The Bible Book

226

THE MAN

WHO HAD DIED

CAME OUT

JOHN 11:44, THE RAISING OF LAZARUS

T

he Book of John is full of

signs and wonders that are

seen as proof that Jesus

was not simply a prophet but the

Son of God. When compared to the

Synoptic Gospels—the books of

Matthew, Mark, and Luke—the

Book of John contains few parables,

with more emphasis placed on the

miracles that Jesus performs.

A plea for help

One of the most well known of these

miracles is the story of Lazarus, a

name which means “God helped,”

and possibly foreshadows the

events that occur in the story.

Lazarus and his sisters Mary and

Martha—close friends of Jesus—

live in the town of Bethany. When

Lazarus becomes deathly ill, his

sisters send word to Jesus, asking

for His return so that He may

heal their brother. Jesus and His

disciples are about one day’s travel

away, but when word reaches them,

the disciples do not want Jesus to

go to Bethany due to rising hostility

toward Him in nearby Jerusalem.

However, Jesus rebukes them,

saying “A man who walks by day

will not stumble, for he sees by

this world’s light” (John 11:9). In this

way, Jesus shows His disciples that

through faith in God any obstacle

can be surpassed, including death

itself—a theme emphasized in the

story of Lazarus.

Jesus wept

By the time Jesus returns to

Bethany, Lazarus has already been

dead for four days. On His arrival,

Jesus greets Martha, saying “your

brother will rise again” (John 11:23).

Jesus then calls Mary to meet Him,

and when He sees her grief, Jesus

weeps alongside her.

IN BRIEF

PA S SAGE

John 11:1– 57

THEME

Resurrection through

Christ

SETTING

c. 29–33 ce Bethany, south

of Jerusalem.

KEY FIGURES

Jesus The Messiah and the

Son of God.

Mary and Martha Tw o o f

Jesus’s followers and friends.

Lazarus The brother of Mary

and Martha, and one of Jesus’s

closest friends.

Disciples The 12 Apostles

chosen by Jesus at the

beginning of His ministry.

Friedrich Overbeck’s 1882 painting

Raising of Lazarus was born out of the

Nazarene movement of 19th-century

Rome. Art from this movement was

dominated by religious subjects.

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227

See also: Demons and the Herds of Pigs 224–25 ■ Jesus Anointed

at Bethany 246–47 ■ The Empty Tomb 268–71

THE GOSPELS

Jesus asks Mary to take Him to the

tomb of Lazarus and she obliges.

When He ask the crowd to roll away

the stone from the front of the tomb,

Martha initially objects, expressing

fear that the corpse will smell, but

then acquiesces. In a loud voice,

Jesus shouts “Lazarus, come out!”

(John 11:43). Immediately, Lazarus

rises and exits the tomb.

Purpose of the miracle

In one of the many miracles that

Jesus performs, He resurrects

Lazarus for the purpose of proving

that He is the Messiah. Jesus

states this when Martha asks Him

to return to Bethany: He says that it

will be done “so that God’s son may

be glorified through it” (John 11:4).

When Jesus approaches the

tomb, the doubtful crowd suggests

that if He were truly the Son of God,

He would have healed Lazarus

before his death. Jesus then prays

to God, telling Him that He is

enacting the resurrection out loud

for the benefit of the crowd, so that

they may see the glory of God.

These details suggest that the

primary purpose of raising Lazarus

is to inspire the watching audience

to discuss the figure of Jesus and,

ultimately, have faith in the power

of Christ above and beyond death.

However, the importance of the

story of Lazarus extends further.

When Martha and Mary send word

to Jesus that Lazarus is dying, their

message reads “Lord, the one you

love is sick” (John 11:3) and Jesus’s

compassion is clearly visible from

His interactions with Mary. More

than simply a display of divinity,

the story of Lazarus shows an

emotional depth in Jesus, which

acts as a powerful reminder that,

like God, Jesus feels profound love

and compassion for His people. ■

Healing the sick

The curing of illnesses and

casting out of demons were

often considered one and the

same in ancient Near Eastern

thought. In fact, many ancient

people believed that demons

were the root cause of any

given illness. For example, in

Babylon, the god Marduk was

called upon to cure common

ailments such as headaches or

toothaches through exorcism.

With this in mind, it is no

surprise that over the course

of His ministry, Jesus would

heal those with more serious

ailments in order to show His

holiness. In the Bible, demonic

possession is sometimes

described in similar terms

to what we regard as mental

illness today. One such

example comes in Mark 5,

when Jesus exorcizes multiple

demons from a man in Gerasa.

In ancient times many of

those who were sick, such as

lepers, were cast out of society

out of fear and hatred. Jesus

focused on these individuals

during His mission and, in

doing so, taught His followers

that nobody is beyond Christ’s

redemption if they have faith.

The “seven signs” proving that Jesus is the Christ form

the structural backbone of the Book of John. These miracles

become increasingly more impressive as the Gospel goes on.

5:1–29

Heals on the Sabbath

6:16–24

Walks on water

11:1– 4 4

Raises the dead

2:1–11

Turns water to wine

4:46–53

Heals the sick

6:1–14

Feeds the 5,000

9:1–12

Heals the blind

The seven signs of Christ in the Book of John

Did I not tell you that if

you believed, you would

see the glory of God?

John 11:40

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