返回Chapter 11
Chapter 11
Chapter Eleven
Jn. 11:1. Now a certain man was sick, Lazarus of Bethany, of the village where Mary and her sister Martha lived.
Only John tells this story. He tells it in order to teach us not to be scandalized if some illness befalls people who are zealous and beloved of God. For Lazarus was a friend of Christ, and yet even he was sick.
Jn. 11:2. Mary, whose brother Lazarus was sick, was the one who anointed the Lord with myrrh and wiped His feet with her hair.
It is necessary to know also that this Mary, who anointed the Lord with myrrh, was neither the harlot mentioned by the Evangelist Luke (Luke 7:37–50), nor the woman mentioned by the Evangelist Matthew (Matt. 26:7), but another — not a harlot, but an honorable, God-loving, and zealous woman. For she was concerned with receiving Christ and served Him, as John himself later (John 12:2) testifies. The Lord testifies of her that she chose the good part, as the Evangelist Luke notes (Luke 10:42). These sisters were so wondrous and venerable that even Lazarus became known more on account of them. For Lazarus, it says, was from Bethany, from the village of Mary and Martha.
Jn. 11:3. The sisters sent to tell Him: Lord! behold, he whom Thou lovest is sick.
Why then do they send to call Jesus, and do not go to Him themselves, like the centurion and the royal official? Because they firmly hoped in Christ, because they were weak women and it was not proper for them to leave the house, because they too were overcome with grief and were occupied with caring for their brother. And that they did this not out of negligence is evident from what follows, for they show Christ great honor and respect and offer a steadfast prayer.
"Behold, he whom Thou lovest." They speak thus in order that by the name of friendship they might more surely incline the Lord to compassion. This expression of these women also reveals a certain faith of theirs. They are so confident in the greatness of the Lord's power that it is astonishing to them how illness could touch a man beloved by Him. For it seems somehow astonishing that he whom Thou, O Lord, lovest is sick.
Jn. 11:4. Jesus, having heard this, said: this sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it.
Since Jesus intended to remain in that place for two days, He says that "this sickness is not unto death," although it did lead to death; He says this in order to encourage the messengers and to give them a kind of consolation, so that they would not persist in urging Him and would not grieve. It is for this reason that He says: "This sickness is not unto death."
And in another way. If you look carefully, this sickness was not unto death—the kind of death by which many die, that is, unto a prolonged death, but unto a temporary one that lasted four days. Since Lazarus was raised on the fourth day, looking at the outcome of the matter, we say: this sickness is not unto death. "But for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified through it." Do you see that the Father and the Son have one glory? For having said "for the glory of God," He added "that the Son of God might be glorified," for the glory of God, that is, of the Father, in no way differs from the glory of the Son. Consequently, the Son is properly and truly God just as the Father is, for those who have one glory have one Essence as well.
Let the Arians be put to shame by this saying as well. "That He may be glorified." Understand this not as a cause, but as an event and outcome of the matter (as we have said more than once). For Lazarus was not sick in order that God might be glorified, but sickness befell Lazarus, and the Lord turned it to the glory of God.
Jn. 11:5. Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.
Jn. 11:6. When He heard that he was sick, He stayed two days in the place where He was.
He "stayed two days" so that Lazarus would die, so that no one could say that he had been in a deep sleep, exhaustion, or a trance, and not death. This is why the Lord remains so long that decomposition had already begun, and the sister herself says that "he already stinks" (John 11:39).
Jn. 11:7. After this He said to the disciples: let us go to Judea again.
In other cases the Lord never stated beforehand where He intended to go, but only here does He announce in advance, it seems, because His disciples were very afraid to go to Judea. He announces beforehand so that they would not be troubled by the unexpectedness, if He were to suddenly lead them into a country which they were afraid to enter.
Jn. 11:8. The disciples said to Him: Rabbi! The Jews were just now seeking to stone You, and You are going there again?
Since they were afraid both for Him, for they did not yet have perfect knowledge of Him, and were afraid for themselves, they say to Him: "The Jews were just now seeking to stone You, and You are going there again?"
Jn. 11:9. Jesus answered: Are there not twelve hours in the day? He who walks in the day does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world;
Jn. 11:10. But if anyone walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him.
The Lord encourages them and says: "Just as one who sees the light does not stumble, but the one who walks at night stumbles, so too the one who does good and walks in deeds of light will not suffer any misfortune, while the one who does evil will suffer misfortune; therefore you have no need to fear, for we have done nothing deserving of death."
Or yet another way: "If he who sees this light does not stumble, how much more will he not stumble who abides with Me, provided he himself does not fall away from Me. Therefore you also, abiding with Me, the true Light, are afraid in vain."
Others understand "day" as the time before the suffering, and "night" as the time of the suffering. So, He says, as long as the "day" goes on, that is, while the time of suffering has not yet come, you will not stumble, for you will encounter neither persecution from the Jews nor any other unpleasantness. But when the "night" comes, that is, My suffering, then you, thrown into confusion, will gather in one small house out of fear of the Jews. From that time you will experience sorrows and afflictions, and much hostility and trouble. When I, the Light, am no longer living with you bodily, the night of sorrows will envelop you.
Jn. 11:11. Having said this, He then says to them: Lazarus, our friend, has fallen asleep; but I am going to awaken him.
Since the Lord's disciples were afraid to go to Judea, He says to them: "The Jews sought to stone Me because I refuted and reproved them. But now I am going not to reprove them, but to visit My friend. Therefore there is no need to be afraid. I am going not for the same reason I went before, so as to expect danger from the Jews, but I am going to awaken a friend."
Jn. 11:12. The disciples said to Him: Lord! If he has fallen asleep, he will recover.
The disciples, wishing to keep Him from traveling there, say: "It is enough if he has fallen asleep; if he has fallen asleep, he will recover; therefore we have no need to go, for there is no necessity." Although the Lord, speaking of Lazarus, added "My friend" precisely to show the necessity of being there, the disciples maintain that His visit is not needed, since he can recover from the fact that he has fallen asleep.
Jn. 11:13. Jesus spoke of his death, but they thought that He was speaking of ordinary sleep.
"Even more," they say, "Your Coming is not only unnecessary, but also harmful to the friend. For if sleep, as we think, serves for his recovery, and You go and wake him, then You will hinder his recovery. Therefore, there is no need to go and wake him, for this is harmful."
Jn. 11:14. Then Jesus said to them plainly: Lazarus is dead;
The Lord, seeing that His disciples still did not understand Him, says directly that Lazarus "has died." Why then did He previously express Himself not directly, but in a veiled manner, calling death "sleep"? For many reasons.
Firstly, out of humility, for He did not wish to appear boastful, but in a veiled manner called the resurrection an awakening from sleep. How would He have used this expression if He had not called death a sleep? And that this is true, that is, that He expressed Himself in a veiled manner out of humility, is evident from what follows. For having said that Lazarus "died," the Lord did not add "I will go and raise him." Do you see how He did not wish to boast in words about what He intended to confirm by the deed itself? At the same time, the Lord also teaches us not to be hasty in our promises. For if at the request of the centurion (for the healing of his servant) the Lord did give a promise, saying "I will come and heal him" (Matt. 8:5–7), He said this in order to reveal his faith. So then, this is the first reason why the Lord called death a sleep.
Another is to show us that every death is a sleep and a rest.
The third is that although the death of Lazarus was indeed death for everyone else, for Jesus Himself, inasmuch as He intended to raise him, it was nothing more than sleep. Just as it is easy for us to wake one who is sleeping, so, and a thousand times more so, it is easy for Him to raise the dead.
Jn. 11:15. And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, to the intent ye may believe; but let us go unto him.
"I rejoice," He says, "for your sakes," that you can henceforth be more assured of My Divine dignity from the fact that I was not there and am far away from that place, yet I tell you in advance that death has occurred in Bethany, and I say this not based on hearsay, but, as God, Myself perceiving what has happened at a great distance.
Some understood the Lord's words "I am glad for your sakes" in this way: "That I was not there will serve to strengthen you in faith. For if I had been there, I would have healed the sick man. This too would have been a miracle, but it would have shown little of My power. But now, since I was not there and the death of Lazarus followed, and I will go and raise him, you should be more firmly established in faith in Me. For you will see that I am able to do even what I have not yet manifested, namely: to restore and raise a dead man who has already decomposed and is emitting a foul odor."
And I ask you to notice that although Lazarus had died, the Lord nevertheless said "let us go to him," as if to a living person. For to Christ, as God, even Lazarus himself was alive.
