Page images
PDF
EPUB
[blocks in formation]

wind and rain. There has been some dispute, however, what could be intended by this Feast of Dedication. Doddridge concludes that it could not refer to the dedication of Solomon's temple, for that was in autumn (1 Kings viii. 2); nor that of Nehemiah, which was in spring (Ezra vi. 15, 16); but that of Judas Maccabæus, on his having purified the temple and altar from the profanations of Antiochus Epiphanes. This was kept annually for eight days, in the month of December.

This conversation originated with the Jews themselves, who affecting not clearly to understand the character under which our Lord wished to be considered, "If thou be the Christ (said they), tell us plainly." Jesus replies, "I have told you, and ye believed not;" referring, prohably, to the preceding discourse, in which he had represented himself as the Good Shepherd, a character (as we have seen) specially appropriated by the prophets to Messiah. "But ye believe not (said he), because ye are not of my sheep; as I said unto you [but just now], My sheep hear my voice," &c. It is to us fully evident, that by Christ's sheep are meant his true disciples-who are humble, simple, and affectionate, as sheep are- and follow Christ as (in that country at least) sheep do their shepherd. Of these he says, I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any (one) pluck (or wrest) them out of my father's hand."

[ocr errors]

This conversation leads directly to the subject of our Lord's divinity, which doctrine was not only a stumbling-block to the Jews, but has been so to many in every Succeeding age. The argument seems somewhat obscure, but we shall attempt to illustrate it by a short analysis. The Jews very clearly understood, from the manner in which our Lord spake of his heavenly Father, that he claimed the character of Son of God in a sense in which it would be blasphemy for any mere man to do (see on chap. v. 17-30); and if he had not meant to assume such equality, it would have been

most easy to have silenced them by such an explanation: on the other hand, had he openly avowed such an equality, it would have required a miracle to have restrained them from stoning him, as they proposed. He therefore pursues a middle course. He remarks that the term God is, in an inferior sense, applied to magistrates and princes (Ps. lxxxii. 1 & 6). How, then, could it be blasphemy for Jesus to assume the character of God's son, especially when the works which he did contained the demonstration of a divine power, and fully justified the claim? "If I do not the works of my Father, believe me not: but if I do, though ye believe me not," on my own assertion, "believe the works" which you behold done, and from them ye may be convinced "that the Father is in me, and I am in the Father." But these men, instead of being softened to attend either to reason or to fact, took up stones to throw at the divine speaker, and drove from their temple the Lord thereof, and who would have been its highest glory.

"These (says the eloquent Massillon) were the returns of gratitude which Jesus Christ received of men: these the consolations with which heaven permitted him to be exercised in the painful course of his ministry. At one time they treated him as a Samaritan, as one that had a devil; at another they took up stones to stone him.' And thus the Son of God passed the whole time of his life, always exposed to the most obstinate contradictions, meeting with almost none but such as were insensible of his benefits, and rebellious against his preaching; and all this without his letting fall the least sign of impatience, or the least complaint. (Quoted Robinson's Claude, vol. ii. p. 205.)

[ocr errors]

Our Lord retreated now beyond Jordan, into the place where John at first baptized; and the seed which he had then sown now appeared, for "many believed on Jesus there," and resorted to him, saying, "John did no miracle: but all things which John spake of this man were true."

NOTES.

CHAP. XI. Ver. 1. A certain man. - Doddr. "There was one Lazarus."

Ver. 2. It was that Mary which anointed the

Lord.-Doddr. "who (afterwards) anointed;" as mentioned in the next chapter, ver. 3,

[blocks in formation]

4 When Jesus heard that, he said, This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby.

5 Now Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus.

6 When he had heard therefore that he was sick, he abode two days still in the same place where he was.

7 Then after that saith he to his disciples, Let us go into Judea again.

8 His disciples say unto him, Master, the Jews of late sought to stone thee; and goest thou thither again?

9 Jesus answered, Are there not twelve hours in the day? If any man walk in the day he stumbleth not, because he seeth the light of this world. 10 But if a man walk in the night he stumbleth, because there is no light in him.

11 These things said he and after that he saith unto them, Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep.

CHAP. XI.

[and burial.

