Bullet Point Bible

The Sickness of Lazarus and Jesus' Purposeful Delay

¹ Now a certain man named Lazarus was sick. He was from Bethany, the village where Mary and her sister Martha lived.² (Now it was Mary who anointed the Lord with perfumed oil and wiped his feet dry with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick.)³ So the sisters sent a message to Jesus, "Lord, look, the one you love is sick."⁴ When Jesus heard this, he said, "This sickness will not lead to death, but to God's glory, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it."⁵ (Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.)⁶ So when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he remained in the place where he was for two more days.⁷ Then after this, he said to his disciples, "Let us go to Judea again."⁸ The disciples replied, "Rabbi, the Jewish leaders were just now trying to stone you to death! Are you going there again?"⁹ Jesus replied, "Are there not twelve hours in a day? If anyone walks around in the daytime, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world.¹⁰ But if anyone walks around at night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him."¹¹ After he said this, he added, "Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep. But I am going there to awaken him."¹² Then the disciples replied, "Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will recover."¹³ (Now Jesus had been talking about his death, but they thought he had been talking about real sleep.)¹⁴ Then Jesus told them plainly, "Lazarus has died,¹⁵ and I am glad for your sake that I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him."¹⁶ So Thomas (called Didymus) said to his fellow disciples, "Let us go too, so that we may die with him."

John introduces Lazarus, Mary, and Martha, emphasizing Jesus' personal love for this family (John 11:3, 5).
Mary is identified by her later act of anointing Jesus (John 12:3), highlighting her devotion.
Jesus declares the ultimate purpose of the sickness: not final death, but God's glory and the glorification of the Son (John 11:4).
Jesus' deliberate two-day delay (John 11:6) seems counterintuitive given his love, but serves a divine purpose: allowing death to occur for a greater miracle.
The disciples express valid fear about returning to Judea, recalling recent attempts to stone Jesus (John 11:8; cf. John 10:31, 39).
Jesus' analogy of walking in daylight (John 11:9-10) signifies acting within God's will and timing, which provides spiritual safety and clarity, contrasting it with the stumbling darkness of acting outside God's guidance.
Jesus uses the common biblical euphemism "fallen asleep" for death (John 11:11), implying a future awakening, which the disciples initially misunderstand literally (John 11:12-13).
Jesus clarifies Lazarus's death and expresses gladness for the disciples' sake, indicating the impending miracle will serve to deepen their faith (John 11:14-15).
Thomas's response, though seemingly pessimistic ("Let us go too, so that we may die with him"), demonstrates courageous loyalty (John 11:16).

Martha's Encounter and Confession

¹⁷ When Jesus arrived, he found that Lazarus had been in the tomb four days already.¹⁸ (Now Bethany was less than two miles from Jerusalem,¹⁹ so many of the Jewish people of the region had come to Martha and Mary to console them over the loss of their brother.)²⁰ So when Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went out to meet him, but Mary was sitting in the house.²¹ Martha said to Jesus, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.²² But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will grant you."²³ Jesus replied, "Your brother will come back to life again."²⁴ Martha said, "I know that he will come back to life again in the resurrection at the last day."²⁵ Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live even if he dies,²⁶ and the one who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?"²⁷ She replied, "Yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God who comes into the world."

Lazarus being dead four days (John 11:17) was significant; common belief held that the soul lingered near the body for three days, making resuscitation seem impossible and decay certain.
Bethany's proximity to Jerusalem (John 11:18) explains the large crowd of mourners and ensures the miracle would be widely known near the center of religious authority.
Martha's proactive nature is shown as she goes out to meet Jesus, while Mary initially stays behind (John 11:20).
Martha expresses both faith and disappointment: "Lord, if you had been here..." (John 11:21), yet affirms continued trust in Jesus' relationship with God: "even now I know..." (John 11:22).
Jesus' promise `"{{Your brother will come back to life again}}"` (John 11:23) is intentionally ambiguous, allowing Martha to express her orthodox belief in the future resurrection (John 11:24).
Jesus responds with one of his most profound "I AM" statements: `"{{I am the resurrection and the life}}"` (John 11:25), claiming not just to perform resurrection but to embody it.
He declares that belief in him transcends physical death, granting eternal life (John 11:25-26).
Jesus directly challenges Martha to affirm her personal faith: `"{{Do you believe this?}}"` (John 11:26).
Martha makes a pivotal confession, echoing Peter's (Matthew 16:16), affirming Jesus as the Messiah and Son of God (John 11:27).

