Reference: Lazarus
American
1. A friend and disciple of Christ, brother of Martha and Mary, with whom he resided at Bethany near Jerusalem. Our Savior had a high regard for the family, and often visited them; and when Lazarus was dangerously ill, word was sent to Christ, "Lord, behold, he whom thou lovest is sick." The Savior reached Bethany after he had lain four days in his grave, and restored him to life by a word, "Lazarus, come forth." This public and stupendous miracle drew so many to Christ, that his enemies sought to put both him and Lazarus to death, Joh 11; 12:1-11. The narrative displays Christ as a tender and compassionate friend, weeping for and with those he loved, and at the same time as the Prince of life, beginning his triumph over death and the grave. Happy are they who, in view of their own death, or that of friends, can know that they are safe in Him who says, "I am the resurrection and the life;" and, "because I live, ye shall live also."
2. The helpless beggar who lay at the rich man's gate in one of Christ's most solemn and instructive parables. The one, though poor and sorely afflicted, was a child of God. The other described as self-indulgent rather than vicious or criminal was living without God in the enjoyment of every earthly luxury. Their state in this life was greatly in contrast with their real character before God, which was revealed in the amazing changes of their condition at death, Lu 16:19-31. See ABRAHAM'S BOSOM. Our Savior plainly teaches us, in this parable, that both the friends and the foes of God know and begin to experience their doom immediately after death, and that it is in both cases unchangeable and eternal.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
"Now a certain man was rich, and dressed [in] purple cloth and fine linen, feasting sumptuously every day. And a certain poor man {named} Lazarus, covered with sores, lay at his gate, read more. and was longing to be filled with what fell from the table of the rich man. But even the dogs came [and] licked his sores. Now it happened that the poor man died, and he was carried away by the angels to {Abraham's side}. And the rich man also died and was buried. And in Hades he lifted up his eyes [as he] was in torment [and] saw Abraham from a distance, and Lazarus {at his side}. And he called out [and] said, 'Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus so that he could dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am suffering pain in this flame!' But Abraham said, 'Child, remember that you received your good [things] during your life, and Lazarus likewise bad [things]. But now he is comforted here, but you are suffering pain. And in [addition to] all these [things], a great chasm has been established between us and you, so that those who want to cross over from here to you are not able [to do so], nor can they cross over from there to us.' So he said, 'Then I ask you, father, that you send him to my father's house, for I have five brothers, so that he could warn them, in order that they also should not come to this place of torment!' But Abraham said, 'They have Moses and the prophets; they must listen to them.' And he said, 'No, father Abraham, but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent!' But he said to him, 'If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone rises from the dead.'"
Easton
an abbreviation of Eleazar, whom God helps. (1.) The brother of Mary and Martha of Bethany. He was raised from the dead after he had lain four days in the tomb (Joh 11:1-44). This miracle so excited the wrath of the Jews that they sought to put both Jesus and Lazarus to death.
(2.) A beggar named in the parable recorded Lu 16:19-31.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
"Now a certain man was rich, and dressed [in] purple cloth and fine linen, feasting sumptuously every day. And a certain poor man {named} Lazarus, covered with sores, lay at his gate, read more. and was longing to be filled with what fell from the table of the rich man. But even the dogs came [and] licked his sores. Now it happened that the poor man died, and he was carried away by the angels to {Abraham's side}. And the rich man also died and was buried. And in Hades he lifted up his eyes [as he] was in torment [and] saw Abraham from a distance, and Lazarus {at his side}. And he called out [and] said, 'Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus so that he could dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am suffering pain in this flame!' But Abraham said, 'Child, remember that you received your good [things] during your life, and Lazarus likewise bad [things]. But now he is comforted here, but you are suffering pain. And in [addition to] all these [things], a great chasm has been established between us and you, so that those who want to cross over from here to you are not able [to do so], nor can they cross over from there to us.' So he said, 'Then I ask you, father, that you send him to my father's house, for I have five brothers, so that he could warn them, in order that they also should not come to this place of torment!' But Abraham said, 'They have Moses and the prophets; they must listen to them.' And he said, 'No, father Abraham, but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent!' But he said to him, 'If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone rises from the dead.'"