12 Then said his disciples, Lord, if he sleep, he shall do well.

13 Howbeit Jesus spake of his death: but they thought that he had spoken of taking of rest in sleep.

14 Then said Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead.

15 And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, to the intent ye may believe; nevertheless, let us go unto him.

16 Then said Thomas, which is called Didymus, unto his fellow-disciples, Let us also go, that we may die with him.

17 Then when Jesus came, he found that he had lain in the grave four days already.

18 Now Bethany was nigh unto Jerusalem, about fifteen furlongs off:

19 And many of the Jews came to Martha and Mary, to comfort them concerning their brother. (I)

20 Then Martha, as soon as she heard that Jesus was coming, went

EXPOSITION.

(1) Ver. 1-19. The sickness and death of Lazarus.-"Sickness (says Bp. Hall) is the common preface to death: no mortal nature is exempted from this complaint; even Lazarus, whom Jesus loved, is sick.

......

. It was a stirring message that Mary sent to Jesus: Lord, he whom thou lovest is sick' as if she would imply that his part was no less deep in Lazarus than hers. Neither doth she say, 'He that loves thee is sick;' but He whom thou lovest :' not pleading the merit of Lazarus' affection to Christ, but the mercy and favour of Christ to him.

"Jesus well heard the first groan of his dear Lazarus; every short breath that he drew, every sigh that he gave, was upon account; yet this Lord of life lets his La

zarus sicken, and languish, and die......

"What a happy family was this! I find none upon earth so much honoured! 'Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus.'.... But, O, Saviour, how doth this agree? Thou lovedst this family, yet, hearing of their distress, thou heldest off two days more from them. Canst thou love those thou regardest not? Canst thou regard them from whom thou willingly ab sentest thyself in their necessity? Behold, thy love, as it is above ours, so it is oft against ours. Even out of very affection art thou not seldom absent. None of thine but have sometimes cried, How long, Lord?" (Hall's Contem. bk. iv. con. 23.) A few other particulars may be here observed:

1. Our Lord says, "This sickness is

NOTES-Chap. XI. Con.

Ver. 4. Not unto death.-Camp. "Will not prove fatal."

Ver. 7. Let us go into Judea-From the country east of Jordan, whither he had retired some time before, when the Jews sought to stone him; chap. x. 39, 40.

Ver. 9. Are there not twelve hours in the day?The Jews divided the space from sun-rise to sunset, were the days longer or shorter, into twelve parts; so that the hours of their day were all the year the same in number, though much shorter in winter than in summer.

Ver. 10. No light in him.-Camp. "In it ;" i. e.

[blocks in formation]

Jesus weeps]

CHAP. XI.

[over his grave.

and met him but Mary sat still in into the town, but was in that place the house. where Martha met him

21 Then said Martha unto Jesus, Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died.

22 But I know, that even now, whatsoever thou wilt ask of God, God will give it thee.

23 Jesus saith unto her, Thy brother shall rise again.

24 Martha saith unto him, I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day.

25 Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:

26 And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. lievest thou this?

Be

27 She saith unto him, Yea, Lord: I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world.

28 And when she had so said, she went her way, and called Mary her sister secretly, saying, The Master is come, and calleth for thee.

29 As soon as she heard that, she arose quickly, and came unto him.

30 Now Jesus was not yet come

31 The Jews then which were with her in the house, and comforted her, when they saw Mary, that she rose up hastily and went out, followed her, saying, She goeth unto the grave to weep there.

32 Then when Mary was come where Jesus was, and saw him, she fell down at his feet, saying unto him, Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died.

33 When Jesus therefore saw her weeping, and the Jews also weeping which came with her, he groaned in the spirit, and was troubled,

34 And said, Where have ye laid him? They said unto him, Lord, come and see.

35 Jesus wept.

36 Then said the Jews, Behold how he loved him!

37 And some of them said, Could not this man, which opened the eyes of the blind, have caused that even this man should not have died?

38 Jesus therefore again groaning in himself cometh to the grave. It was a cave, and a stone lay upon it.

39 Jesus said, Take ye away the

EXPOSITION.

not unto death," when he well knew that Lazarus was dying; but the meaning evidently is, that it should not terminate in death, but in the glory of God," by his resurrection from the grave.

