Then Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him: If you remain with my teaching, then you are truly my disciples and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. They answered him: We are the seed of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone; how is it that you say: You will be made free? Jesus answered them: Truly truly I tell you that everyone who commits sin is the slave of his sin. But the slave does not remain in the house forever. The son remains forever. If then the son sets you free, you will be free in truth. I know that you are the seed of Abraham. But you are trying to kill me, because my teaching does not work in you. What I have seen with my father, I tell you; do then what you have heard from the father. They answered and said to him: Our father is Abraham. Jesus said to them: If you are the children of Abraham, then do what Abrah^ did. But now you are trying to kill me, a man who has told you the truth I heard from God. Abraham did not do that. You are doing what your father did. They said to him: We were not bred from promiscuity. We have one father, God. Jesus said to them: If God were your father, you would love me, since I issued from God and come from God; for I did not come on my own account, but he sent me. Why do you not understand what I say? Because you are not able to listen to my reasoning. The father you come from is the devil and you wish to do your father's will. He has been a man killer from the beginning, and he does not stand upon the truth because there is no truth in him. When he speaks his lie he speaks from what is his own, because he is a liar and so is his father. And because I speak the truth you do not believe me. Which one of you proves me in error? If I speak the truth, why do you not believe me? He who is from God listens to the words of God. That is why you do not listen, because you are not from God. The Jews answered and said to him: Are we not right in saying you are a Samaritan, and possessed? Jesus answered: I am not possessed, but I honor my father, and you dishonor me. I do not seek my own glory. He who seeks it is he who judges. Truly truly I tell you, he who follows my teaching shall not look on death, forever. The Jews said to him: Now we know that you are possessed. Abraham died, and the prophets died, and you say: He who follows my teaching shall not taste of death, forever. Can you be greater than our father Abraham, who died? And the prophets died. Who do you think you are? Jesus answered: If I glorify myself, my glory is nothing. It is my father who glorifies me, whom you call your God; and you do not know about him, but I know him. And if I say that I do not know him, I shall be a liar like you. But I know him and I follow his teaching. Abraham your father was joyful over seeing my day, and he did see it, and was glad. Then the Jews said to him: You are not yet fifty years old; and you have seen Abraham? Jesus said to them: Truly truly I tell you, I am from before Abraham was born. Then they picked up stones to throw at him, but he effaced himself and left the temple.
•1 On his way he saw a man who had been blind from birth. And his disciples questioned him, saying: Master, who sinned, this man or his parents, for him to be born blind? Jesus answered: Neither he nor his parents sinned; it was so that the workings of God might be made manifest in him. We must do the work of him who sent me while it is day. The night is coming, when no one can work. While I am in the world, I am the light of the world. So saying, he spat on the ground and made mud out of the spittle, and put mud on the man's eyes, and said to him: Go and wash in the pool of Siloam (which translated means the one who has been sent). So he went and washed, and came away seeing. So his neighbors, and those who had seen him before when he was a beggar, said: Is not this the man who sat and begged? Some said: It is he. Others said: No, but it is someone like him. But he said: It is I. Then they said to ^im: How were your eyes opened? He answered: The man called Jesus made mud and smeared it on my eyes and said to me: Go to Siloam and wash. So I went and washed, and I saw. And they said to him: Where is he? He said: I do not know. Then they took the man who had once been blind to the Pharisees. The sabbath was the day on which Jesus had made the mud and opened the man's eyes. Then the Pharisees in tum asked him how he had got his sight. And he told them: He put mud on my eyes, and I washed, and I see. And some of the Pharisees said: This is no man from God, since he does not keep the sabbath. But others said: How can a sinful man work such miracles? And there was division among them. So they said, once more, to the blind man: What do you have to say about him, because he opened your eyes? He said: He is a prophet. But the Jews did not believe it about him, that he had been blind and got his sight, until they called in the parents of the man who had got his sight and questioned them, saying: Is this your son, who, you say, was born blind? How is it that he can now see? His parents answered and said: We know that this is our son and that he was born blind. We do not know how it is that he now can see, and we do not know who opened his eyes. Ask him; he is of age and he will tell you about himself. His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jews, because the Jews had agreed that anyone who confessed that he was Christ should be barred from the synagogue. That is why his parents said:
He is of age, ask him. Thus for the second time they summoned the man who had been blind, and said to him: Give glory to God. We know that this man is sinful. The man answered and said: Whether he is sinful I do not know. One thing I do know, that I was blind and now I see. Then they said to him: What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes? He answered them: I told you before, and you did not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Could it be that you want to be his disciples? And they reviled him and said: You are his disciple. We are disciples of Moses. We know that God talked with Moses; but we do not know where this man is from. The man answered and said to them: Here is what is astonishing, that you do not know where he is from and he opened my eyes. We know that God does not listen to sinners, but if someone is pious and does his will, to that man he listens. From the beginning of time it has never been heard of that anyone opened the eyes of one born blind; if this man were not from God, he could not have done anything. They answered and said to him: You were born all in sin; and you are teaching us? And they cast him out. Jesus heard that they had cast him out, and he found him and said: Do you believe in the son of man? The man answered: Who is that, Lord? So that I may believe in him. Jesus said to him: You have seen him; and it is he who is talking with you. And he said: I believe, Lord. And worshipped him. And Jesus said: I have come into this world for judgment, so that those who do not see may see, and those who see may go blind. The Pharisees who were with him heard this, and they said to him: Surely, even we are not blind? Jesus said to them: If you were blind, you would have no sin. But now you say: We see. Your sin remains.
fl Truly truly I tell you, he who does not enter the sheep- fold through the gate but climbs into it from another place is a thief and a robber; but he who enters through the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the gatekeeper opens, and the sheep listen to his voice, and he summons his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has put all of his own outside, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him, because they know his voice. But they will not follow a stranger but run away from him, because they do not know the voice of strangers. This is a parable Jesus told them; but they did not know what he was talking about. Again Jesus said: Truly truly I tell you, I ^ the gate for the sheep. All those who came before me are thieves and robbers; but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate. Whoever enters through me shall be saved and go in and out and find pasturage. The thief does not come except to steal and slaughter and destroy; I came so that they may have life, and have abundance. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The man who is hired, who is no shepherd, whose sheep are not his own, sees the wolf coming and lets the sheep go and runs away; and the wolf ravages and scatters them; because he is hired and the sheep are of no concern to him. I ^ the good shepherd, and I know mine and they know me, as the father knows me and I know the father, and I lay down my life for the sheep. And I have other sheep which are not from this fold; and I must bring them, and they will listen to my voice, and they will become one flock, one shepherd. That is why the father loves me, because I lay down my life, so that I may take it back again. No one took it from me, but I lay it down of my own will. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it back. This is the command I had from my father.