(His parents said these things because they feared the Jews, for the Jews had already agreed that if anyone should confess Jesus to be Christ, he was to be put out of the synagogue.
English Standard Version (ESV)
The parents' decision to disown their son's healing reveals a subtle but crucial point: the leaders had already formed a pact to expel anyone who acknowledged Jesus as the Messiah. This shows their opposition wasn't just about a single miracle, but about a deep-seated agreement to shut down any confession of Jesus' identity, demonstrating the terrifying power of group conformity to suppress truth.
(His parents said these things because they feared the Jews, for the Jews had already agreed that if anyone should confess Jesus to be Christ, he was to be put out of the synagogue.
English Standard Version (ESV)
The religious leaders are interrogating the parents of the man Jesus healed from birth blindness, trying to find a way to discredit the miracle and Jesus himself. The parents, while acknowledging their son was born blind and now sees, refuse to say who healed him, fearing the severe punishment of excommunication from the synagogue that had been agreed upon for anyone who confessed Jesus as the Christ.
Imagine your community, your place of worship, your entire social fabric suddenly cut off. That's what the parents of the healed man feared.
The verse reveals a powerful threat: being 'put out of the synagogue.' This wasn't just a minor inconvenience; it was a severe form of excommunication.
Levels of Exclusion
Scholars suggest there were different degrees of this ban. The lightest might involve a temporary separation, but the more severe forms meant complete social and religious isolation. Think of it as being treated like a leper, with people keeping their distance and mourners forbidden to even mourn for you. It meant banishment from all religious fellowship and normal human contact.
The Stakes for Believing
For the parents, confessing Jesus as the Christ, the one who performed this miracle, meant facing this severe penalty. Their fear wasn't about theological disagreement; it was about losing their place in society and their religious community. This intense pressure led them to deny the obvious miracle and the identity of the Healer.
The parents knew their son was born blind and now could see. But when it came to how and by whom, they suddenly knew nothing.
The parents' response, 'We know that this is your son and that he was born blind. But how he now sees we do not know,' is a masterclass in convenient ignorance. They acknowledged the facts they couldn't deny—their son's identity and his lifelong blindness—but deliberately distanced themselves from the miracle and the miracle-worker.
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Shifting the Burden
By saying, 'He is of age, ask him,' they effectively pushed the dangerous responsibility onto their son. They reasoned that he, being an adult, could speak for himself and would likely confess Jesus, putting himself at risk rather than them. This highlights a profound spiritual cowardice—an unwillingness to bear witness to God's work for fear of the consequences.
Burying God's Grace
Calvin notes that by their silence, they 'bury the grace of God.' While they didn't outright deny the miracle, they refused to celebrate it or acknowledge its divine source. This act of self-preservation came at the cost of their integrity and their duty to glorify God.
Understand the original words
Christos · Greek Noun
Refers to the Messiah, the Anointed One of God, the promised Savior who would fulfill the covenants made to Israel. To confess Jesus as the Christ is to acknowledge His identity as the long-awaited King and Redeemer.
aposunagōgos · Greek Adjective/Adverb
A formal social and religious ostracism from the Jewish community. It meant being cut off from worship, communal life, and social standing, effectively treating the person as a Gentile or an outcast.
homologeō · Greek Verb
A formal declaration of truth or allegiance. In a biblical context, it implies publicly acknowledging or agreeing with a reality, often in the face of opposition or pressure.
The threat of being 'put out of the synagogue' wasn't just about missing religious services; it meant social and economic ostracism, a severe penalty designed to stifle any acknowledgment of Jesus's identity.
c. 150 BC
Synagogue system solidifies
Following the Maccabean Revolt, synagogues became central to Jewish religious and community life throughout Judea and the diaspora.
c. 70 BC - 30 AD
Sanhedrin's authority grows
The Sanhedrin, the Jewish high court, asserted increasing authority over religious and legal matters, including the power to excommunicate.
c. AD 25-30
Jesus begins public ministry
Jesus's healing miracles, teachings, and claims to divine authority began to attract followers and provoke opposition from religious leaders.
c. AD 30-33— this verse
The Great Sanhedrin's informal decree
Religious leaders informally agreed to excommunicate anyone who confessed Jesus as the Christ, fearing His growing influence.
c. AD 30-33
Excommunication of the blind man's parents
The parents of the man healed by Jesus chose not to testify about Jesus's actions due to fear of this penalty.
c. AD 33
Jesus's crucifixion and resurrection
Jesus's death and resurrection led to the formalization of the split between early Christians and mainstream Judaism.
This passage describes Jesus warning his followers about the hatred they would face, including being 'put out' or excommunicated, highlighting the severe social and religious consequences of association with Jesus.
John 12:42This verse reiterates the fear of the Jewish leaders, stating that many even among them believed in Jesus but, because of their fear of being excommunicated, did not confess him openly.
1 Samuel 15:23This Old Testament passage provides an early example of the concept of rebellion being likened to 'the sin of witchcraft' and stubbornness to 'idolatry,' demonstrating a precedent for severe religious consequences for defiance.
Acts 5:13This passage shows the broader community's fear of the apostles, and how the people 'extolled them, but kept away from them,' illustrating a social ostracization that mirrors the fear of association mentioned in John 9:22.
Deuteronomy 13:6-11This Old Testament law outlines severe penalties, including death and exclusion, for those who would entice others to worship other gods, showing a historical basis for the strict enforcement of religious conformity within Israel.
vincentJohn 9:22: "These words spake his parents, because they feared the Jews: for the Jews had agreed already, that if any man did confess that he was Christ, he should be put out of the synagogue."
Had agreed - that (συνετέθειντο - ἵνα)The sense is, had formed an agreement in order to bring about this end, viz., that the confessor of Christ should be excommunicated.Confess (ὁμολογήσῃ)See on Matthew 7:23; see on Matthew 10:32.He should be put out of the synagogue (ἀποσυνάγωγος)The literal r…
calvinJohn 9:18-23: "But the Jews did not believe concerning him, that he had been blind, and received his sight, until they called the parents of him that had received his sight."
- But the Jews did not believe respecting him, that he had been blind and had received his sight, until they called the parents of him who had received his sight. 19. And they asked them, saying, Is this your son who, you say, was born blind? How then doth he now see? 20. His parents answered and said, We know that this…
The parents' decision to disown their son's healing reveals a subtle but crucial point: the leaders had already formed a pact to expel anyone who acknowledged Jesus as the Messiah. This shows their opposition wasn't just about a single miracle, but about a deep-seated agreement to shut down any confession of Jesus' identity, demonstrating the terrifying power of group conformity to suppress truth.
The religious leaders are interrogating the parents of the man Jesus healed from birth blindness, trying to find a way to discredit the miracle and Jesus himself. The parents, while acknowledging their son was born blind and now sees, refuse to say who healed him, fearing the severe punishment of excommunication from the synagogue that had been agreed upon for anyone who confessed Jesus as the Christ.
The religious leaders are interrogating the parents of the man Jesus healed from birth blindness, trying to find a way to discredit the miracle and Jesus himself. The parents, while acknowledging their son was born blind and now sees, refuse to say who healed him, fearing the severe punishment of excommunication from the synagogue that had been agreed upon for anyone who confessed Jesus as the Christ.
"(His parents said these things because they feared the Jews, for the Jews had already agreed that if anyone should confess Jesus to be Christ, he was to be put out of the synagogue." — The parents' decision to disown their son's healing reveals a subtle but crucial point: the leaders had already formed a pact to expel anyone who acknowledged Jesus as the Messiah. This shows their o…
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Last reviewed October 2026