Yohanes 15:1-27
Konteks15:1 “I am the true vine 1 and my Father is the gardener. 2 15:2 He takes away 3 every branch that does not bear 4 fruit in me. He 5 prunes 6 every branch that bears 7 fruit so that it will bear more fruit. 15:3 You are clean already 8 because of the word that I have spoken to you. 15:4 Remain 9 in me, and I will remain in you. 10 Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, 11 unless it remains 12 in 13 the vine, so neither can you unless you remain 14 in me.
15:5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. The one who remains 15 in me – and I in him – bears 16 much fruit, 17 because apart from me you can accomplish 18 nothing. 15:6 If anyone does not remain 19 in me, he is thrown out like a branch, and dries up; and such branches are gathered up and thrown into the fire, 20 and are burned up. 21 15:7 If you remain 22 in me and my words remain 23 in you, ask whatever you want, and it will be done for you. 24 15:8 My Father is honored 25 by this, that 26 you bear 27 much fruit and show that you are 28 my disciples.
15:9 “Just as the Father has loved me, I have also loved you; remain 29 in my love. 15:10 If you obey 30 my commandments, you will remain 31 in my love, just as I have obeyed 32 my Father’s commandments and remain 33 in his love. 15:11 I have told you these things 34 so that my joy may be in you, and your joy may be complete. 15:12 My commandment is this – to love one another just as I have loved you. 35 15:13 No one has greater love than this – that one lays down his life 36 for his friends. 15:14 You are my friends 37 if you do what I command you. 15:15 I no longer call you slaves, 38 because the slave does not understand 39 what his master is doing. But I have called you friends, because I have revealed to you everything 40 I heard 41 from my Father. 15:16 You did not choose me, but I chose you 42 and appointed you to go and bear 43 fruit, fruit that remains, 44 so that whatever you ask the Father in my name he will give you. 15:17 This 45 I command you – to love one another.
15:18 “If the world hates you, be aware 46 that it hated me first. 47 15:19 If you belonged to the world, 48 the world would love you as its own. 49 However, because you do not belong to the world, 50 but I chose you out of the world, for this reason 51 the world hates you. 52 15:20 Remember what 53 I told you, ‘A slave 54 is not greater than his master.’ 55 If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they obeyed 56 my word, they will obey 57 yours too. 15:21 But they will do all these things to you on account of 58 my name, because they do not know the one who sent me. 59 15:22 If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not be guilty of sin. 60 But they no longer have any excuse for their sin. 15:23 The one who hates me hates my Father too. 15:24 If I had not performed 61 among them the miraculous deeds 62 that no one else did, they would not be guilty of sin. 63 But now they have seen the deeds 64 and have hated both me and my Father. 65 15:25 Now this happened 66 to fulfill the word that is written in their law, ‘They hated me without reason.’ 67 15:26 When the Advocate 68 comes, whom I will send you from the Father – the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father – he 69 will testify about me, 15:27 and you also will testify, because you have been with me from the beginning.
Yohanes 9:1-41
Konteks9:1 Now as Jesus was passing by, 70 he saw a man who had been blind from birth. 9:2 His disciples asked him, 71 “Rabbi, who committed the sin that caused him to be born blind, this man 72 or his parents?” 73 9:3 Jesus answered, “Neither this man 74 nor his parents sinned, but he was born blind so that 75 the acts 76 of God may be revealed 77 through what happens to him. 78 9:4 We must perform the deeds 79 of the one who sent me 80 as long as 81 it is daytime. Night is coming when no one can work. 9:5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” 82 9:6 Having said this, 83 he spat on the ground and made some mud 84 with the saliva. He 85 smeared the mud on the blind man’s 86 eyes 9:7 and said to him, “Go wash in the pool of Siloam” 87 (which is translated “sent”). 88 So the blind man 89 went away and washed, and came back seeing.
9:8 Then the neighbors and the people who had seen him previously 90 as a beggar began saying, 91 “Is this not the man 92 who used to sit and beg?” 9:9 Some people said, 93 “This is the man!” 94 while others said, “No, but he looks like him.” 95 The man himself 96 kept insisting, “I am the one!” 97 9:10 So they asked him, 98 “How then were you made to see?” 99 9:11 He replied, 100 “The man called Jesus made mud, 101 smeared it 102 on my eyes and told me, 103 ‘Go to Siloam and wash.’ So I went and washed, and was able to see.” 104 9:12 They said 105 to him, “Where is that man?” 106 He replied, 107 “I don’t know.”
9:13 They brought the man who used to be blind 108 to the Pharisees. 109 9:14 (Now the day on which Jesus made the mud 110 and caused him to see 111 was a Sabbath.) 112 9:15 So the Pharisees asked him again how he had gained his sight. 113 He replied, 114 “He put mud 115 on my eyes and I washed, and now 116 I am able to see.”