Now a certain man was sick, Lazarus from Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. (Now it was Mary who anointed the Lord with perfumed oil and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick.) read more. So the sisters sent [word] to him, saying, "Lord, behold, [the one] whom you love is sick." And [when he] heard [it], Jesus said, "This sickness is not to death, but for the glory of God, in order that the Son of God may be glorified through it." (Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.) So when he heard that he was sick, then he remained in the place {where} he was two days. Then after this he said to the disciples, "Let us go to Judea again." The disciples said to him, "Rabbi, the Jews were seeking just now to stone you, and are you going there again?" Jesus replied, Are [there] not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks around in the daylight, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. But if anyone walks around in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him. He said these [things], and after this he said to them, "Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I am going so that I can awaken him." So the disciples said to him, "Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will get well." (Now Jesus had been speaking about his death, but they thought that he was speaking about {real sleep}.) So Jesus then said to them plainly, "Lazarus has died, and I am glad {for your sake} that I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him." Then Thomas (the one who is called Didymus) said to his fellow disciples, "Let us go also, so that we may die with him." So [when he] arrived, Jesus found he had already [been] four days in the tomb. (Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, about fifteen stadia. So many of the Jews came to Martha and Mary in order to console them concerning their brother.) Now Martha, when she heard that Jesus was coming, went to meet him, but Mary was sitting in the house. So Martha said to Jesus, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. Even now I know that whatever you ask God, God will grant you." Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again." Martha said to him, "I know that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day." Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die {forever}. Do you believe this?" She said to him, "Yes, Lord, I have believed that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who comes into the world." And [when she] had said this, she went and called her sister Mary privately, saying, "The Teacher is here and is calling for you." So that one, when she heard [it], got up quickly and went to him. (Now Jesus has not yet come into the village, but was still in the place where Martha went to meet him.) So the Jews who were with her in the house and were consoling her, [when they] saw Mary--that she stood up quickly and went out--followed her, [because they] thought that she was going to the tomb in order to weep there. Then Mary, when she came where Jesus was [and] saw him, fell at his feet, saying to him, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died." Then Jesus, when he saw her weeping and the Jews who came with her weeping, was deeply moved in spirit and was troubled within himself. And he said, "Where have you laid him?" They said to him, "Lord, come and see." Jesus wept. So the Jews were saying, "See how he loved him!" But some of them said, "Was not this man who opened the eyes of the blind able to do [something] so that this man also would not have died?" Then Jesus, deeply moved within himself again, came to the tomb. Now it was a cave, and a stone was lying on it. Jesus said, "Take away the stone." Martha, the sister of the one who had died, said to him, "Lord, he is stinking already, because it has been four days." Jesus said to her, "Did I not say to you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?" So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes above and said, "Father, I give thanks to you that you hear me. And I know that you always hear me, but for the sake of the crowd standing around I said [it], so that they may believe that you sent me." And [when he] had said these [things], he cried out with a loud voice, "Lazarus, come out!" The one who had died came out, his feet and his hands bound with strips of cloth, and his face wrapped with a facecloth. Jesus said to them, "Untie him and let him go."
Fausets
LAZARUS or ELEAZAR ("God helps".)
1. Of Bethany; brother of Mary and Martha (Joh 11:1). (See BETHANY.) The sisters were the better known, from whence they are put prominently forward here, and in Lu 10:38, etc., are alone named. Lazarus was "of (apo, 'belonging to at that time') Bethany, from (ek, implying his original settlement) the village of Mary and Martha" (still it is likely the same village is meant in both Luke 10 and John 11, namely, Bethany). Curiously, Ganneau found close to Bethany a tomb, probably of the first century, containing the names all together of Simon, Martha, and Lazarus. Lazarus' subordinate position at their feast in Christ's honour (Joh 12:2) makes it likely he was the youngest. Moreover, the house is called that of Simon the leper (Mt 26:6; Mr 14:3); who was probably therefore their father, but either by death or leprosy no longer with them, though possibly he too, as a leper healed by Jesus, was then one of that happy family.
Their friends from Jerusalem (Joh 11:19), according to John's use of "the Jews," were of the ruling elders and Pharisees. The feast; the costly ointment, the family funeral cave (compare Isa 22:16; 2Ki 23:6; Jer 26:23), all bespeak good social position. The sisters' warm attachment to Lazarus was strengthened by their common love to Jesus who loved all three (Joh 11:5). Lazarus had won the disciples' love too, for Jesus calls him "our friend" (Joh 11:11). At the time of Lazarus' sickness and the sisters' call, Jesus was in Peraea beyond Jordan, on His way to Jerusalem, two days' journey from Bethany. He delayed two days to give time for that death which He foresaw, and from which He was about to raise Lazarus. On proposing to go to Judea, His disciples remonstrated on the ground that He would be going into the very danger from which He had just escaped (Joh 10:39-40; 11:8-10).
