Lecture 2
Lectio 2
The blind man’s testimony
Testimonium caeci
9:8 Therefore the neighbors and those who had seen him before as a beggar, said: is this not he who sat and begged? Some said: this is he. [n. 1313]
9:8 Itaque vicini, et qui viderant eum prius, quia mendicus erat, dicebant: nonne hic est qui sedebat, et mendicabat? Alii dicebant: quia hic est, [n. 1313]
9:9 Others said: no, but he is like him. But he said: I am he. [n. 1314]
9:9 alii autem: nequaquam, sed similis est eius. Ille vero dicebat quia: ego sum. [n. 1314]
9:10 Therefore they said to him: how were your eyes opened? [n. 1316]
9:10 Dicebant ergo ei: quomodo aperti sunt tibi oculi? [n. 1316]
9:11 He answered: that man who is called Jesus made clay and anointed my eyes, and said to me: go to the pool of Siloam and wash. And I went, and I washed, and I see. [n. 1318]
9:11 Respondit: ille homo qui dicitur Iesus, lutum fecit, et unxit oculos meos, et dixit mihi: vade ad natatoria Siloe, et lava. Et abii, et lavi, et video. [n. 1318]
9:12 And they said to him: where is he? He said: I do not know. [n. 1319]
9:12 Et dixerunt ei: ubi est ille? Ait: nescio. [n. 1319]
9:13 They brought him who had been blind to the Pharisees. [n. 1320]
9:13 Adducunt eum ad Pharisaeos, qui caecus fuerat. [n. 1320]
9:14 Now it was the Sabbath when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes. [n. 1322]
9:14 Erat autem Sabbatum quando lutum fecit Iesus, et aperuit oculos eius. [n. 1322]
9:15 Again therefore the Pharisees asked him how he had received his sight. He said to them: he put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I see. [n. 1323]
9:15 Iterum ergo interrogabant eum Pharisaei, quomodo vidisset. Ille autem dixit eis: lutum mihi posuit super oculos, et lavi, et video. [n. 1323]
9:16 Some of the Pharisees said: this man is not of God, who does not keep the Sabbath. But others said: how is a man who is a sinner able to do such miracles? And there was division among them. [n. 1325]
9:16 Dicebant ergo ex Pharisaeis quidam: non est hic homo a Deo, qui Sabbatum non custodit. Alii autem dicebant: quomodo potest homo peccator haec signa facere? et schisma erat inter eos. [n. 1325]
9:17 They said therefore to the blind man again: what do you say about him who opened your eyes? And he said: he is a prophet. [n. 1329]
9:17 Dicunt ergo caeco iterum: tu quid dicis de illo qui aperuit oculos tuos? Ille dixit: quia propheta est. [n. 1329]
9:18 The Jews then did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight, until they called the parents of him who had received his sight. [n. 1330]
9:18 Non crediderunt ergo Iudaei de illo, quia caecus fuisset, et vidisset, donec vocaverunt parentes eius, qui viderat, [n. 1330]
9:19 And they asked them, saying: is this your son, who you say was born blind? How does he now see? [n. 1332]
9:19 et interrogaverunt eos dicentes: hic est filius vester, quem vos dicitis, quia caecus natus est? Quomodo ergo nunc videt? [n. 1332]
9:20 His parents answered them and said: we know that this is our son and that he was born blind: [n. 1333]
9:20 Responderunt eis parentes eius, et dixerunt: scimus, quia hic est filius noster, et quia caecus natus est; [n. 1333]
9:21 But how he now sees we do not know nor do we know who opened his eyes. Ask him: he is of age, let him speak for himself. [n. 1333]
9:21 quomodo autem nunc videat, nescimus, aut qui eius aperuit oculos, nos nescimus: ipsum interrogate, aetatem habet, ipse de se loquatur. [n. 1333]
9:22 His parents said these things, because they feared the Jews: for the Jews had already agreed among themselves, that if any man should confess him to be Christ, he should be put out of the synagogue. [n. 1334]
9:22 Haec dixerunt parentes eius, quoniam timebant Iudaeos. Iam enim conspiraverant Iudaei, ut si quis eum confiteretur esse Christum, extra synagogam fieret. [n. 1334]
9:23 Therefore his parents said: he is of age, ask him. [n. 1334]
9:23 Propterea parentes eis dixerunt, quia aetatem habet, ipsum interrogate. [n. 1334]
1312. After the description of the miraculous healing of the blind man, the Evangelist tells of the miracle being examined.
1312. Posita miraculosa illuminatione caeci, hic consequenter ponitur miraculi examinatio, et
First, the miracle is examined by the people;
primo quidem miraculum examinatur a populo;
second, by the Pharisees and rulers: they brought him who had been blind to the Pharisees;
secundo a Pharisaeis et principibus, ibi adducunt eum ad Pharisaeos;
and third, on account of his confession the blind man is instructed and commended by Christ: Jesus heard that they had cast him out (John 9:35).
tertio caecus propter suam confessionem instruitur a Christo et commendatur, ibi audivit Iesus quia eiecerunt eum foras.
