Albert Barnes Commentary John 9:17

"They say therefore unto the blind man again, What sayest thou of him, in that he opened thine eyes? And he said, He is a prophet." — John 9:17 (ASV)

What sayest thou of him? etc. The translation here expresses the sense obscurely. The meaning is, "What do you say about him for giving you sight?" (Campbell); or, "What opinion of him has this work of power and mercy toward you produced in you?" (Hammond).

He is a prophet. That is, "I think that the power to work such a miracle proves that he is sent from God. And though this has been done on the Sabbath, yet it proves that he must have been sent by God, for such a power could never have proceeded from man." We see here:

1. A noble confession made by the man who was healed, in the face of the rulers of the people, and when he doubtless knew that they were opposed to Jesus. We should never be ashamed, before any class of men, to acknowledge the favours which we have received from Christ, and to express our belief of his power and of the truth of his doctrine.
2. The works of Jesus were such as to prove that he came from God, however much he may have appeared to oppose the previous notions of men, the interpretation of the law by the Pharisees, or the deductions of reason. Men should yield their own views of religion to the teachings of God, and believe that he who could open the eyes of the blind and raise the dead was fitted to declare his will.