John 9:41
New International Version
Jesus said, “If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin; but now that you claim you can see, your guilt remains.

New Living Translation
“If you were blind, you wouldn’t be guilty,” Jesus replied. “But you remain guilty because you claim you can see.

English Standard Version
Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no guilt; but now that you say, ‘We see,’ your guilt remains.

Berean Standard Bible
“If you were blind,” Jesus replied, “you would not be guilty of sin. But since you claim you can see, your guilt remains.”

Berean Literal Bible
Jesus said to them, "If you were blind, you would have no sin. But since you say, 'We see,' your sin remains."

King James Bible
Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth.

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

New American Standard Bible
Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now that you maintain, ‘We see,’ your sin remains.

NASB 1995
Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no sin; but since you say, ‘We see,’ your sin remains.

NASB 1977
Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no sin; but since you say, ‘We see,’ your sin remains.

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

Amplified Bible
Jesus said to them, “If you were blind [to spiritual things], you would have no sin [and would not be blamed for your unbelief]; but since you claim to have [spiritual] sight, [you have no excuse so] your sin and guilt remain.

Christian Standard Bible
“If you were blind,” Jesus told them, “you wouldn’t have sin. But now that you say, ‘We see,’ your sin remains.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
“If you were blind,” Jesus told them, “you wouldn’t have sin. But now that you say, We see—your sin remains.

American Standard Version
Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye would have no sin: but now ye say, We see: your sin remaineth.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
Yeshua said to them, “If you were blind, you would not have sin, but now you say, 'We see.' Because of this, your sin stands.”

Contemporary English Version
Jesus answered, "If you were blind, you would not be guilty. But now that you claim to see, you will keep on being guilty."

Douay-Rheims Bible
Jesus said to them: If you were blind, you should not have sin: but now you say: We see. Your sin remaineth.

English Revised Version
Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye would have no sin: but now ye say, We see: your sin remaineth.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
Jesus told them, "If you were blind, you wouldn't be sinners. But now you say, 'We see,' so you continue to be sinners.

Good News Translation
Jesus answered, "If you were blind, then you would not be guilty; but since you claim that you can see, this means that you are still guilty."

International Standard Version
Jesus told them, "If you were blind, you would not have any sin. But now that you insist, 'We see,' your sin still exists."

Literal Standard Version
Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you were not having had sin, but now you say—We see, therefore your sin remains.”

Majority Standard Bible
“If you were blind,” Jesus replied, “you would not be guilty of sin. But since you claim you can see, your guilt remains.”

New American Bible
Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you are saying, ‘We see,’ so your sin remains.

NET Bible
Jesus replied, "If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin, but now because you claim that you can see, your guilt remains."

New Revised Standard Version
Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would not have sin. But now that you say, ‘We see,’ your sin remains.

New Heart English Bible
Jesus said to them, "If you were blind, you would have no sin; but since you say, 'We see,' your sin remains.

Webster's Bible Translation
Jesus said to them, If ye were blind, ye would have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth.

Weymouth New Testament
"If you were blind," answered Jesus, "you would have no sin; but as a matter of fact you boast that you see. So your sin remains!"

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

Young's Literal Translation
Jesus said to them, 'If ye were blind, ye were not having had sin, but now ye say -- We see, therefore doth your sin remain.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Spiritual Blindness
40Some of the Pharisees who were with Him heard this, and they asked Him, “Are we blind too?” 41“If you were blind,” Jesus replied, “you would not be guilty of sin. But since you claim you can see, your guilt remains.”

Cross References
Proverbs 26:12
Do you see a man who is wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him.

John 15:22
If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not be guilty of sin. Now, however, they have no excuse for their sin.

John 15:24
If I had not done among them the works that no one else did, they would not be guilty of sin; but now they have seen and hated both Me and My Father.

James 4:17
Anyone, then, who knows the right thing to do, yet fails to do it, is guilty of sin.


Treasury of Scripture

Jesus said to them, If you were blind, you should have no sin: but now you say, We see; therefore your sin remains.

If.

John 15:22-24
If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin: but now they have no cloke for their sin…

Proverbs 26:12
Seest thou a man wise in his own conceit? there is more hope of a fool than of him.

Isaiah 5:21
Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight!

Jump to Previous
Blind Boast Claim Fact Guilt Guilty Jesus Matter Sin
Jump to Next
Blind Boast Claim Fact Guilt Guilty Jesus Matter Sin
John 9
1. The man born blind is restored to sight.
8. He is brought to the Pharisees.
13. They are offended at it;
35. but he is received of Jesus, and confesses him.
39. Who they are whom Jesus enlightens.














(41) If ye were blind, ye should have no sin.--His answer is that He does not place them among those who are in this second sense blind. If they were among those "which see not" they would be conscious of their blindness, and would seek for spiritual light. They would ask, "Who is He, Lord, that we may believe on Him?" and would not ask in vain. In that case their present rejection of Him would arise from ignorance willing to be overcome, and this ignorance, not being wilful, would not be sin. Conscious ignorance would be the first step towards knowledge.

