John 11:30 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Now Jesus had not yet come into the village, but was still in the place where Martha had met him.

NIV: Now Jesus had not yet entered the village, but was still at the place where Martha had met him.

NASB: Now Jesus had not yet come into the village, but was still at the place where Martha met Him.

CSB: Jesus had not yet come into the village but was still in the place where Martha had met him.

NLT: Jesus had stayed outside the village, at the place where Martha met him.

KJV: Now Jesus was not yet come into the town, but was in that place where Martha met him.

NKJV: Now Jesus had not yet come into the town, but was in the place where Martha met Him.

When Jesus left this region, it was to avoid local religious leaders who sought to kill Him (John 10:38–40). That threat was dire enough that His disciples were surprised at His decision to return (John 11:8). Since Lazarus has died, there are numerous local people meeting their neighborly obligations to mourn with his surviving sisters, Martha and Mary (John 11:17–19). Martha somehow learned that Jesus was in the area, apparently without anyone else knowing. That might even have included her sister (John 11:20). Their meeting included an expression of Martha's faith and Jesus' divinity (John 11:21–27).

After meeting with Jesus, Martha made a "private" comment to Mary that Jesus wanted to see her (John 11:28). In response, Mary is said to have made a sudden exit. This probably contrasted with whatever quiet escape Martha had made—the following verses show that many of those in the house reacted to Mary's departure by following her.

John 11:28–37 contains the meeting between Lazarus' sister, Mary, and Jesus. Lazarus had died even before word reached Jesus that he was sick. Even so, Jesus waited until four days had passed to arrive in Bethany. Mary repeats her sister Martha's lament that Jesus could have prevented Lazarus from dying in the first place. The crowd—probably including mourners and hostile observers loyal to local religious leaders—say the same thing. Heading to the tomb, Jesus weeps: expressing sorrow for the pain of others, despite knowing that His visit here will end in Lazarus' resurrection.

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 4/30/2024 2:44:35 PM