9:16 Then some of the Pharisees began to say, 117 “This man is not from God, because he does not observe 118 the Sabbath.” 119 But others said, “How can a man who is a sinner perform 120 such miraculous signs?” Thus there was a division 121 among them. 9:17 So again they asked the man who used to be blind, 122 “What do you say about him, since he caused you to see?” 123 “He is a prophet,” the man replied. 124
9:18 Now the Jewish religious leaders 125 refused to believe 126 that he had really been blind and had gained his sight until at last they summoned 127 the parents of the man who had become able to see. 128 9:19 They asked the parents, 129 “Is this your son, whom you say 130 was born blind? Then how does he now see?” 9:20 So his parents replied, 131 “We know that this is our son and that he was born blind. 9:21 But we do not know how he is now able to see, nor do we know who caused him to see. 132 Ask him, he is a mature adult. 133 He will speak for himself.” 9:22 (His parents said these things because they were afraid of the Jewish religious leaders. 134 For the Jewish leaders had already agreed that anyone who confessed Jesus 135 to be the Christ 136 would be put out 137 of the synagogue. 138 9:23 For this reason his parents said, “He is a mature adult, 139 ask him.”) 140
9:24 Then they summoned 141 the man who used to be blind 142 a second time and said to him, “Promise before God to tell the truth. 143 We know that this man 144 is a sinner.” 9:25 He replied, 145 “I do not know whether he is a sinner. I do know one thing – that although I was blind, now I can see.” 9:26 Then they said to him, “What did he do to you? How did he cause you to see?” 146 9:27 He answered, 147 “I told you already and you didn’t listen. 148 Why do you want to hear it 149 again? You people 150 don’t want to become his disciples too, do you?”
9:28 They 151 heaped insults 152 on him, saying, 153 “You are his disciple! 154 We are disciples of Moses! 9:29 We know that God has spoken to Moses! We do not know where this man 155 comes from!” 9:30 The man replied, 156 “This is a remarkable thing, 157 that you don’t know where he comes from, and yet he caused me to see! 158 9:31 We know that God doesn’t listen to 159 sinners, but if anyone is devout 160 and does his will, God 161 listens to 162 him. 163 9:32 Never before 164 has anyone heard of someone causing a man born blind to see. 165 9:33 If this man 166 were not from God, he could do nothing.” 9:34 They replied, 167 “You were born completely in sinfulness, 168 and yet you presume to teach us?” 169 So they threw him out.
9:35 Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, so he found the man 170 and said to him, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” 171 9:36 The man 172 replied, 173 “And who is he, sir, that 174 I may believe in him?” 9:37 Jesus told him, “You have seen him; he 175 is the one speaking with you.” 176 9:38 [He said, “Lord, I believe,” and he worshiped him. 177 9:39 Jesus 178 said,] 179 “For judgment I have come into this world, so that those who do not see may gain their sight, 180 and the ones who see may become blind.”
9:40 Some of the Pharisees 181 who were with him heard this 182 and asked him, 183 “We are not blind too, are we?” 184 9:41 Jesus replied, 185 “If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin, 186 but now because you claim that you can see, 187 your guilt 188 remains.” 189
[15:1] 1 sn I am the true vine. There are numerous OT passages which refer to Israel as a vine: Ps 80:8-16, Isa 5:1-7, Jer 2:21, Ezek 15:1-8, 17:5-10, 19:10-14, and Hos 10:1. The vine became symbolic of Israel, and even appeared on some coins issued by the Maccabees. The OT passages which use this symbol appear to regard Israel as faithless to Yahweh (typically rendered as “Lord” in the OT) and/or the object of severe punishment. Ezek 15:1-8 in particular talks about the worthlessness of wood from a vine (in relation to disobedient Judah). A branch cut from a vine is worthless except to be burned as fuel. This fits more with the statements about the disciples (John 15:6) than with Jesus’ description of himself as the vine. Ezek 17:5-10 contains vine imagery which refers to a king of the house of David, Zedekiah, who was set up as king in Judah by Nebuchadnezzar. Zedekiah allied himself to Egypt and broke his covenant with Nebuchadnezzar (and therefore also with God), which would ultimately result in his downfall (17:20-21). Ezek 17:22-24 then describes the planting of a cedar sprig which grows into a lofty tree, a figurative description of Messiah. But it is significant that Messiah himself is not described in Ezek 17 as a vine, but as a cedar tree. The vine imagery here applies to Zedekiah’s disobedience. Jesus’ description of himself as the true vine in John 15:1 ff. is to be seen against this background, but it differs significantly from the imagery surveyed above. It represents new imagery which differs significantly from OT concepts; it appears to be original with Jesus. The imagery of the vine underscores the importance of fruitfulness in the Christian life and the truth that this results not from human achievement, but from one’s position in Christ. Jesus is not just giving some comforting advice, but portraying to the disciples the difficult path of faithful service. To some degree the figure is similar to the head-body metaphor used by Paul, with Christ as head and believers as members of the body. Both metaphors bring out the vital and necessary connection which exists between Christ and believers.
