John 11:55 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Now the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and many went up from the country to Jerusalem before the Passover to purify themselves.

NIV: When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, many went up from the country to Jerusalem for their ceremonial cleansing before the Passover.

NASB: Now the Passover of the Jews was near, and many went up to Jerusalem from the country prior to the Passover, in order to purify themselves.

CSB: Now the Jewish Passover was near, and many went up to Jerusalem from the country to purify themselves before the Passover.

NLT: It was now almost time for the Jewish Passover celebration, and many people from all over the country arrived in Jerusalem several days early so they could go through the purification ceremony before Passover began.

KJV: And the Jews' passover was nigh at hand: and many went out of the country up to Jerusalem before the passover, to purify themselves.

NKJV: And the Passover of the Jews was near, and many went from the country up to Jerusalem before the Passover, to purify themselves.

Events described in this chapter have occurred not long before Passover. During those festivals, Jewish men who lived within a certain distance were obligated to come into the city to observe certain rites (Deuteronomy 16:16). That greatly increased the number of people in an around the city. For this reason, political leaders such as Pilate—who ordinarily lived far from Jerusalem—made their way into the city to supervise peacekeeping efforts.

Curiosity about Jesus stems from recent events. In response to Jesus' recent miracle (John 11:39–44), religious leaders have decided to actively seek His death (John 11:45–53). In order to maintain God's timeline (John 7:6–8; Mark 14:41), Jesus has once again moved away from the immediate influence of these leaders (John 11:54). Many of the people moving in and out of the city wonder if the danger will be enough to make Jesus break His habit of honoring the festival requirements (John 11:56).

John 11:45–57 follows Jesus' seventh and most spectacular miraculous ''sign,'' the resurrection of Lazarus. Amazingly, Jesus enemies are so hardened against Him that this miracle only inspires them to have Jesus killed even more quickly. This is one of many examples disproving the claim that non-believers merely lack sufficient evidence. Critics claim Jesus may incite rebellion and invite destruction from Rome. For the most part, however, Jesus is a threat to their pompous arrogance and positions of power. When Jesus maintains a low profile, the religious leaders give orders to find Him so He can be arrested. This sets in motion the critical events completing Jesus' sacrificial death.

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 10:24:29 PM