John 11 - Introduction
CHAPTER 11. _ Lazarus' death recalls Jesus to Judaea_.... [ Continue Reading ]
CHAPTER 11. _ Lazarus' death recalls Jesus to Judaea_.... [ Continue Reading ]
Ἦν δέ τις ἀσθενῶν. “Now a certain man was ill;” δέ connects this narrative with the preceding, and introduces the cause of our Lord's leaving His retirement in Peraea. “Lazarus,” the Greek form of Eleazar = God is my Help (_cf._ Luke 16:20), “of Bethany”. ἀπό is commonly used to designate residence... [ Continue Reading ]
In order further to identify Lazarus it is added: “Now it was (that) Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment and wiped His feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was ill”. This act of Mary's has not yet been narrated by John (see John 12:3), but it was this which distinguished her at the time Jo... [ Continue Reading ]
The sisters were so intimate with Jesus that they naturally turn to Him in their anxiety, and send Him a notice of the illness, which is only a slightly veiled request that He would come to their relief: “Lord, behold, he whom Thou lovest is ill”. “Sufficit ut noveris. Non enim amas et deseris.” Aug... [ Continue Reading ]
Ἀκούσας δὲ ὁ Ἰησοῦς εἶπεν. “And Jesus when He heard said,” _i.e._, to His disciples. It was not the reply sent to the sisters. “This illness is not to death,” πρὸς θάνατον, death is not the end towards which it is making. But that Jesus knew that death had already taken place (John 11:6 and John 11:... [ Continue Reading ]
Ἠγάπα δὲ ὁ Ἰησοῦς … It is quite true that φιλεῖν denotes the more passionate love, and ἀγαπᾶν the more reasoning; but it is doubtful whether this distinction is observed in this Gospel. Passages proving the distinction are given by Wetstein.... [ Continue Reading ]
Jesus loved the family, ὡς οὖν ἤκουσεν … τότε μὲν ἔμεινεν. We expect another consequence: “Jesus loved them, therefore He immediately went to Bethany”. But the consequence indicated in οὖν is found in λέγει, John 11:7, and the whole sentence should read: “When, therefore, He had heard that he was il... [ Continue Reading ]
The announcement of His intention is received with astonishment: Ῥαββὶ … ἐκεῖ. “Rabbi, the men of Judaea were but now seeking to stone Thee, and goest Thou thither again?” “They think of the danger to Him, and are not without thought of the danger to themselves (John 11:16).” Watkins. The νῦν shows... [ Continue Reading ]
Οὐχὶ … ἡμέρας, _i.e._, each man's day, or term of work, is a defined quantity. [τὰ δυώδεκα μέρεα τῆς ἡμέρης παρὰ Βαβυλωνίων ἔμαθον Ἐλληνες, Herod., ii. 109; and see Rawlinson's _Appendix_ to his _Translation_.] ἐάν τις … βλέπει. So long as this day lasts, a man may go confidently forward to the duti... [ Continue Reading ]
On the other hand, ἐὰν δέ τις … ἐν αὐτῷ, if a man prolongs his day beyond God's appointment, he stumbles about in darkness, having lost his sole guide, the will of God. His prolonged life is no longer a day but mere night.... [ Continue Reading ]
Ταῦτα εἶπε … αὐτόν. “These things spake He, and after this,” how long after we do not know; but John 11:15, “let us go to him,” indicates that the two days here intervened. There is, however, difficulty introduced by this supposition. He now makes the definite announcement: “Our friend Lazarus is fa... [ Continue Reading ]
τότε οὖν. “At this point, accordingly, Jesus told them plainly,” παρρησίᾳ “without figure or ambiguity,” “expressly in so many words,” _cf._ John 10:24, removing all possibility of misunderstanding, “Lazarus is dead,” but instead of grieving (John 11:15) καὶ χαίρω διʼ ὑμᾶς, “I am glad for your sakes... [ Continue Reading ]
Εἶπεν οὖν Θωμᾶς ὁ λεγόμενος Δίδυμος Θωμᾶς is the transliteration and Δίδυμος the translation of חּאֹם, a twin. He is the pessimist among the disciples, and now takes the gloomy, and, as it proved, the correct view of the result of this return to Judaea, but his affectionate loyalty forbids the thoug... [ Continue Reading ]
Ἐλθὼν οὖν ὁ Ἰησοῦς εὗρεν. “When, then, Jesus came, He found,” implying that He did not know before, but learned from some in Bethany, αὐτὸν τέσσαρας ἡμέρας ἤδη ἔχοντα ἐν τῶ μνημείῳ “that he had been four days already in the tomb”. Raphel and Wetstein give instances of this construction, and see John... [ Continue Reading ]
_The raising of Lazarus_.... [ Continue Reading ]
ἡ οὖν Μάρθα … ἐκαθέζετο. Martha as the elder sister and mistress of the house (Luke 10:38-40) goes out to meet Jesus, while Mary remained seated in the house. “After the body is carried out of the house all chairs and couches are reversed, and the mourners sit on the ground on a low stool.” Edershei... [ Continue Reading ]
