credit, that he had formerly been blind, and had now received his sight; but represented it as a confederacy between him and Jesus, by an easy fraud, to get the reputation of so extraordinary a cure and in this view they went on roundly to censure it, till they had called in the parents of the man, who maintained that he had thus received his sight, that they might strictly examine them 19 on this question. And they asked them, saying; ed them, saying, Is Is this indeed your son, of whom it is reported this your son, who ye that you say he was born blind? Give us an ac- say was born blind? count of the whole matter; and particularly tell How then doth he now us, if you are sure that he was blind from his see? 20 birth, how then doth he now see? His parents 20 His parents ananswered them and said, We assuredly know that swered them, and said, this is our son; and affirm it to be true that he our son, and that he was born blind, and hath continued so from his was born blind: 21 infancy: But as for this strange fact, how he now sees, we know not; or who has opened his eyes, we know not any more than he has told us, hath opened his eyes, not being present when the cure was wrought: he is himself of a sufficient age to answer such a question; if you please therefore to ask him, he speak for himself, will undoubtedly speak concerning himself, and is best able to tell you his own story. 22 These things his parents said in this cautious We know that this is 21 But by what means he now seeth, we know not; or who we know not: he is of age, ask him, he shall 22 These words manner, not that they had any doubt of the cure spake his parents, be h The few friends of Christ among them, &c.] If Nicodemus, and Joseph of Arimathea, both members of the sunhedrim, were now present, they would as cause naturally distinguish themselves on this occasion; and Gamaliel too, on the principles he afterwards avowed (Acts v. 38, 39), must have been on their side. Reflections on the cure of him that was born blind. CXXX. 75 cause they feared the as wrought by Jesus, but because they were afraid SECT. Jews: for the Jews of the Jews: for the Jews, in this their highest that if any man did con- court, had already agreed, that if any one should John fess that he was Christ, shew such regard to Jesus of Nazareth as to con- IX. 22. he should be put out of fess him to be Christ, he should immediately be the synagogue. ask him. excommunicated and cast out of the synagogue'; a censure which was reckoned very infamous, and attended with many civil incapacities and 23 Therefore said his penalties. Not knowing therefore but such an 23 parents, He is of age, interpretation might be put on their owning the truth of this miracle, his parents declined giving any particular testimony concerning it; and rather chose to refer them to their son, and said, He is of age sufficient to be heard as an evidence, and it will therefore be most proper that you should ask the particulars from him. IMPROVEMENT. OH that the zeal of our great Master might quicken us his too Ver.5. negligent servants! Still is he the light of the world, by his doctrines, precepts, and example. May our eyes by Divine grace be opened to see, and our hearts be disposed to love and to follow this light! It was a governing maxim with him, and he meant it also for our admonition, I must work the works of him that sent 4 me while it is day; the night cometh, wherein no man can work. We are sent into the world on an important errand, to work out our own salvation, and that of others: may we improve the present day; and so much the rather, as we see the night approaching! On some the shadows of the evening are already drawing on; and as to others, their sun may go down at noon. Let us therefore, waving the curiosity of unprofitable speculations, apply ourselves seriously to the business of life, and zealously seize every oppor-2, 3 tunity of usefulness, Our Lord, as it should seem unasked, and by the person on 6, 7whom it was wrought unknown, performed this important and extraordinary cure. And the manner in which he did it is worthy of notice: He anointed his eyes with clay, and then commanded him to wash. Clay laid on the eye-lids might almost blind a man that had sight; but what could it do towards curing blindness? It reminds If any one should confess him to be Christ, &c.] Hence it appears, that though our Lord was cautious of professing himself to be the Christ in express terms, yet many understood the intimations he gave; and that most of his disciples by this time declared their faith in him under that VOL. VII. K character. It also farther appears from a Give 76 The man is called again before the sanhedrim. SECT. reminds us that God is no farther from the accomplishment of any purpose or event when he works with, than without means; 6,7- and that all the creatures are only that which his almighty ope -7 ration makes them. The blind man believed, and received the immediate benefit of it. Had he reasoned, like Naaman on the impropriety of the means, he had justly been left in darkness. Lord, may our proud hearts be subdued to the methods of thy recovering grace! And may we leave it to thee to choose how thou wilt bestow favours, which it is our highest interest on any terms to receive. 