John 9:36

36 He answered, "And who is he, sir? Tell me, so that I may believe in him."

John 9:36 Meaning and Commentary

John 9:36

He answered and said
That is, "he that was healed", as the Syriac version reads:

who is the Lord that I might believe in him?
which shows, that though he knew there was a Messiah expected, and he believed in him as to come, yet he knew not that he was already come, nor the particular person in human nature, who was the Messiah, and the Son of God; even though he had been cured of his blindness by him, and had vindicated him, and pleaded for him before the sanhedrim, and had also suffered for him; which makes it appear, that Christ does many and great things for his people before they know him: nor does their interest in him, in his favour, and in the blessings of his grace, depend upon their knowledge of him, and faith in him; as likewise, that a man may plead for Christ, and suffer much for him, and yet be ignorant of him: however, there were in this man desires of knowing Christ; he was not like those in ( Job 21:14 ) ; and there was a readiness in him to believe on him, as soon as he was pointed out to him; not that there is any natural disposition in men to believe, or any readiness in themselves to it, or that it is of themselves; nothing of this nature was in this man; but he having, by the power and grace of Christ, the principle of faith implanted in his heart, what he wanted was to be directed to the proper object of it, as he is in ( John 9:37 ) .

John 9:36 In-Context

34 They answered him, "You were born entirely in sins, and are you trying to teach us?" And they drove him out.

35 Jesus heard that they had driven him out, and when he found him, he said, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?"

36 He answered, "And who is he, sir? Tell me, so that I may believe in him."

37 Jesus said to him, "You have seen him, and the one speaking with you is he."

38 He said, "Lord, I believe." And he worshiped him.

Footnotes

• [a]. [Sir] and [Lord] translate the same Greek word