When he had thus spoken, he spat on the ground, and made clay of the spittle, and he anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay,
Parallel translations
- WEB When he had said this, he spat on the ground, made mud with the saliva, anointed the blind man’s eyes with the mud,
- BSB When Jesus had said this, He spit on the ground, made some mud, and applied it to the man’s eyes.
- NKJV When He had said these things, He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva; and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay.
- NASB When He had said this, He spit on the ground, and made mud from the saliva, and applied the mud to his eyes,
- NLT Then he spit on the ground, made mud with the saliva, and spread the mud over the blind man’s eyes.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Jesus makes mud from saliva and applies it to the blind man's eyes. He uses a humble physical means to perform the miracle.
Overview
Jesus chooses an earthy, tangible method, making clay and anointing the man's eyes. Some see an echo of God forming man from the dust, fitting for the Creator who restores. The act sets up the command to wash, inviting the man's obedient response and displaying Jesus' sovereign freedom in how he heals.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 3
- Mark 7:33And he took him aside from the multitude, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spit, and touched his tongue;
- Mark 8:23And he took the blind man by the hand, and led him out of the town; and when he had spit on his eyes, and put his hands upon him, he asked him if he saw ought.
- Rev 3:18I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
John declares him plainly: the eternal Word made flesh, the Lamb of God, the great 'I AM' — bread, light, door, shepherd, way, truth, life, resurrection — that you may believe and have life in his name.
How John 9:6 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.