[15:2] sn The Greek verb αἴρω (airw) can mean “lift up” as well as “take away,” and it is sometimes argued that here it is a reference to the gardener “lifting up” (i.e., propping up) a weak branch so that it bears fruit again. In Johannine usage the word occurs in the sense of “lift up” in 8:59 and 5:8-12, but in the sense of “remove” it is found in 11:39, 11:48, 16:22, and 17:15. In context (theological presuppositions aside for the moment) the meaning “remove” does seem more natural and less forced (particularly in light of v. 6, where worthless branches are described as being “thrown out” – an image that seems incompatible with restoration). One option, therefore, would be to understand the branches which are taken away (v. 2) and thrown out (v. 6) as believers who forfeit their salvation because of unfruitfulness. However, many see this interpretation as encountering problems with the Johannine teaching on the security of the believer, especially John 10:28-29. This leaves two basic ways of understanding Jesus’ statements about removal of branches in 15:2 and 15:6: (1) These statements may refer to an unfaithful (disobedient) Christian, who is judged at the judgment seat of Christ “through fire” (cf. 1 Cor 3:11-15). In this case the “removal” of 15:2 may refer (in an extreme case) to the physical death of a disobedient Christian. (2) These statements may refer to someone who was never a genuine believer in the first place (e.g., Judas and the Jews who withdrew after Jesus’ difficult teaching in 6:66), in which case 15:6 refers to eternal judgment. In either instance it is clear that 15:6 refers to the fires of judgment (cf. OT imagery in Ps 80:16 and Ezek 15:1-8). But view (1) requires us to understand this in terms of the judgment of believers at the judgment seat of Christ. This concept does not appear in the Fourth Gospel because from the perspective of the author the believer does not come under judgment; note especially 3:18, 5:24, 5:29. The first reference (3:18) is especially important because it occurs in the context of 3:16-21, the section which is key to the framework of the entire Fourth Gospel and which is repeatedly alluded to throughout. A similar image to this one is used by John the Baptist in Matt 3:10, “And the ax is already laid at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.” Since this is addressed to the Pharisees and Sadducees who were coming to John for baptism, it almost certainly represents a call to initial repentance. More importantly, however, the imagery of being cast into the fire constitutes a reference to eternal judgment, a use of imagery which is much nearer to the Johannine imagery in 15:6 than the Pauline concept of the judgment seat of Christ (a judgment for believers) mentioned above. The use of the Greek verb μένω (menw) in 15:6 also supports view (2). When used of the relationship between Jesus and the disciple and/or Jesus and the Father, it emphasizes the permanence of the relationship (John 6:56, 8:31, 8:35, 14:10). The prototypical branch who has not remained is Judas, who departed in 13:30. He did not bear fruit, and is now in the realm of darkness, a mere tool of Satan. His eternal destiny, being cast into the fire of eternal judgment, is still to come. It seems most likely, therefore, that the branches who do not bear fruit and are taken away and burned are false believers, those who profess to belong to Jesus but who in reality do not belong to him. In the Gospel of John, the primary example of this category is Judas. In 1 John 2:18-19 the “antichrists” fall into the same category; they too may be thought of as branches that did not bear fruit. They departed from the ranks of the Christians because they never did really belong, and their departure shows that they did not belong.
[15:2] 4 tn Or “does not yield.”
[15:2] 5 tn Grk “And he”; the conjunction καί (kai, “and”) has been omitted in the translation in keeping with the tendency in contemporary English style to use shorter sentences.
[15:2] 6 tn Or “trims”; Grk “cleanses” (a wordplay with “clean” in v. 3). Καθαίρει (kaqairei) is not the word one would have expected here, but it provides the transition from the vine imagery to the disciples – there is a wordplay (not reproducible in English) between αἴρει (airei) and καθαίρει in this verse. While the purpose of the Father in cleansing his people is clear, the precise means by which he does so is not immediately obvious. This will become clearer, however, in the following verse.
[15:3] 8 sn The phrase you are clean already occurs elsewhere in the Gospel of John only at the washing of the disciples’ feet in 13:10, where Jesus had used it of the disciples being cleansed from sin. This further confirms the proposed understanding of John 15:2 and 15:6 since Judas was specifically excluded from this statement (but not all of you).
[15:4] 10 tn Grk “and I in you.” The verb has been repeated for clarity and to conform to contemporary English style, which typically allows fewer ellipses (omitted or understood words) than Greek.
[15:4] 11 sn The branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it remains connected to the vine, from which its life and sustenance flows. As far as the disciples were concerned, they would produce no fruit from themselves if they did not remain in their relationship to Jesus, because the eternal life which a disciple must possess in order to bear fruit originates with Jesus; he is the source of all life and productivity for the disciple.
[15:4] 13 tn While it would be more natural to say “on the vine” (so NAB), the English preposition “in” has been retained here to emphasize the parallelism with the following clause “unless you remain in me.” To speak of remaining “in” a person is not natural English either, but is nevertheless a biblical concept (cf. “in Christ” in Eph 1:3, 4, 6, 7, 11).
[15:5] 17 tn Grk “in him, this one bears much fruit.” The pronoun “this one” has been omitted from the translation because it is redundant according to contemporary English style.
[15:5] sn Many interpret the imagery of fruit here and in 15:2, 4 in terms of good deeds or character qualities, relating it to passages elsewhere in the NT like Matt 3:8 and 7:20, Rom 6:22, Gal 5:22, etc. This is not necessarily inaccurate, but one must remember that for John, to have life at all is to bear fruit, while one who does not bear fruit shows that he does not have the life (once again, conduct is the clue to paternity, as in John 8:41; compare also 1 John 4:20).