Jn. 11:16. Then Thomas, otherwise called the Twin, said to the disciples: Let us also go, that we may die with Him.
When the Lord said this and proved to the disciples the necessity of His journey to Judea, then Thomas, who was more fearful than the rest, says: "Let us also go, that we may die with Him." For these words express not courage, but fear and faintheartedness. In order to hold back the other fellow disciples as well, he reminds them of death and deliberately adds "die," speaking as if to say: "Let us too, foolish, senseless, and caring nothing for our own salvation and life, go so that we may die with Him. Let Him place little value on His own life; must we therefore also be imprudent?" Such words befit a coward.
But look at him afterwards. He, as an apostle, was slain for the truth. The grace of God so "strengthened" him that the words of the Apostle Paul can be applied to him as well: "our sufficiency is of God" (2 Cor. 3:5), and "not I, but the grace" (1 Cor. 15:10).
And Origen says something about Thomas that resembles a dream: "Thomas," he says, "having learned the prophecies about Christ and understood that He would descend with His soul into hell for the liberation of souls, when he heard that the Lord was going to awaken Lazarus, thought that He could awaken him, that is, free his soul, in no other way than if He Himself laid aside His body and descended into hell. Therefore, as a sincere disciple of Christ, not wishing to fall behind his Teacher even in this, he both counsels his fellow disciples and himself volunteers to lay aside his body, in order to descend into hell together with Jesus, who, in his understanding, would lay down His soul in order to free the soul of His friend from hell." I have included this laughable explanation to put to shame those who exalt everything of Origen. For is not such an explanation from a wise man obvious idle talk and a veritable dream?
Jn. 11:17. Jesus, having come, found that he had already been four days in the tomb.
The Lord deliberately delayed until Lazarus had been dead four days, then went, so that the miracle would be from every side free from slander.
Jn. 11:18. Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, about fifteen stadia away;
Bethany was about fifteen stadia from Jerusalem. Why does the evangelist add this detail? In order to show that many of the inhabitants of Jerusalem indeed came, for Bethany was not far away.
Jn. 11:19. And many of the Jews came to Martha and Mary to comfort them in their grief over their brother.
Many of the Jews had come to comfort the sisters, not because Christ loved them (for the Jews had already agreed to put out of the synagogue anyone who acknowledged Him as the Christ (John 9:22)), but either because of the severity of the calamity, or because those who came were not among the wicked, which is why many of them also believed.
Jn. 11:20. Martha, having heard that Jesus was coming, went to meet Him; but Mary sat at home.
Martha alone goes forward to meet Him, and does not take her sister with her, because she wanted to see Him privately and tell Him about what had happened. But when the Lord aroused good hope in her, then she goes away and calls her sister. Previously she had not told her sister Mary about the Lord's coming in order to hide this from those who were with her. For if Mary had heard that Jesus was coming, she would have immediately gone to meet Him, and the Jews who had come would have followed her, but Martha did not want them to learn of Jesus' arrival.
Jn. 11:21. Then Martha said to Jesus: Lord! if You had been here, my brother would not have died.
Martha had faith in Christ, but not complete, not proper faith. Therefore she also says: "Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died." She said this, undoubtedly, because she did not believe that He, if He had wished, could have prevented the death of her brother even without being personally present.
Jn. 11:22. But even now I know that whatever You ask of God, God will give You.
And further she reveals an even greater weakness of faith. For she says: "Whatever You ask of God, God will give You." Do you see, she considers Him to be some virtuous man who is pleasing to God. For she did not say "whatever You will, You shall do," but "whatever You ask, He will give You."
Jn. 11:23. Jesus says to her: Your brother will rise again.
The Lord, refuting such an understanding of hers, says: "Your brother will rise again." He did not say to her "yes, I will ask God, and He will give Me," nor did He agree with her words, but used a moderate expression.
Jn. 11:24. Martha said to Him: I know that he will rise again in the resurrection, at the last day.
Since Martha did not yet believe and had not understood the meaning of the words "your brother will rise again," she supposed that he would rise at the last resurrection (and that there would be a last resurrection, Martha knew partly from Divine Scripture, and even more from Christ's frequent discourses on the resurrection).
Jn. 11:25. Jesus said to her: I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me, even if he dies, shall live.
And further He sets forth His power and authority much more clearly: "I," He says, "am the resurrection and the life."
So, since the woman still remained a woman, the Lord raises her up and rouses her faith, as though it had died, speaking more clearly: "You say to Me that God will give Me whatever I ask of Him. But I say to you plainly that I am the resurrection and the life, so that My power is not limited by place, but I am equally able to heal, whether present on the spot or from afar. For I bestow blessings not on behalf of anyone else, but I Myself am the resurrection and the life, I Myself have the power to raise and give life."
Jn. 11:26. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?
"He who believes in Me, even if he dies this bodily death, shall live, and everyone who lives and believes in Me shall not die a spiritual death. Therefore do not be troubled. For although your brother has died, he shall live. And why do I speak of your brother? Even you, if you believe in Me, shall not die, but shall be above spiritual death, which is far more terrible. And He who delivers from the most terrible death shall all the more easily deliver your dead brother from the less terrible death."
"Do you believe this?" the Lord asks Martha. And she, although she had heard such lofty words, nevertheless did not understand what the Lord said to her. I think that from grief she was also suffering from a lack of comprehension. For the Lord asks one thing, and she answers another. The Lord asks whether she believes that He is the resurrection and the life, and that he who believes in Him will never die, whether you understand this as spiritual death or bodily death. For of the faithful, on account of their hope in the resurrection, it is rightly said that they do not die.
Jn. 11:27. She says to Him: yes, Lord! I believe that You are the Christ, the Son of God, who comes into the world.
And what does Martha answer? "I am convinced that You are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world." Her answer is good and fair, but it is not an answer to the question. Nevertheless, she gained this benefit from it: the force of her grief was subdued and her sorrow was diminished.
Jn. 11:28. Having said this, she went and called Mary her sister secretly, saying: The Teacher is here and is calling you.
Martha "secretly" calls her sister; and she did this very wisely. For if the Jews who had come to them had learned that Mary was going to meet Christ, they would have left them, and the miracle would have remained without witnesses. But now the Jews thought that Mary was going to the tomb to weep, went along with her, and by necessity became obvious witnesses of the miracle.
Martha says to Mary: "The Teacher is calling you." But in the Evangelist it is not noted that the Lord called her. This can be explained in two ways: either the Evangelist passed over in silence that the Lord commanded Martha to call her sister, or she regarded the very arrival of the Lord as an invitation and said that the Teacher is calling you. For when the Lord came, should she not have gone to Him? Thus, the arrival of the Lord, which necessarily required Mary to go out and meet Him, the Evangelist called an invitation. "For the Teacher," she says, "has come and is calling you"; and since He has come, His very arrival serves as a call to you. For as soon as He came, it is necessary for you also to go out to meet Him.
Jn. 11:29. She, as soon as she heard, quickly rose and went to Him.
Mary, as soon as she learned that Jesus had come, did not delay, but quickly rose and went to Him. From this it is evident that Martha had not forewarned her beforehand, even though she knew that Jesus was coming.
Jn. 11:30. Jesus had not yet come into the village, but was in the place where Martha met Him.
But Jesus had not yet come into the village, for He was walking slowly, so that they would not think that He Himself was seeking an occasion for the miracle, but that He would perform it at their request.
Jn. 11:31. The Jews who were with her in the house and were comforting her, seeing that Mary rose up quickly and went out, followed her, supposing that she went to the tomb to weep there.
And since the miracle about to be performed was great, was not performed many times, and was to benefit many, the Lord arranges it so that many would become witnesses of the miracle. For the evangelist says that the Jews who were with her in the house followed after her.
Jn. 11:32. Then when Mary came where Jesus was, and saw Him, she fell down at His feet, saying to Him, Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.
Mary came to Christ with greater fervor than her sister Martha. For, "when she saw Him, she fell at His feet," not ashamed before the crowd, paying no attention to the fact that some of those present were hostile toward Christ. In the presence of the Teacher she cast aside all humanity and cared only about honoring Him. She says: "Lord! if You had been here, my brother would not have died."
Martha, however, does nothing of the sort, for she does not fall before Him, but on the contrary, when Christ even offers good hope concerning her brother, she shows herself to be unbelieving. Although Mary also appears imperfect when she says "if You had been here, my brother would not have died," nevertheless Christ does not say to her anything of the sort that He said to her sister, because there were many people present, and it was not the time for such words. He condescends even further, clearly revealing the human nature in Himself and manifesting its properties. For listen to what the Evangelist says.
