<p>9:21 <i>But how he now sees, we do not know. Or who opened his eyes, we do not know. Ask him He is of age. He shall speak for himself</i>- The Jews considered that any over 13 years of age were &quot;of age&quot; to answer for themselves in such cases. Surely they had been present at his &quot;home&quot; when he first returned with the amazing information about &quot;the man called Jesus&quot; and how his eyes had been opened by saliva and washing. They surely were aware of this information, and likely believed it in their hearts. But unlike their son, they feared excommunication. They would not come out openly in confessing faith, or even in accepting the simple reality that the Lord had performed a miracle. This theme of open confession rather than secret acceptance is significant in John, for he was probably using his Gospel record to preach to other Jews who were likewise cowed by the synagogue system into not openly confessing their faith.</p>