[15:6] 20 sn Such branches are gathered up and thrown into the fire. The author does not tell who it is who does the gathering and throwing into the fire. Although some claim that realized eschatology is so prevalent in the Fourth Gospel that no references to final eschatology appear at all, the fate of these branches seems to point to the opposite. The imagery is almost certainly that of eschatological judgment, and recalls some of the OT vine imagery which involves divine rejection and judgment of disobedient Israel (Ezek 15:4-6, 19:12).
[15:6] 21 tn Grk “they gather them up and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.”
[15:7] 24 sn Once again Jesus promises the disciples ask whatever you want, and it will be done for you. This recalls 14:13-14, where the disciples were promised that if they asked anything in Jesus’ name it would be done for them. The two thoughts are really quite similar, since here it is conditioned on the disciples’ remaining in Jesus and his words remaining in them. The first phrase relates to the genuineness of their relationship with Jesus. The second phrase relates to their obedience. When both of these qualifications are met, the disciples would in fact be asking in Jesus’ name and therefore according to his will.
[15:8] 26 tn The ἵνα (Jina) clause is best taken as substantival in apposition to ἐν τούτῳ (en toutw) at the beginning of the verse. The Father is glorified when the disciples bring forth abundant fruit. Just as Jesus has done the works which he has seen his Father doing (5:19-29) so also will his disciples.
[15:8] 28 tc Most
[15:11] 34 tn Grk “These things I have spoken to you.”
[15:12] 35 sn Now the reference to the commandments (plural) in 15:10 have been reduced to a singular commandment: The disciples are to love one another, just as Jesus has loved them. This is the ‘new commandment’ of John 13:34, and it is repeated in 15:17. The disciples’ love for one another is compared to Jesus’ love for them. How has Jesus shown his love for the disciples? This was illustrated in 13:1-20 in the washing of the disciples’ feet, introduced by the statement in 13:1 that Jesus loved them “to the end.” In context this constitutes a reference to Jesus’ self-sacrificial death on the cross on their behalf; the love they are to have for one another is so great that it must include a self-sacrificial willingness to die for one another if necessary. This is exactly what Jesus is discussing here, because he introduces the theme of his sacrificial death in the following verse. In John 10:18 and 14:31 Jesus spoke of his death on the cross as a commandment he had received from his Father, which also links the idea of commandment and love as they are linked here. One final note: It is not just the degree or intensity of the disciples’ love for one another that Jesus is referring to when he introduces by comparison his own death on the cross (that they must love one another enough to die for one another) but the very means of expressing that love: It is to express itself in self-sacrifice for one another, sacrifice up to the point of death, which is what Jesus himself did on the cross (cf. 1 John 3:16).
[15:13] 36 tn Or “one dies willingly.”
[15:14] 37 sn This verse really explains John 15:10 in another way. Those who keep Jesus’ commandments are called his friends, those friends for whom he lays down his life (v. 13). It is possible to understand this verse as referring to a smaller group within Christianity as a whole, perhaps only the apostles who were present when Jesus spoke these words. Some have supported this by comparing it to the small group of associates and advisers to the Roman Emperor who were called “Friends of the Emperor.” Others would see these words as addressed only to those Christians who as disciples were obedient to Jesus. In either case the result would be to create a sort of “inner circle” of Christians who are more privileged than mere “believers” or average Christians. In context, it seems clear that Jesus’ words must be addressed to all true Christians, not just some narrower category of believers, because Jesus’ sacrificial death, which is his act of love toward his friends (v. 13) applies to all Christians equally (cf. John 13:1).
[15:15] 38 tn See the note on the word “slaves” in 4:51.
[15:15] 39 tn Or “does not know.”
[15:15] 40 tn Grk “all things.”
[15:16] 42 sn You did not choose me, but I chose you. If the disciples are now elevated in status from slaves to friends, they are friends who have been chosen by Jesus, rather than the opposite way round. Again this is true of all Christians, not just the twelve, and the theme that Christians are “chosen” by God appears frequently in other NT texts (e.g., Rom 8:33; Eph 1:4ff.; Col 3:12; and 1 Pet 2:4). Putting this together with the comments on 15:14 one may ask whether the author sees any special significance at all for the twelve. Jesus said in John 6:70 and 13:18 that he chose them, and 15:27 makes clear that Jesus in the immediate context is addressing those who have been with him from the beginning. In the Fourth Gospel the twelve, as the most intimate and most committed followers of Jesus, are presented as the models for all Christians, both in terms of their election and in terms of their mission.
[15:16] 44 sn The purpose for which the disciples were appointed (“commissioned”) is to go and bear fruit, fruit that remains. The introduction of the idea of “going” at this point suggests that the fruit is something more than just character qualities in the disciples’ own lives, but rather involves fruit in the lives of others, i.e., Christian converts. There is a mission involved (cf. John 4:36). The idea that their fruit is permanent, however, relates back to vv. 7-8, as does the reference to asking the Father in Jesus’ name. It appears that as the imagery of the vine and the branches develops, the “fruit” which the branches produce shifts in emphasis from qualities in the disciples’ own lives in John 15:2, 4, 5 to the idea of a mission which affects the lives of others in John 15:16. The point of transition would be the reference to fruit in 15:8.