Martha's first words to Jesus, Κύριε … ἐτεθνήκει, “hadst Thou been here my brother had not died,” are “not a reproach but a lament,” Meyer. Mary uses the same words (John 11:32), suggesting that this had been the burden of their talk with one another; and even, as Bengel says, _before_ the death “ut... [ Continue Reading ]
But Martha not only believed that Jesus could have prevented her brother's death but also that even now He could recall him from the grave: καὶ νῦν οἶδα … “Even now I know that what thing soever you ask of God, God will give you.” _Cf._ John 9:31. Jesus referred all His works to the Father, and spok... [ Continue Reading ]
λέγει … σου. “Thy brother shall rise again.” “The whole history of the raising of Lazarus is a parable of life through death.… Here, then, at the beginning the key-note is struck.” Westcott. Whether the words were meant or not to convey only the general truth of resurrection, and that death is not t... [ Continue Reading ]
“I know,” she says, “that he will rise again, in the resurrection at the last day.” On the terms used see John 5:28; John 6:39-40; John 6:54. Belief in the resurrection had been promoted through Daniel 12:2, and, as Holtzmann remarks, Martha must have heard more than enough about it during the last... [ Continue Reading ]
Nor does this faith satisfy Jesus, who at once replaces it by another in the words, Ἐγώ εἰμι ἡ ἀνάστασις καὶ ἡ ζωή. Resurrection and life are not future only, but present in His person; she is to trust not in a vague remote event but in His living person whom she knew, loved, and trusted. Apart from... [ Continue Reading ]
Martha believed this, as implicitly included in her belief in Jesus as the Messiah, Ναὶ, Κύριε … ἐρχόμενος. Resurrection and life were both Messianic gifts, but it is doubtful whether Martha fully understood what our Lord had said. Rather she falls back on what she did understand and believe. She wi... [ Continue Reading ]
καὶ ταῦτα εἰποῦσα ἀπῆλθε, “and when she had said this,” and when some further conversation had taken place (_cf._ φωνεῖ σε), “she went and called Mary her sister, secretly saying to her: The Teacher is here and asks for you”. The secrecy was due not so much to the presence of Jesus' enemies as to Ma... [ Continue Reading ]
On the delivery of His message Mary springs up from her attitude of broken-hearted grief and comes to meet Him.... [ Continue Reading ]
But she was not allowed to go alone: οἱ οὖν … ἐκεῖ. The Jews who were with her in the house comforting her interpreted her sudden movement as one of those urgent demands of grief which already, no doubt, they had seen her yield to, and in sincere sympathy (John 11:33) followed her.... [ Continue Reading ]
Consequently when she reaches Jesus she has only time to fall at His feet and exclaim, in Martha's words, Κύριε … ἀδελφός. The sight of Jesus, ἰδοῦσα αὐτόν, produced a more vehement demonstration of grief than in Martha. _Cf._ Cicero, _in Verrem_, John 11:39. “Mihi obviam venit et … mihi ad pedes mi... [ Continue Reading ]
Ἰησοῦς οὖν … αὐτόν. “Jesus, then, when He saw her weeping [κλαίειν is stronger than δακρύειν and might be rendered ‘wailing'. It is joined with ἀλαλάζειν, Mark 5:38; ὀλολύζειν, James 5:1; θορυβεῖν, Mark 5:39; πενθεῖν, Mark 16:10. _Cf._ Webster's _Synonyms_] and the Jews who accompanied her wailing,”... [ Continue Reading ]
His intense feeling prompts Him to end the scene, and He asks, Ποῦ τεθείκατε αὐτόν; He asks because He did not know. They reply, but probably with no expectation of what was to happen, ἔρχου καὶ ἴδε. As He went ἐδάκρυσεν, “He shed tears”. To assert that such tears could only be theatrical because He... [ Continue Reading ]
These tears evoked a very natural exclamation, Ἴδε πῶς ἐφίλει αὐτόν, “see how He loved him”.... [ Continue Reading ]
But this again suggested to the more thoughtful and wary the question, Οὑκ … ἀποθάνῃ; The tears of Jesus, which manifest His love for Lazarus, puzzle them. For if He opened the eyes of a blind man, He was able to prevent the death of His friend. The question with οὐκ expects an affirmative answer. E... [ Continue Reading ]
Ἰησοῦς οὖν πάλιν ἐμβριμώμενος. “Jesus, then, being again deeply moved.” “Quia non accedit Christus ad sepulcrum tanquam otiosus spectator, sed athleta qui se ad certamen instruit, non mirum est si iterum fremat.” Calvin. To refer the renewed emotion to the sayings of the Jews just reported is to tak... [ Continue Reading ]
The detail, that Jesus said, Ἄρατε τὸν λίθον, is mentioned because it was an unexpected step and quickened inquiry as to what was to follow, but also because it gave rise to practical Martha's quick objection, ἤδη ὄζει. [“He employed natural means to remove natural obstructions, that His Divine powe... [ Continue Reading ]
