What Does John 9:18 Mean?
But the Jews did not trust concerning him that he had been blind and had received his sight, until they called for the parents of him who had received his sight.
Key words are shown with the Hebrew or Greek and what each word meant.
Selah Decoded Version The Selah Decoded Version renders what the Hebrew and Greek words meant to the people who first heard them.
King James wording
King James Version
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.THE KEY
The man’s sight is restored before the witnesses’ trust is; they summon his parents to make an already real change credible.
THE MEANING
A real change in your life can be present before others trust the report of it. Here, trust waits for the parents’ confirmation; the healed man’s changed state alone has not settled the claim.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
A true change is always accepted as soon as it is reported.
THE ROOT
πιστεύω
pisteuō
GROWS FROM
πιστ-
pist-
Trust and reliance; the quality of being dependable.
“did not trust” in this verse is pisteuō. This word reaches beyond privately agreeing with a claim: it carries trust, the placing of reliance. The witnesses withhold that reliance until the parents can confirm that the healed man is the one who was blind.
ALSO GROWS
pistis: trust, reliance
πίστις
The related noun names the trust withheld from the report until it can be confirmed.
pistos: firm, steady, trustworthy
πιστός
This branch shows the same word family reaching toward dependability, not just agreement.
apistos: untrusting, unbelieving
ἄπιστος
This related form describes the refusal of trust at the center of the verse.
THE PATTERN
A report of extraordinary change can meet disbelief until another witness confirms it.
And they told him, saying, Joseph is yet alive, and he is ruler over all the land of Egypt. And Jacob's heart went slack, for he did not lean his weight on them.And their words appeared before them like babble, and they did not trust them.The other disciples therefore said to him, We have perceived the Lord. But he said to them, Unless I perceive in his hands the mark of the nails, and put my finger into the mark of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not lean my full weight.THE THREAD
Jesus said to him, Thomas, because you have perceived me, you have leaned your full weight. Flourishing are those who have not perceived, and yet have leaned their weight.The same Greek trust-word, πιστεύω (pisteuō), links these verses: here, trust waits for the parents’ confirmation; there, Thomas’s trust follows seeing. The repeated root brings the question of what makes a report credible into view.
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