[15:17] 45 tn Grk “These things.”
[15:18] 47 tn Grk “it hated me before you.”
[15:19] 48 tn Grk “if you were of the world.”
[15:19] 49 tn The words “you as” are not in the original but are supplied for clarity.
[15:19] 50 tn Grk “because you are not of the world.”
[15:19] 51 tn Or “world, therefore.”
[15:19] 52 sn I chose you out of the world…the world hates you. Two themes are brought together here. In 8:23 Jesus had distinguished himself from the world in addressing his Jewish opponents: “You are from below, I am from above; you are of this world, I am not of this world.” In 15:16 Jesus told the disciples “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you.” Now Jesus has united these two ideas as he informs the disciples that he has chosen them out of the world. While the disciples will still be “in” the world after Jesus has departed, they will not belong to it, and Jesus prays later in John 17:15-16 to the Father, “I do not ask you to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.” The same theme also occurs in 1 John 4:5-6: “They are from the world; therefore they speak as from the world, and the world listens to them. We are from God; he who knows God listens to us; he who is not from God does not listen to us.” Thus the basic reason why the world hates the disciples (as it hated Jesus before them) is because they are not of the world. They are born from above, and are not of the world. For this reason the world hates them.
[15:20] 53 tn Grk “Remember the word that I said to you.”
[15:20] 54 tn See the note on the word “slaves” in 4:51.
[15:20] 55 sn A slave is not greater than his master. Jesus now recalled a statement he had made to the disciples before, in John 13:16. As the master has been treated, so will the slaves be treated also. If the world had persecuted Jesus, then it would also persecute the disciples. If the world had kept Jesus’ word, it would likewise keep the word of the disciples. In this statement there is the implication that the disciples would carry on the ministry of Jesus after his departure; they would in their preaching and teaching continue to spread the message which Jesus himself had taught while he was with them. And they would meet with the same response, by and large, that he encountered.
[15:20] 56 tn Or “if they kept.”
[15:20] 57 tn Or “they will keep.”
[15:21] 58 tn Or “because of.”
[15:21] 59 tn Jesus is referring to God as “the one who sent me.”
[15:22] 60 tn Grk “they would not have sin” (an idiom).
[15:22] sn Jesus now describes the guilt of the world. He came to these people with both words (15:22) and sign-miracles (15:24), yet they remained obstinate in their unbelief, and this sin of unbelief was without excuse. Jesus was not saying that if he had not come and spoken to these people they would be sinless; rather he was saying that if he had not come and spoken to them, they would not be guilty of the sin of rejecting him and the Father he came to reveal. Rejecting Jesus is the one ultimate sin for which there can be no forgiveness, because the one who has committed this sin has at the same time rejected the only cure that exists. Jesus spoke similarly to the Pharisees in 9:41: “If you were blind, you would have no sin (same phrase as here), but now you say ‘We see’ your sin remains.”
[15:24] 61 tn Or “If I had not done.”
[15:24] 62 tn Grk “the works.”
[15:24] 63 tn Grk “they would not have sin” (an idiom).
[15:24] 64 tn The words “the deeds” are supplied to clarify from context what was seen. Direct objects in Greek were often omitted when clear from the context.
[15:24] 65 tn Or “But now they have both seen and hated both me and my Father.” It is possible to understand both the “seeing” and the “hating” to refer to both Jesus and the Father, but this has the world “seeing” the Father, which seems alien to the Johannine Jesus. (Some point out John 14:9 as an example, but this is addressed to the disciples, not to the world.) It is more likely that the “seeing” refers to the miraculous deeds mentioned in the first half of the verse. Such an understanding of the first “both – and” construction is apparently supported by BDF §444.3.
[15:25] 66 tn The words “this happened” are not in the Greek text but are supplied to complete an ellipsis.
[15:25] 67 sn A quotation from Ps 35:19 and Ps 69:4. As a technical term law (νόμος, nomos) is usually restricted to the Pentateuch (the first five books of the OT), but here it must have a broader reference, since the quotation is from Ps 35:19 or Ps 69:4. The latter is the more likely source for the quoted words, since it is cited elsewhere in John’s Gospel (2:17 and 19:29, in both instances in contexts associated with Jesus’ suffering and death).
[15:26] 68 tn Or “Helper” or “Counselor”; Grk “Paraclete,” from the Greek word παράκλητος (paraklhto"). See the note on the word “Advocate” in John 14:16 for discussion of how this word is translated.
[9:1] 70 tn Or “going along.” The opening words of chap. 9, καὶ παράγων (kai paragwn), convey only the vaguest indication of the circumstances.
[9:1] sn Since there is no break with chap. 8, Jesus is presumably still in Jerusalem, and presumably not still in the temple area. The events of chap. 9 fall somewhere between the feast of Tabernacles (John 7:2) and the feast of the Dedication (John 10:22). But in the author’s narrative the connection exists – the incident recorded in chap. 9 (along with the ensuing debates with the Pharisees) serves as a real-life illustration of the claim Jesus made in 8:12, I am the light of the world. This is in fact the probable theological motivation behind the juxtaposition of these two incidents in the narrative. The second serves as an illustration of the first, and as a concrete example of the victory of light over darkness. One other thing which should be pointed out about the miracle recorded in chap. 9 is its messianic significance. In the OT it is God himself who is associated with the giving of sight to the blind (Exod 4:11, Ps 146:8). In a number of passages in Isa (29:18, 35:5, 42:7) it is considered to be a messianic activity.
[9:2] 71 tn Grk “asked him, saying.”
[9:2] 73 tn Grk “in order that he should be born blind.”
[9:2] sn The disciples assumed that sin (regardless of who committed it) was the cause of the man’s blindness. This was a common belief in Judaism; the rabbis used Ezek 18:20 to prove there was no death without sin, and Ps 89:33 to prove there was no punishment without guilt (the Babylonian Talmud, b. Shabbat 55a, although later than the NT, illustrates this). Thus in this case the sin must have been on the part of the man’s parents, or during his own prenatal existence. Song Rabbah 1:41 (another later rabbinic work) stated that when a pregnant woman worshiped in a heathen temple the unborn child also committed idolatry. This is only one example of how, in rabbinic Jewish thought, an unborn child was capable of sinning.
[9:3] 75 tn Grk “but so that.” There is an ellipsis that must be supplied: “but [he was born blind] so that” or “but [it happened to him] so that.”
[9:3] 76 tn Or “deeds”; Grk “works.”
[9:3] 77 tn Or “manifested,” “brought to light.”
[9:4] 79 tn Grk “We must work the works.”
[9:4] 80 tn Or “of him who sent me” (God).
[9:5] 82 sn Jesus’ statement I am the light of the world connects the present account with 8:12. Here (seen more clearly than at 8:12) it is obvious what the author sees as the significance of Jesus’ statement. “Light” is not a metaphysical definition of the person of Jesus but a description of his effect on the world, forcing everyone in the world to ‘choose up sides’ for or against him (cf. 3:19-21).
[9:6] 83 tn Grk “said these things.”
[9:6] 84 tn Or “clay” (moistened earth of a clay-like consistency). The textual variant preserved in the Syriac text of Ephraem’s commentary on the Diatessaron (“he made eyes from his clay”) probably arose from the interpretation given by Irenaeus in Against Heresies: “that which the Artificer, the Word, had omitted to form in the womb, he then supplied in public.” This involves taking the clay as an allusion to Gen 2:7, which is very unlikely.
[9:6] 85 tn Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, the conjunction καί (kai) was replaced by a third person pronoun and a new sentence started here in the translation.
[9:7] 87 tn The pool’s name in Hebrew is shiloah from the Hebrew verb “to send.” In Gen 49:10 the somewhat obscure shiloh was interpreted messianically by later Jewish tradition, and some have seen a lexical connection between the two names (although this is somewhat dubious). It is known, however, that it was from the pool of Siloam that the water which was poured out at the altar during the feast of Tabernacles was drawn.
[9:7] 88 sn This is a parenthetical note by the author. Why does he comment on the meaning of the name of the pool? Here, the significance is that the Father sent the Son, and the Son sent the man born blind. The name of the pool is applicable to the man, but also to Jesus himself, who was sent from heaven.
[9:7] 89 tn Grk “So he”; the referent (the blind man) is specified in the translation for clarity.
[9:8] 91 tn An ingressive force (“began saying”) is present here because the change in status of the blind person provokes this new response from those who knew him.
[9:9] 93 tn Grk “Others were saying.”
[9:9] 94 tn Grk “This is the one.”
[9:9] 95 tn Grk “No, but he is like him.”
[9:9] 96 tn Grk “That one”; the referent (the man himself) is specified in the translation for clarity.
[9:10] 98 tn Grk “So they were saying to him.”
[9:10] 99 tn Grk “How then were your eyes opened” (an idiom referring to restoration of sight).
[9:11] 100 tn Grk “That one answered.”
[9:11] 101 tn Or “clay” (moistened earth of a clay-like consistency).
[9:11] 102 tn Grk “and smeared.” Direct objects in Greek were often omitted when obvious from the context.
[9:11] 103 tn Grk “said to me.”
[9:11] 104 tn Or “and I gained my sight.”
[9:12] 105 tn Grk “And they said.”
[9:12] 106 tn Grk “that one.” “Man” is more normal English style for the referent.
[9:13] 108 tn Grk “who was formerly blind.”
[9:13] 109 sn See the note on Pharisees in 1:24.
[9:14] 110 tn Or “clay” (moistened earth of a clay-like consistency).
[9:14] 111 tn Grk “and opened his eyes” (an idiom referring to restoration of sight).
[9:14] 112 sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.
[9:15] 113 tn Or “how he had become able to see.”