2. Jesus, we may remark, delayed his visit to Bethany till after Lazarus was dead and buried, and his body (in that climate particularly) must, in the natural course of events, have begun to decay, and the smell become so offensive as to satisfy every one of the certainty of its dissolution.

3. The gentle manner in which our Lord informs his disciples of the decease of Lazarus: first he says, "Our friend Lazarus sleepeth, but I go that I may

"

awake him." Believers sleep in death; but, in the resurrection, they awake in the Saviour's likeness. Shortly afterwards he explains himself: "Lazarus is dead; but he adds immediately, "I am glad, for your sakes, that I was not there, to the intent ye may believe."

4. We have an affectionate proof of the attachment of the apostles to their Lord and Master. No sooner does he speak of going back to Judea, than Thomas, one of the most affectionate, proposes to his fellow-disciples to go with him; and anticipating the Jews would do him some mischief, he says, with a mixture of love and desperation, "Let us also go, that we may

die with him."

[blocks in formation]

Ver. 39. He hath been dead four days.-Ver. 17, it is said," he had lain four days in the grave.' The Jews generally buried their dead on the same day on which they died.

Lazarus raised]

S. JOHN.

stone. Martha, the sister of him that was dead, saith unto him, Lord, by this time he stinketh: for he hath been dead four days.

40 Jesus saith unto her, Said I not unto thee, that, if thou wouldest believe, thou shouldest see the glory of God! (K)

41 Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead was laid. And Jesus lifted up his eyes,

[from the dead. and said, Father, I thank thee that thou hast heard me.

42 And I knew that thou hearest me always; but because of the people which stand by I said it, that they may believe that thou hast sent me.

43 And when he thus had spoken, he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth.

44 And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with grave

EXPOSITION-Chap. XI. Continued.

(K) Ver. 20-40. Jesus converses with the sisters of Lazarus.-The news that Jesus was coming, soon spread itself in the neighbourhood, and Martha immediately sat out to meet him, and left Mary weeping in the house. Immediately as she sces Jesus, she laments that he had not come sooner, saying, "Lord, if thou hadst been here my brother had not died: but even now"-What! after he had been dead four days, and the corpse had become offensive to the smell? Yes, even now, "I know that whatsoever thou wilt ask of God, God will give it thee." Jesus here, as it were, puts words into her mouth; "Thy brother shall rise again:" as if he had said, 'Ask then the life of thy brother' but she understands him of a distant resurrection at the end of the world: "I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day." Jesus now announces himself as "the resurrection and the life;" and encourages her to believe, that even yet her brother might be restored to her through his almighty power. And he goes farther-" He that believeth on me, though he were [spiritually] dead, yet shall he [spiritually] live: and he that [thus] liveth, and believeth in me, shall never die"-that is, shall not die for ever; shall not suffer the pain of a second, an everlasting death. "Believest thou this ?" said he she replies, "Yea, Lord, I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world:" and having thus said, she instantly runs to tell her sister Mary secretly, what doubtless was the fact-"The Master is come, and calleth for thee;" and Mary as suddenly and privately leaves her companythose who had come to mourn with herand they very naturally conclude that she was gone to her brother's grave, as the

:

custom was, "to weep there." She went not, however, to "seek the living among the dead;" but she flies to her adored Lord-she casts herself at his feet, overwhelms him with her tears, and repeats the same gentle complaint as her sister"Lord, if thou hadst been here my brother had not died."

Jesus inquires now for the tomb of Lazarus, and as they lead him thither-"JESUS WEPT."

We attempt no comment on these interesting words: those inclined to do so, might observe that these Tears wereTears of affection to Lazarus--of sympathy to his sisters-and of compassion to the Jews.

The remark of the Jews was certainly very natural: "Behold (said they), how he loved him!" And some of them who had witnessed his late miracle on the man boru blind, said, "Could not this man, which opened the eyes of the blind, have caused that even this man should not have died?" but none of them seem to bave anticipated the miracle now about to be performed. The Lord Jesus," groaning in himself, cometh to the grave"-doubtless still weeping over his beloved Lazarus, He then orders the stone to be removed from the mouth of the cave in which he had been buried, as was the Jewish custom. Martha objects to this, perhaps thinking it dangerous, as she observed the body must be so far putrified as to emit an unpleasant, and perhaps infectious smel; but our Lord rebukes this attempt to disannul his order: "Said I not unto thee, if thou wouldest believe thou shouldest see the glory of God?" Alas! how much of the glory of God do we lose the sight of through our unbelief!