He replied that while His appointed day yet lasted He was safe, and that He was going to awaken Lazarus out of sleep. He was "glad" that He had not been on the spot before, that Lazarus' death and rising might awaken the disciples out of the deadness of unbelief. The sisters grieved at His seeming neglect. God sees cause for joy where even His people see only cause for grief. Four days had elapsed after the call when He arrived. Martha went and met Him, while Mary sat in the house, in beautiful harmony with the character of each respectively, described in Lu 10:40-42. Martha's faith had now become stronger; so she says, "Lord, I know that even now whatsoever Thou wilt ask of God, God will give it Thee (more buoyant in spirit than Mary, and cherishing even now a vague hope of her brother's restoration) ... Yea, Lord, I believe that Thou art the Christ the Son of God ... the Resurrection and the Life." Upon Martha telling Mary of Jesus' arrival and "call" for her, either expressed or implied ("secretly," through fear of Jewish informers, see Joh 11:28,46), the latter also came "quickly" to Him.
The Jews her friends, not having heard Martha's communication, supposed Mary was gone to the tomb to weep, but found her as of old "at Jesus' feet." Her words were fewer, but her action more impassioned, than those of her sister. So the whole company, Jesus, His disciples, the sisters, and their sympathizers, were met at the grave. At the sight of their weeping, Jesus "groaned in spirit," and troubled Himself, but checked His emotion which would otherwise have choked utterance. "Where have ye laid him?" Sympathy with their sorrow, which He was instantly to relieve, at last found vent in tears: "Jesus wept" (compare Lu 19:41; Heb 4:15). "Behold. how He loved him," the Jews, His adversaries, were constrained to exclaim. Their unbelief, "could not this man which opened the eyes of the blind (John 9, they allude not to the raising of Jairus' daughter and the widow of Nain's son, which took place in Galilee, but to the miracle which made such a stir in Jerusalem; they never thought of His raising the dead) have caused that even this man should not have died?" made Him "groan again."
Take away the stone. Martha, retaining still remainders of unbelief (she believed in Lazarus' future resurrection, but she hardly dared to believe what she herself had hinted at in Joh 11:22, that Christ will raise him now), objected on the ground of the body's presumed decomposition by this time. He tells her to "believe, so she shall see the glory of God." With a preparatory thanksgiving to the Father for the already felt answer to His prayer, He said, "Lazarus, come forth," and he came forth bound hand and foot, the graveclothes and napkin about his face. "Loose him, and let him go"; contrast Jesus' resurrection, the graveclothes and the napkin folded separately, because, unlike Lazarus, He was to die no more (Joh 20:6-7). The same miracle which converted some Jews to belief furnished others only with materials for informing the Pharisees against Him. It brought the plots of the rulers and Caiaphas to a crisis (Joh 11:45-53).
The very sign which the Pharisees desired in the parable of Lazarus (Lu 16:27-30) is now granted in the person of one of the same name, but only stimulates them to their crowning sin, to kill Jesus, nay even to kill Lazarus too (Joh 12:10). The same sun that develops the fragrant violet strengthens the poison of the deadly nightshade. This is the crucial miracle of the truth of the Gospels. Spinosa said if this were true he would tear his system in pieces and embrace Christianity. As the Lord's Judaean ministry was not the subject of the first three evangelists, but the Galilean, they omit the raising of Lazarus. The Jews' consultation to kill Lazarus, and his own probable shrinking from publicity after such a mysterious experience, perhaps further influenced them in their omission of the miracle. By John's time of writing the brother and sisters were dead, and no reason for reserve any longer existed.
Tradition says that Lazarus' first question on coming back was whether he should die again; on learning he must, he never smiled again. Such an impression was made by this miracle that many Jews flocked to Bethany to see both Jesus and Lazarus. The eye witnesses bore record, and the people who heard of it from them met Him on His way to Jerusalem, and formed part of His retinue in His triumphal entry with the palmbearing multitude (Joh 12:12,17-18). E. H. Plumptre (Smith's Dictionary) identifies Simon the leper with Simon the Pharisee (Lu 7:36-40); Martha had the Pharisees' belief in the resurrection (Joh 11:24); Mary's gift of the ointment was after the example of the sinful woman in Simon's house; the leprosy came on subsequently.