[9:15] sn So the Pharisees asked him. Note the subtlety here: On the surface, the man is being judged. But through him, Jesus is being judged. Yet in reality (as the discerning reader will realize) it is ironically the Pharisees themselves who are being judged by their response to Jesus who is the light of the world (cf. 3:17-21).
[9:15] 114 tn Grk “And he said to them.”
[9:15] 115 tn Or “clay” (moistened earth of a clay-like consistency).
[9:15] 116 tn The word “now” is not in the Greek text, but is supplied to indicate the contrast between the man’s former state (blind) and his present state (able to see).
[9:16] 117 tn As a response to the answers of the man who used to be blind, the use of the imperfect tense in the reply of the Pharisees is best translated as an ingressive imperfect (“began to say” or “started saying”).
[9:16] 118 tn Grk “he does not keep.”
[9:16] 119 sn The Jewish religious leaders considered the work involved in making the mud to be a violation of the Sabbath.
[9:16] 121 tn Or “So there was discord.”
[9:17] 122 tn Grk “the blind man.”
[9:17] 123 tn Grk “since he opened your eyes” (an idiom referring to restoration of sight).
[9:17] 124 tn Grk “And he said, ‘He is a prophet.’”
[9:17] sn At this point the man, pressed by the Pharisees, admitted there was something special about Jesus. But here, since prophet is anarthrous (is not accompanied by the Greek article) and since in his initial reply in 9:11-12 the man showed no particular insight into the true identity of Jesus, this probably does not refer to the prophet of Deut 18:15, but merely to an unusual person who is capable of working miracles. The Pharisees had put this man on the spot, and he felt compelled to say something about Jesus, but he still didn’t have a clear conception of who Jesus was, so he labeled him a “prophet.”
[9:18] 125 tn Or “the Jewish religious authorities”; Grk “the Jews.” In NT usage the term ᾿Ιουδαῖοι (Ioudaioi) may refer to the entire Jewish people, the residents of Jerusalem and surrounding territory, the authorities in Jerusalem, or merely those who were hostile to Jesus. (For further information see R. G. Bratcher, “‘The Jews’ in the Gospel of John,” BT 26 [1975]: 401-9.) Here the phrase refers mainly to the Pharisees, mentioned by name in John 9:13, 15, 16. References in this context to Pharisees and to the synagogue (v. 22) suggest an emphasis on the religious nature of the debate which is brought out by the translation “the Jewish religious leaders.”
[9:18] 126 tn The Greek text contains the words “about him” at this point: “the Jewish authorities did not believe about him…”
[9:18] 127 tn Grk “they called.”
[9:18] 128 tn Or “the man who had gained his sight.”
[9:19] 129 tn Grk “and they asked them, saying”; the referent (the parents) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[9:19] 130 tn The Greek pronoun and verb are both plural (both parents are addressed).
[9:20] 131 tn Grk “So his parents answered and said.”
[9:21] 132 tn Grk “who opened his eyes” (an idiom referring to restoration of sight).
[9:21] 133 tn Or “he is of age.”
[9:22] 134 tn Or “the Jewish religious authorities”; Grk “the Jews.” Twice in this verse the phrase refers to the Pharisees, mentioned by name in John 9:13, 15, 16. The second occurrence is shortened to “the Jewish leaders” for stylistic reasons. See the note on the phrase “the Jewish religious leaders” in v. 18.
[9:22] 135 tn Grk “confessed him.”
[9:22] 136 tn Or “the Messiah” (Both Greek “Christ” and Hebrew and Aramaic “Messiah” mean “one who has been anointed”).
[9:22] sn See the note on Christ in 1:20.
[9:22] 137 tn Or “would be expelled from.”
[9:22] 138 sn This reference to excommunication from the Jewish synagogue for those who had made some sort of confession about Jesus being the Messiah is dismissed as anachronistic by some (e.g., Barrett) and nonhistorical by others. In later Jewish practice there were at least two forms of excommunication: a temporary ban for thirty days, and a permanent ban. But whether these applied in NT times is far from certain. There is no substantial evidence for a formal ban on Christians until later than this Gospel could possibly have been written. This may be a reference to some form of excommunication adopted as a contingency to deal with those who were proclaiming Jesus to be the Messiah. If so, there is no other record of the procedure than here. It was probably local, limited to the area around Jerusalem. See also the note on synagogue in 6:59.
[9:23] 139 tn Or “he is of age.”
[9:23] 140 sn This is a parenthetical note by the author explaining the parents’ response.
[9:24] 141 tn Grk “they called.”
[9:24] 142 tn Grk “who was blind.”
[9:24] 143 tn Grk “Give glory to God” (an idiomatic formula used in placing someone under oath to tell the truth).
[9:24] 144 tn The phrase “this man” is a reference to Jesus.
[9:25] 145 tn Grk “Then that one answered.”
[9:26] 146 tn Grk “open your eyes” (an idiom referring to restoration of sight).
[9:27] 147 tn Grk “He answered them.” The indirect object αὐτοῖς (autois) has not been translated for stylistic reasons.
[9:27] 148 tn Grk “you did not hear.”
