YHN 9:39 Parallel Verse View

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Text critical issues=small word differences Clarity of original=clear Importance to us=normal (All still tentative.)

Key: khaki:verbs, light-green:nominative/subject, orange:accusative/object.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).

ULT And Jesus said, “For judgment I came into this world, so that those not seeing might see and those seeing might become blind.”

UST Jesus said, “I have come into this world in order to judge its people. The result will be that the people who realize they do not perceive God’s truth may perceive it, like a blind person becoming able to see. Another result will be that the people who think they perceive God’s truth will not perceive it, like a person who sees and becomes blind.”

BSB Then Jesus declared, “For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind may see and those who see may become blind.”[fn]

9:39 Literally so that those not seeing may see and those seeing may become blind. Some manuscripts do not include 38“Lord, I believe.”… 39Then Jesus declared.

MSB Then Jesus declared, “For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind may see and those who see may become blind.”[fn]

9:39 Literally so that those not seeing may see and those seeing may become blind. Some manuscripts do not include 38“Lord, I believe”… 39Then Jesus declared.

BLB And Jesus said, "For judgment I came into this world, that those not seeing may see, and those seeing may become blind."

AICNT And Jesus said,][fn] “I came into this world for judgment, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may become blind.”

9:38-39a, Then he said, “I believe, Lord,” and he worshiped him. 39 And Jesus said: Absent from some manuscripts. 𝔓75 ℵ(01) W(032) Latin(b)

OEB and Jesus added, ‘It was to put people to the test that I came into this world, in order that those that cannot see should see, and that those that can see should become blind.’

WEBBE Jesus said, “I came into this world for judgement, that those who don’t see may see; and that those who see may become blind.”

WMBB Yeshua said, “I came into this world for judgement, that those who don’t see may see; and that those who see may become blind.”

NET Jesus said,] “For judgment I have come into this world, so that those who do not see may gain their sight, and the ones who see may become blind.”

LSV And Jesus said, “I came to this world for judgment, that those not seeing may see, and those seeing may become blind.”

FBV Then Jesus told him, “I've come into the world to bring judgment so that those who are blind may see, and those who see will become blind.”

TCNT Then Jesus said, “For judgment I have come into this world, so that those who do not see may see, and those who see may become blind.”

T4T Jesus said, “I have come into this world to judge the people in the world. The result will be that those who realize that they do not know God’s truth will perceive it. That is like [MET] enabling those who are blind to see. But the result will also be that people who falsely think [IRO] that they understand God’s truth will never understand it. That is like [MET] people who are blind remaining blind permanently.”

LEB And Jesus said,〛[fn] “For judgment I have come into this world, so that those who do not see may see, and those who see may become blind!”

9:39 A number of important manuscripts lack v. 38 and the first part of v. 39 (“and Jesus said”)

BBE And Jesus said, I came into this world to be a judge, so that those who do not see may see, and those who see may become blind.

Moff Then said Jesus, "It is for judgment that I have come into this world, to make the sightless see, to make the seeing blind."

Wymth "I came into this world," said Jesus, "to judge men, that those who do not see may see, and that those who do see may become blind."

ASV And Jesus said, For judgment came I into this world, that they that see not may see; and that they that see may become blind.

DRA And Jesus said: For judgment I am come into this world; that they who see not, may see; and they who see, may become blind.

YLT And Jesus said, 'For judgment I to this world did come, that those not seeing may see, and those seeing may become blind.'

Drby And Jesus said, For judgment am I come into this world, that they which see not may see, and they which see may become blind.

RV And Jesus said, For judgment came I into this world, that they which see not may see; and that they which see may become blind.
(And Jesus said, For judgement came I into this world, that they which see not may see; and that they which see may become blind. )

SLT And Jesus said, For judgment came I into this world, that they not seeing might see; and they seeing might be blind.

Wbstr And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they who see not, may see; and that they who see, may be made blind.

