John 9 - NIV Cultural Backgrounds Study Bible
9:1 went along. Jesus is still likely in the vicinity of the temple (8:59); the Pool of Siloam (v. 7) was in this area. blind. Blind people had few options for support other than begging (cf. v. 8), and begging was most profitable in well-traversed public areas.
9:2 who sinned . . . that he was born blind? Most people in antiquity believed that unusual sufferings came as a result of someone’s sin. Jewish tradition affirmed that people sometimes suffered because of their ancestors’ sins, but at least occasionally also allowed the possibility of a person sinning before birth.
9:4 As long as it is day. Lacking adequate lighting, most people worked only during the day.
9:6 he spit on the ground, made some mud. People usually considered spittle disgusting, but it was sometimes associated with healing. Some believe that the action evokes Ge 2:7 (see note on Jn 20:22).
9:7 the Pool of Siloam. The pool had four porches and its water was used in the sacred water-drawing ceremony of the Festival of Tabernacles. It is now the final day of that festival (see 7:2; see also the article “Tabernacles and the Promise of Living Water”), since 7:53–8:11 was added to this Gospel later (see note on 7:53–8:11). means “Sent.” Ancient writers often used wordplays, as here (though John may “stretch” the meaning of Siloam). John makes a contrast with the cure at another pool in 5:3–9; Gentile healing shrines often included pools. Compare Elisha’s seemingly nonsensical command for Naaman to bathe in the Jordan (2Ki 5:10–14).
9:8 Sources show that beggars had to learn to endure being refused and looked down on. Although Judaism deeply valued charity, making the plight of Jewish beggars better than their Gentile counterparts, it was nevertheless a humiliating profession. “Death is better than begging,” opined one sage (Sirach 40:28).
9:15 the Pharisees also asked. Local elders decided cases that came up in their communities; in Jerusalem, probably most elders would be priests, but some might also be Pharisees (whether priests or not), who were known for their careful study of the law. Pharisees were highly influential with the people, especially around Jerusalem.
9:16 they were divided. Pharisees did not all share the same views; in Jesus’ day, Pharisaic teachers divided especially between the school of Shammai and the school of Hillel. The Pharisaic school of Hillel permitted prayer for the sick on the Sabbath; the dominant Pharisaic school, the Shammaites, rejected this practice but did not persecute Hillelites for it. Pharisaic rabbis advanced their study of the Torah partly by debating it and examining a range of opinions, though ultimately all were bound to respect the majority view (in a given generation). Later opinion hardened; by the second century, rabbis attributed to sorcery the works of Jesus and his followers.
9:17 He is a prophet. Although popular movements still followed prophetic figures, most of the elite believed that prophets ceased with the last of the OT writing prophets. (This was true even for some who allowed continuing prophecy; they still reserved the title “prophet” for those who lived during the earlier era.)
9:18 sent for the man’s parents. Courts could require witnesses to testify.
9:21 He is of age. After reaching puberty, about the age of 13 (the age of the later bar mitzvah ceremony), a youth was considered a man and assumed responsibility for obeying the Torah.
9:22 would be put out of the synagogue. Various forms of discipline existed in Jewish communities, e.g., beatings (see note on Mt 10:17). One could also be banished from participation in the community for a short time or for a longer or even a permanent time; these forms of being “put out” appear not only in later rabbinic sources but also in the earlier Dead Sea Scrolls (1QS 6.24—7.25; still earlier, cf. Ezr 10:8).
9:24 Give glory to God by telling the truth. Lit. “Give glory to God,” but the NIV understands the phrase correctly. When questioning someone for wrongdoing, the command is a call for confession (Jos 7:19; 1 Esdras 9:8). Yet ancient audiences sometimes laughed at characters who were too sure of themselves, as the interrogators are here.
9:25–26 Later rabbis accepted the testimony of miracles only when this testimony supported their opinions based on Torah study. They were also concerned about magic tricks (illusions) and especially genuine sorcery performed through demons.
9:26 Pharisees emphasized fair cross-examination of witnesses. The man’s questioners here do not act according to the highest ideal of Pharisaic ethics.
9:28 We are disciples of Moses! Those who taught the Torah sometimes called themselves Moses’ disciples; but cf. 5:45–47.
9:29 this fellow, we don’t even know where he comes from. Critics sometimes insulted their opponents by refusing to name them; denying knowledge of where someone was from was a way of repudiating connection with them or denying their importance.
9:31 God does not listen to sinners. The man cites a general principle that God listens to the godly rather than to the ungodly (Ps 34:15; Pr 15:8, 29; 28:9).
9:32 Nobody has ever heard. Such claims in antiquity are very rare, especially for one born blind.
9:34 they threw him out. Many scholars believe that at least some of John’s audience consisted of Jewish Christians (Messianic Jews) expelled from their synagogues (cf. Rev 2:9; 3:9). This story would feel particularly relevant to their situation, one reason for John selecting this (out of many possible accounts; cf. Jn 20:30; 21:25).
9:35 Son of Man. Can simply mean “human being,” but here probably evokes Da 7:13–14. Some other Jewish traditions about this “Son of Man,” probably in circulation by Jesus’ day, also depict the “Son of Man” as a supernatural being.
9:38 Jewish people usually resented bowing down (as the Greek text here suggests), and so expressing such adoration to, humans.
9:39 so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind. Many ancient writers spoke of spiritual or moral blindness (e.g., Isa 6:9–10; 42:18–19); some also spoke of those who were physically blind yet had great spiritual insight.
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