[9:27] 149 tn “It” is not in the Greek text but has been supplied. Direct objects in Greek were often omitted when they were clearly implied in the context.
[9:27] 150 tn The word “people” is supplied in the translation to clarify the plural Greek pronoun and verb.
[9:28] 151 tn Grk “And they.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.
[9:28] 152 tn The Greek word means “to insult strongly” or “slander.”
[9:28] 154 tn Grk “You are that one’s disciple.”
[9:29] 155 tn Grk “where this one.”
[9:30] 156 tn Grk “The man answered and said to them.” This has been simplified in the translation to “The man replied.”
[9:30] 157 tn Grk “For in this is a remarkable thing.”
[9:30] 158 tn Grk “and he opened my eyes” (an idiom referring to restoration of sight).
[9:31] 159 tn Grk “God does not hear.”
[9:31] 161 tn Grk “he”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[9:32] 164 tn Or “Never from the beginning of time,” Grk “From eternity.”
[9:32] 165 tn Grk “someone opening the eyes of a man born blind” (“opening the eyes” is an idiom referring to restoration of sight).
[9:34] 167 tn Grk “They answered and said to him.” This has been simplified in the translation to “They replied.”
[9:34] 168 tn Or “From birth you have been evil.” The implication of this insult, in the context of John 9, is that the man whom Jesus caused to see had not previously adhered rigorously to all the conventional requirements of the OT law as interpreted by the Pharisees. Thus he had no right to instruct them about who Jesus was.
[9:34] 169 tn Grk “and are you teaching us?”
[9:35] 170 tn Grk “found him”; the referent (the man) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[9:35] 171 tc Although most witnesses (A L Θ Ψ 070 0250 Ë1,13 33 Ï lat) have θεοῦ (qeou, “of God”) instead of ἀνθρώπου (anqrwpou, “of man”) here, the better witnesses (Ì66,75 א B D W sys) have ἀνθρώπου. Not only is the external evidence decidedly on the side of ἀνθρώπου, but it is difficult to see such early and diverse witnesses changing θεοῦ to ἀνθρώπου. The wording “Son of Man” is thus virtually certain.
[9:36] 173 tn Grk answered and said.” This has been simplified in the translation to “replied.”
[9:36] 174 tn Or “And who is he, sir? Tell me so that…” Some translations supply elliptical words like “Tell me” (NIV, NRSV) following the man’s initial question, but the shorter form given in the translation is clear enough.
[9:37] 176 tn The καί – καί (kai – kai) construction would normally be translated “both – and”: “You have both seen him, and he is the one speaking with you.” In this instance the English semicolon was used instead because it produces a smoother and more emphatic effect in English.
[9:38] 177 sn Assuming the authenticity of John 9:38-39a (see the tc note following the bracket in v. 39), the man’s response after Jesus’ statement of v. 37 is extremely significant: He worshiped Jesus. In the Johannine context the word would connote its full sense: This was something due God alone. Note also that Jesus did not prevent the man from doing this. The verb προσκυνέω (proskunew) is used in John 4:20-25 of worshiping God, and again with the same sense in 12:20. This would be the only place in John’s Gospel where anyone is said to have worshiped Jesus using this term. As such, it forms the climax of the story of the man born blind, but the uniqueness of the concept of worshiping Jesus at this point in John's narrative (which reaches its ultimate climax in the confession of Thomas in John 20:28) may suggest it is too early for such a response and it represents a later scribal addition.
[9:39] 178 tn Grk “And Jesus.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.
[9:39] 179 tc ‡ Some early and important witnesses (Ì75 א* W b sams ac2 mf) lack the words, “He said, ‘Lord, I believe,’ and he worshiped him. Jesus said,” (vv. 38-39a). This is weighty evidence for the omission of these words. It is difficult to overstate the value of Ì75 here, since it is the only currently available papyrus ms extant for the text of John 9:38-39. Further, א is an important and early Alexandrian witness for the omission. The versional testimony and codex W also give strong support to the omission. Nearly all other
[9:39] 180 tn Or “that those who do not see may see.”
[9:40] 181 sn See the note on Pharisees in 1:24.
[9:40] 182 tn Grk “heard these things.”
[9:40] 183 tn Grk “and said to him.”
[9:40] 184 tn Questions prefaced with μή (mh) in Greek anticipate a negative answer. This can sometimes be indicated by using a “tag” at the end in English (here the tag is “are we?”).
[9:41] 185 tn Grk “Jesus said to them.”
[9:41] 186 tn Grk “you would not have sin.”
[9:41] 187 tn Grk “now because you say, ‘We see…’”
[9:41] 189 sn Because you claim that you can see, your guilt remains. The blind man received sight physically, and this led him to see spiritually as well. But the Pharisees, who claimed to possess spiritual sight, were spiritually blinded. The reader might recall Jesus’ words to Nicodemus in 3:10, “Are you the teacher of Israel and don’t understand these things?” In other words, to receive Jesus was to receive the light of the world, to reject him was to reject the light, close one’s eyes, and become blind. This is the serious sin of which Jesus had warned before (8:21-24). The blindness of such people was incurable since they had rejected the only cure that exists (cf. 12:39-41).
