John 12:1 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Six days before the Passover, Jesus therefore came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead.

NIV: Six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus lived, whom Jesus had raised from the dead.

NASB: Therefore, six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead.

CSB: Six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany where Lazarus was, the one Jesus had raised from the dead.

NLT: Six days before the Passover celebration began, Jesus arrived in Bethany, the home of Lazarus — the man he had raised from the dead.

KJV: Then Jesus six days before the passover came to Bethany, where Lazarus was which had been dead, whom he raised from the dead.

NKJV: Then, six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was who had been dead, whom He had raised from the dead.

The events of this segment happen less than a week before Passover. In this case, the date in question is the Passover where Jesus will be sacrificed for the sins of mankind. In the chapters leading up to this, John has provided mountains of evidence that Jesus is divine, which is the purpose of this entire gospel (John 20:30–31). That evidence includes miracles, testimonies, and references to Scripture. Among the more spectacular of those points was the raising of Lazarus—dead four days—from the grave in front of a crowd of witnesses (John 11:38–44).

Jesus now returns to the site of that miracle, being treated to a dinner in the hometown of Lazarus and his sisters, Mary and Martha. The verses which follow present several examples of how Christians present their testimony of faith in God and the hardness of resistant hearts. Mary's self-sacrificing gift to Jesus is, probably, the same event as described in Mark 14:3–11, meaning this occurs in the home of a man named Simon.

John 12:1–8 describes a dinner held at the home of Mary, Martha, and Lazarus. Jesus has recently raised Lazarus from the dead, in a spectacularly public miracle. As a result, the religious leaders of Jerusalem have banded together to have Him killed. In this scene, Mary sacrifices an extremely expensive container of oil in order to anoint Jesus. Judas objects to this, dishonestly claiming that his concern is for the poor which the ointment's value could have supported. This is similar to an event related in Mark chapter 14, but not the same as the one recorded in Luke chapter 7.

Jesus is treated to an honorary dinner at the home of Lazarus, whom He has recently raised from death. At this dinner, Lazarus' sister, Mary, anoints Jesus with expensive oil. Jesus then enters Jerusalem to great fanfare, stoking fears that His popularity will attract the anger of the Roman Empire. That anger even inspires a murder plot against Lazarus. After being approached by non-Jewish seekers, Jesus offers a final plea for people to understand His ministry. In effect, these are the last public words spoken by Jesus in the gospel of John.

In the prior chapter, Jesus spectacularly raised Lazarus from death in front of a crowd of witnesses. This inspired local religious leaders to commit to having Him killed. Here, after a celebratory dinner where Jesus is anointed with oil, He will fulfill prophecy by riding into Jerusalem on a donkey, celebrated with shouts of ''Hosanna'' and a massive crowd. This leads to a group of curious non-Jews approaching Him. Christ then offers a final plea for belief in Him and His message. After this, His ministry will turn to preparing the disciples for His impending death and resurrection. The next several chapters of the gospel of John are almost entirely made up of his teachings to these men.

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 5/4/2024 10:30:52 PM