John 11:28-37

²⁸And after she had said this, she went back and called her sister Mary aside. "The Teacher is here," she said, "and is asking for you." ²⁹When Mary heard this, she got up quickly and went to Him. ³⁰Now Jesus had not yet entered the village, but was still at the place where Martha had met Him. ³¹When the Jews who had been with Mary in the house, comforting her, noticed how quickly she got up and went out, they followed her, supposing she was going to the tomb to mourn there. ³²When Mary reached the place where Jesus was and saw Him, she fell at His feet and said, "Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died." ³³When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, He was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. ³⁴"Where have you laid him?" He asked. "Come and see, Lord," they replied. ³⁵Jesus wept. ³⁶Then the Jews said, "See how He loved him!" ³⁷But some of them said, "Could not He who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?"

Martha ran back home to privately (aside) give Mary the good news that Jesus had arrived. It is suggested that they wanted to keep Jesus from attracting a crowd (v30), since they knew His life was at stake at the hands of the Jewish leaders. Mary must have shared Martha’s faith, for they both respond the same way: as soon as they hear of Jesus’ coming, they leave everything, run to Him, and confess that He could have healed Lazarus if only He had been there. As each day passed and He didn’t come, Martha and Mary probably asked the question, “Does Jesus really care?” We ask the same thing. And the only answer that can be given to that question is “He knows what’s best for us.”

Now perhaps Jesus would have talked with Mary, just as He had with Martha, and told her that He alone is the resurrection and the life, and that He would raise Lazarus from his grave. But the comforters who were with Mary, when they saw her leaving the house in such haste, assumed that she was going to the grave to cry, so they followed her. It was their duty to dissuade Mary from going, that the sight of the tomb might not give fresh occasion for her grief; yet they don’t venture to apply so harsh a remedy, but simply contribute to the excess of her grief, by accompanying her to the tomb to mourn with her. Therefore, Jesus and Mary had no opportunity for privacy, as He and Martha had had a few minutes earlier. Mary fell at His feet and stated that He could have prevented this tragedy had He been physically present. There is an acknowledgement of His power, but it falls selfishly short of attributing His true and full power to Him as the Son of God.

When Jesus saw Mary and the rest of the mourners weeping, He was, according to John, both deeply moved (indignant or angry) in His spirit and deeply troubled (saddened). Why would He have been angry? Perhaps He was angry because of the deep sorrow and despair that sin had brought into the world; perhaps He was angry because of the lack of faith that now confronted Him in the presence of all these mourners. Whatever the reason, it is far more amazing that He was deeply troubled and sorrowful. Jesus, holy God and perfect Man, has every reason to be angry with sin and with us sinners – but what amazing love He displays towards us, that He sorrows over our condition with great sympathy, and is willing to give of Himself to make us right again! His emotional display does not result in further teaching; but instead, Jesus asks where Lazarus has been laid so that He could make His way there in preparation for the coming, publicly performed miracle. This was the time for action, not for teaching.

V35 is the shortest verse in the Bible: “Jesus wept.” The people recognize this, and make a note of how much Jesus loved him. Some of them even wonder why He did not prevent his death – if He could give sight to the man born blind, surely He could have healed Lazarus! Sadly, their faith was constantly requiring more miracles, and had not yet progressed to faith in Jesus Himself. Their suggestion borders on malicious slander, as if to say, “If Jesus is so powerful, He should have healed this man.” They are judging His inaction, which is something no man should do regarding God. They believed, with Mary and Martha, that Jesus could have healed Lazarus; but by suggesting that He should have done so, they reveal that they do not yet believe that He is the Christ, the Son of God.