John 9:1-11
As Jesus passed by, he saw a man which was blind from his birth.
And his disciples asked him, saying, Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind? Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him. I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work. As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.
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, And said unto him, Go, wash in the pool of Siloam, (which is by interpretation, Sent.)
He went his way therefore, and washed, and came seeing.
The neighbours therefore, and they which before had seen him that he was blind, said, Is not this he that sat and begged? Some said, This is he: others said, He is like him: but he said, I am he. Therefore said they unto him, How were thine eyes opened? He answered and said, A man that is called Jesus made clay, and anointed mine eyes, and said unto me, Go to the pool of Siloam, and wash: and I went and washed, and I received sight.
A. W. PINK (1886-1952): There is one little detail here which strikingly evidences the truthfulness of this narrative, and that is one little omission in this man’s description of what the Saviour had done to him. It is to be noted that the beggar made no reference to Christ spitting on the ground and making clay of the spittle. Being blind he could not see what the Lord did, though he could feel what He applied!
C. H. SPURGEON (1834-1892): You may be sure that the Pharisees would be in high resentment because Christ did that; for, according to their superstition, to make clay with spittle was a kind of brick-making which must not be done on the Sabbath-day—they would, for that reason, condemn Christ as a breaker of the Sabbath.
J. C. RYLE (1816-1900): Which is by interpretation, Sent.—Why is this parenthetical explanation inserted by John?
CHARLES SIMEON (1759-1836): The word Siloam was intended to prefigure the true “Shiloh,” “the messenger of the covenant,” Malachi 3:1, the sent of God, John 10:36—the Messiah that should come into the world.
C. H. SPURGEON: “Until Shiloh come; and unto Him shall the gathering of the people be,” Genesis 49:10. This is the Shiloh for whose salvation Jacob waited, looking for Him who should be sent…Observe the likeness between the words Siloam and Shiloh, in which case, Shiloh would mean the same as Messiah, the Sent One—and would indicate that Jesus Christ was the Messenger, the Sent One of God, and came to us, not at His own instance, and at His own will, but commissioned by the Most High.
J. C. RYLE: All pious Jews would understand the expression which so frequently occurs in John’s Gospel, “He whom God hath sent,” as pointing to the Messiah—It was fitting that He who was “Sent of God” should work a miracle in the pool called “Sent.” This is the view of Chrysostom and Augustine.
ROBERT HAWKER (1753-1827): Ages before our Lord’s incarnation, the prophet Isaiah was commissioned to tell the Church, when pointing to His Person, and Character: “Behold!” said he, “your God will come and save you!” And how was He to be known? “Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened,” Isaiah 35:4,5.
ALEXANDER MacLAREN (1826-1910): We have heard already about the Pool of Siloam, in John 7:37: there we read, “In the last day, that great day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said, If any man thirst let him come to Me and drink.” These words were probably spoken on the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles, on which one part of the ceremonial was the drawing, with exuberant rejoicing, of water from the Pool of Siloam, and bearing it up to the Temple.
J. C. RYLE: Water was drawn from the pool of Siloam every day with great solemnity, and poured upon the altar, while the people sung the 12th chapter of Isaiah.
CHARLES SIMEON: The Jews were wont to pour out the water with joy; referring, in their minds, to the promise, that at that time “living waters should go out from Jerusalem,” Zechariah 14:8; and to that song which the Prophet Isaiah had taught them, “With joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation,” Isaiah 12:3. In the midst of that ceremony, our blessed Lord addressed the whole multitude, saying, “If any man thirst, let him come unto me and drink. He that believeth on me, as the Scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. And this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believed on him should receive.”
THOMAS COKE (1747-1814): And now, behold! He makes the same proclamation from His celestial temple—and says, “whosoever will, let him come, let him freely take of this living water,” Revelation 22:17.
CHARLES SIMEON: Our blessed Lord, determining to heal him, made clay of His own spittle, and put it on his eyes, and bade him wash in the pool of Siloam. How strange a remedy was this!
H. A. IRONSIDE (1876-1951): Had there been the least glimmer of light before, the clay would have shut it all out.
C. H. SPURGEON: Is this the way to give him sight? Yes, our Lord often uses means that seem to be very unlikely to accomplish His purpose…Often, when He is going to open a man’s eyes, spiritually, He first makes him feel more blind than he ever was in all his life.
JOHN CALVIN (1509-1564): It certainly was no ordinary proof of faith, that the blind man, relying on a bare word, is fully convinced that his sight will be restored to him, and with this conviction hastens to go to the place where he was commanded.
C. H. SPURGEON: The command was exceedingly specific—“Go, wash in the pool of Siloam.” So is the Gospel exceedingly specific—“Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved,” Acts 16:31…If he had refused to go and wash, he would not have received his sight.
JOHN TRAPP (1601-1699): His blind obedience made him see.
AUGUSTINE (354-430): If you do not believe you will not understand—Therefore, seek not to understand that you may believe, but believe, that you may understand.
ROBERT HAWKER: One word more in relation to this poor man—he was not conscious at the first, who his great benefactor was. Neither could he tell how the Lord had accomplished the wonderful cure. He only knew that he was once blind, and now had sight. Such is not infrequently the case in respect to spiritual mercies. How little do we know of Jesus, when first He manifests Himself to us. And even after renewed love tokens of His favour, how backward we are, in apprehension. All the objects we at first behold in spiritual discernment, are but indistinct, like the sight of him who saw “men as trees walking” in Mark 8:22-26. But, Reader! though you, or I, or any other child of God cannot exactly tell how or when or where the Lord was pleased to accomplish our effectual calling; still the day of small things is not to be despised, when we can truly say as he did: “One thing I know, that whereas I was blind, now I see.”
MATTHEW POOLE (1624-1679): “Waters of Shiloah” are mentioned in Isaiah 8:6, and said to “go softly.”
CHARLES SIMEON: All of us must of necessity resemble the man while his blindness continued—or, after it had been removed. Let us then inquire whether we can say with him, “This I know, that whereas I was blind, now I see.” If we cannot, let us remember, that the Saviour is nigh at hand, and that the means used for our illumination, weak as they are, are quite sufficient, if accompanied with His power. Let us take encouragement to ask the influences of His good Spirit, and to pray with David, “Open thou mine eyes that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law,” Psalm 119:18.
ROBERT HAWKER: Pause a moment more. If such to a blind man in nature, were the wonders of sight; what must it be, yea what is it daily to a child of God in grace, when his spiritual eyes are opened to see the wonderful things of God’s law?
