16: The raising of Lazarus — John 11:1–44

1Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. ² Mary was the one who anointed the Lord with perfume and wiped his feet with her hair; her brother Lazarus was ill. ³ So the sisters sent a message to Jesus “Lord, he whom you love is ill.” ⁴ But when Jesus heard it, he said, “This illness does not lead to death; rather it is for God’s glory, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”
⁵ Accordingly, though Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus, ⁶ after having heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was.

⁷ Then after this he said to the disciples, “Let us go to Judea again.” ⁸ The disciples said to him, “Rabbi, the Jews were just now trying to stone you, and are you going there again?”
⁹ Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours of daylight? Those who walk during the day do not stumble, because they see the light of this world. ¹⁰ But those who walk at night stumble, because the light is not in them.” ¹¹ After saying this, he told them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I am going there to awaken him.” ¹² The disciples said to him, “Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will be all right.” ¹³ Jesus, however, had been speaking about his death, but they thought that he was referring merely to sleep. ¹⁴ Then Jesus told them plainly, “Lazarus is dead. ¹⁵ For your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.” ¹⁶ Thomas, who was called the Twin said to his fellow disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.”

¹⁷ When Jesus arrived, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days.
¹⁸ Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, some two miles away, ¹⁹ and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them about their brother. ²⁰ When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, while Mary stayed at home. ²¹ Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. ²² But even now I know that God will give you whatever you ask of him.” ²³ Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” ²⁴ Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.” ²⁵ Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, ²⁶ and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” ²⁷ She said to him, “Yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Messiah the Son of God, the one coming into the world.”

²⁸ When she had said this, she went back and called her sister Mary, and told her privately, “The Teacher is here and is calling for you.” ²⁹ And when she heard it, she got up quickly and went to him. ³⁰ Now Jesus had not yet come to the village, but was still at the place where Martha had met him.
³¹ The Jews who were with her in the house, consoling her, saw Mary get up quickly and go out. They followed her because they thought that she was going to the tomb to weep there. ³² When Mary came where Jesus was and saw him, she knelt at his feet and said to him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” ³³ When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her also weeping, he was greatly disturbed in spirit and deeply moved. ³⁴ He said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to him, “Lord, come and see.” ³⁵ Jesus began to weep. ³⁶ So the Jews said, “See how he loved him!” ³⁷ But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?”

³⁸ Then Jesus, again greatly disturbed, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone was lying against it. ³⁹ Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, “Lord, already there is a stench because he has been dead four days.”
⁴⁰ Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?” ⁴¹ So they took away the stone. And Jesus looked upward and said, “Father, I thank you for having heard me. ⁴² I knew that you always hear me, but I have said this for the sake of the crowd standing here, so that they may believe that you sent me.” ⁴³ When he had said this, he cried with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” ⁴⁴ The dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with strips of cloth, and his face wrapped in a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.” NRSV

Get into the Word

1. What is the relationship between Jesus and Lazarus? Why would the sisters try to contact Jesus about their brother’s illness?

2. How does Jesus react to this news? Does this surprise you? Do you think the disciples were surprised that Jesus did not go to them immediately?

3. How do the disciples react to Jesus’ decision to return to Judea? What do you think Jesus meant with the reference to walking by day or by night?

4. Where is the disciples’ focus during this conversation? What is significant about the length of time Lazarus had been in the tomb when Jesus arrived?

5. Why do you suppose only Martha went out to meet Jesus? How does Martha greet Jesus? What does this tell you about her faith? How does Jesus respond to Martha? 

6. How does Mary greet Jesus? What does Jesus say to her grief? What does the crowd say about Jesus’s response to the situation?

7. What is Jesus’ next response to Lazarus’ death? How does Martha react? Once the stone was moved what does Jesus do? What does this tell you about his relationship with the Father?

Get Personal

Are there times when you think action is called for but God seems to be delaying? Or when God seems to be going in a direction you don’t understand? How do you respond to such situations?

11:1. Bethany — a small village about 20 miles east of Jerusalem.
Lazarus — along with his sisters, Martha and Mary, followed Jesus from early in his ministry. 
11:6. He stayed — another example of Jesus’ paying attention to God’s timing, not his human instinct to go to his friend.
11:12. Awaken him — the disciples take Jesus literally, even though “sleep” was a common metaphor for death. 
11:15. So that you may believe — Jesus is about to demonstrate his ultimate power.
11:16. Thomas — “The Twin,” but there is no reference to a brother or sister in the Bible. 

11:17. Four days – A person who died was usually buried that same day. Jews did not use coffins, but usually wrapped the entire body in long strips of cloth, often mixed with perfumes [check v. 44].
11:27. I believe — Martha’s faith is strong, but she does not realize all the implications of her faith or Jesus’ power.
11:32. If you had been here — Mary, like Martha, believes in Jesus’ power to heal; but they don’t see the connection between the power to heal and the power to grant life itself.
11:41. Father, thank you — Jesus echoes Elijah in praying publicly so people will know that God is the real actor [check 1 Kings 18:36-37].