Mary's Grief and Jesus' Deep Emotion

²⁸ And when she had said this, Martha went and called her sister Mary, saying privately, "The Teacher is here and is asking for you."²⁹ So when Mary heard this, she got up quickly and went to him.³⁰ (Now Jesus had not yet entered the village, but was still in the place where Martha had come out to meet him.)³¹ Then the people who were with Mary in the house consoling her saw her get up quickly and go out. They followed her, because they thought she was going to the tomb to weep there.³² Now when Mary came to the place where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said to him, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died."³³ When Jesus saw her weeping, and the people who had come with her weeping, he was intensely moved in spirit and greatly distressed.³⁴ He asked, "Where have you laid him?" They replied, "Lord, come and see."³⁵ Jesus wept.³⁶ Thus the people who had come to mourn said, "Look how much he loved him!"³⁷ But some of them said, "This is the man who caused the blind man to see! Couldn't he have done something to keep Lazarus from dying?"

Martha discreetly informs Mary that Jesus ("The Teacher") has arrived and is asking for her (John 11:28).
Mary's immediate response contrasts with her earlier stillness; she quickly goes to Jesus (John 11:29).
The mourners follow Mary, assuming she is going to the tomb, thus becoming witnesses to the unfolding events (John 11:31).
Mary greets Jesus with the same words as Martha ("Lord, if you had been here..."), showing their shared grief and perspective, falling at his feet in reverence (John 11:32).
Jesus' reaction is profound: "intensely moved in spirit and greatly distressed" (John 11:33). The Greek term *enebrimēsato* suggests indignation or anger (perhaps at death itself, or unbelief) alongside deep sorrow.
Jesus fully enters into their grief, asking where Lazarus is laid (John 11:34).
"Jesus wept" (John 11:35) – the shortest verse in the English Bible, powerfully demonstrating Jesus' humanity, compassion, and empathy with human suffering.
The crowd interprets his tears primarily as a sign of personal love for Lazarus (John 11:36).
Some onlookers express skepticism, questioning why the one who healed a blind man (John 9) couldn't prevent this death (John 11:37), highlighting the tension between faith and doubt.

Jesus Commands Lazarus Forth

³⁸ Jesus, intensely moved again, came to the tomb. (Now it was a cave, and a stone was placed across it.)³⁹ Jesus said, "Take away the stone." Martha, the sister of the deceased, replied, Lord, by this time the body will have a bad smell, because he has been buried four days.⁴⁰ Jesus responded, "Didn't I tell you that if you believe, you would see the glory of God?"⁴¹ So they took away the stone. Jesus looked upward and said, "Father, I thank you that you have listened to me.⁴² I knew that you always listen to me, but I said this for the sake of the crowd standing around here, that they may believe that you sent me."⁴³ When he had said this, he shouted in a loud voice, "Lazarus, come out!"⁴⁴ The one who had died came out, his feet and hands tied up with strips of cloth, and a cloth wrapped around his face. Jesus said to them, "Unwrap him and let him go."