Jn. 11:33. Jesus, when He saw her weeping and the Jews who had come with her weeping, was deeply moved in spirit and was troubled.
Since Mary and those who came with her were weeping, human nature was disposed to tears and was troubled. But the Lord suppresses the agitation in spirit, that is, by the Spirit He restrains the disturbance and holds it back, and asks a question, not at all revealing tears. But since the Lord was grieving, for He was truly Man and wished to confirm the reality of His human nature, He allowed it to do its own. At the same time He restrains the flesh, forbidding it by the power of the Holy Spirit; but the flesh, unable to endure the restraint, is troubled, sighs, and gives itself over to sorrow. All this the Lord permits His Humanity to experience, partly in order to confirm that He was Man in truth and not in appearance, and partly in order to teach us to set limits and measure to both grief and indifference. For to have no compassion and no tears is characteristic of beasts, while to shed many tears and give oneself over to much grief is characteristic of women. And since "the Lord partook of our flesh and blood" (Heb. 2:14), He also takes part in what is proper to man and nature, and shows us the measure in both.
Jn. 11:34. And He said: Where have you laid him?
"Where have you laid him?" the Lord asks not because He does not know (for, being in another place and far away, He still knew that Lazarus had died), but so that they would not think that He Himself volunteers to perform the miracle of His own accord. He wishes to learn everything from them and to perform the miracle at their request, so as to free it from all suspicion.
Jn. 11:34. Lord, come and see.
And since there was as yet no hint of the resurrection of Lazarus and it occurred to no one that He was going to resurrect him, and not merely to weep, they say to Him: "Lord, come and see."
Jn. 11:35. Jesus wept.
Jn. 11:36. Then the Jews said: see how He loved him.
Jn. 11:37. But some of them said: Could not this Man, who opened the eyes of the blind, have caused that even this man should not have died?
But the wicked Jews, despite the great misfortune before their eyes, still do not abandon their malice. They say: "Could not this Man, who opened the eyes of the blind, have caused that even this man should not have died?" They say this to disparage the miracle performed on the man born blind (John 9:1–11). They ought to have marveled at that miracle, but on account of the death of Lazarus they cast doubt even on its reality, and without waiting for the outcome of the matter, they pronounce an insulting verdict in advance. So envy corrupted their minds.
Jn. 11:38. Jesus then, again groaning within Himself, comes to the tomb.
Why does the Evangelist again note that Jesus wept and grieved out of compassion? So that we may know that He truly clothed Himself in our nature. John, compared with the other Evangelists, proclaims the highest teaching about the Lord and theologizes something great; therefore, from His bodily deeds he also narrates the more humbling ones. For this reason, in the Lord's grief he finds much that is human, and thereby proves the reality of His flesh, so that you may know that the Lord was God and at the same time Man. For just as Luke, through the Lord's agony, distress, and sweat (Luke 22:44), so John, through His tears, proves that He bore true flesh.
Jn. 11:38. That was a cave, and a stone lay upon it.
Why did the Lord not raise Lazarus while the stone still lay upon the tomb? For He who by a single word raised up the dead body and gave life to one already beginning to decompose could far more easily have rolled away the stone by a word.
Jn. 11:39. Jesus says: Take away the stone.
"Take away the stone," the Lord says in order to make them witnesses of the miracle, so that they could not, as before concerning the man born blind, say: "It is he; it is not he" (John 9:9). For being present at the very spot and removing the stone with their own hands was meant to shut the mouths of ill-intentioned witnesses of the miracle.
Jn. 11:39. Lord, by this time he stinks, for he has been in the tomb four days.
"He already stinks; for he has been in the grave four days," Martha said out of unbelief, because she considered the resurrection of her brother to be already impossible after so many days had passed since his death. So she was still not advanced in faith!
Jn. 11:40. Jesus says to her: Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?
Christ, reminding her of His conversation with her and as if reproaching her for her forgetfulness, says: "Did I not say to you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?"
To His disciples the Lord says that Lazarus died so that "the Son of God" might be glorified through this (John 11:4), but to Martha He says "you will see the glory of God," meaning the Father. He uses different expressions about one and the same thing — on account of the weakness of the listeners. Here the Jews were present. To tell Martha that she would see the glory of "the Son of God," the Lord found inappropriate, because they would have considered Him vainglorious. But now, having spoken of the glory of the Father, He made His speech moderate and easy to accept.
Jn. 11:41. So they took away the stone from the cave where the dead man lay. And Jesus lifted up His eyes to heaven and said: Father! I thank Thee that Thou hast heard Me.
Jn. 11:42. And I knew that You always hear Me; but I said this for the sake of the people standing here, that they may believe that You sent Me.
Why does the Lord pray, or rather, assume the appearance of prayer? Listen to what He Himself says: "For the sake of the people standing here I said this, that they may believe that You sent Me, that is, so that they would not consider Me an opponent of God, so that they would not say that I am not from God, to prove to them that this deed was accomplished by Me according to Your will."
And that He appears to be praying for this reason specifically, and not for any other — that is, for the sake of those standing by — pay attention to the prayer itself. "Father, I thank You that You have heard Me." It is clear that this is not a prayer, but only the posture and appearance of prayer. And that He has no need of prayer is evident from the fact that He accomplished many other things without prayer. For example: "I say to you, demon, come out of him" (Luke 4:35); again, "I will, be cleansed" (Matt. 8:3); again, "your sins are forgiven" (Matt. 9:2), and this is the most important of all; and to the sea: "Peace, be still" (Mark 4:39). Therefore, so that those present would believe that He is from heaven and not an adversary of God, the Lord prays. For if, despite such works of His, despite every kind of proof of His unity of mind with the Father, they said that He was not from God, what would they not have said if He had done nothing of the sort?
Jn. 11:43. Having said this, He cried out with a loud voice: Lazarus! Come forth.
The Lord, having given thanks to the Father rather than having made a request (for, as has been said, He had no need of prayer or help from it, because He is equal in power with the Father), cried out with a loud voice, one of sovereign authority and dominion. For He did not say "in the name of My Father, Lazarus, come forth"; nor did He say "Father, raise him up"; but, as has been said, with sovereign authority, stopping the mouths of all who say that He is less than the Father. For what could be found equal to such authority, that He speaks to the dead man as to a living one: "Lazarus, come forth"?
And now the words were fulfilled in deed: "The hour is coming when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God, and they that hear shall live" (John 5:25). Lest anyone think that Christ received such power from another, He foretells in advance what He was about to prove by the very deed itself.
The loud voice of the Savior, which raised Lazarus, serves as an image of the great trumpet that will sound at the general resurrection (1 Cor. 15:52; 1 Thess. 4:16). The Lord called out loudly in order to stop the mouths of the Greeks, who foolishly claim that the soul remains in the tomb (together with the body), for He calls it loudly, as though it were far away. Just as this particular resurrection was, so too the general resurrection will be "in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye" (1 Cor. 15:52).
Jn. 11:44. The dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with burial wrappings, and his face was wrapped with a cloth.
"He came out," it says, "the dead man, bound hand and foot." For the bound man to come out seemed no less wondrous than to rise from the dead. Thus, to the miracle of the resurrection was added yet another miracle — that one completely bound was able to move.
Jn. 11:44. Jesus says to them: Unbind him, let him go.
The Lord commands to unbind him, so that those who approached and touched him would see that it is he himself.
"Let him go," He says. This is out of a lack of love for glory. For He does not lead him out (Himself), nor command him to walk with Him, so as to be seen.
Jn. 11:45. Then many of the Jews who had come to Mary and had seen what Jesus did believed in Him.
Jn. 11:46. But some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done.
When the miracle was accomplished, some of those who saw it believed, while others reported it to the Pharisees, undoubtedly with the intent of discrediting Him, as one who had done something unlawful, since He had ordered a buried man to be dug up.
Jn. 11:47. Then the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered a council and said: What shall we do? This Man performs many miracles.
It was necessary to be amazed and to marvel at the Lord when He was performing such miracles; the Pharisees, on the contrary, hold a council on how to destroy Him. What extreme madness! Him, Who in the bodies of others overcomes death, they think to put to death, in order to conceal His glory; and after so many miracles they consider Him a mere man.
"What," they say, "are we to do? This 'Man' performs many miracles." And what crime is it if He performs miracles? In that case, one ought to believe in Him, to worship Him, and no longer regard Him as a mere man.
Jn. 11:48. If we leave Him alone like this, everyone will believe in Him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation.