But now ye say, We see.--Their true place is among those who were spiritually blind, and were unconscious of it, "they which see," they which think they see." For them the first step towards true spiritual light must be a consciousness of blindness. As it is, as long as they think that they see, there is no ground for hope. (Comp. Matthew 9:12-13.)

Therefore your sin remaineth.--The word "therefore" should probably be omitted. The words "Your sin remaineth," or better, Your sin abideth (comp. Note on John 3:36), stand alone in their awful solemnity. They stand side by side with "Ye say, We see." The two states are one. The assertion of spiritual knowledge and independence was the original cause of sin (Genesis 3:4), and while spiritual pride exists sin cannot cease.

Verse 41. - The reply of our Lord is not meant to be a crushing and final retort, condemning them to hopeless night, but was obviously intended to show them that they are not yet free from sin, that they are only partially appreciating the light which shines upon them. If ye were blind - incapable of sight; if ye had all along been deprived of the faculty of perceiving the true Light that shineth in the darkness (a condition of things which would have emancipated them from responsibility, and which Christ would not admit to be the case); perhaps more, if ye had been utterly blind to the light which is shining upon you now, which, however, is not true - ye would not have sin. This is akin to the solemn language of John 15:22-24. They did not themselves admit that there was any congenital blindness about them. They did not pretend or expect to ride off on such a πρόφασις, such an excuse. Could they be, judicially or naturally, blind? The very idea was an absurdity, and so Jesus added, But now ye say, We see. You even boast that you are "instructors of the ignorant, and leaders of the blind; a light to those who sit in darkness, having the form of knowledge and truth in the Law" (Romans 2:17-21). You are the very opposite of the "not-seeing" (μὴ βλέποντες); you are self-satisfied; you will not come to the Light. What is the issue? The Lord seems to pause before his answer (the οϋν, "therefore," is rejected by the best manuscripts and critics): Your sin abideth; or, remaineth. It will remain until you fully admit the great principle and reason, the motive and characteristics, of my mission. The very facility you profess, the intimacy you claim with the Law and its founder, and your partial knowledge of my claim, take away your excuse. The discourse which follows shows how entire must be the submission to Christ, how complete the union with him, of those who say, "We see."



Parallel Commentaries ...


Greek
“If
Εἰ (Ei)
Conjunction
Strong's 1487: If. A primary particle of conditionality; if, whether, that, etc.

you were
ἦτε (ēte)
Verb - Imperfect Indicative Active - 2nd Person Plural
Strong's 1510: I am, exist. The first person singular present indicative; a prolonged form of a primary and defective verb; I exist.

blind,”
τυφλοὶ (typhloi)
Adjective - Nominative Masculine Plural
Strong's 5185: Blind, physically or mentally. From, tuphoo; opaque, i.e. blind.

Jesus
Ἰησοῦς (Iēsous)
Noun - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 2424: Of Hebrew origin; Jesus, the name of our Lord and two other Israelites.

replied,
Εἶπεν (Eipen)
Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 2036: Answer, bid, bring word, command. A primary verb; to speak or say.

“you would not be
εἴχετε (eichete)
Verb - Imperfect Indicative Active - 2nd Person Plural
Strong's 2192: To have, hold, possess. Including an alternate form scheo skheh'-o; a primary verb; to hold.

guilty of sin.
ἁμαρτίαν (hamartian)
Noun - Accusative Feminine Singular
Strong's 266: From hamartano; a sin.

But
δὲ (de)
Conjunction
Strong's 1161: A primary particle; but, and, etc.

since
νῦν (nyn)
Adverb
Strong's 3568: A primary particle of present time; 'now'; also as noun or adjective present or immediate.

you claim
λέγετε (legete)
Verb - Present Indicative Active - 2nd Person Plural
Strong's 3004: (a) I say, speak; I mean, mention, tell, (b) I call, name, especially in the pass., (c) I tell, command.

[you] can see,
Βλέπομεν (Blepomen)
Verb - Present Indicative Active - 1st Person Plural
Strong's 991: (primarily physical), I look, see, perceive, discern. A primary verb; to look at.

your
ὑμῶν (hymōn)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Genitive 2nd Person Plural
Strong's 4771: You. The person pronoun of the second person singular; thou.

guilt
ἁμαρτία (hamartia)
Noun - Nominative Feminine Singular
Strong's 266: From hamartano; a sin.

remains.”
μένει (menei)
Verb - Present Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 3306: To remain, abide, stay, wait; with acc: I wait for, await. A primary verb; to stay.


Links
John 9:41 NIV
John 9:41 NLT
John 9:41 ESV
John 9:41 NASB
John 9:41 KJV

John 9:41 BibleApps.com
John 9:41 Biblia Paralela
John 9:41 Chinese Bible
John 9:41 French Bible
John 9:41 Catholic Bible

NT Gospels: John 9:41 Jesus said to them If you were (Jhn Jo Jn)
John 9:40
Top of Page
Top of Page