15, 17 It must be a satisfaction to every true Christian to observe the 18, 19 curiosity and exactness with which these Pharisees inquired into the miracles of Christ, and how thoroughly they canvassed every circumstance of them. A truth like this need not fear any examination. Every new witness which they heard confirmed the case, and confounded the obstinacy of their unbelief.-But surely 20--23 the weakness of the parents was very pitiable, who, in the midst of the evidence and obligation of such a miracle, were more afraid of incurring a human sentence than of offending God, by failing to own so great a favour, and to confess the blessed Person by whom it was wrought. The fear of man bringeth a snare (Prov. xxix. 25); but they whose eyes Christ has opened in a spiritual sense will see a glory and excellence in him which will animate them boldly to bear their testimony to him, in defiance of all the censures which men can pass, or of all the penalties by which they can enforce them. SECT. SECT. CXXXI. The man who was born blind that had received his sight is a second time examined before the sanhedrim, who, provoked by the freedom of his replies, excommunicate him; but Jesus meets him, and declares himself to be the Son of God. John IX. 24-38. JOHN IX. 24. xxx. NOW, as the sanhedrim were not able to discover any fraud in the miracle mentioned John JOHN IX. 24. they the man that THEN again called was blind, and said unin the preceding section by examining the pa- to him, Give God the praise: we know that IX. 24. rents, they therefore called a second time for the man who had been blind, and said to him, Give glory to God, by a free confession of the fraud, if there be any collusion or artifice in this affair; or, if the cure was really wrought in the a Give glory to God, by a free confession of the fraud, &c.] As it is greatly for the honour of the Divine omniscience and pro manner this man is a sinner. vidence that persons who are guilty of crimes not fully proved against them should freely confess them, and not presume, against 25 He answered and said, Whether he be a sinner, or no, I know They are provoked at his replies. 77 cxxxi. John manner thou affirmest, acknowledge the power, SECT. Then answered he and said, If he be a sinner, I 25 know not any thing of it, having no personal acnot: one thing I know, quaintance with him; but one thing I certainly that whereas I was know, and will stand to the truth of it, that whereas I was blind, even from my birth, I now see perfectly well, and owe my sight to the very person whom you condemn. blind, now I see. 26 Then said they to him again, What did he to thee? how opened he thine eyes? 27 He answered But they again said to him, hoping that, in some 26 minute circumstance at least, he might contradict his former account, and give them some advantage against him, Tell us once more, as particularly as thou canst, what did he unto thee? and how did he open thine eyes? And as the man perceived that they intended 27 them, I have told you only to insnare him, he answered them eagerly, already, and ye did not hear: wherefore would I have told you already, and ye have not regarded ye hear it again? will what I said, nor would at all believe me: why ve also be his disci- would you desire to hear it again? Would you also become his disciples, as many have lately done, and some, perhaps, on occasion of this miracle. which he has performed on me? ples? The Pharisees then were filled with indigna- 28 tion, and were so greatly exasperated at what appeared to them so insolent a speech, that they reviled him in very opprobrious language, and said, Thou art indeed this fellow's disciple, as many of the herd of ignorant people are; but we would have thee to know that we scorn the imputation, for we are the disciples of Moses, against the dictates of conscience, to maintain their own innocence; there is a great propriety in the phrase taken in this sense: (compare Josh. vii 19, and Rev. xi. 13.) Yet some have taken it as a general ad Tation by the glorious name of God; as 1 Kings xxii. 16; 2 Chron. xviii. 15; and Ma'. xxvi. 63.)-The words also admit another sense, which I have comprehended in the paraphrase; but I prefer the former. b This man is a sinner.] I cannot, with Mr. Locke (Reasonableness of Christianity, p. 28), imagine this any proof of a tradition among the Jews that the Messiah should be perfectly free from sin; but rather conclude that sinner here, as ver. 16, signifies and a notoriously wicked man. It was certain We are the disciples of Moses.] Hereby d We |