Look at the audacity of the Pharisees! Trying to stir up the people, they spread the rumor that all the Jews are threatened with danger and destruction from the Romans on suspicion of seizing supreme power. "If," they say, "we leave Him alone, many people will follow Him, drawn by the manifestation of miracles, and finally the Romans will suspect all of us of seizing supreme power, will take our cities and destroy them." They said this with cunning. So that it would not appear that they were plotting against Christ out of envy, they put forward the common danger, inciting the people against Christ as the future cause of their destruction.
Understand, perhaps, this miracle also in relation to the inner man. Our mind is a friend of Christ, but it is often overcome by the weakness of human nature, falls into sin, and dies a spiritual and most pitiable death, yet one deemed worthy of compassion on Christ's part, for the one who died is His friend. Let, then, the sisters and kinswomen of the dead mind — the flesh, as Martha (for Martha is more bodily and material), and the soul, as Mary (for Mary is more devout and reverent) — come to Christ and fall down before Him, leading after them the thoughts of confession, as those women led the Jews. For Judah means confession. And the Lord will undoubtedly stand at the tomb, will command that the blindness lying upon the memory be taken away, like some stone, and will bring to remembrance the future blessings and torments. And He will cry out with the great voice of the evangelical trumpet: "Come out from the world, do not bury yourself in worldly distractions and passions"; just as He also said to His disciples, "you are not of the world" (John 15:19), and the Apostle Paul said, "let us go forth to Him outside the camp" (Heb. 13:13), that is, the world, and thus will raise from sin the dead man, whose wounds reeked of malice. The dead man gave off a smell because he was four days dead, that is, he had died to the four gentle and radiant virtues and was idle and immovable toward them. However, although he was immovable and bound hand and foot, constricted by the bonds of his own sins and seemed completely inactive, and although his face was covered with a cloth so that under the overlay of the fleshly covering he could see nothing divine — in short, was in the very worst condition both in "activity," which is signified by the hands and feet, and in "contemplation," which is signified by the covered face — even though he is in such a calamitous state, he will hear: "Unbind him, you good angels or priests who serve salvation, and give him the forgiveness of sins; let him go and set about the doing of good."
Some have understood "Martha" to mean the Jewish church, and "Mary" the Church from the Gentiles. The Jewish church is concerned with many things, for the commandments of the law are many and difficult to fulfill, while the Church from the Gentiles needs not many commandments, but a few, in which "all the law and the prophets" are contained (Matt. 22:40), namely the commandments of love. By their brother, raised from the dead, they understood the souls of people who descend into hell on account of their sins, as it is written, "let the sinners be turned into hell" (Ps. 9:17), but these souls the Lord raises.
Jn. 11:49. And one of them, a certain Caiaphas, being the high priest that year, said to them: You know nothing,
Among the Jews, the high-priestly dignity had also been corrupted. For from the time when offices of authority became purchasable, the high priests no longer served for their entire lives, but only for a year. Nevertheless, even with such corruption of this dignity, the Holy Spirit still worked in those who were anointed. But when they raised their hands against Christ, then grace completely departed from them and passed to the apostles.
Jn. 11:50. And you do not consider that it is better for us that one man should die for the people, than that the whole nation should perish.
Whereas some merely proposed as an opinion to put Christ to death, the high priest was so bloodthirsty that he openly, with bared head and boldly, pronounces the sentence upon Christ. He even reproaches the others for not understanding what is proper and not taking care to discern what is expedient. "You," he says, "know nothing at all, nor do you wish to understand, nor do you consider that it is better that one man should die and the whole nation be saved." He said this with a malicious intent. For the grace of the Spirit used his mouth for a prediction of the future, even though it did not touch his wicked heart.
Jn. 11:51. And this he said not of himself, but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus would die for the nation,
Observe the power of the high priestly dignity, how it is full of the grace of the Spirit, even though those who bear it are unworthy. And I ask you, honor the high priests according to the dignity of the grace dwelling in them, and not according to their own will. Not only Caiaphas prophesies, but many other unworthy men also knew the future—for example, Pharaoh concerning the abundance and famine (Gen. 45:17–32), Nebuchadnezzar concerning the kingdoms and Christ (Dan. 2:28–45), and Balaam concerning Christ (Num. 24:17). Indeed, not everyone who prophesies can be called a prophet, but every prophet prophesies. Just as not everyone who does something medical is thereby a physician, but he who practices medicine by virtue of the medical profession can be a physician. Likewise, a righteous man is not one who merely does something just, but one who pursues righteousness according to what is said: "that which is altogether just shalt thou follow" (Deut. 16:20). So Caiaphas also prophesies, but not in the prophetic disposition of the Spirit, and therefore he is not a prophet.
See what power the Spirit has! It arranged things so that even from a wicked heart came words containing a wondrous prophecy. For when Christ died, all who believed from among the people were delivered from great and eternal punishment.
Jn. 11:52. And not only for the nation, but also to gather into one the scattered children of God.
And He died not for the Jewish nation only, but to gather into one the rest of the children of God as well, that is, the Gentiles. He calls the Gentiles children of God, and calls them so either with reference to the future, inasmuch as they were to become children of God, just as in another place He says "I have other sheep also" (Jn. 10:16), calling them so with reference to the future, or because He is the Father of all, having begotten us by the act of creation, and inasmuch as He honored us by creating us in His own image and likeness, just as the Apostle Paul, according to the account of the book of Acts (Acts 17:29), says in his discourse to the Athenians: "therefore, being the offspring of God." Thus, since man is a living being most exalted and godlike, every person is called a child of God.
So then, us who were scattered (for Satan in manifold ways separated people from one another and from God, disposing each to rage against his neighbor out of love for wealth and glory), Christ brought together into one, gathering us into one Church and under one yoke and making one body of those near and far, so that he who is in Rome would consider the inhabitants of India his own members and would confess Christ as the one Head of all.
Jn. 11:53. From that day on they resolved to kill Him.
This means that from that day they especially and definitively confirmed themselves in this intention. They had plotted murder even before this, but weakly, and the matter was more of a question than a decision, but now a final judgment and decisive verdict had been reached. Even before they "sought to kill Him" (John 5:18), and He Himself, exposing them, said "Why do you seek to kill Me?" (John 7:19).
Jn. 11:54. Jesus therefore no longer walked openly among the Jews,
From the sentence of the Jews the Lord withdraws not out of fear, but to teach us not to rush into dangers ourselves, even for the sake of piety, but if we are seized, to stand courageously, and if we are not taken, not to throw ourselves voluntarily into danger because of the uncertainty of the outcome.
Jn. 11:54. And He went from there to a region near the wilderness,
So, the Lord fittingly withdraws from them. For the word of God, proclaimed by the prophets, formerly walked openly among the Jews, but now it does so no longer, having withdrawn into the wilderness—the Church of the Gentiles, of which it is said that "the children of the desolate one are far more than the children of her who has a husband" (Isa. 54:1).
Jn. 11:54. Into a city called Ephraim, and there He remained with His disciples.
Nearby is Ephraim — the very wilderness. Ephraim means "fruitfulness"; Ephraim was the younger brother, Manasseh the elder. Manasseh means "forgetfulness." Thus, the Jewish people were the firstborn son of God, for it is said, "Israel is My son, My firstborn" (Exod. 4:22), but God forgot him; while Ephraim, that is, the fruitfulness from the Gentiles, the Lord made His second son. Thus, the Word, having left Judea, went out into the wilderness of Ephraim — the Church from the Gentiles, made fruitful by the Gospel.
Jn. 11:55. The Passover of the Jews was near, and many went up to Jerusalem from the country before the Passover, to purify themselves.
See how senseless the intention of the Jews is. They are not restrained from the malice of murder even during the time of the feast, but they resolved to commit murder and go up for purification. Those who had sinned willingly or unwillingly did not celebrate the Passover before being purified according to custom through washing, fasting, circumcision, and the offering of the prescribed sacrifices.
Jn. 11:56. They sought Jesus therefore, and spoke among themselves, as they stood in the temple: What think ye? Will He not come to the feast?
And they, the very best, who perform the purification, form a council against the Lord and say: "What do you think? Will He not come to the feast?" That is, He will certainly fall into our hands, and if nothing else, the time itself will lead Him into our nets. What malice! Whereas even open criminals ought to have been released for the feast, they plot against the Innocent One.
Jn. 11:57. Now the chief priests and the Pharisees had given a commandment, that if anyone knew where He was, he should report it, so that they might seize Him.
And if only common people did this, their bias would seem a matter of ignorance, but instead the Pharisees give the order to report Him and seize Him.
