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JOHN 9:6 — KING JAMES VERSION 0
John 9:5John 9:7
“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,”
When he had thus spoken, he spat on the ground, and made clay of his spittle, and he anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay — Jesus performs the healing through a process: spitting on the ground, making clay (a mixing of saliva and earth), and anointing the blind man's eyes with the clay. The method is tactile and intimate. The use of spittle echoes Old Testament healing narratives (Mark 7:33) and suggests the transfer of life-power. The making of clay from earth recalls Genesis 2:7 (God forming man from dust), suggesting a re-creation. The healing is not instantaneous through a word but mediated through physical action and material.

Church Fathers on John 9:6

The Jews having rejected Christ’s words, because of their depth, He went out of the temple, and healed the blind man; that His absence might appease their fury, and the miracle soften their hard hearts, and convince their unbelief. And as Jesus passed by, He saw a man which was blind from his birth. It is to be remarked here that, on going out of the temple, He betook Himself intently to this manifestation of His power. He first saw the blind man, not the blind man Him: and…

Chrysostom · 4th century

Mystically, our Lord, after being banished from the minds of the Jews, passed over to the Gentiles. The passage or journey here is His descent from heaven to earth, where He saw the blind man, i.e. looked with compassion on the human race.

Bede · 8th century

For the blind man here is the human race. Blindness came upon the first man by reason of sin: and from him we all derive it: i.e. man is blind from his birth.

Augustine · 4th century
Read all 18 entries in the readerCatena Aurea · St. Thomas Aquinas, tr. J. H. Newman · public domain
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John 9:6 — Community Reflections | HolyStudy