KJB-1769 ¶ And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind.
(¶ And Jesus said, For judgement I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind. )

KJB-1611 ¶ And Iesus said, For iudgment I am come into this world, that they which see not, might see, and that they which see, might be made blind.
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from punctuation)

Bshps And Iesus sayde vnto hym: I am come vnto iudgement into this worlde, that they which see not, myght see: and that they which see, myght be made blynde.
(And Yesus/Yeshua said unto him: I am come unto judgement into this world, that they which see not, might see: and that they which see, might be made blinde.)

Gnva And Iesus sayd, I am come vnto iudgement into this world, that they which see not, might see: and that they which see, might be made blinde.
(And Yesus/Yeshua said, I am come unto judgement into this world, that they which see not, might see: and that they which see, might be made blind. )

Cvdl And Iesus sayde: I am come to iudgmet in to this worlde, that they which se not, might se: and that they which se, might be made blynde.
(And Yesus/Yeshua said: I am come to judgement in to this world, that they which see not, might se: and that they which see, might be made blinde.)

TNT Iesus sayde: I am come vnto iudgement into this worlde: that they which se not myght se and they which se myght be made blynde.
(Yesus/Yeshua said: I am come unto judgement into this world: that they which see not might see and they which see might be made blinde. )

Wycl Therfore Jhesus seide to hym, Y cam in to this world, `in to doom, that thei that seen not, see, and thei that seen, be maad blynde.
(Therefore Yhesus said to him, I came in to this world, in to judgement, that they that seen not, see, and they that seen, be made blinde.)

Luth Und JEsus sprach: Ich bin zum Gerichte auf diese Welt kommen, auf daß, die da nicht sehen, sehend werden, und die da sehen, blind werden.
(And Yesus spoke: I am for_the court(n)/justice on/in/to this/these world coming, on/in/to that, the there not see, seed become, and the there see, blind become.)

ClVg Et dixit Jesus: In judicium ego in hunc mundum veni: ut qui non vident videant, et qui vident cæci fiant.[fn]
(And he/she_said Yesus: In judgement I in/into/on this_one the_world I_came: as who/which not/no they_see let_them_see, and who/which they_see blind be_done. )

9.39 Ut qui non vident. Id est, qui se videre putant, quærunt ut videant, et qui vident, id est, qui se videre putant, et medicum non quærunt, et hoc est judicium, id est discretio quod discernit causam credentium a superbis. Judicium enim damnationis non modo, sed in fine faciet; unde: Ego non judico quemquam.

9.39 As who/which not/no they_see. That it_is, who/which himself to_see they_think, they_seek as let_them_see, and who/which they_see, that it_is, who/which himself to_see they_think, and doctor not/no they_seek, and this it_is judgement, that it_is discretion that distinguishes cause believers from proud. Judgement because of_condemnation not/no just/only, but in/into/on fine will_do; from_where/who: I not/no judge anyone.

UGNT καὶ εἶπεν ὁ Ἰησοῦς, εἰς κρίμα ἐγὼ εἰς τὸν κόσμον τοῦτον ἦλθον, ἵνα οἱ μὴ βλέποντες, βλέπωσιν; καὶ οἱ βλέποντες, τυφλοὶ γένωνται.
(kai eipen ho Yaʸsous, eis krima egō eis ton kosmon touton aʸlthon, hina hoi maʸ blepontes, blepōsin; kai hoi blepontes, tufloi genōntai.)

SBL-GNT καὶ εἶπεν ὁ Ἰησοῦς· Εἰς κρίμα ἐγὼ εἰς τὸν κόσμον τοῦτον ἦλθον, ἵνα οἱ μὴ βλέποντες βλέπωσιν καὶ οἱ βλέποντες τυφλοὶ γένωνται.
(kai eipen ho Yaʸsous; Eis krima egō eis ton kosmon touton aʸlthon, hina hoi maʸ blepontes blepōsin kai hoi blepontes tufloi genōntai.)

