John 11:35
Jesus wept.
Jesus
The name "Jesus" is derived from the Greek "Iēsous," which corresponds to the Hebrew name "Yeshua" or "Joshua," meaning "Yahweh is salvation." This name is significant as it encapsulates the mission and identity of Christ as the Savior of humanity. In this context, the use of "Jesus" emphasizes His humanity and divinity, reminding us that He is both fully God and fully man. Theologically, this dual nature is crucial because it allows Jesus to empathize with human suffering while possessing the divine power to overcome it.

wept
The Greek word used here is "edakrysen," which is a verb indicating a moment of deep emotional response. Unlike other Greek terms for weeping that might suggest loud wailing, "edakrysen" implies a more subdued, personal expression of grief. This choice of word highlights the genuine compassion and empathy of Jesus. His tears are not just for Lazarus, but for the pain and suffering of humanity as a whole. Historically, this moment is profound because it shows that Jesus, though divine, fully participates in the human experience, including sorrow and loss. This verse, the shortest in the Bible, powerfully conveys the depth of Christ's love and His willingness to enter into our suffering. It serves as a reminder that in our moments of grief, we are not alone; Jesus is with us, sharing in our pain and offering comfort.

Persons / Places / Events
1. Jesus
The central figure in this passage, Jesus is the Son of God, who demonstrates His humanity and compassion through His tears.

2. Lazarus
A close friend of Jesus who has died, prompting Jesus to visit Bethany and ultimately raise him from the dead.

3. Mary and Martha
Sisters of Lazarus, who are mourning their brother's death. Their interaction with Jesus highlights His empathy and love.

4. Bethany
The village where Lazarus, Mary, and Martha lived, located near Jerusalem. It is the setting for this miraculous event.

5. The Jews
Those who were present to comfort Mary and Martha, witnessing Jesus' emotional response and the subsequent miracle.
Teaching Points
The Humanity of Jesus
Jesus' tears reveal His genuine human emotions, affirming His full humanity alongside His divinity. This encourages us to embrace our emotions and recognize that they are part of God's design.

Empathy and Compassion
Jesus' weeping demonstrates His deep empathy and compassion for those who are suffering. As followers of Christ, we are called to show empathy and support to those in mourning or distress.

The Power of Presence
Jesus' presence with Mary and Martha in their grief highlights the importance of being present with others in their times of need. Sometimes, our presence and shared sorrow can be more comforting than words.

Hope in Sorrow
While Jesus wept, He also knew the hope of resurrection. This teaches us that even in our deepest sorrow, we can hold onto the hope and promise of eternal life through Christ.
Bible Study Questions
1. How does Jesus' weeping in John 11:35 enhance your understanding of His character and His relationship with humanity?

2. In what ways can you practice empathy and compassion in your daily interactions, following Jesus' example in this passage?

3. Reflect on a time when you experienced grief. How did the presence of others impact your healing process, and how can you offer similar support to others?

4. How does the hope of resurrection and eternal life influence your perspective on suffering and loss?

5. Consider the connections between John 11:35 and other scriptures like Hebrews 4:15 and Romans 12:15. How do these connections deepen your understanding of Jesus' role as our compassionate High Priest?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Hebrews 4:15
This verse speaks of Jesus as our High Priest who sympathizes with our weaknesses, connecting to His display of empathy in John 11:35.

Isaiah 53:3
Describes the Messiah as a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief, which aligns with Jesus' expression of sorrow at Lazarus' tomb.

Romans 12:15
Encourages believers to weep with those who weep, reflecting Jesus' example of sharing in the grief of others.
A Unique VerseC. H. Spurgeon.John 11:35
Christ Satisfying the Instinct of SympathyDean Vaughan.John 11:35
Christ's TearsJ. Donne, D. D.John 11:35
Christ's TearsW. M. Taylor, D. D.John 11:35
Embodied Sympathy PowerfulGeorge Eliot.John 11:35
Jesus Sympathizes with All Who SufferH. W. Beecher.John 11:35
The Import of Jesus' TearsT. E. Hughes.John 11:35
The Savior's TearsB. Thomas John 11:35
The Tears of ChristCardinal Newman.John 11:35
The Tears of JesusF. W. Robertson, M. A.John 11:35
The Tears of JesusJ.R. Thomson John 11:35
The Tears of the Lord JesusWatson Smith.John 11:35
Why These Tears?D. Young John 11:35
People
Caiaphas, Didymus, Jesus, Lazarus, Martha, Mary, Thomas
Places
Bethany, Ephraim, Jerusalem, Judea
Topics
Weeping, Wept
Dictionary of Bible Themes
John 11:35

     5198   weeping
     5796   bereavement, experience
     5963   sympathy
     5970   unhappiness

