John 11:2 - Printer Friendly

ESV: It was Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was ill.

NIV: (This Mary, whose brother Lazarus now lay sick, was the same one who poured perfume on the Lord and wiped his feet with her hair.)

NASB: And it was the Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment, and wiped His feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick.

CSB: Mary was the one who anointed the Lord with perfume and wiped his feet with her hair, and it was her brother Lazarus who was sick.

NLT: This is the Mary who later poured the expensive perfume on the Lord’s feet and wiped them with her hair. Her brother, Lazarus, was sick.

KJV: (It was that Mary which anointed the Lord with ointment, and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick.)

NKJV: It was that Mary who anointed the Lord with fragrant oil and wiped His feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick.

Mary is the sister of Martha, and of Lazarus, the man who has fallen ill. She is described as the one who anointed Jesus with precious oil, on at least one and possibly two occasions (Mark 14:3–9; John 12:1–7). Luke describes a likely prostitute who did something similar (Luke 7:36–50). That happened at the home of a Pharisee. Mary's anointing occurred at the home of Simon the Leper, and possibly also at her own home. Lazarus' sister is not the same woman who anoints Jesus in Luke's story.

Other passages show that Mary and Martha are devoted followers of Jesus (Luke 10:38–42), though they apparently do not travel with Him. Scripture gives no details about the relationship between Jesus and Lazarus. All we know is that Jesus cares greatly for him and his sisters (John 11:5). Jesus will show great emotion when approaching Lazarus' grave later (John 11:35). Observers will interpret this as grief for a friend (John 11:36), but it may also have been for the sake of Mary and Martha. The next verse also suggests they had a very close friendship (John 11:3).

John 11:1–16 sets up the most spectacular of Jesus' earthly miracles: the resurrection of Lazarus. Jesus is given word that Lazarus is sick but delays several days before leaving to see the family. As it turns out, by the time this message gets to Jesus, Lazarus has already died. The disciples assume Jesus won't go back to Judea, since local religious leaders want to kill Him. When Jesus plans to head into dangerous territory, His followers are frightened and pessimistic. The following passage will show Jesus arriving four days after Lazarus had passed away.

Jesus has left the vicinity of Jerusalem to avoid hostile religious leaders. While gone, He receives word that a good friend, Lazarus, is sick. In fact, Lazarus has died by the time this message reaches Jesus. He purposefully waits a few days before returning to Bethany, arriving four days after Lazarus' burial. In front of Lazarus' mourning sisters—who Jesus weeps with—and an assembled crowd, Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead in a stirring and spectacular miracle. This is the seventh of John's seven ''signs'' of Jesus' divine power. In response, religious leaders coordinate in their effort to have Jesus murdered.

After giving sight to a man born blind (John 9), Jesus sparred with religious leaders on at least two occasions (John 10). After another failed arrest attempt, Jesus left the area and went out where Jerusalem's politics had little influence. In this chapter, He returns to resurrect a recently-departed friend, Lazarus. That results in a renewed commitment from Jerusalem's religious leaders to have Jesus murdered. As the crucifixion draws near, Jesus will stage His triumphal entry in chapter 12, and then begin His final teachings to the disciples.

The gospel of John was written by the disciple John, decades later than the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. The author assumes that a reader is already familiar with the content of these other works. So, John presents a different perspective, with a greater emphasis on meaning. John uses seven miracles—which he calls “signs”—in order to prove that Jesus is, in fact, God incarnate. Some of the most well-known verses in all of the Bible are found here. None is more famous than the one-sentence summary of the gospel found in John 3:16.

Accessed 5/2/2024 7:24:04 AM