Jesus spat on the ground, made clay with the saliva and then put it on the blind man’s eyes. “Go wash in the pool of Siloam” he told the man. The man went and washed in the pool just as Jesus directed him and he immediately was given his eye sight.
John points out that the name Siloam meant Sent. That is exactly what happened. The blind man was sent, first to a pool, then afterwards to witness to his neighbors and then to the Pharisees. What was the result of his obedience? Were people saved? Were the Pharisees convinced of who Jesus was because of the miracle?
No, actually his parents were put in danger of being kicked out of the temple (John 9:18-23) and he was thrown out (John 9:34).
In our culture if we were cast out of a church, we would simply join another. But there was no other. For them to be barred from worshiping in the Temple meant you could not worship God. It was paramount to being eternally lost. If you could not bring sacrifices to God, you could not be forgiven.
But the former blind man came to know something the Pharisees did not understand. He had met God (John 9:1-38).