John 11:1-44

     5285   cures
     9165   restoration

John 11:17-44

     5745   women

John 11:32-35

     5561   suffering, nature of

John 11:32-44

     2048   Christ, love of

John 11:33-35

     2015   Christ, compassion
     5149   eyes
     5436   pain
     5946   sensitivity

John 11:33-36

     5966   tenderness

John 11:35-36

     5013   heart, divine
     8122   friendship, with God

Library
March 28 Evening
Our friend sleepeth.--JOHN 11:11. I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. If the dead rise not, then is not Christ raised: and if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins. Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished. But now is Christ risen from the
Anonymous—Daily Light on the Daily Path

November 6 Morning
When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.--COL. 3:4. I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live.--God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. The Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise
Anonymous—Daily Light on the Daily Path

March 11 Evening
Jesus wept.--JOHN 11:35. A man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief.--We have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities.--It became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings.--Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered. I was not rebellious, neither turned away back. I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks
Anonymous—Daily Light on the Daily Path

June 22 Evening
Behold how he loved.--JOHN 11:36. He died for all.--Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. He . . . liveth to make intercession for them.--I go to prepare a place for you. I will come again, and receive you unto myself that where I am, there ye may be also.--Father, I will that they whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am.--Having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end. We love him, because he first loved loved us.--The
Anonymous—Daily Light on the Daily Path

May 30 Evening
Thou hearest me always.--JOHN 11:42. Jesus lifted up his eyes, and said, Father, I thank thee that thou hast heard me.--Father, glorify thy name. Then came there a voice from heaven, saying, I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again.--Lo, I come to do thy will, O God.--Not my will, but thine, be done. As he is, so are we in this world.--This is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask anything according to his will, he heareth us. Whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because
Anonymous—Daily Light on the Daily Path

Christ's Question to Each
For the Young '... Believest then this? She saith unto Him, Yea, Lord.'--JOHN xi. 26, 27. As each of these annual sermons which I have preached for so long comes round, I feel more solemnly the growing probability that it may be the last. Like a man nearing the end of his day's work, I want to make the most of the remaining moments. Whether this is the last sermon of the sort that I shall preach or not, it is certainly the last of the kind that some of you will hear from me, or possibly from any
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

The Open Grave at Bethany
'Now Jesus was not yet come into the town, but was in that place where Martha met Him. 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. 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. When Jesus therefore saw her weeping, and the Jews also weeping which came
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

The Seventh Miracle in John's Gospel --The Raising of Lazarus
'And when Jesus 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-clothes; and his face was bound about with a napkin.'--JOHN xi. 43, 44. The series of our Lord's miracles before the Passion, as recorded in this Gospel, is fitly closed with the raising of Lazarus. It crowns the whole, whether we regard the greatness of the fact, the manner of our Lord's working, the minuteness and richness of the accompanying details,
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

Caiaphas
'And one of them, named Caiaphas being the high priest that same year, said unto them, Ye know nothing at all, nor consider that it is expedient for us, that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation perish not.'--JOHN xi. 49,50. The resurrection of Lazarus had raised a wave of popular excitement. Any stir amongst the people was dangerous, especially at the Passover time, which was nigh at hand, when Jerusalem would be filled with crowds of men, ready to take fire from any spark
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

The Delays of Love
'Now Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus. When He had heard therefore that he was sick, He abode two days still in the same place where He was.'--JOHN xi. 5, 6. We learn from a later verse of this chapter that Lazarus had been dead four days when Christ reached Bethany. The distance from that village to the probable place of Christ's abode, when He received the message, was about a day's journey. If, therefore, to the two days on which He abode still after the receipt of the news, we
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

Miracles no Remedy for Unbelief.
"And the Lord said unto Moses, How long will this people provoke Me? and how long will it be ere they believe Me, for all the signs which I have showed among them?"--Numbers xiv. 11. Nothing, I suppose, is more surprising to us at first reading, than the history of God's chosen people; nay, on second and third reading, and on every reading, till we learn to view it as God views it. It seems strange, indeed, to most persons, that the Israelites should have acted as they did, age after age, in
John Henry Newman—Parochial and Plain Sermons, Vol. VIII

A Mystery! Saints Sorrowing and Jesus Glad!
Jesus is talking of the death of His friend, let us listen to His words; perhaps we may find the key to His actions in the words of His lips. How surprising! He does not say, "I regret that I have tarried so long." He does not say, "I ought to have hastened, but even now it is not too late." Hear, and marvel! Wonder of wonders, He says, "I am glad that I was not there." Glad! the word is out of place? Lazarus, by this time, stinketh in his tomb,and here is the Saviour glad! Martha and Mary are weeping
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 10: 1864

Beloved, and yet Afflicted
We need not be astonished that the man whom the Lord loves is sick, for he is only a man. The love of Jesus does not separate us from the common necessities and infirmities of human life. Men of God are still men. The covenant of grace is not a charter of exemption from consumption, or rheumatism, or asthma. The bodily ills, which come upon us because of our flesh, will attend us to the tomb, for Paul saith, "we that are in this body do groan." Those whom the Lord loves are the more likely to be
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 26: 1880

