9:1 And 1 as [Jesus] passed by, he saw a man which was blind
from [his] birth.
(1) Sin is even the beginning of all bodily diseases, and yet
it does not follow that in punishing, even very severely,
that God is punishing because of sin.
9:3 Jesus answered, a Neither hath this man sinned, nor his
parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest
in him.
(a) Christ reasons here as his disciples thought, who
presupposed that no diseases came except for the reason
of sins: as a result of this he answers that there was
another cause of this man's blindness, and that was in
order that God's work might be seen.
9:42 I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is
b day: the night cometh, when no man can work.
(2) The works of Christ are is it were a light, which enlighten
the darkness of the world.
(b) By "day" is meant the light, that is, the enlightening
doctrine of the heavenly truth: and by night is meant
the darkness which comes by the obscurity of the same
doctrine.
9:63 When he had thus spoken, he spat on the ground, and made
clay of the spittle, and he anointed the eyes of the blind
man with the clay,
(3) Christ healing the man born blind by taking the symbol of
clay, and afterward the symbol of the fountain of Siloam
(which signifies "sent") shows that as he at the beginning
made man, so does he again restore both his body and soul:
and yet in such a way that he himself comes first of his
own accord to heal us.
9:84 The neighbours therefore, and they which before had seen
him that he was blind, said, Is not this he that sat and
begged?
(4) A true image of all men, who as they are naturally blind do
not themselves receive the light that is offered unto them,
nor endure it in another, and yet make a great fuss among
themselves.
9:10 Therefore said they unto him, How were thine eyes c
opened?
(c) This is a Hebrew idiom, for they call a man's eyes shut
when they cannot receive any light: and therefore blind
men who are made to see are said to have their eyes
opened.
9:165 Therefore said some of the Pharisees, This man is not
of God, because he keepeth not the sabbath day. Others
said, How can a man that is a sinner do such miracles? And
there was a division among them.
(5) Religion is assaulted most by the pretence of religion: but
the more it is pressed down, the more it rises up.
9:24 Then again called they the man that was blind, and said
unto him, d Give God the praise: we know that this man is
a e sinner.
(d) A solemn order, by which men were put under oath in
ancient time to acknowledge their fault before God, as
if it was said to them, "Consider that you are before
God, who knows the entire matter, and therefore be sure
that you revere his majesty, and do him this honour and
confess the whole matter openly rather than to lie
before him"; (Jos 7:19; 1Sa 6:5).
(e) He is called a sinner in the Hebrew language, who is
a wicked man, and someone who makes an art of sinning.
9:286 Then they reviled him, and said, Thou art his disciple;
but we are Moses' disciples.
(6) Eventually, proud wickedness must necessarily break
forth, which lies vainly hidden under a zeal of
godliness.
9:34 They answered and said unto him, f Thou wast altogether
born in sins, and dost thou teach us? And they cast him
out.
(f) You are wicked even from your cradle, and as we used to
say, there is nothing in you but sin.
9:357 Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when he had
found him, he said unto him, Dost thou believe on the Son
of God?
(7) Most happy is their state who are cast furthest out of the
Church of the wicked (who themselves proudly boast to be of
the Church) so that Christ may come nearer to them.
9:398 And Jesus said, For g judgment I am come into this
world, that they h which see not might see; and that they
which see might be made blind.
(8) Christ enlightens all those by the preaching of the Gospel
who acknowledge their own darkness, but those who seem to
themselves to see clearly enough, those he altogether
blinds: and these latter ones are often those who have the
highest place in the Church.
(g) With great power and authority, to do what is righteous
and just: as if he said, "These men take upon
themselves to govern the people of God after their own
desire, as though they saw all things, and no one else
did: but I will rule much differently than these men
do: for those whom they consider as blind men, them
will I enlighten, and those who take themselves to be
wisest, them will I drown in most abundant darkness of
ignorance.
(h) In these words of seeing and not seeing there is a
secret taunting and rebuff to the Pharisees: for they
thought all men to be blind but themselves.
