That those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind

There is written in Scriptures that the curse of the fathers may go down to several generations, hence some may thought that the blind man is blind due to the sins of his parents. Jesus revealed that the particular blind man He was about to heal was blind so that He could work the miracle to show who He is. The blind man got healed and told others about Jesus.

Again the healing took place on the Sabbath, and they brought the healed blind man to interrogate him. They even called the parents to testify that the man was indeed their son who was blind from birth. The parents only told testified that the man was their son and since they were afraid of the religious people, they deferred the other questions to their son. The previously blind son, spoke directly that he was healed by Jesus and that the healing could not be a sinful deed even if it was done on the Sabbath. The man defended Jesus and spoke against his interrogators. As a result he was cast out. This also fulfills Jesus warnings that family will be against each other for His sake.

Jesus found the healed blind man and comforted him. Jesus revealed Himself as the Christ and the man immediately accepted. Jesus taught that He came to give sight to the blind, but those who can see (or perhaps thought they could see, such as the religious leaders) be made blind.



John 9
A Man Born Blind Receives Sight

1 Now as Jesus passed by, He saw a man who was blind from birth. 2 And His disciples asked Him, saying, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”

3 Jesus answered, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him. 4 I[a] must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work. 5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”

6 When He had said these things, He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva; and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay. 7 And He said to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which is translated, Sent). So he went and washed, and came back seeing.

8 Therefore the neighbors and those who previously had seen that he was blind[b] said, “Is not this he who sat and begged?”

9 Some said, “This is he.” Others said, “He is like him.”[c]

He said, “I am he.”

10 Therefore they said to him, “How were your eyes opened?”

11 He answered and said, “A Man called Jesus made clay and anointed my eyes and said to me, ‘Go to the pool of[d] Siloam and wash.’ So I went and washed, and I received sight.”

12 Then they said to him, “Where is He?”

He said, “I do not know.”


The Pharisees Excommunicate the Healed Man

13 They brought him who formerly was blind to the Pharisees. 14 Now it was a Sabbath when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes. 15 Then the Pharisees also asked him again how he had received his sight. He said to them, “He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I see.”

16 Therefore some of the Pharisees said, “This Man is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath.”

Others said, “How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?” And there was a division among them.

17 They said to the blind man again, “What do you say about Him because He opened your eyes?”

He said, “He is a prophet.”

18 But the Jews did not believe concerning him, that he had been blind and received his sight, until they called the parents of him who had received his sight. 19 And they asked them, saying, “Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?”

20 His parents answered them and said, “We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind; 21 but by what means he now sees we do not know, or who opened his eyes we do not know. He is of age; ask him. He will speak for himself.” 22 His parents said these things because they feared the Jews, for the Jews had agreed already that if anyone confessed that He was Christ, he would be put out of the synagogue. 23 Therefore his parents said, “He is of age; ask him.”

24 So they again called the man who was blind, and said to him, “Give God the glory! We know that this Man is a sinner.”

25 He answered and said, “Whether He is a sinner or not I do not know. One thing I know: that though I was blind, now I see.”

26 Then they said to him again, “What did He do to you? How did He open your eyes?”

27 He answered them, “I told you already, and you did not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become His disciples?”

28 Then they reviled him and said, “You are His disciple, but we are Moses’ disciples. 29 We know that God spoke to Moses; as for this fellow, we do not know where He is from.”

30 The man answered and said to them, “Why, this is a marvelous thing, that you do not know where He is from; yet He has opened my eyes! 31 Now we know that God does not hear sinners; but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does His will, He hears him. 32 Since the world began it has been unheard of that anyone opened the eyes of one who was born blind. 33 If this Man were not from God, He could do nothing.”

34 They answered and said to him, “You were completely born in sins, and are you teaching us?” And they cast him out.



True Vision and True Blindness

35 Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when He had found him, He said to him, “Do you believe in the Son of God?”[e]

36 He answered and said, “Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?”

37 And Jesus said to him, “You have both seen Him and it is He who is talking with you.”

38 Then he said, “Lord, I believe!” And he worshiped Him.

39 And Jesus said, “For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind.”

40 Then some of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these words, and said to Him, “Are we blind also?”

41 Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you say, ‘We see.’ Therefore your sin remains.

People Confess Their Sins and Reaffirm Covenant with God

The revival in Judah continues as described in this chapter. On this occasion, the Israelites fasted, wore sackcloth and put dust on their head - a ritual of repentance. They did this separately from the foreigners, who were then numerous in Israel. They read out from Scriptures in public, confessed their sins and worshipped together.

Below is the actual prayer and worship on that occasion being read out by the Levites, Jeshua, and others. It starts with the history of themselves as children of Abraham who was called by God, in this way they were acknowledging God being with them from the beginning. The prayer was an honest revelation of how God provided for them, how they rebelled and disobeyed, how God continued to show mercy until they were taken captives. One such verse is:
 33 However You are just in all that has befallen us;
      For You have dealt faithfully,
      But we have done wickedly.
Finally, it ends by reaffirming the covenant between themselves and God.


Nehemiah 9

The People Confess Their Sins

 1 Now on the twenty-fourth day of this month the children of Israel were assembled with fasting, in sackcloth, and with dust on their heads.[a] 2 Then those of Israelite lineage separated themselves from all foreigners; and they stood and confessed their sins and the iniquities of their fathers. 3 And they stood up in their place and read from the Book of the Law of the LORD their God for one-fourth of the day; and for another fourth they confessed and worshiped the LORD their God.
4 Then Jeshua, Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, and Chenani stood on the stairs of the Levites and cried out with a loud voice to the LORD their God. 5 And the Levites, Jeshua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabniah, Sherebiah, Hodijah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah, said:

      “Stand up and bless the LORD your God
      Forever and ever!

      “ Blessed be Your glorious name,
      Which is exalted above all blessing and praise!
 6 You alone are the LORD;
      You have made heaven,
      The heaven of heavens, with all their host,
      The earth and everything on it,
      The seas and all that is in them,
      And You preserve them all.
      The host of heaven worships You.

 7 “You are the LORD God,
      Who chose Abram,
      And brought him out of Ur of the Chaldeans,
      And gave him the name Abraham;

 8 You found his heart faithful before You,
      And made a covenant with him
      To give the land of the Canaanites,
      The Hittites, the Amorites,
      The Perizzites, the Jebusites,
      And the Girgashites—
      To give it to his descendants.
      You have performed Your words,
      For You are righteous.

 9 “You saw the affliction of our fathers in Egypt,
      And heard their cry by the Red Sea.

 10 You showed signs and wonders against Pharaoh,
      Against all his servants,
      And against all the people of his land.
      For You knew that they acted proudly against them.
      So You made a name for Yourself, as it is this day.

 11 And You divided the sea before them,
      So that they went through the midst of the sea on the dry land;
      And their persecutors You threw into the deep,
      As a stone into the mighty waters.

 12 Moreover You led them by day with a cloudy pillar,
      And by night with a pillar of fire,
      To give them light on the road
      Which they should travel.

 13 “You came down also on Mount Sinai,
      And spoke with them from heaven,
      And gave them just ordinances and true laws,
      Good statutes and commandments.

 14 You made known to them Your holy Sabbath,
      And commanded them precepts, statutes and laws,
      By the hand of Moses Your servant.

 15 You gave them bread from heaven for their hunger,
      And brought them water out of the rock for their thirst,
      And told them to go in to possess the land
      Which You had sworn to give them.

 16 “But they and our fathers acted proudly,
      Hardened their necks,
      And did not heed Your commandments.

 17 They refused to obey,
      And they were not mindful of Your wonders
      That You did among them.
      But they hardened their necks,
      And in their rebellion[b]
      They appointed a leader
      To return to their bondage.
      But You are God,
      Ready to pardon,
      Gracious and merciful,
      Slow to anger,
      Abundant in kindness,
      And did not forsake them.

