John 9:17

17 So the Pharisees asked the man once more, "You say he cured you of your blindness - well, what do you say about him?" "He is a prophet," the man answered.

John 9:17 Meaning and Commentary

John 9:17

They say unto the blind man again
After they had discoursed among themselves, and could not agree about the author of the miracle, they turn to him that had been blind, who is called the blind man, because he had been so, and ask him his sentiments of him:

what sayest thou of him, that he hath opened thine eyes?
the question seems, at first sight, as if it was, whether Jesus had opened his eyes or not; but by the answer it appears, that it required his thoughts of him, "who hath opened thine eyes", as the Vulgate Latin and Persic versions read; or "seeing", or "because he hath opened thine eyes", as the Arabic and Ethiopic versions:

he said, he is a prophet;
the Syriac and Persic versions read, "I say he is a prophet"; or, "he is certainly a prophet", as the Arabic version. The Jews were wont to conclude a man's being a prophet from miracles wrought by him; see ( John 6:14 ) ( 7:31 ) ; though it does not appear that he believed him, as yet, to be that prophet, or the Messiah, that was to come; see ( John 9:36 ) .

John 9:17 In-Context

15 The Pharisees, then, asked the man again how he had received his sight. He told them, "He put some mud on my eyes; I washed my face, and now I can see."

16 Some of the Pharisees said, "The man who did this cannot be from God, for he does not obey the Sabbath law." Others, however, said, "How could a man who is a sinner perform such miracles as these?" And there was a division among them.

17 So the Pharisees asked the man once more, "You say he cured you of your blindness - well, what do you say about him?" "He is a prophet," the man answered.

18 The Jewish authorities, however, were not willing to believe that he had been blind and could now see, until they called his parents

19 and asked them, "Is this your son? You say that he was born blind; how is it, then, that he can now see?"