John · chapter 11 of 21
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John 11 tells of the illness and death of Lazarus of Bethany, a friend of Jesus. Jesus arrives four days later, talks with Martha, who confesses him as the Christ, weeps with Mary and commands Lazarus to come out of the tomb. Many believe, but the alarmed religious leaders decide to kill Jesus, and the high priest Caiaphas prophesies without knowing it.
John 11 is the greatest of Jesus' miracles that John reports, and the one that triggers the decision to kill him. Lazarus and his sisters Martha and Mary were dear friends of Jesus, and the chapter shows both his power over death and his human compassion. It is also the great announcement of the resurrection and the life that will be fulfilled in Jesus himself.
Lazarus of Bethany is ill, and his sisters Martha and Mary send word to Jesus that his friend is sick. Jesus says this illness is for the glory of God and not unto death, and although he loves all three, he stays two more days where he was. Then he tells his disciples to go to Judea; Thomas says they should go too, to die with him. Jesus tells them that Lazarus has died and he is glad he was not there, so that they may believe.
When they arrive, Lazarus has already been in the tomb four days. Many Jews have come to comfort the sisters. Martha goes to meet Jesus and says that if he had been there, her brother would not have died. Jesus tells her that her brother will rise and that he is the resurrection and the life: whoever believes in him, though he die, will live; and everyone who lives and believes in him will never die. Martha confesses that she believes he is the Christ, the Son of God who was to come into the world. She calls Mary privately; when Mary arrives and weeps at his feet, Jesus is deeply moved and troubled. He asks where they have laid him, and Jesus wept.
Jesus comes to the tomb, a cave with a stone against it, and tells them to take it away. Martha objects that there will be a stench, but Jesus reminds her of the glory of God. He lifts his eyes, thanks the Father and cries out with a loud voice for Lazarus to come out. The dead man comes out in his grave clothes, and Jesus tells them to unbind him.
Many of the Jews believe in Jesus, but others report to the Pharisees. The council gathers and fears that the Romans will destroy their place and nation. Caiaphas, high priest that year, says it is better that one man die for the people, and John explains that he prophesied that Jesus would die for the nation and to gather the scattered children of God. From that day they plan to kill him. Jesus withdraws to Ephraim, and Passover is near.
References follow ESV book names and verse numbers. Read each verse in your Bible before the explanation.
Jesus declares himself the resurrection and the life: whoever believes in him will live even though he dies, and whoever lives and believes in him will never die. He promises not only a future event but a person who gives life and conquers death.
Martha answers that she believes Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God who was to come into the world. Her confession, in the midst of grief, is one of the clearest in the whole Gospel.
It is one of the shortest verses in the Bible: Jesus wept. It shows that the Son of God shares human sorrow and is not indifferent to the death and suffering of those he loves.
Jesus cries out for Lazarus to come out, and the dead man comes out, bound in grave clothes. A single word from Jesus is enough to defeat death, and it anticipates his own resurrection and that of his people.
6 questions with answers and references, ready for Sunday school, small group or a Bible quiz night.
Answer: That this illness was not unto death but for the glory of God. — John 11:4
Answer: That they should go too, so that they might die with him. — John 11:16
Answer: Four days. — John 11:17
Answer: That he is the resurrection and the life, and whoever believes in him will live even though he dies. — John 11:25-26
Answer: Jesus wept, showing his compassion at his friends' grief. — John 11:35
Answer: He cried out for Lazarus to come out, and the dead man came out in his grave clothes. — John 11:43-44
Martha and Mary faced loss with honest questions, and Jesus received them without reproach. In a small group you can make room for grief and hard questions, remembering that Jesus weeps with those who weep. His delay was not forgetfulness: he had a greater purpose, even if it hurt in the meantime.
Jesus' declaration as the resurrection and the life is the foundation of Christian hope in the face of death. The question he asks Martha, do you believe this, is also asked of us. And the end of the chapter shows that the same miracle can lead some to believe and others to harden; it depends not on the evidence but on the heart.
John 11 ends with the decision to kill Jesus, just before Passover. John 12 opens six days before that feast, in Bethany, where Mary anoints Jesus with perfume.
The text explains it: the illness was for the glory of God, and Jesus wanted his disciples to believe. Letting those days pass made the miracle unmistakable, since Lazarus had been dead four days. This does not mean Jesus did not love the family, as the text itself says.
John gives no explanation, but he shows that Jesus was moved by Mary's grief and that of those present. His weeping reveals compassion for those who suffer, and sorrow at death, which was not part of the original creation. It is not lack of faith but human love.
Caiaphas was speaking of political expediency: removing Jesus to avoid reprisals from Rome. John says that, without knowing it, he prophesied that Jesus would die for the nation and for all the scattered children of God, to gather them into one.