They came to Jericho. As he and his disciples and a large crowd were leaving Jericho, Bartimaeus son of Timaeus, a blind beggar, was sitting by the roadside. When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout out and say, ‘Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!’ Many sternly ordered him to be quiet, but he cried out even more loudly, ‘Son of David, have mercy on me!’ Jesus stood still and said, ‘Call him here.’ And they called the blind man, saying to him, ‘Take heart; get up, he is calling you.’ So throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. Then Jesus said to him, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ The blind man said to him, ‘My teacher, let me see again.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Go; your faith has made you well.’ Immediately he regained his sight and followed him on the way. (Mark 10: 46-52)

Matthew, Mark, and Luke disagree on the details of this event. Luke tells us it happened as Jesus and the disciples were approaching Jericho, not on the way out of town.

Matthew agrees with Mark that Jesus was leaving Jericho, but has two unnamed blind men rather than just the carefully remembered Bartimaeus son of Timaeus.

In the ninth chapter of John a blind man is also healed. As usual John's telling is more intricate than anything found in the other three gospels. But whether this is Bartimaeus is far from clear.

A consistent element of all four stories is Jesus asking a question or questions. In Matthew, Mark, and Luke it is the very same question: "What do you want me to do for you?"

Jesus does not presume to know. He asks.

Above is Question Reality the cover graphic for Documenta V (1972)