Lazarus' Death

Study of John 11:1-16

Now a certain man was sick, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. It was the Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment, and wiped His feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick. So the sisters sent word to Him, saying, “Lord, behold, he whom You love is sick.” But when Jesus heard this, He said, “This sickness is not to end in death, but for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified by it.” 

Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So when He heard that he was sick, He then stayed two days longer in the place where He was. Then after this He said to the disciples, “Let us go to Judea again.” The disciples said to Him, “Rabbi, the Jews were just now seeking to stone You, and are You going there again?” Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. But if anyone walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him.” This He said, and after that He said to them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I go, so that I may awaken him out of sleep.” The disciples then said to Him, “Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will recover.” 

Now Jesus had spoken of his death, but they thought that He was speaking of literal sleep. So Jesus then said to them plainly, “Lazarus is dead, and I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, so that you may believe; but let us go to him.” Therefore Thomas, who is called Didymus, said to his fellow disciples, “Let us also go, so that we may die with Him.”

— John 11:1-16

Jesus was informed that someone he knows is sick, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of the sisters Martha and Mary who received Jesus in their home in Luke 10:40-42. This Bethany is in Judea near Jerusalem (John 11:18) and not the Bethany in Perea beyond the Jordan (John 1:28; 10:40). Because Mary was a common name, Mary was specifically identified as the one who anointed the Lord with ointment and wiped His feet with her hair which will happen in the following chapter in John 12:3. John, the writer of this gospel, is assuming that his readers already know about Mary and what she has done even though at this point of the gospel it is still future.

It was Martha and Mary who sent a messenger to inform Jesus that their brother is sick saying "Lord, behold, he whom You love is sick." They probably knew Jesus is wanted in Judea and many are seeking to do Him harm and kill Him so they did not ask Jesus to come. It is enough for them to let Jesus know their brother is sick trusting Jesus will do something because they know He loves Lazarus. Jesus need not come since He only need to say the word and he can heal from a distance like the centurion's servant in Luke 7:1-10.

But when Jesus heard this, He said, “This sickness is not to end in death, but for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified by it.” 

Perhaps to encourage the sisters that Jesus said it will not ultimately lead to permanent death, not that He means Lazarus will not die but because He plans on resurrecting him. The sickness was for no other reason but just like the man born blind in chapter 9 "it was so that the works of God might be displayed in him (John 9:3) for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified by it" (John 11:4). The stage is being set for one of Jesus' greatest miracles for God's glory not only through Lazarus' resurrection but also because this miracle will escalate towards Jesus' death on the cross and His own resurrection.

To avoid any misconception that Jesus is acting selfishly to glorify Himself and His Father at the expense of people, John the evangelist emphasized that Jesus loved the three siblings. Jesus loved each of them individually, Martha and her sister and their brother Lazarus. And it is because of that love that He stayed two more days from where He is. It may seem to us unfeeling or unsympathetic to let the one you love to die and others to prolonged grief when you can do something to relieve their pain and suffering. But God's wisdom is far higher than ours and He knows all things more than we know even our own feelings and circumstance. The Son of God Himself, although loved infinitely by the Father, was delivered unto suffering and death for our salvation. Jesus can prevent Lazarus' death or even the sickness that caused it in the first place, but Jesus is going to do far more better good to their souls than just relief of physical and emotional pain by allowing all these to happen.

When Jesus expressed His intention to go to Judea the disciples are rightfully concerned “Rabbi, the Jews were just now seeking to stone You, and are You going there again?” It wasn't long ago that the Jews were trying to stone Jesus to death due to charge of blasphemy in the previous chapter (John 10:31) and now He is going back there again. Jesus replied in an idiomatic way that assures them that as long as He is walking in the light of God the Father's will He cannot stumble or die before His appointed time. It is those who walk in darkness, outside God's will, who are in danger of stumbling tragically.

Jesus stated the reason for His going to Judea is because  “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I go, so that I may awaken him out of sleep.” Jesus is using sleep as a euphemism, a substitute for the more unpleasant death. The disciples, having no knowledge of Lazarus' death, and rightfully using a literal hermeneutic, understood Jesus' words plainly as He said it. They argue that if Lazarus is just sleeping he will get well soon to discourage Jesus in risking His life going there.

It is appropriate to note here that literal or historical-grammatical hermeneutic is the only proper hermeneutical approach to Scripture. We must interpret Scripture plainly unless the author or speaker has given hints that he is deviating from plain words to using figures of speech. 

Jesus then clarified that Lazarus is dead. He is glad not because of the death but because of what He will do out of it for the disciples' spiritual good, that they may believe. At this point Jesus has already told His disciples twice that He will die and be resurrected after three days. But the disciples are reluctant to believe it. The first time Jesus revealed it "Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, “God forbid it, Lord! This shall never happen to You”" (Matthew 16:22). The second time "He was teaching His disciples and telling them, “The Son of Man is to be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill Him; and when He has been killed, He will rise three days later.” But they did not understand this statement, and they were afraid to ask Him" (Mark 9:31-32). So raising Lazarus from death should be compelling reason for the disciples to believe and eventually leading to Jesus' actual death and resurrection.

Then one of the disciples, Thomas, also called Didymus which means twins (maybe he has a twin that is not a disciple), in a despairing and fatalistic manner said to his fellow disciples “Let us also go, so that we may die with Him.” What a gloomy way to motivate his peers. Isn't it more encouraging to be optimistic? Isn't it easier to rally people for a cause that we are positive to succeed? Thomas seemed sure they will all die if they go with Jesus, and yet it is better for him than being separated with their Lord. Like Paul, for Thomas "to live is Christ and to die is gain (Phil. 1:21). Perhaps the other disciples sensed Thomas' loyal commitment to Jesus that even when bad comes to worst, he will follow Jesus no matter what that they also ended up going to Judea. 

"No one is ready to live until they are ready to die. You must know that the end of your life is certain before you will joyfully risk danger day by day. The end of your life must be secure before the present can be stable. It is only when you know that death will usher you into the presence of God that you will live with fearless faith." -Steve Lawson