NOTES-Chap. XI. Con.

Ver. 41. I thank thee that thou hast heard me.It does not appear that Christ uttered any prayer audibly, but God "heareth the desire of the humble." Ps. x. 17.

Ver. 42. I said it.-Doddr. "I speak [thus:i. e. I thank thee, that the people inay know that I act by commission from thee.""

CHAP. XI.

The prophecy] clothes: and his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus saith unto them, Loose him, and let him go.

45 Then many of the Jews which came to Mary, and had seen the things which Jesus did, believed on him.

46 But some of them went their ways to the Pharisees, and told them what things Jesus had done.

47 Then gathered the Chief Priests and the Pharisees a council, and said, What do we? for this man doeth many miracles.

48 If we let him thus alone, all men will believe on him and the Romans shall come and take away both our place and nation.

49 And one of them, named Caiaphas, being the High Priest that same year, said unto them, Ye know nothing at all:

50 Nor consider, that it is expedient for us, that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation perish not.

51 And this spake he not of himself: but being High Priest that year,

[of Caiaphas.

he prophesied that Jesus should die for that nation;

52 And not for that nation only, but that also he should gather together in one the children of God that were scattered abroad.

53 Then from that day forth they took counsel together, for to put him to death.

54 Jesus therefore walked no more openly among the Jews; but went thence unto a country near to the wilderness, into a city called Ephraim, and there continued with his disciples.

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

56 Then sought they for Jesus, and spake among themselves, as they stood in the temple, What think ye, that he will not come to the feast?

57 Now both the Chief Priests and the Pharisees had given a commandment, that if any man knew where he were, he should shew it, that they might take him. (L)

EXPOSITION.

(L) Ver. 41-57. The resurrection of Lazarus, and its effect upon the Jews.The stone at the rave's mouth being removed by some of the bystanders, Jesus, after a short but inaudible address to his heavenly Father, that the people might know in whose name he acted, and with whose sanction he acted, "He cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth!" He came forth from the tomb where his body had been laid; but being, of course, entangled and encumbered with his graveclothes, the Lord commanded, "Loose him, and let him go"-that is, set him at liberty.

In this miracle we remark, 1. Its extraordinary nature: it was the restoration

of life to the dead. 2. The decisive evidence of this fact: the body had lain in the tomb four days. 3. The manner in which it was wrought, by a word speaking; but not till after a solemu address to the Deity. 4. The witnesses; not only the sisters themselves, but also the Jews who came to condole and to mourn with them; some of whom, it appears, had also wit nessed the cure of the man born blind.

We are now to consider the effects of this miracle. 1. On the witnesses of the miracle, many of whom believed on him. 2. On others, who did not believe, who went immediately and informed the Scribes and Pharisees. 3. The debate among his enemies: "What do we?" say they, for

NOTES.

Ver. 48. And take away both our place and nation." The meaning is, that then the Romans would no longer protect them in their religion and laws; but send an army to destroy them, as rebels and enemies."-Lardner, who refers to Josephus, Antiq. lib. xx. c. v. l.

Ver. 49. High Priest that same year.-Lard. "that year; i. e. at that time. Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea ten years, and Caiaphas was put into the priesthood by Valerius Graceus, Pilate's predecessor, and continued in it till after Pilate's

removal.-Lard. Cred, vol. ii. p. 310.

Ver. 54. A city called Ephraim (or Ephrem) - A town in the N.E. part of Benjamin, not far from Bethel. See 2 Chron. xiii. 19.

Ver. 55. Purify themselves-by some preparatory services, before they ate the Passover.

Ver. 56. What think ye, that he will not come, &c.-Doddr., Camp., and other critics, point this as two questions, thus: "What think ye? (Do ye think] that he will not come up to the feast?"

« PreviousContinue »