Jn. 11:1. Now a certain man was sick, Lazarus of Bethany, of the village where Mary and her sister Martha lived.
Only John tells this story. He tells it in order to teach us not to be scandalized if some illness befalls people who are zealous and beloved of God. For Lazarus was a friend of Christ, and yet even he was sick.
Jn. 11:2. Mary, whose brother Lazarus was sick, was the one who anointed the Lord with myrrh and wiped His feet with her hair.
It is necessary to know also that this Mary, who anointed the Lord with myrrh, was neither the harlot mentioned by the Evangelist Luke (Luke 7:37–50), nor the woman mentioned by the Evangelist Matthew (Matt. 26:7), but another — not a harlot, but an honorable, God-loving, and zealous woman. For she was concerned with receiving Christ and served Him, as John himself later (John 12:2) testifies. The Lord testifies of her that she chose the good part, as the Evangelist Luke notes (Luke 10:42). These sisters were so wondrous and venerable that even Lazarus became known more on account of them. For Lazarus, it says, was from Bethany, from the village of Mary and Martha.
Jn. 11:3. The sisters sent to tell Him: Lord! behold, he whom Thou lovest is sick.
Why then do they send to call Jesus, and do not go to Him themselves, like the centurion and the royal official? Because they firmly hoped in Christ, because they were weak women and it was not proper for them to leave the house, because they too were overcome with grief and were occupied with caring for their brother. And that they did this not out of negligence is evident from what follows, for they show Christ great honor and respect and offer a steadfast prayer.
"Behold, he whom Thou lovest." They speak thus in order that by the name of friendship they might more surely incline the Lord to compassion. This expression of these women also reveals a certain faith of theirs. They are so confident in the greatness of the Lord's power that it is astonishing to them how illness could touch a man beloved by Him. For it seems somehow astonishing that he whom Thou, O Lord, lovest is sick.
Jn. 11:4. Jesus, having heard this, said: this sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it.
Since Jesus intended to remain in that place for two days, He says that "this sickness is not unto death," although it did lead to death; He says this in order to encourage the messengers and to give them a kind of consolation, so that they would not persist in urging Him and would not grieve. It is for this reason that He says: "This sickness is not unto death."
And in another way. If you look carefully, this sickness was not unto death—the kind of death by which many die, that is, unto a prolonged death, but unto a temporary one that lasted four days. Since Lazarus was raised on the fourth day, looking at the outcome of the matter, we say: this sickness is not unto death. "But for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified through it." Do you see that the Father and the Son have one glory? For having said "for the glory of God," He added "that the Son of God might be glorified," for the glory of God, that is, of the Father, in no way differs from the glory of the Son. Consequently, the Son is properly and truly God just as the Father is, for those who have one glory have one Essence as well.
Let the Arians be put to shame by this saying as well. "That He may be glorified." Understand this not as a cause, but as an event and outcome of the matter (as we have said more than once). For Lazarus was not sick in order that God might be glorified, but sickness befell Lazarus, and the Lord turned it to the glory of God.
Jn. 11:5. Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.
Jn. 11:6. When He heard that he was sick, He stayed two days in the place where He was.
He "stayed two days" so that Lazarus would die, so that no one could say that he had been in a deep sleep, exhaustion, or a trance, and not death. This is why the Lord remains so long that decomposition had already begun, and the sister herself says that "he already stinks" (John 11:39).
Jn. 11:7. After this He said to the disciples: let us go to Judea again.
In other cases the Lord never stated beforehand where He intended to go, but only here does He announce in advance, it seems, because His disciples were very afraid to go to Judea. He announces beforehand so that they would not be troubled by the unexpectedness, if He were to suddenly lead them into a country which they were afraid to enter.
Jn. 11:8. The disciples said to Him: Rabbi! The Jews were just now seeking to stone You, and You are going there again?
Since they were afraid both for Him, for they did not yet have perfect knowledge of Him, and were afraid for themselves, they say to Him: "The Jews were just now seeking to stone You, and You are going there again?"
Jn. 11:9. Jesus answered: Are there not twelve hours in the day? He who walks in the day does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world;
Jn. 11:10. But if anyone walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him.
The Lord encourages them and says: "Just as one who sees the light does not stumble, but the one who walks at night stumbles, so too the one who does good and walks in deeds of light will not suffer any misfortune, while the one who does evil will suffer misfortune; therefore you have no need to fear, for we have done nothing deserving of death."
Or yet another way: "If he who sees this light does not stumble, how much more will he not stumble who abides with Me, provided he himself does not fall away from Me. Therefore you also, abiding with Me, the true Light, are afraid in vain."
Others understand "day" as the time before the suffering, and "night" as the time of the suffering. So, He says, as long as the "day" goes on, that is, while the time of suffering has not yet come, you will not stumble, for you will encounter neither persecution from the Jews nor any other unpleasantness. But when the "night" comes, that is, My suffering, then you, thrown into confusion, will gather in one small house out of fear of the Jews. From that time you will experience sorrows and afflictions, and much hostility and trouble. When I, the Light, am no longer living with you bodily, the night of sorrows will envelop you.
Jn. 11:11. Having said this, He then says to them: Lazarus, our friend, has fallen asleep; but I am going to awaken him.
Since the Lord's disciples were afraid to go to Judea, He says to them: "The Jews sought to stone Me because I refuted and reproved them. But now I am going not to reprove them, but to visit My friend. Therefore there is no need to be afraid. I am going not for the same reason I went before, so as to expect danger from the Jews, but I am going to awaken a friend."
Jn. 11:12. The disciples said to Him: Lord! If he has fallen asleep, he will recover.
The disciples, wishing to keep Him from traveling there, say: "It is enough if he has fallen asleep; if he has fallen asleep, he will recover; therefore we have no need to go, for there is no necessity." Although the Lord, speaking of Lazarus, added "My friend" precisely to show the necessity of being there, the disciples maintain that His visit is not needed, since he can recover from the fact that he has fallen asleep.
Jn. 11:13. Jesus spoke of his death, but they thought that He was speaking of ordinary sleep.
"Even more," they say, "Your Coming is not only unnecessary, but also harmful to the friend. For if sleep, as we think, serves for his recovery, and You go and wake him, then You will hinder his recovery. Therefore, there is no need to go and wake him, for this is harmful."
Jn. 11:14. Then Jesus said to them plainly: Lazarus is dead;
The Lord, seeing that His disciples still did not understand Him, says directly that Lazarus "has died." Why then did He previously express Himself not directly, but in a veiled manner, calling death "sleep"? For many reasons.
Firstly, out of humility, for He did not wish to appear boastful, but in a veiled manner called the resurrection an awakening from sleep. How would He have used this expression if He had not called death a sleep? And that this is true, that is, that He expressed Himself in a veiled manner out of humility, is evident from what follows. For having said that Lazarus "died," the Lord did not add "I will go and raise him." Do you see how He did not wish to boast in words about what He intended to confirm by the deed itself? At the same time, the Lord also teaches us not to be hasty in our promises. For if at the request of the centurion (for the healing of his servant) the Lord did give a promise, saying "I will come and heal him" (Matt. 8:5–7), He said this in order to reveal his faith. So then, this is the first reason why the Lord called death a sleep.
Another is to show us that every death is a sleep and a rest.
The third is that although the death of Lazarus was indeed death for everyone else, for Jesus Himself, inasmuch as He intended to raise him, it was nothing more than sleep. Just as it is easy for us to wake one who is sleeping, so, and a thousand times more so, it is easy for Him to raise the dead.
Jn. 11:15. And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, to the intent ye may believe; but let us go unto him.
"I rejoice," He says, "for your sakes," that you can henceforth be more assured of My Divine dignity from the fact that I was not there and am far away from that place, yet I tell you in advance that death has occurred in Bethany, and I say this not based on hearsay, but, as God, Myself perceiving what has happened at a great distance.
Some understood the Lord's words "I am glad for your sakes" in this way: "That I was not there will serve to strengthen you in faith. For if I had been there, I would have healed the sick man. This too would have been a miracle, but it would have shown little of My power. But now, since I was not there and the death of Lazarus followed, and I will go and raise him, you should be more firmly established in faith in Me. For you will see that I am able to do even what I have not yet manifested, namely: to restore and raise a dead man who has already decomposed and is emitting a foul odor."
And I ask you to notice that although Lazarus had died, the Lord nevertheless said "let us go to him," as if to a living person. For to Christ, as God, even Lazarus himself was alive.
