In Greek this verse is introduced by two words which Revised Standard Version translates And behold (see comment at 1.20). The formula here functions as a means of introducing the two blind men into the narrative, and most modern English translations do not use a specific word to render the Greek expression. New American Bible, however, translates “and suddenly.” Jerusalem Bible very effectively uses the transitional “Now” and isolates the statement about the presence of the blind men: “Now there were two blind men sitting at the side of the road.” Another possibility is “It happened that two blind men…” or “It happened there were two blind men….” Barclay and many others make this statement about the blind men a separate sentence, as for example, “(It happened) there were two blind men sitting beside the road. When they heard that Jesus was passing, they cried out.”

When they heard that Jesus was passing by may be restructured as direct discourse: “when they heard people say, ‘Jesus is about to pass by.’ ”

Have mercy on us is the same plea uttered by the blind men in 9.27. As RSV’s footnote indicates, some Greek manuscripts include the noun of address, which may be translated either “Lord” (RSV footnote) or “sir” (Good News Translation). Both the position and presence of the noun is in question, and the committee on the UBS Greek text decided that the “least unsatisfactory resolution of all the diverse problems” of the text was to place the word within square brackets (see TC-GNT). A number of translations have “Lord” and place the noun in emphatic position immediately before the phrase “Son of David.” On the other hand, New English Bible deletes it entirely. The same translational problem exists here as in earlier passages (see 8.2).

Son of David, first appearing in 1.1, is also the title by which the two other blind men previously addressed Jesus (9.27). This was a popular name for the expected Messiah, and it reflected nationalistic hopes. Commentators draw attention to Isaiah 29.18 and 35.5, where restoration of sight was one characteristic of the Messianic Age.

It may be more natural to have the men address Jesus before asking for his mercy: “Son of David, have mercy on us.” See comments at 9.27.

Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on the Gospel of Matthew. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1988. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .