John - 9:38



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

Verse In-Depth

Explanation and meaning of John 9:38.

Differing Translations

Compare verses for better understanding.
And he said, Lord, I believe. And he worshipped him.
And he said: I believe, Lord. And falling down, he adored him.
And he said, I believe, Lord: and he did him homage.
and he said, 'I believe, sir,' and bowed before him.
"I believe, Sir," he said. And he threw himself at His feet.
And he said, Lord, I have faith. And he gave him worship.
"Then, Sir, I do believe," said the man, bowing to the ground before him;

*Minor differences ignored. Grouped by changes, with first version listed as example.


Historical Commentaries

Scholarly Analysis and Interpretation.

And he worshipped him. It may be asked, Did the blind man honor or worship Christ as God? [1] The word which the Evangelist employs (prosekunesei) means nothing more than to express respect and homage by bending the knee, or by other signs. For my own part, certainly, I think that it denotes something rare and uncommon; namely, that the blind man gave far more honor to Christ than to an ordinary man, or even to a prophet. And yet I do not think that at that time he had made such progress as to know that Christ was God manifested in the flesh. What then is meant by worship? The blind man, convinced that Jesus was the Son of God, nearly lost the command of himself, and, in rapturous admiration, bowed down before him.

Footnotes

1 - "Si l'aveugle a honore ou adore Christ comme Dieu."

I believe - This was the overflowing expression of gratitude and faith.
And he worshipped him - He did homage to him as the Messiah and as his gracious benefactor. See the notes at Matthew 2:2. This shows:
1. That it is right and natural to express thanks and praise for mercies.
2. All blessings should lead us to pour out our gratitude to Jesus, for it is from him that we receive them.
3. Especially is this true when the mind has been enlightened, when our spiritual eyes have been opened, and we are permitted to see the glories of the heavenly world.
4. It is right to pay homage or worship to Jesus. He forbade it not. He received it on earth, and for all mercies of providence and redemption we should pay to him the tribute of humble and grateful hearts. The Syriac renders the phrase, "he worshipped him," thus:" and, casting himself down, he adored him." The Persian, "and he bowed down and adored Christ." The Arabic, "and he adored him." The Latin Vulgate, "and, falling down, he adored him."

And he said, Lord, I believe - That is, I believe thou art the Messiah; and, to give the fullest proof of the sincerity of his faith, he fell down before and adored him. Never having seen Jesus before, but simply knowing that a person of that name had opened his eyes, he had only considered him as a holy man and a prophet; but now that he sees and hears him he is convinced of his divinity, and glorifies him as his Savior. We may hear much of Jesus, but can never know his glories and excellencies till he has discovered himself to our hearts by his own Spirit; then we believe on him, trust him with our souls, and trust in him for our salvation. The word κυριε has two meanings: it signifies Lord, or Sovereign Ruler, and Sir, a title of civil respect. In the latter sense it seems evidently used in the 36th verse, because the poor man did not then know that Jesus was the Messiah; in the former sense it is used in this verse - now the healed man knew the quality of his benefactor.

And he said, Lord, I believe,.... He immediately found faith in his soul, and that in exercise, moving towards, and acting upon Christ, as the Son of God, and true Messiah, for everlasting life and salvation; and as soon as he did perceive it, he made an open and hearty profession of it:
and he worshipped him: as God, with religious worship and adoration, not only trusting in him, but ascribing honour, glory, and blessing to him, which are due to God only, and not a creature.

he said, Lord, I believe: and he worshipped him--a faith and a worship, beyond doubt, meant to express far more than he would think proper to any human "prophet" (John 9:17) --the unstudied, resistless expression, probably of SUPREME faith and adoration, though without the full understanding of what that implied.

*More commentary available at chapter level.


Discussion on John 9:38

User discussion of the verse.






*By clicking Submit, you agree to our Privacy Policy & Terms of Use.