Jn. 11:16. Then Thomas, otherwise called the Twin, said to the disciples: Let us also go, that we may die with Him.
When the Lord said this and proved to the disciples the necessity of His journey to Judea, then Thomas, who was more fearful than the rest, says: "Let us also go, that we may die with Him." For these words express not courage, but fear and faintheartedness. In order to hold back the other fellow disciples as well, he reminds them of death and deliberately adds "die," speaking as if to say: "Let us too, foolish, senseless, and caring nothing for our own salvation and life, go so that we may die with Him. Let Him place little value on His own life; must we therefore also be imprudent?" Such words befit a coward.
But look at him afterwards. He, as an apostle, was slain for the truth. The grace of God so "strengthened" him that the words of the Apostle Paul can be applied to him as well: "our sufficiency is of God" (2 Cor. 3:5), and "not I, but the grace" (1 Cor. 15:10).
And Origen says something about Thomas that resembles a dream: "Thomas," he says, "having learned the prophecies about Christ and understood that He would descend with His soul into hell for the liberation of souls, when he heard that the Lord was going to awaken Lazarus, thought that He could awaken him, that is, free his soul, in no other way than if He Himself laid aside His body and descended into hell. Therefore, as a sincere disciple of Christ, not wishing to fall behind his Teacher even in this, he both counsels his fellow disciples and himself volunteers to lay aside his body, in order to descend into hell together with Jesus, who, in his understanding, would lay down His soul in order to free the soul of His friend from hell." I have included this laughable explanation to put to shame those who exalt everything of Origen. For is not such an explanation from a wise man obvious idle talk and a veritable dream?
Jn. 11:17. Jesus, having come, found that he had already been four days in the tomb.
The Lord deliberately delayed until Lazarus had been dead four days, then went, so that the miracle would be from every side free from slander.
Jn. 11:18. Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, about fifteen stadia away;
Bethany was about fifteen stadia from Jerusalem. Why does the evangelist add this detail? In order to show that many of the inhabitants of Jerusalem indeed came, for Bethany was not far away.
Jn. 11:19. And many of the Jews came to Martha and Mary to comfort them in their grief over their brother.
Many of the Jews had come to comfort the sisters, not because Christ loved them (for the Jews had already agreed to put out of the synagogue anyone who acknowledged Him as the Christ (John 9:22)), but either because of the severity of the calamity, or because those who came were not among the wicked, which is why many of them also believed.
Jn. 11:20. Martha, having heard that Jesus was coming, went to meet Him; but Mary sat at home.
Martha alone goes forward to meet Him, and does not take her sister with her, because she wanted to see Him privately and tell Him about what had happened. But when the Lord aroused good hope in her, then she goes away and calls her sister. Previously she had not told her sister Mary about the Lord's coming in order to hide this from those who were with her. For if Mary had heard that Jesus was coming, she would have immediately gone to meet Him, and the Jews who had come would have followed her, but Martha did not want them to learn of Jesus' arrival.
Jn. 11:21. Then Martha said to Jesus: Lord! if You had been here, my brother would not have died.
Martha had faith in Christ, but not complete, not proper faith. Therefore she also says: "Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died." She said this, undoubtedly, because she did not believe that He, if He had wished, could have prevented the death of her brother even without being personally present.
Jn. 11:22. But even now I know that whatever You ask of God, God will give You.
And further she reveals an even greater weakness of faith. For she says: "Whatever You ask of God, God will give You." Do you see, she considers Him to be some virtuous man who is pleasing to God. For she did not say "whatever You will, You shall do," but "whatever You ask, He will give You."
Jn. 11:23. Jesus says to her: Your brother will rise again.
The Lord, refuting such an understanding of hers, says: "Your brother will rise again." He did not say to her "yes, I will ask God, and He will give Me," nor did He agree with her words, but used a moderate expression.
Jn. 11:24. Martha said to Him: I know that he will rise again in the resurrection, at the last day.
Since Martha did not yet believe and had not understood the meaning of the words "your brother will rise again," she supposed that he would rise at the last resurrection (and that there would be a last resurrection, Martha knew partly from Divine Scripture, and even more from Christ's frequent discourses on the resurrection).
Jn. 11:25. Jesus said to her: I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me, even if he dies, shall live.
And further He sets forth His power and authority much more clearly: "I," He says, "am the resurrection and the life."
So, since the woman still remained a woman, the Lord raises her up and rouses her faith, as though it had died, speaking more clearly: "You say to Me that God will give Me whatever I ask of Him. But I say to you plainly that I am the resurrection and the life, so that My power is not limited by place, but I am equally able to heal, whether present on the spot or from afar. For I bestow blessings not on behalf of anyone else, but I Myself am the resurrection and the life, I Myself have the power to raise and give life."
Jn. 11:26. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?
"He who believes in Me, even if he dies this bodily death, shall live, and everyone who lives and believes in Me shall not die a spiritual death. Therefore do not be troubled. For although your brother has died, he shall live. And why do I speak of your brother? Even you, if you believe in Me, shall not die, but shall be above spiritual death, which is far more terrible. And He who delivers from the most terrible death shall all the more easily deliver your dead brother from the less terrible death."
"Do you believe this?" the Lord asks Martha. And she, although she had heard such lofty words, nevertheless did not understand what the Lord said to her. I think that from grief she was also suffering from a lack of comprehension. For the Lord asks one thing, and she answers another. The Lord asks whether she believes that He is the resurrection and the life, and that he who believes in Him will never die, whether you understand this as spiritual death or bodily death. For of the faithful, on account of their hope in the resurrection, it is rightly said that they do not die.
Jn. 11:27. She says to Him: yes, Lord! I believe that You are the Christ, the Son of God, who comes into the world.
And what does Martha answer? "I am convinced that You are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world." Her answer is good and fair, but it is not an answer to the question. Nevertheless, she gained this benefit from it: the force of her grief was subdued and her sorrow was diminished.
Jn. 11:28. Having said this, she went and called Mary her sister secretly, saying: The Teacher is here and is calling you.
Martha "secretly" calls her sister; and she did this very wisely. For if the Jews who had come to them had learned that Mary was going to meet Christ, they would have left them, and the miracle would have remained without witnesses. But now the Jews thought that Mary was going to the tomb to weep, went along with her, and by necessity became obvious witnesses of the miracle.
Martha says to Mary: "The Teacher is calling you." But in the Evangelist it is not noted that the Lord called her. This can be explained in two ways: either the Evangelist passed over in silence that the Lord commanded Martha to call her sister, or she regarded the very arrival of the Lord as an invitation and said that the Teacher is calling you. For when the Lord came, should she not have gone to Him? Thus, the arrival of the Lord, which necessarily required Mary to go out and meet Him, the Evangelist called an invitation. "For the Teacher," she says, "has come and is calling you"; and since He has come, His very arrival serves as a call to you. For as soon as He came, it is necessary for you also to go out to meet Him.
Jn. 11:29. She, as soon as she heard, quickly rose and went to Him.
Mary, as soon as she learned that Jesus had come, did not delay, but quickly rose and went to Him. From this it is evident that Martha had not forewarned her beforehand, even though she knew that Jesus was coming.
Jn. 11:30. Jesus had not yet come into the village, but was in the place where Martha met Him.
But Jesus had not yet come into the village, for He was walking slowly, so that they would not think that He Himself was seeking an occasion for the miracle, but that He would perform it at their request.
Jn. 11:31. The Jews who were with her in the house and were comforting her, seeing that Mary rose up quickly and went out, followed her, supposing that she went to the tomb to weep there.
And since the miracle about to be performed was great, was not performed many times, and was to benefit many, the Lord arranges it so that many would become witnesses of the miracle. For the evangelist says that the Jews who were with her in the house followed after her.
Jn. 11:32. Then when Mary came where Jesus was, and saw Him, she fell down at His feet, saying to Him, Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.
Mary came to Christ with greater fervor than her sister Martha. For, "when she saw Him, she fell at His feet," not ashamed before the crowd, paying no attention to the fact that some of those present were hostile toward Christ. In the presence of the Teacher she cast aside all humanity and cared only about honoring Him. She says: "Lord! if You had been here, my brother would not have died."
Martha, however, does nothing of the sort, for she does not fall before Him, but on the contrary, when Christ even offers good hope concerning her brother, she shows herself to be unbelieving. Although Mary also appears imperfect when she says "if You had been here, my brother would not have died," nevertheless Christ does not say to her anything of the sort that He said to her sister, because there were many people present, and it was not the time for such words. He condescends even further, clearly revealing the human nature in Himself and manifesting its properties. For listen to what the Evangelist says.
