- - ” Θεοῦ, οὐκ ἠδύνατο ποιεῖν οὐδέν.
757
34. ᾿Απεκρίθησαν καὶ εἶπον
αὐτῷ, ''"Ἐν ἁμαρτίαις σὺ ἐγεννήθης "ὅλος, καὶ σὺ διδάσκεις ἡμᾶς ;᾽΄ ο Ps. li. 5.
Καὶ "ἐξέβαλον αὐτὸν ew.
αὐτὸν έξω” καὶ ᾿ εὑρὼν αὐτὸν, εἶπεν αὐτῷ, “EO πιστεύεις cis τὸν
””
υἱὸν τοῦ Θεοῦ1; , Γ) , > ray 2? κύριε, ἵνα πιστεύσω εἰς αὐτόν ;
- ο) / ”
ἑώρακας αὐτὸν, καὶ " ὁ λαλῶν μετὰ σοῦ, ἐκεῖνός ἐστιν. > ~
ἔφη, “Mucredw, κύριε" ΄ 39. καὶ προσεκύνησεν αὐτῷ.
36. ᾿Απεκρίθη ἐκεῖνος καὶ 37. Εἶπε δὲ αὐτῷ ὁ ᾿Ιησοῦς, “Kal
Vii. 23.
ε an : t 35. Ἴκουσεν 6 “Ingots ὅτι ἐξέβαλον u 2 Chron.
xxix. 16.
Lk. xx. τὸ. Ch. vi. 37.
εἶπε, “Tis ἐστι, vi, 42, ne {
38. Ὁ δὲ wiv. 26. μα ς και ειπεν ο
᾽ησοῦς, “Eis κρίµα ἐγὼ εἰς τὸν κόσμον τοῦτον ἦλθον, ἵνα ot μὴ
λέποντες βλέπωσι, καὶ ot βλέποντες τυφλοὶ γένωνται. >
40. Kat
” > A , A : 3 > > A ‘ > κουσαν ἐκ τῶν Φαρισαίιων ταῦτα οἱ οντες ετ αυτου, και ειπον η
~ αλ. ε 3 , 37 (αὐτῷ, “Mh καὶ ἡμεῖς τυφλοί ἐσμεν ;
41. Εἶπεν αὐτοῖς 6 “Ingots,
“Ei τυφλοὶ ἦτε, οὐκ ἂν 3 εἴχετε ἁμαρτίαν: viv δὲ λέγετε, “Oru καν. 22, 24.
βλέπομεν: ἡ οὖν ἁμαρτία ὑμῶν μένει.
1 Θεου in ALXTA Lat. (vet. vulg.) Syrr. (Pesh. Ἡατε]. Hier.) Memph. Goth. Arm. Aeth., but ανθρωπου in SAB Theb., adopted by Ti.W.H.
this there is no reply but abuse and dis- missal.—Ver. 34. Ἐν ἁμαρτίαις. . . ἔξω. ‘In sins thou wast wholly born, and dost thou teach us?” They refer his blindness to sin, and reproach him with his calamity. Sin, they say, was branded on the whole man; he was manifestly a reprobate. Yet we, the pure and godly, are to be taught by such a man |---ἐξέβαλον αὐτὸν ἔξω, ‘‘ they cast him out,” not merely from the chamber, but from communion. This is implied both in ver. 35 and ali that Jesus says of the shepherds in the follow- ing paragraph.
Ver. 35-X. 21. The good and the hireling shepherds.—Ver. 35. Ἠκουσεν ... The action of the Pharisees threw the man on the compassion of Jesus: “He heard that they had cast him out,” and He knew the reason; therefore, εὑὐρὼν αὐτὸν, “when He found him,” as He wished and sought to do, His first question was: Σὺ . . . Θεοῦ: Perhapsa slight emphasis lies in the Σὺ. “Ώοσι thou believe in the Messiah ?’’—Ver. 36. The man’s answer shows that he was willing to believe in the Messiah if he could identify Him; and having already declared Jesus to be a prophet, he believed that He could tell him who the Messiah was. It may be taken for granted that although he had not seen Jesus since recovering his sight, he knew somehow that he was speaking to the person who had healed him; and was perhaps almost prepared for the
Pe, £12
great announcement (ver. 37): Kat ἑώρα-
κας αὐτὸν, '' Thou hast both seen Him,” no doubt with a reference to the blessing of restored eyesight; Kat... ἐστιν. This direct revelation, similar to that given to the Samaritan woman (iv. 26), was elicited by the pitiable condition of the man as an outcast from the Jewish cammunity, and by the perception that the man was ripe for faith.— Ver. 38. ‘O δὲ... αὐτῷ. He promptly uttered his belief and ‘‘ worshipped ” Jesus. In this Gospel προσκυνεῖν is used of the worship of God ; the word is, however, susceptible of a somewhat lower degree of adoration (Mt. xviii. 26); but it includes the ac- knowledgment of supremacy and a com- plete submission.—Ver. 39. Summing up the spiritual sighificance of the miracle Jesus said: Eis κρίμα . . . γένωνται. ‘For judgment,” for bringing to light and exhibiting in its consequences the actual inward state of men; ‘‘ that those who see not may see,”’ that is, that those who are conscious of their blindness and grieved on account of it may be relieved; while those who are content with the light they have lose even that. Witha kind of sad humour He points out how easily felt blindness is removed, but how obstinately blind is presumed knowledge. The blind man now saw, because he knew he was blind and used the means Jesus told him to use: the, Pharisees were stone-blind to the world Jesus opened to them, because they thought that already they knew much more than He did.—Ver. 40. Some of the Pharisees overheard His words, and unconsciously