Lives of Scripture

Lazarus of Bethany, brother of Mary and Martha, was a man Jesus loved (John 11:3, 36). When Lazarus fell gravely ill, his sisters sent for Jesus -- yet Jesus deliberately delayed two days, telling His disciples the illness was "for the glory of God" (11:4-6). By the time Jesus arrived, Lazarus had been dead and entombed four days. Martha met Him first, grieving but still confessing faith: "even now I know that whatever You ask of God, God will give You" (11:21-22). Jesus told her, "I am the resurrection and the life," and asked if she believed it (11:25-26). At the tomb, seeing Mary and the mourners weeping, Jesus Himself wept (11:35) -- sharing their grief even knowing what He was about to do. He ordered the stone rolled away, prayed aloud to the Father, and cried out, "Lazarus, come forth!" Lazarus walked out still bound in graveclothes (11:38-44). Many who witnessed it believed in Jesus, but the sign also pushed the chief priests and Pharisees to plot Jesus' death, fearing Rome's response to His growing following (11:45-53). Afterward, Lazarus appeared at a dinner in Bethany six days before Passover, so remarkable a living witness that the chief priests plotted to kill him too (12:1-2, 9-11).