In regard to the first, the Evangelist mentions three things:
Circa primum tria facit, quia
first, we see an inquiry about the person who received his sight;
primo inquiritur de persona illuminati;
second, about the restoration itself: therefore they said to him.
secundo de ipsa illuminatione, ibi dicebant ergo ei etc.;
and third about the one who restored his sight, at and they said to him: where is he?
tertio de persona illuminantis, ibi et dixerunt ei: ubi est ille?
In regard to the first he does three things:
Circa primum tria facit.
first, we have a question about the one who received his sight;
Primo ponitur quaestio de persona illuminati;
second, the different opinions about this are given;
secundo assumuntur diversae opiniones ad quaestionem;
third, the question is settled.
tertio determinatur quaestio.
1313. The question is asked by the people. He says, therefore the neighbors and those who had seen him before as a beggar said: is this not he who sat and begged?
1313. Ponitur quidem quaestio a populo. Unde dicit itaque vicini, et qui viderant eum prius, quia mendicus erat, dicebant: nonne hic est qui sedebat et mendicabat?
Here two things are to be considered. One is that due to the greatness of the miracle, it was considered incredible. So we read: from the beginning of the world it has not been heard that any man has opened the eyes of one born blind (John 9:32). This fulfills for them what is said: I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe if told (Hab 1:5).
Ubi duo consideranda occurrunt. Unum est quod ex miraculi magnitudine ipsum incredibile reddebatur: unde dicebant, infra: a saeculo non est auditum quod aperuerit quis oculos caeci nati. Unde impletur in eis quod dicitur Hab. I, 5: opus factum est in diebus nostris, quod nemo credet cum narrabitur.
Second, we should note the wonderful compassion of God, because our Lord performs miracles not only for the powerful, but also for outcasts, since he healed, with great pity, those who begged. This shows that he who came for our salvation rejected no one because of their poverty: has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom? (Jas 2:5). Thus they explicitly say, is this not he who sat and begged? This is like saying: he is an outcast and does not deserve to be cured. But the opposite is said: the giants who were born there . . . God did not choose them (Bar 3:26).
Aliud est mirabilis Dei clementia, quia non solum circa potentes, sed etiam circa ignobiles Dominus miracula operatur, dum eos qui mendicant, cum multa pietate curabat: in quo ostenditur quod propter paupertatem nullum repellit, qui propter salutem hominum venit; Iac. II, 5: nonne Dominus elegit pauperes, divites in fide, et haeredes regni? Unde et isti signanter dicunt nonne hic est qui sedebat et mendicabat? Quasi dicant, ignobilis et curatione indignus. Contra dicitur Baruch III, 26: ibi gigantes nominati.
1314. The opinions of the people are presented when he says, some said: this is he, because they had often seen him begging, and later hurrying through the town when he went to the pool with the clay on his eyes. Thus they could not deny that it was he. But others were on the contrary opinion, so they said, no, but he is like him. The reason for this, as Augustine says, is that the man’s appearance changed when he regained his sight, for nothing is so characteristic as the expression a person gets from his eyes: a sensible man is known by his face (Sir 19:29).
1314. Opiniones autem ponuntur a plebe: unde dicit alii dicebant quia hic est, scilicet qui mendicabat; et hoc ideo, quia pluries eum viderant mendicantem, et similiter discurrentem per civitatem, quando cum luto ad natatoria ibat, inspexerant. Unde non ultra poterant dicere, non est hic. Sed aliorum opinio erat contraria: unde dicebant nequaquam, scilicet hic est, sed similis eius est. Cuius ratio est, quia, ut Augustinus dicit, oculi restituti mutaverunt vultum eius. Nihil enim ita cognoscibile sicut visus; Eccli. c. XIX, 26: ex visu cognoscitur sensatus.
1315. The question is settled by the blind man because he, the blind man, said, I am he, the one who used to beg. His voice was grateful, lest he should be guilty of ingratitude. For since he could not be ungrateful for such a great favor and was unable to show any other sign of gratitude than to constantly declare that he had been cured by Christ, he said, I am he, the one who was blind and begged; and now I see: bless the God of heaven, give glory to him in the sight of all that live, for he has shown his mercy to you (Tob 12:6).
1315. Quaestio determinatur per caecum; quia ille dicebat, scilicet caecus, ego sum, scilicet qui mendicabam. Vox grata est ista, ne damnetur ingrata. Quia enim non poterat esse ingratus tanto beneficio, nec aliud signum gratitudinis ostendere poterat quam quod constanter confiteretur se a Christo curatum, dicit ego sum, qui scilicet caecus eram, et mendicabam; et modo video; Tob. c. XII, 6: benedicite Deum coeli, et coram omnibus viventibus confitemini ei, quia fecit vobiscum misericordiam suam.
1316. Then: they said therefore to him: how were your eyes opened? We see the investigation of the act, which was the restoration of the man’s sight.
1316. Consequenter cum dicit dicebant ergo ei: quomodo aperti sunt oculi tui? agitur de inquisitione facti, scilicet de ipsa illuminatione, et