This prompted them to turn on the man healed of blindness, putting him on the spot in front of them all, demanding an answer. They asked, “Who do you say he is—this man who opened your blind eyes?” “He’s a prophet of God!” the man replied.
A controversy was brewing among the people, with so many differing opinions about Jesus. Some were saying, “He’s a good man!” While others weren’t convinced and insisted, saying, “He’s just a demagogue.”
Others said, “This has to be Elijah who has reappeared or one of the prophets of old who has risen from the dead.” These were the rumors circulating throughout the land. Herod exclaimed,
“Then who are you?” they asked. “Are you Elijah?” “No,” John replied. So they pressed him further, “Are you the prophet Moses said was coming, the one we’re expecting?” “No,” he replied.