Jn. 11:33. Jesus, when He saw her weeping and the Jews who had come with her weeping, was deeply moved in spirit and was troubled.
Since Mary and those who came with her were weeping, human nature was disposed to tears and was troubled. But the Lord suppresses the agitation in spirit, that is, by the Spirit He restrains the disturbance and holds it back, and asks a question, not at all revealing tears. But since the Lord was grieving, for He was truly Man and wished to confirm the reality of His human nature, He allowed it to do its own. At the same time He restrains the flesh, forbidding it by the power of the Holy Spirit; but the flesh, unable to endure the restraint, is troubled, sighs, and gives itself over to sorrow. All this the Lord permits His Humanity to experience, partly in order to confirm that He was Man in truth and not in appearance, and partly in order to teach us to set limits and measure to both grief and indifference. For to have no compassion and no tears is characteristic of beasts, while to shed many tears and give oneself over to much grief is characteristic of women. And since "the Lord partook of our flesh and blood" (Heb. 2:14), He also takes part in what is proper to man and nature, and shows us the measure in both.
Jn. 11:34. And He said: Where have you laid him?
"Where have you laid him?" the Lord asks not because He does not know (for, being in another place and far away, He still knew that Lazarus had died), but so that they would not think that He Himself volunteers to perform the miracle of His own accord. He wishes to learn everything from them and to perform the miracle at their request, so as to free it from all suspicion.
Jn. 11:34. Lord, come and see.
And since there was as yet no hint of the resurrection of Lazarus and it occurred to no one that He was going to resurrect him, and not merely to weep, they say to Him: "Lord, come and see."
Jn. 11:35. Jesus wept.
Jn. 11:36. Then the Jews said: see how He loved him.
Jn. 11:37. But some of them said: Could not this Man, who opened the eyes of the blind, have caused that even this man should not have died?
But the wicked Jews, despite the great misfortune before their eyes, still do not abandon their malice. They say: "Could not this Man, who opened the eyes of the blind, have caused that even this man should not have died?" They say this to disparage the miracle performed on the man born blind (John 9:1–11). They ought to have marveled at that miracle, but on account of the death of Lazarus they cast doubt even on its reality, and without waiting for the outcome of the matter, they pronounce an insulting verdict in advance. So envy corrupted their minds.
Jn. 11:38. Jesus then, again groaning within Himself, comes to the tomb.
Why does the Evangelist again note that Jesus wept and grieved out of compassion? So that we may know that He truly clothed Himself in our nature. John, compared with the other Evangelists, proclaims the highest teaching about the Lord and theologizes something great; therefore, from His bodily deeds he also narrates the more humbling ones. For this reason, in the Lord's grief he finds much that is human, and thereby proves the reality of His flesh, so that you may know that the Lord was God and at the same time Man. For just as Luke, through the Lord's agony, distress, and sweat (Luke 22:44), so John, through His tears, proves that He bore true flesh.
Jn. 11:38. That was a cave, and a stone lay upon it.
Why did the Lord not raise Lazarus while the stone still lay upon the tomb? For He who by a single word raised up the dead body and gave life to one already beginning to decompose could far more easily have rolled away the stone by a word.
Jn. 11:39. Jesus says: Take away the stone.
"Take away the stone," the Lord says in order to make them witnesses of the miracle, so that they could not, as before concerning the man born blind, say: "It is he; it is not he" (John 9:9). For being present at the very spot and removing the stone with their own hands was meant to shut the mouths of ill-intentioned witnesses of the miracle.
Jn. 11:39. Lord, by this time he stinks, for he has been in the tomb four days.
"He already stinks; for he has been in the grave four days," Martha said out of unbelief, because she considered the resurrection of her brother to be already impossible after so many days had passed since his death. So she was still not advanced in faith!
Jn. 11:40. Jesus says to her: Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?
Christ, reminding her of His conversation with her and as if reproaching her for her forgetfulness, says: "Did I not say to you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?"
To His disciples the Lord says that Lazarus died so that "the Son of God" might be glorified through this (John 11:4), but to Martha He says "you will see the glory of God," meaning the Father. He uses different expressions about one and the same thing — on account of the weakness of the listeners. Here the Jews were present. To tell Martha that she would see the glory of "the Son of God," the Lord found inappropriate, because they would have considered Him vainglorious. But now, having spoken of the glory of the Father, He made His speech moderate and easy to accept.
Jn. 11:41. So they took away the stone from the cave where the dead man lay. And Jesus lifted up His eyes to heaven and said: Father! I thank Thee that Thou hast heard Me.
Jn. 11:42. And I knew that You always hear Me; but I said this for the sake of the people standing here, that they may believe that You sent Me.
Why does the Lord pray, or rather, assume the appearance of prayer? Listen to what He Himself says: "For the sake of the people standing here I said this, that they may believe that You sent Me, that is, so that they would not consider Me an opponent of God, so that they would not say that I am not from God, to prove to them that this deed was accomplished by Me according to Your will."
And that He appears to be praying for this reason specifically, and not for any other — that is, for the sake of those standing by — pay attention to the prayer itself. "Father, I thank You that You have heard Me." It is clear that this is not a prayer, but only the posture and appearance of prayer. And that He has no need of prayer is evident from the fact that He accomplished many other things without prayer. For example: "I say to you, demon, come out of him" (Luke 4:35); again, "I will, be cleansed" (Matt. 8:3); again, "your sins are forgiven" (Matt. 9:2), and this is the most important of all; and to the sea: "Peace, be still" (Mark 4:39). Therefore, so that those present would believe that He is from heaven and not an adversary of God, the Lord prays. For if, despite such works of His, despite every kind of proof of His unity of mind with the Father, they said that He was not from God, what would they not have said if He had done nothing of the sort?
Jn. 11:43. Having said this, He cried out with a loud voice: Lazarus! Come forth.
The Lord, having given thanks to the Father rather than having made a request (for, as has been said, He had no need of prayer or help from it, because He is equal in power with the Father), cried out with a loud voice, one of sovereign authority and dominion. For He did not say "in the name of My Father, Lazarus, come forth"; nor did He say "Father, raise him up"; but, as has been said, with sovereign authority, stopping the mouths of all who say that He is less than the Father. For what could be found equal to such authority, that He speaks to the dead man as to a living one: "Lazarus, come forth"?
And now the words were fulfilled in deed: "The hour is coming when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God, and they that hear shall live" (John 5:25). Lest anyone think that Christ received such power from another, He foretells in advance what He was about to prove by the very deed itself.
The loud voice of the Savior, which raised Lazarus, serves as an image of the great trumpet that will sound at the general resurrection (1 Cor. 15:52; 1 Thess. 4:16). The Lord called out loudly in order to stop the mouths of the Greeks, who foolishly claim that the soul remains in the tomb (together with the body), for He calls it loudly, as though it were far away. Just as this particular resurrection was, so too the general resurrection will be "in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye" (1 Cor. 15:52).
Jn. 11:44. The dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with burial wrappings, and his face was wrapped with a cloth.
"He came out," it says, "the dead man, bound hand and foot." For the bound man to come out seemed no less wondrous than to rise from the dead. Thus, to the miracle of the resurrection was added yet another miracle — that one completely bound was able to move.
Jn. 11:44. Jesus says to them: Unbind him, let him go.
The Lord commands to unbind him, so that those who approached and touched him would see that it is he himself.
"Let him go," He says. This is out of a lack of love for glory. For He does not lead him out (Himself), nor command him to walk with Him, so as to be seen.
Jn. 11:45. Then many of the Jews who had come to Mary and had seen what Jesus did believed in Him.
Jn. 11:46. But some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done.
When the miracle was accomplished, some of those who saw it believed, while others reported it to the Pharisees, undoubtedly with the intent of discrediting Him, as one who had done something unlawful, since He had ordered a buried man to be dug up.
Jn. 11:47. Then the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered a council and said: What shall we do? This Man performs many miracles.
It was necessary to be amazed and to marvel at the Lord when He was performing such miracles; the Pharisees, on the contrary, hold a council on how to destroy Him. What extreme madness! Him, Who in the bodies of others overcomes death, they think to put to death, in order to conceal His glory; and after so many miracles they consider Him a mere man.
"What," they say, "are we to do? This 'Man' performs many miracles." And what crime is it if He performs miracles? In that case, one ought to believe in Him, to worship Him, and no longer regard Him as a mere man.
Jn. 11:48. If we leave Him alone like this, everyone will believe in Him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation.
