What is the meaning of John 9:28?

Then they heaped insults on him

– The religious leaders, unable to refute the testimony of the man Jesus healed, turn to ridicule.

– Mockery often surfaces when hard hearts meet irrefutable evidence (Matthew 27:41-43; Acts 7:54-57).

– Their contempt highlights the cost of standing with Christ—expect hostility when truth confronts entrenched unbelief (2 Timothy 3:12).

---

and said

– Words follow attitudes; what fills the heart spills from the mouth (Luke 6:45).

– The leaders’ speech exposes spiritual blindness deeper than the beggar’s former physical blindness (John 9:40-41).

---

You are His disciple

– Intended as an insult, yet it becomes a badge of honor.

– True discipleship centers on personal allegiance to Jesus (John 8:31-32; Luke 9:23).

– The healed man’s simple loyalty contrasts with the leaders’ learned unbelief (1 Corinthians 1:27-29).

---

we are disciples of Moses

– They invoke Moses to legitimize themselves, assuming the Law alone guarantees righteousness (John 5:45-47).

– Ironically, Moses wrote of Christ; rejecting Jesus reveals they actually misunderstand Moses (Deuteronomy 18:15; Acts 3:22-23).

– Clinging to tradition without embracing its fulfillment blinds people to God’s present work (Mark 7:8-9).

---

summary

John 9:28 shows the religious elite attacking a truthful witness to maintain their status quo. Their insults reveal hearts hardened against God’s miraculous intervention. By contrasting “His disciple” with “disciples of Moses,” the passage drives home that genuine faith aligns with Jesus, the very One to whom Moses pointed. Loyalty to Christ, not mere tradition, marks true discipleship.