The Resurrection and the Life

(John 11:1-44)
Scott M. Lewis, SJ

he raising of Lazarus in the Fourth Gospel is very familiar to most

Christians but not always well understood. No wonder! John delights
in an enigmatic and ironic style that usually leaves the reader with
questions and an uneasy sense that something important has been missed.
The story itself is puzzling in that it appears only in John and not in any of
the Synoptic Gospels. Jesus does raise individuals from the dead in the
Synoptics: Jairuss daughter in Mark 5:22-32 and the son of the widow of
Nain in Luke 7:11-17. Unlike those two cases, however, Lazarus had been
dead for some time and his return to life is all the more dramatic.
This story is the climax of a thread that runs throughout the Fourth
Gospelone defined by the word life. In John 1:4 the divine logos is the
source of life itself and this life is the light of human beings, while those
who believe in the exalted Son of Man will receive eternal life (3:15). Jesus
insists in 5:19 that he has life within hima divine qualityand can bestow it on whomever he pleases. Jesus assures his followers in 10:12 that he
has come so that they might have abundant life. Finally, Jesus reveals that
he is the way, the truth, and the life in 14:6. This signthe bestowal of
life on one who was deadis Johns definitive proof that Jesus is the Son
of God and the one sent from God the Father.
It is helpful to keep in mind that Johns gospel accounts are carefully
crafted literary presentations and not reportage in our modern sense. Their
purpose is to convey theological truths about Jesus, chiefly his heavenly
origin and his divine identity. The extended account of the raising of
Lazarus, at least in its literary presentation, is a setup for the revelation
of the most important aspect of the identity of Jesus: he is the source of
eternal life. This becomes evident when we follow the unfolding of the
narrative closely, and it is absolutely necessary because individual snippets
of the story cannot be understood properly apart from the entire narrative
229

of the event, and for that matter the whole gospel itself. Verses 1-16 form
the prelude to the theological heart of the story in verses 17-27.

Setting the Scene

The story begins with the arrival of an urgent plea from the sisters of Jesus
beloved friend Lazarus. He is deathly ill, and they beg Jesus to come immediately. Jesus response seems a bit callous: he deliberately tarries, and
he makes a puzzling statement that Lazaruss illness does not lead to death
but to Gods glory and the glorification of Gods Son.
Jesus made a similar assertion in the story of the man born blind. He assured his disciples that the mans blindness was not caused by anyones sin
but was so that Gods works might be revealed (9:3). He is fully aware of
how this story will end and is in full control of the eventsan important
point to remember later in the story. After a couple of days he announces
his intention to return to Judea, but his disciples are horrified. Judea is too
dangerousthere have been attempts on Jesus life, and to return there is
suicidal. But Jesus persists, and informs the disciples that Lazarus has
fallen asleepa euphemism for death (Matt 9:24; Dan 12:2).
Throughout the Fourth Gospel the unenlightened (most of humanity)
interpret in a literal and pedestrian fashion the words Jesus uses in a metaphorical sense to reveal higher spiritual realities. True to form, the disciples
cannot understand why they have to go to Judea if Lazarus is merely
asleep, so an exasperated Jesus spells it out for them: Lazarus is dead!
Filled with dread and expecting the worst, they follow Jesus into Judea.
The second act begins with their arrival at Bethany. As expected, Lazarus
is already dead and has been in the tomb for four days. A large group of
mourners has come to console Martha and Mary, the two sisters of Lazarus.
In keeping with the biblical stereotype of Martha, she is the one who
rushes out to meet Jesus before he even arrives at the house. There is
perhaps a hint of reproach in her voice as she blurts out that Lazarus
would not have died if Jesus had been therepresumably if Jesus had
come promptly when called. She then hastens to add that even now God
will grant whatever Jesus asks, and there is intense anticipation that he will
certainly do something.
Jesus first response must have seemed like a pious clich or platitudethe
sort of thing people mumble uncomfortably at funerals: your brother will
rise again. The weary reply of Martha reflects the conventional understand
ing of the resurrection in Second Temple Judaism: I know that my brother
will rise on the last day (John 6:39-54; 5:29; Acts 23:8). The final eschatological eventthe resurrection of the dead and the final judgmentis on
the far horizon.
Resurrection of Lazarus. Private collection, Athens, 12th13th century.