RP-GNT Καὶ εἶπεν ὁ Ἰησοῦς, Εἰς κρίμα ἐγὼ εἰς τὸν κόσμον τοῦτον ἦλθον, ἵνα οἱ μὴ βλέποντες βλέπωσιν, καὶ οἱ βλέποντες τυφλοὶ γένωνται.
(Kai eipen ho Yaʸsous, Eis krima egō eis ton kosmon touton aʸlthon, hina hoi maʸ blepontes blepōsin, kai hoi blepontes tufloi genōntai.)

TC-GNT Καὶ εἶπεν ὁ Ἰησοῦς, Εἰς κρίμα ἐγὼ εἰς τὸν κόσμον τοῦτον ἦλθον, ἵνα οἱ μὴ βλέποντες βλέπωσι, καὶ οἱ βλέποντες τυφλοὶ γένωνται.
(Kai eipen ho Yaʸsous, Eis krima egō eis ton kosmon touton aʸlthon, hina hoi maʸ blepontes blepōsi, kai hoi blepontes tufloi genōntai. )

Key for above GNTs: yellow:punctuation differs, red:words differ (from our SR-GNT base).

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 9:35–41: The blind man could see but the Pharisees could not see who Jesus was

This section tells how the blind man whom Jesus healed believed in him. Jesus said that he came so those who do not see could see, and those who see would become blind. Jesus then told some Pharisees who heard him that because they said that they could see, their sin was not forgiven.

Here are some other examples for a heading for this section:

The man whom Jesus healed saw who Jesus was

Jesus makes the blind to see and those who see to be blind

Spiritual blindness

9:39a

Then Jesus declared, “For judgment I have come into this world,

Jesus said, “People will be judged because I came to this world,
Jesus said, “I came into this world so that the world could be judged. (NCV)

For judgment I have come into this world: Jesus indicated that he came to the world for the world to be judged. This was the result or perhaps the purpose of his coming. But Jesus did not say here that he would be the judge, and in 3:17 and 12:47 he said that he did not come to judge. Therefore, it is important that you do not say here that Jesus came to judge. (You should not follow GNT where it says, “I came to this world to judge.”)

The idea seems to be that Jesus came and offered salvation. As a result, some people believed him and were saved and others rejected him and were judged. Here are other ways to translate this clause:

I came into this world so that the world could be judged. (NCV)

People will be judged because I came to this world

For judgment: The word judgment here refers to deciding whether someone is guilty or innocent. People are divided into two groups: believers and unbelievers. The Greek text emphasizes the phrase For judgment. Here are some ways that you can indicate this emphasis:

It is for judgment that I have come into this world (REB)

The reason that I came to this world is so that people will be judged/separated

In some languages it may be natural to make explicit who would judge and who would be judged. It is important that you do not say that Jesus would judge. That is because John 3:17 and 12:47 both say that he did not come to judge. For example:

Because I came into this world, God will judge the people here

I came to this world that God may judge/separate people

9:39b–c

so that the blind may see and those who see may become blind: These clauses describe both the purpose and the result of the judging. This judgment has two results, one positive and one negative. Spiritually blind people become able to see, but people who can already see spiritually (or think they can) become blind.

Although Jesus had just healed a man who was literally blind, here he spoke mainly about people who were spiritually blind. For example, Jesus did not come so that people who could physically see would become blind. However, Isaiah 6:9–10 does talk about God’s messenger causing people to become spiritually blind. Jesus quoted these words in Matthew 13:14–15, applying them to his own ministry. You may want to write a footnote to explain what Jesus meant in these clauses. Consider how you can help your readers understand that Jesus spoke figuratively here. For example:

As for those who do not know God, they are compared to a blind person, I will remove their blindness. But those who say that they know God, I will show that they are still blind.Adapted from the Kankanaey Back Translation.