Though He were Dead
Martha, you see, in this case, when the Lord Jesus Christ told her that her brother would rise again, replied, "I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day." She was a type, I say, of certain anxious believers, for she set a practical bound to the Saviour's words. "Of course there will be a resurrection, and then my brother will rise with the rest." She concluded that the Saviour could not mean anything beyond that. The first meaning and the commonest meaning that suggests
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 30: 1884

Even Now
"Even now."--John 11:22 I HOPE that there are a great many persons here who are interested in the souls of those around them. We shall certainly never exercise faith concerning those for whose salvation we have no care. I trust, also, that we are diligent in looking after individuals, especially those who are amongst our own family and friends. This is what Martha did; her whole care was for her brother. It is often easier to have faith that Christ can save sinners in general, than to believe that
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 38: 1892

Oh, How He Loves!
"Then said the Jews, Behold how he loved him!"--John 11:36. IT WAS AT THE GRAVE OF LAZARUS that Jesus wept, and his grief was so manifest to the onlookers that they said, "Behold how he loved him!" Most of us here, I trust, are not mere onlookers, but we have a share in the special love of Jesus. We see evidences of that love, not in his tears, but in the precious blood that he so freely shed for us; so we ought to marvel even more than those Jews did at the love of Jesus, and to see further into
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 56: 1910

The Welcome visitor
IT seems that Martha had heard of Christ's coming, and Mary had not. Hence Martha rose up hastily and went to meet the Master, while Mary sat still in the house. From this we gather that genuine believers may, through some unexplained cause, be at the same time in very different states of mind. Martha may have heard of the Lord and seen the Lord; and Mary, an equally loving heart, not having known of his presence, may, therefore, have missed the privilege of fellowship with him. Who shall say that
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 61: 1915

The Displeasure of Jesus.
When Jesus therefore saw her weeping, and the Jews also weeping which came with her, he groaned in the spirit, and was troubled.--John xi. 33. Grimm, in his lexicon to the New Testament, after giving as the equivalent of the word [Greek: embrimaomai] in pagan use, 'I am moved with anger,' 'I roar or growl,' 'I snort at,' 'I am vehemently angry or indignant with some one,' tells us that in Mark i. 43, and Matthew ix. 30, it has a meaning different from that of the pagans, namely, 'I command with
George MacDonald—Unspoken Sermons

The Disciple, -- Master, what is the Real Meaning of Service? is it that We...
The Disciple,--Master, what is the real meaning of service? Is it that we serve the Creator and then His creatures for His sake? Is the help of man, who is after all but a mere worm, of any value to God in caring for His great family, or does God stand in need of the help of man in protecting or preserving any of His creatures? The Master,--1. Service means the activity of the spiritual life and is the natural offering prompted by love. God, who is Love, is ever active in the care of His creation,
Sadhu Sundar Singh—At The Master's Feet

How to Make Use of Christ as the Life, when the Believer is So Sitten-Up in the Ways of God, that He Can do Nothing.
Sometimes the believer is under such a distemper of weakness and deadness, that there is almost no commanded duty that he can go about; his heart and all is so dead, that he cannot so much as groan under that deadness. Yea, he may be under such a decay, that little or no difference will be observed betwixt him and others that are yet in nature; and be not only unable to go actively and lively about commanded duties, yea, or to wrestle from under that deadness; but also be so dead, that he shall scarce
John Brown (of Wamphray)—Christ The Way, The Truth, and The Life

Of the Intimate Love of Jesus
When Jesus is present all is well and nothing seemeth hard, but when Jesus is not present everything is hard. When Jesus speaketh not within, our comfort is nothing worth, but if Jesus speaketh but a single word great is the comfort we experience. Did not Mary Magdalene rise up quickly from the place where she wept when Martha said to her, The Master is come and calleth for thee?(1) Happy hour when Jesus calleth thee from tears to the joy of the spirit! How dry and hard art thou without Jesus!
Thomas A Kempis—Imitation of Christ

Peræa to Bethany. Raising of Lazarus.
^D John XI. 1-46. ^d 1 Now a certain man was sick, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. [For Bethany and the sisters, see p. 478.] 2 And it was that Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment, and wiped his feet with her hair [John xii. 3 ], whose brother Lazarus was sick. [The anointing had not yet taken place, as John himself shows. For a similar anticipation see Matt. x. 4. There are five prominent Marys in the New Testament: those of Nazareth, Magdala and Bethany; the
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

Retiring Before the Sanhedrin's Decree.
(Jerusalem and Ephraim in Judæa.) ^D John XI. 47-54. ^d 47 The chief priests therefore and the Pharisees gathered a council [called a meeting of the Sanhedrin], and said, What do we? [Thus they reproach one another for having done nothing in a present and urgent crisis. As two of their number (Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathæa) were afterwards in communications with Christians, it was easy for the disciples to find out what occurred on this notable occasion.] for this man doeth many signs.
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

Links
John 11:35 NIV
John 11:35 NLT
John 11:35 ESV
John 11:35 NASB
John 11:35 KJV

John 11:35 Commentaries

Bible Hub
John 11:34
Top of Page
Top of Page