 18 “Even when they made a molded calf for themselves,
      And said, ‘This is your god
      That brought you up out of Egypt,’
      And worked great provocations,

 19 Yet in Your manifold mercies
      You did not forsake them in the wilderness.
      The pillar of the cloud did not depart from them by day,
      To lead them on the road;
      Nor the pillar of fire by night,
      To show them light,
      And the way they should go.

 20 You also gave Your good Spirit to instruct them,
      And did not withhold Your manna from their mouth,
      And gave them water for their thirst.

 21 Forty years You sustained them in the wilderness;
      They lacked nothing;
      Their clothes did not wear out[c]
      And their feet did not swell.

 22 “ Moreover You gave them kingdoms and nations,
      And divided them into districts.[d]
      So they took possession of the land of Sihon,
Heshbon,
      And the land of Og king of Bashan.

 23 You also multiplied their children as the stars of heaven,
      And brought them into the land
      Which You had told their fathers
      To go in and possess.

 24 So the people went in
      And possessed the land;
      You subdued before them the inhabitants of the land,
      The Canaanites,
      And gave them into their hands,
      With their kings
      And the people of the land,
      That they might do with them as they wished.

 25 And they took strong cities and a rich land,
      And possessed houses full of all goods,
      Cisterns already dug, vineyards, olive groves,
      And fruit trees in abundance.
      So they ate and were filled and grew fat,
      And delighted themselves in Your great goodness.

 26 “ Nevertheless they were disobedient
      And rebelled against You,
      Cast Your law behind their backs
      And killed Your prophets, who testified against them
      To turn them to Yourself;
      And they worked great provocations.

 27 Therefore You delivered them into the hand of their enemies,
      Who oppressed them;
      And in the time of their trouble,
      When they cried to You,
      You heard from heaven;
      And according to Your abundant mercies
      You gave them deliverers who saved them
      From the hand of their enemies.

 28 “But after they had rest,
      They again did evil before You.
      Therefore You left them in the hand of their enemies,
      So that they had dominion over them;
      Yet when they returned and cried out to You,
      You heard from heaven;
      And many times You delivered them according to Your mercies,

 29 And testified against them,
      That You might bring them back to Your law.
      Yet they acted proudly,
      And did not heed Your commandments,
      But sinned against Your judgments,

      ‘ Which if a man does, he shall live by them.’[f]
      And they shrugged their shoulders,
      Stiffened their necks,
      And would not hear.

 30 Yet for many years You had patience with them,
      And testified against them by Your Spirit in Your prophets.
      Yet they would not listen;
      Therefore You gave them into the hand of the peoples of the lands.

 31 Nevertheless in Your great mercy
      You did not utterly consume them nor forsake them;
      For You are God, gracious and merciful.

 32 “Now therefore, our God,
      The great, the mighty, and awesome God,
      Who keeps covenant and mercy:
      Do not let all the trouble seem small before You
      That has come upon us,
      Our kings and our princes,
      Our priests and our prophets,
      Our fathers and on all Your people,
      From the days of the kings of Assyria until this day.

 33 However You are just in all that has befallen us;
      For You have dealt faithfully,
      But we have done wickedly.

 34 Neither our kings nor our princes,
      Our priests nor our fathers,
      Have kept Your law,
      Nor heeded Your commandments and Your testimonies,
      With which You testified against them.

 35 For they have not served You in their kingdom,
      Or in the many good things that You gave them,
      Or in the large and rich land which You set before them;
      Nor did they turn from their wicked works.

 36 “Here we are, servants today!
      And the land that You gave to our fathers,
      To eat its fruit and its bounty,
      Here we are, servants in it!

 37 And it yields much increase to the kings
      You have set over us,
      Because of our sins;
      Also they have dominion over our bodies and our cattle
      At their pleasure;
      And we are in great distress.

 38 “And because of all this,
      We make a sure covenant and write it;
      Our leaders, our Levites, and our priests seal it.”