Scott M. Lewis, SJ 231

Unbinding Lazarus
Up to this point in the interchange there has been nothing new. But Jesus
then makes a loaded self-assertion that is the core of this storys message:
I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though
they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die.
First of all, this is one of the numerous I AM statements present through
the Fourth Gospel (6:35, 41, 48-51; 8:12; 8:58; 9:5; 10:9, 11; 11:25; 14:6; 15:1).
They are divine predicates and are reminiscent of Gods self-disclosure in
Exodus 3:14. Taken literally, the statement does not make much sense.
Believers died then and they die nowfaith in Jesus is no guarantee of a
long life and often it is quite the opposite.
It is obvious, as with so many other passages in the Fourth Gospel, that
this statement is not meant to be taken literally. It does not refer primarily
to physical or biological death. In Johns lexicon death is separation from
God. The Prologue (1:18) states that no one has ever seen God, and
throughout the gospel Jesus makes
it quite clear that, despite vehement
claims to the contrary, humans reWhy does Jesus weep?
main in the dark with regard to the
divine. Only the one who has come
from aboveJesuscan speak with
authority about God. Eternal life is
just the opposite of this. It is far more than a promise of going to heaven
after death; it is an experience and personal knowledge of God in this life.
Interior perception is cleansed by the spirit and believers can walk in the
awareness of Gods immediate presence.
By stating that he personally is the resurrection and the life Jesus
suddenly makes the distant eschatological event of the resurrection immediately present. Asked by Jesus if she believes this, Martha responds affirmatively by proclaiming him Messiah, Son of God, and the one coming
into the world. The stage is now set for Jesus to demonstrate this in a stunning and unforgettable way. Informed by Martha that Jesus has arrived
and wishes to speak with her, Mary leaves the house and goes out to meet
him. As she kneels before Jesus she repeats the same words as her sister:
Ifyou had been here, my brother would not have died. This provokes one
of the strangest parts of the story.
Jesus sees Mary and many of the accompanying mourners weeping. We
are informed that Jesus was greatly disturbed in spirit and deeply moved.
When Jesus asks where Lazarus has been laid they invite him to come and
see. At this point Jesus weeps. We remember that Jesus engineered events
in order to ensure that Lazarus would be dead when he arrived. He had
full foreknowledge every step of the way, and he was already cognizant of
the successful outcome. Why the inner disturbance and the tears? Many
232 THE BIBLE TODAY

theories have been advancedgrief, compassion, anger at their lack of

faithbut none of them is fully satisfying. The episode will have to remain
in the shadows.
Still upset, Jesus is led to the tomb of Lazarus, which had been sealed with
a stone. His command to Take away the stone is met with uneasiness.
Martha points out that Lazarus has been dead four days and the stench
will be overpowering. Four days is
significantthis is the second time it
is mentionedfor it means that
Lazarus was definitely dead. There
To have eternal life
was a rabbinic belief at the time that
to dwell in God
for three days the soul hovered near
the body in a liminal or threshold
state with the possibility of revival.
The stated four days rules this out. After Jesus assures Martha that faith
will enable them to see the glory of Godbiblical glory understood as
palpable divine powerthe stone is rolled away.
In his prayer before the open tomb Jesus thanks God the Father for
having heard him and adds that God always hears him. He intimates that
the prayer is more or less for the sake of the onlookers so that they may
have faith that he is the one sent from above by God. His shouted command for Lazarus to come forth is followed by the appearance of the dead
man, still wrapped and bound in strips of cloth like a mummy and with
his face wrapped in a cloth. In the Old Testament, especially the Psalms,
God alone redeems from Sheol (the realm of the dead) people who are
sometimes described as being held by the bonds of death (Pss 18:4-5; 116:3).
Echoing this image, Jesus orders that the onlookers unbind Lazarus and let
him go.

The Message of Life

Never do we hear a word from Lazarus or from anyone else in attendance.
There is no ancient equivalent of a media frenzy or curiosity about what
Lazarus experienced in those three days in the tomb. The story is about
Jesus and his divine identity, not about Lazarus. Only God has the power
to grant life and Jesus has clearly done that, so there can be only one conclusion: the power of God resides in him and works through him. People
get the point, for his fame begins to spread, provoking the nervous Temple
authorities to hatch a plot against the life of Jesus and that of Lazarus as
well, whose presence is an all-too-powerful testimony to the power of God
manifested in Jesus.
In chapter 12 Jesus will be dining at the home of Lazarus, Martha, and
Mary, and it is there that the anointing at the hands of Mary, understood by
Jesus as an anointing for his burial, will take place. In some ways the raising
Scott M. Lewis, SJ 233

is

of Lazarus foreshadows the death and resurrection of Jesus; it is his last

public miracle or sign before his passion. The scene before the tomb clearly
anticipates Easter morning. But it is also important to note that the raising
of Lazarus is not a resurrection. Lazarus merely picks up his life after a
four-day hiatus and will have to die again. There does not appear to be
anything extraordinary or spiritual about his body.
In his book Raising Abel, theologian James Alison uses Ren Girards
work on the scapegoating mechanism at work in human cultures. According to Alison, Jesus reveals a new image of God, effectively cleansing and
renewing our sacred imagination. Johns letters insist that God is light and
love and there is no darkness in God (1 John 1:5; 4:7). God has nothing to
do with death or violence. God is only life, and to have eternal life is to
dwell in God. This story touches on the age-old human fear of death and
annihilation and in a rather cryptic way assures us that for those who have
faith in Jesus death simply does not exist.

Scott Lewis, SJ, is associate professor of New Testament at Regis College,

Toronto, part of the Toronto School of Theology, as well as director of the
Manresa Jesuit Spiritual Renewal Centre in Pickering, Ontario. He
received the SSL from the Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome and the
STD from the Gregorian University and taught for two years in Jerusalem. He wrote The Gospel of John and the Johannine Letters in the New
Collegeville Biblical Commentary series.

234 THE BIBLE TODAY

Copyright of Bible Today is the property of Liturgical Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to
multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users
may print, download, or email articles for individual use.