9:18 Now the Jewish religious leaders56 refused to believe57 that he had really been blind and had gained his sight until at last they summoned58 the parents of the man who had become able to see.59
tn Or “the Jewish religious authorities”; Grk “the Jews.” In NT usage the term Ἰουδαῖοι (Ioudaioi) may refer to the entire Jewish people, the residents of Jerusalem and surrounding territory, the authorities in Jerusalem, or merely those who were hostile to Jesus. (For further information see R. G. Bratcher, “ ‘The Jews’ in the Gospel of John,” BT 26 [1975]: 401–9.) Here the phrase refers mainly to the Pharisees, mentioned by name in John 9:13, 15, 16. References in this context to Pharisees and to the synagogue (v. 22) suggest an emphasis on the religious nature of the debate which is brought out by the translation “the Jewish religious leaders.”
57
tn The Greek text contains the words “about him” at this point: “the Jewish authorities did not believe about him …”