Jesus, still deeply moved, arrives at the tomb, described as a cave sealed with a stone (John 11:38).
His command, `"{{Take away the stone}}"` (John 11:39), requires human participation and faith in action.
Martha's practical objection about decomposition ("he has been buried four days") underscores the human impossibility of the situation and the magnitude of the miracle to come (John 11:39).
Jesus gently reminds Martha of the connection between belief and witnessing God's glory (John 11:40).
Jesus prays publicly, thanking the Father (John 11:41). This prayer demonstrates his unity with the Father and is explicitly for the benefit of the crowd, aiming to foster belief in his divine mission (John 11:42).
The loud, authoritative command, `"{{Lazarus, come out!}}"` (John 11:43), is a divine summons back to life.
Lazarus emerges, still bound in burial wrappings (John 11:44), providing undeniable visual proof of his resurrection.
Jesus instructs the onlookers, `"{{Unwrap him and let him go}}"` (John 11:44), again involving the community in the completion of the miracle.
This event serves as the seventh and climactic "sign" in John's Gospel, demonstrating Jesus' ultimate authority over death itself.

The Sanhedrin's Response: Belief and Conspiracy

⁴⁵ Then many of the people, who had come with Mary and had seen the things Jesus did, believed in him.⁴⁶ But some of them went to the Pharisees and reported to them what Jesus had done.⁴⁷ So the chief priests and the Pharisees called the council together and said, "What are we doing? For this man is performing many miraculous signs.⁴⁸ If we allow him to go on in this way, everyone will believe in him, and the Romans will come and take away our sanctuary and our nation."⁴⁹ Then one of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said, "You know nothing at all!⁵⁰ You do not realize that it is more to your advantage to have one man die for the people than for the whole nation to perish."⁵¹ (Now he did not say this on his own, but because he was high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus was going to die for the Jewish nation,⁵² and not for the Jewish nation only, but to gather together into one the children of God who are scattered.)⁵³ So from that day they planned together to kill him.

The miracle produces a divided response: many eyewitnesses believe in Jesus (John 11:45), while others report the event to the Pharisees (John 11:46).
The Sanhedrin (the Jewish ruling council) convenes in alarm (John 11:47).
They acknowledge Jesus performs many "signs" but fear his growing influence will lead to a popular uprising and Roman retaliation, threatening their power and national existence (John 11:47-48).
Caiaphas, the high priest, dismisses their indecision with cynical pragmatism: `"{{it is more to your advantage to have one man die for the people than for the whole nation to perish}}"` (John 11:49-50). He prioritizes political expediency over justice or truth.
John provides theological commentary: Caiaphas, by virtue of his office that year, unintentionally prophesied about the substitutionary nature of Jesus' death (John 11:51).
John expands the scope of Caiaphas's words: Jesus' death would be not only for the Jewish nation but also to unite all God's children (including Gentiles) into one body (John 11:51-52).
The council formally resolves to execute Jesus, marking a point of no return (John 11:53).
Ironically, the greatest sign demonstrating Jesus as the source of life directly leads to the official plot to end his earthly life.

Jesus Seeks Seclusion as Passover Nears

⁵⁴ Thus Jesus no longer went around publicly among the Judeans, but went away from there to the region near the wilderness, to a town called Ephraim, and stayed there with his disciples.⁵⁵ Now the Jewish Feast of Passover was near, and many people went up to Jerusalem from the rural areas before the Passover to cleanse themselves ritually.⁵⁶ Thus they were looking for Jesus, and saying to one another as they stood in the temple courts, "What do you think? That he won't come to the feast?"⁵⁷ (Now the chief priests and the Pharisees had given orders that anyone who knew where Jesus was should report it, so that they could arrest him.)

Following the Sanhedrin's decision, Jesus withdraws from public ministry in Judea for safety (John 11:54).
He retreats with his disciples to Ephraim, a town near the wilderness, awaiting the appointed time.
The approach of Passover (John 11:55) signifies a major pilgrimage festival, drawing large crowds to Jerusalem and heightening messianic expectations.
Pilgrims arriving early for ritual purification discuss Jesus' potential appearance at the feast (John 11:55-56).
The atmosphere is tense, with official orders out for Jesus' arrest (John 11:57).
This section sets the stage for Jesus' final journey to Jerusalem, where the conflict initiated by the raising of Lazarus will culminate during the Passover week.
The raising of Lazarus acts as the catalyst forcing the final confrontation between Jesus and the religious authorities.

The Bullet Point Bible

John 11