But Martha's incredulity is mildly rebuked, Οὐκ εἶπόν σοι … Θεοῦ; “Did I not say to you, that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?” recalling rather what He had said (John 11:4) to the disciples than what He had said to Martha (John 11:23-26); but the conversation is, as already noted, a... [ Continue Reading ]
Accordingly, notwithstanding her remonstrance, and because it was now perceived that Jesus had some end in view that was hidden from them, they lifted the stone, ἦραν οὖν τὸν λίθον. Ὁ δὲ Ἰησοῦς … ἀπέστειλας. “But Jesus lifted His eyes upwards and said, Father, I thank Thee that Thou hast heard me.”... [ Continue Reading ]
Having thus turned the faith of the bystanders to the Father, φωνῇ μεγάλῃ ἐκραύγασε, “He cried with a great voice,” “that all might hear its authoritativeness” (Euthymius). “Talis vox opposita est omni magico murmuri, quale incantatores in suis praestigiis adhibere solent.” Lampe. More probably, as... [ Continue Reading ]
Καὶ ἐξῆλθεν ὁ τεθνηκὼς, “And out came the dead man,” δεδεμένος … περιεδέδετο, “bound feet and hands with grave-bands,” κειρίαις, apparently the linen bandages with which the corpse was swathed. Opinions are fully given in Lampe. “And his face was bound about with a napkin.” _Cf._ John 20:7. “The tra... [ Continue Reading ]
_The consequences of the miracle_.... [ Continue Reading ]
Πολλοὶ οὖν … αὐτόν. “Many therefore of the Jews, _viz._, those who had come to Mary and seen what Jesus did, believed on Him.” That is to say, all the Jews who thus came and saw believed.... [ Continue Reading ]
But of this number [it may be “of the Jews” generally, and not of those who had been at Bethany] some went away to the Pharisees and told them, His recognised enemies, what He had done. Whether they did this in good faith or not does not appear.... [ Continue Reading ]
The Pharisees at once acted on the information, συνήγαγον … συνέδριον. The chief priests, who were Sadducees, and the Pharisees, their natural foes, but who together composed the supreme authority, “called together a meeting of the Sanhedrim”. The keynote of the meeting was struck in the words τί πο... [ Continue Reading ]
ἐὰν ἀφῶμεν … ἔθνος. “If we let Him thus alone,” _i.e._, if we do no more to put an end to His miracles than we are doing, “all will believe on Him; and the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation”. ἡμῶν emphatic. The raising of Lazarus and the consequent accession of adherents t... [ Continue Reading ]
Εἷς δέ τις ἐξ αὐτῶν Καϊάφας. “But a certain one of them, Caiaphas.” Winer (p. 146) says that τὶς does not destroy the arithmetical force of εἷς. This may be so: but the use of εἷς in similar forms is a peculiarity of later Greek. Caiaphas (Matthew 26:3) is a surname = Kephas, added to the original n... [ Continue Reading ]
Τοῦτο δὲ ἀφʼ ἑαυτοῦ οὐκ εἶπεν … προεφήτευσεν. ἀφʼ ἑαυτοῦ, “at his own instigation,” is contrasted with “at the instigation of God” implied in ἐπροφήτευσεν [Kypke gives interesting examples of the use of ἀφʼ ἑαυτοῦ in classical writers]. “None but a Jew would be likely to know of the old Jewish belie... [ Continue Reading ]
This utterance of Caiaphas brought sudden light to the members of the Sanhedrim, and so influenced their perplexed mind that ἀπʼ ἐκείνης ἡμέρας συνεβουλεύσαντο ἵνα ἀποκτείνωσιν αὐτόν. This was the crisis: what hitherto they had desired (John 5:16; John 5:18; John 7:32; John 10:39) they now determine... [ Continue Reading ]
Jesus accordingly, Ἰησοῦς οὖν, not to precipitate matters, οὐκ ἔτι … αὐτοῦ, “no longer went about openly among the Jews, but departed thence (_i.e._, from Bethany or Jerusalem and its neighbourhood) to the country near the desert (χώραν in contrast to the city; the particular part being the wilderne... [ Continue Reading ]
ἦν δὲ ἑαυτούς. “Now the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and many went up to Jerusalem out of the country before the Passover to purify themselves.” _Cf._ John 18:28; Numbers 9:10; 2 Chronicles 30:17. Some purifications required a week, others consisted only of shaving the head and washing the clot... [ Continue Reading ]
_Approach of the Passover_.... [ Continue Reading ]
ἐζήτουν … ἑορτήν; Jesus was one main topic of conversation among those who stood about in groups in the Temple when their purifications had been got through; and the chief point discussed was whether He would appear at this feast. _Cf._ John 7:10-13.... [ Continue Reading ]
There was room for difference of opinion, for Δεδώκεισαν … αὐτόν, “the Sanhedrim had issued instructions that if any knew where He was he should intimate this that they might arrest Him”.... [ Continue Reading ]