Look at the audacity of the Pharisees! Trying to stir up the people, they spread the rumor that all the Jews are threatened with danger and destruction from the Romans on suspicion of seizing supreme power. "If," they say, "we leave Him alone, many people will follow Him, drawn by the manifestation of miracles, and finally the Romans will suspect all of us of seizing supreme power, will take our cities and destroy them." They said this with cunning. So that it would not appear that they were plotting against Christ out of envy, they put forward the common danger, inciting the people against Christ as the future cause of their destruction.
Understand, perhaps, this miracle also in relation to the inner man. Our mind is a friend of Christ, but it is often overcome by the weakness of human nature, falls into sin, and dies a spiritual and most pitiable death, yet one deemed worthy of compassion on Christ's part, for the one who died is His friend. Let, then, the sisters and kinswomen of the dead mind — the flesh, as Martha (for Martha is more bodily and material), and the soul, as Mary (for Mary is more devout and reverent) — come to Christ and fall down before Him, leading after them the thoughts of confession, as those women led the Jews. For Judah means confession. And the Lord will undoubtedly stand at the tomb, will command that the blindness lying upon the memory be taken away, like some stone, and will bring to remembrance the future blessings and torments. And He will cry out with the great voice of the evangelical trumpet: "Come out from the world, do not bury yourself in worldly distractions and passions"; just as He also said to His disciples, "you are not of the world" (John 15:19), and the Apostle Paul said, "let us go forth to Him outside the camp" (Heb. 13:13), that is, the world, and thus will raise from sin the dead man, whose wounds reeked of malice. The dead man gave off a smell because he was four days dead, that is, he had died to the four gentle and radiant virtues and was idle and immovable toward them. However, although he was immovable and bound hand and foot, constricted by the bonds of his own sins and seemed completely inactive, and although his face was covered with a cloth so that under the overlay of the fleshly covering he could see nothing divine — in short, was in the very worst condition both in "activity," which is signified by the hands and feet, and in "contemplation," which is signified by the covered face — even though he is in such a calamitous state, he will hear: "Unbind him, you good angels or priests who serve salvation, and give him the forgiveness of sins; let him go and set about the doing of good."
Some have understood "Martha" to mean the Jewish church, and "Mary" the Church from the Gentiles. The Jewish church is concerned with many things, for the commandments of the law are many and difficult to fulfill, while the Church from the Gentiles needs not many commandments, but a few, in which "all the law and the prophets" are contained (Matt. 22:40), namely the commandments of love. By their brother, raised from the dead, they understood the souls of people who descend into hell on account of their sins, as it is written, "let the sinners be turned into hell" (Ps. 9:17), but these souls the Lord raises.
Jn. 11:49. And one of them, a certain Caiaphas, being the high priest that year, said to them: You know nothing,
Among the Jews, the high-priestly dignity had also been corrupted. For from the time when offices of authority became purchasable, the high priests no longer served for their entire lives, but only for a year. Nevertheless, even with such corruption of this dignity, the Holy Spirit still worked in those who were anointed. But when they raised their hands against Christ, then grace completely departed from them and passed to the apostles.
Jn. 11:50. And you do not consider that it is better for us that one man should die for the people, than that the whole nation should perish.
Whereas some merely proposed as an opinion to put Christ to death, the high priest was so bloodthirsty that he openly, with bared head and boldly, pronounces the sentence upon Christ. He even reproaches the others for not understanding what is proper and not taking care to discern what is expedient. "You," he says, "know nothing at all, nor do you wish to understand, nor do you consider that it is better that one man should die and the whole nation be saved." He said this with a malicious intent. For the grace of the Spirit used his mouth for a prediction of the future, even though it did not touch his wicked heart.
Jn. 11:51. And this he said not of himself, but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus would die for the nation,
Observe the power of the high priestly dignity, how it is full of the grace of the Spirit, even though those who bear it are unworthy. And I ask you, honor the high priests according to the dignity of the grace dwelling in them, and not according to their own will. Not only Caiaphas prophesies, but many other unworthy men also knew the future—for example, Pharaoh concerning the abundance and famine (Gen. 45:17–32), Nebuchadnezzar concerning the kingdoms and Christ (Dan. 2:28–45), and Balaam concerning Christ (Num. 24:17). Indeed, not everyone who prophesies can be called a prophet, but every prophet prophesies. Just as not everyone who does something medical is thereby a physician, but he who practices medicine by virtue of the medical profession can be a physician. Likewise, a righteous man is not one who merely does something just, but one who pursues righteousness according to what is said: "that which is altogether just shalt thou follow" (Deut. 16:20). So Caiaphas also prophesies, but not in the prophetic disposition of the Spirit, and therefore he is not a prophet.
See what power the Spirit has! It arranged things so that even from a wicked heart came words containing a wondrous prophecy. For when Christ died, all who believed from among the people were delivered from great and eternal punishment.
Jn. 11:52. And not only for the nation, but also to gather into one the scattered children of God.
And He died not for the Jewish nation only, but to gather into one the rest of the children of God as well, that is, the Gentiles. He calls the Gentiles children of God, and calls them so either with reference to the future, inasmuch as they were to become children of God, just as in another place He says "I have other sheep also" (Jn. 10:16), calling them so with reference to the future, or because He is the Father of all, having begotten us by the act of creation, and inasmuch as He honored us by creating us in His own image and likeness, just as the Apostle Paul, according to the account of the book of Acts (Acts 17:29), says in his discourse to the Athenians: "therefore, being the offspring of God." Thus, since man is a living being most exalted and godlike, every person is called a child of God.
So then, us who were scattered (for Satan in manifold ways separated people from one another and from God, disposing each to rage against his neighbor out of love for wealth and glory), Christ brought together into one, gathering us into one Church and under one yoke and making one body of those near and far, so that he who is in Rome would consider the inhabitants of India his own members and would confess Christ as the one Head of all.
Jn. 11:53. From that day on they resolved to kill Him.
This means that from that day they especially and definitively confirmed themselves in this intention. They had plotted murder even before this, but weakly, and the matter was more of a question than a decision, but now a final judgment and decisive verdict had been reached. Even before they "sought to kill Him" (John 5:18), and He Himself, exposing them, said "Why do you seek to kill Me?" (John 7:19).
Jn. 11:54. Jesus therefore no longer walked openly among the Jews,
From the sentence of the Jews the Lord withdraws not out of fear, but to teach us not to rush into dangers ourselves, even for the sake of piety, but if we are seized, to stand courageously, and if we are not taken, not to throw ourselves voluntarily into danger because of the uncertainty of the outcome.
Jn. 11:54. And He went from there to a region near the wilderness,
So, the Lord fittingly withdraws from them. For the word of God, proclaimed by the prophets, formerly walked openly among the Jews, but now it does so no longer, having withdrawn into the wilderness—the Church of the Gentiles, of which it is said that "the children of the desolate one are far more than the children of her who has a husband" (Isa. 54:1).
Jn. 11:54. Into a city called Ephraim, and there He remained with His disciples.
Nearby is Ephraim — the very wilderness. Ephraim means "fruitfulness"; Ephraim was the younger brother, Manasseh the elder. Manasseh means "forgetfulness." Thus, the Jewish people were the firstborn son of God, for it is said, "Israel is My son, My firstborn" (Exod. 4:22), but God forgot him; while Ephraim, that is, the fruitfulness from the Gentiles, the Lord made His second son. Thus, the Word, having left Judea, went out into the wilderness of Ephraim — the Church from the Gentiles, made fruitful by the Gospel.
Jn. 11:55. The Passover of the Jews was near, and many went up to Jerusalem from the country before the Passover, to purify themselves.
See how senseless the intention of the Jews is. They are not restrained from the malice of murder even during the time of the feast, but they resolved to commit murder and go up for purification. Those who had sinned willingly or unwillingly did not celebrate the Passover before being purified according to custom through washing, fasting, circumcision, and the offering of the prescribed sacrifices.
Jn. 11:56. They sought Jesus therefore, and spoke among themselves, as they stood in the temple: What think ye? Will He not come to the feast?
And they, the very best, who perform the purification, form a council against the Lord and say: "What do you think? Will He not come to the feast?" That is, He will certainly fall into our hands, and if nothing else, the time itself will lead Him into our nets. What malice! Whereas even open criminals ought to have been released for the feast, they plot against the Innocent One.
Jn. 11:57. Now the chief priests and the Pharisees had given a commandment, that if anyone knew where He was, he should report it, so that they might seize Him.
And if only common people did this, their bias would seem a matter of ignorance, but instead the Pharisees give the order to report Him and seize Him.