9:39b

so that the blind may see

so that the blind people will see
I came so that those who cannot see will be able to see,

so that the blind may see: The words so that here introduce the purpose of Christ’s coming into the world. In some languages it may be natural to make this explicit. For example:

I came so that the blind would see (NCV)

I am here to give sight to the blind (CEV)

the blind may see: Although Jesus did heal physically blind people, this phrase refers mainly to people who are spiritually blind. That is because 9:39c can only refer to people becoming spiritually blind. The phrase the blind refers to those who know that they need help to see the truth. Christ is the light of the world, and only people who believe in him can truly see (see 9:5b). If it is not understood that Jesus spoke mainly figuratively, you may need to make the meaning more explicit. For example:

those who do not know God, who are compared to people who do not see, may become able to see

the person who knows that his ability to understand is made blind, I will heal him so that he can understand well

the people who do not see/know the truth about God, and so are like those who cannot see, will see

9:39c

and those who see may become blind.”

and those who think they see will become blind.”
but as for those who say that they can see, they will become blind.”

and those who see may become blind: This clause indicates the second purpose of Jesus’ coming to earth. When the Jewish leaders rejected the light (Jesus), they showed that they were spiritually blind. In other words, Jesus’ coming caused them to become even blinder than they were before. This had to happen because they rejected the only true light, the light of the world (9:5b). In your translation it may be necessary to indicate some of the meaning of the metaphor. For example:

and those who say “We know God,” I will show that they are blind

and those who say that their ability to understand spiritual things has not become blind, his ability to understand will become more blind

and the people who say that they see because they think that they see/know the truth about God, they will become blind

those who see: This phrase here refers to the Jewish leaders, who felt confident that they could see. They could see physically, and they thought that they could see spiritually. They thought that they clearly understood God. They thought that they knew what God was like and what his rules were, and they were proud about that. They were proud of their knowledge of God and his law, but they did not truly know God. For example:

those who think they see (NLT)

may become blind: This phrase is a metaphor. With this metaphor Jesus compared not believing to being blind. These people reject the only true light, because they think they do not need it. In this way they confirm their own spiritual blindness.

General Comment on 9:39a–c

In your translation it should be clear that the judgment spoken of in 9:39a is described in 9:39b, c. Here are ways to indicate this:

I came into this world so that the world could be judged. I came so that the blind would see and so that those who see will become blind. (NCV)

It is for judgment that I have come into this world—to give sight to the sightless and to make blind those who see. (REB)

UTN uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / abstractnouns

εἰς κρίμα

for judgment

If your language does not use an abstract noun for the idea of judgment, you could express the same idea in another way. Alternate translation: [In order to judge]

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

ἵνα οἱ μὴ βλέποντες, βλέπωσιν; καὶ οἱ βλέποντες, τυφλοὶ γένωνται

in_order_that the_‹ones› (Some words not found in SR-GNT: Καί εἶπεν ὁ Ἰησοῦς εἰς κρίμα ἐγώ εἰς τόν κόσμον τοῦτον ἦλθον ἵνα οἱ μή βλέποντες βλέπωσιν καί οἱ βλέποντες τυφλοί γένωνται)

Here, not seeing, see, seeing, and become blind are metaphors. See the discussion of these metaphors in the General Notes for this chapter. If these uses of these words would confuse your readers, you could use similes or express the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: [so that those who know they are spiritually blind might receive spiritual sight, and those who falsely think they have spiritual sight might remain spiritually blind] or [so that those who recognize that they don’t know God might know him, and those who falsely think they know God might continue not knowing him]

Note 3 topic: grammar-connect-logic-result

ἵνα οἱ μὴ βλέποντες, βλέπωσιν; καὶ οἱ βλέποντες, τυφλοὶ γένωνται

Here, so that could indicate that: (1) the rest of the verse is the result of Jesus’ judgment, which may require starting a new sentence. Alternate translation: [The result of my judgment will be that those not seeing might see and those seeing might become blind] (2) the rest of the verse is an explanation of the judgment Jesus mentioned at the beginning of the verse, which may also require starting a new sentence. Alternate translation: [That judgment is that those not seeing might see and those seeing might become blind]

Parallel YHN 9:39

Section 9:35–41: The blind man could see but the Pharisees could not see who Jesus was

9:39a

9:39b–c

9:39b

9:39c

General Comment on 9:39a–c