John 11 explained: Jesus Raises His Friend Lazarus

A puzzling delay (vv. 1-16)

When Jesus hears his close friend is sick, he waits two more days, saying the illness will end up showing God's glory. His followers fear going back near Jerusalem, where he was nearly stoned, and Thomas assumes the trip will get them all killed.

Martha's grief and hope (vv. 17-27)

Four days in the tomb meant Lazarus was beyond doubt dead, and many mourners had come from nearby Jerusalem. Martha believes the dead will rise at the end of time, and Jesus answers that rising and life are tied to him personally, though readers differ on how much he meant this as a present gift and how much as a future hope.

Jesus weeps (vv. 28-37)

Mary repeats her sister's painful words, and Jesus is shaken and cries openly. The Greek word for his strong emotion here can also suggest anger, so scholars debate whether he felt only grief or also outrage at death itself.

Lazarus walks out (vv. 38-44)

Tombs were often caves sealed with a heavy stone, and bodies were wrapped in strips of cloth, so Lazarus comes out still bound. Christians read this as a preview of Jesus' own resurrection, though Lazarus would one day die again.

The leaders decide (vv. 45-53)

The ruling council in Jerusalem feared a popular movement around Jesus would bring Roman troops down on their temple and people. The high priest Caiaphas argues that one man's death is a price worth paying, and the writer sees in his cold words an unintended prediction that Jesus would die for many.

Hiding before Passover (vv. 54-57)

Jesus withdraws to a small town called Ephraim, probably north of Jerusalem near the desert, though its exact location is uncertain. Pilgrims arriving early to make themselves ritually clean for the festival wonder whether he will dare to come, since orders have gone out for his arrest.

Key verse: John 11:25

Where Christians differ

Most Christians read this as a real historical event, while some Christian scholars, noting that the other Gospels do not mention it, read it mainly as a symbolic story about Jesus as the giver of life.

Something to think about

When someone you counted on did not show up at the moment you needed them most, how did that change the way you saw them afterward?