Also he identifies Lazarus with the rich young ruler (Matthew 19; Mark 10; Luke 18); Jesus' words to him, "one thing thou lackest," answer to His words to Martha. "one thing is needful"; "Jesus beholding loved him" (Mark) is said also of Lazarus (Joh 11:5); Jesus' love at last wrought out his conversion, possible to God though not to man; a sharp Palestine fever is sent to discipline him; his death and rising through Jesus' power is accompanied by his spiritual resurrection (Joh 5:24-25). Judas and the eleven expected, that the feast in Joh 12:2 was the farewell feast of Lazarus, renouncing his former life and obeying Christ's command, "sell that thou hast, and give to the poor"; hence, Judas' bitter objection, "why was not this ointment sold for 300 pence and given to the poor?"
On the night of Christ's betrayal Lazarus, whose Bethany home was near and was Christ's lodging on the previous night, in the hasty night alarm rushed eagerly with "the linen cloth (the term applied to graveclothes always, the same which he had on when the Lord raised him from the grave (Joh 11:44), sindon) cast about his naked body" (Mr 14:51-52; 15:46), and was seized by the high priest's servants as a second victim (Joh 12:10), whereas they let the other disciples escape.
2. Lazarus in the parable, Lu 16:19-31. The one unknown on earth has a name with God; the rich man, well known as a great man among men, has no name with God (Re 3:1). The historic Lazarus (John 11-12) belonged to the richer classes. Yet it is not a rich Lazarus, but Lazar
See Verses Found in Dictionary
'What {business do you have} here, and who {do you have} here, that you have cut a grave cutting here for yourself, carving his grave [on] the height, a dwelling place for him in the rock?
And they brought out Uriah from Egypt and they brought him to King Jehoiakim, and he struck him down with the sword, and he threw his dead body into the burial sites of the sons of the people.
"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and consuming [insect] destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor consuming [insect] destroy and where thieves do not break in or steal. read more. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
But I say to you that many will come from east and west and {be seated at the banquet} with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. But the sons of the kingdom will be thrown out into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth!"
So she said, "Yes, Lord, for even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master's table."
And [while] he was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, [as] he was reclining for a meal, a woman came holding an alabaster flask of very costly perfumed oil of genuine nard. [After] breaking the alabaster flask, she poured [it] out on his head.
And a certain young man was following him, clothed [only] in a linen cloth on [his] naked body. And they attempted to seize him, but he left behind the linen cloth [and] fled naked.
And [after] purchasing a linen cloth [and] taking him down, he wrapped [him] in the linen cloth and placed him in a tomb that had been cut from the rock. And he rolled a stone over the entrance of the tomb.
Therefore produce fruit worthy of repentance! And do not begin to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham [as] father.' For I say to you that God is able to raise up children for Abraham from these stones!
Now one of the Pharisees asked him to eat with him, and he entered into the house of the Pharisee [and] reclined at the table. And behold, a woman in the town who was a sinner, [when she] learned that he was dining in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster flask of perfumed oil, read more. and standing behind [him] at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with [her] tears and was wiping [them] with the hair of her head and was kissing his feet and anointing [them] with the perfumed oil. Now [when] the Pharisee who invited him saw [this], he spoke to himself, saying, "If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what kind of woman [this is] who is touching him, that she is a sinner." And Jesus answered [and] said to him, "Simon, I have something to say to you." And he said, "Teacher, say [it]."
Now as they traveled along, he entered into a certain village. And a certain woman {named} Martha welcomed him.
But Martha was distracted with much preparation, so she approached [and] said, "Lord, is it not a concern to you that my sister has left me alone to make preparations? Then tell her that she should help me!" But the Lord answered [and] said to her, "Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many [things]! read more. But few [things] are necessary, or [only] one [thing], for Mary has chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her."
And he said to them, "You are the ones who justify themselves in the sight of men, but God knows your hearts! For [what is] [considered] exalted among men [is] an abomination in the sight of God.
"Now a certain man was rich, and dressed [in] purple cloth and fine linen, feasting sumptuously every day. And a certain poor man {named} Lazarus, covered with sores, lay at his gate, read more. and was longing to be filled with what fell from the table of the rich man. But even the dogs came [and] licked his sores. Now it happened that the poor man died, and he was carried away by the angels to {Abraham's side}. And the rich man also died and was buried. And in Hades he lifted up his eyes [as he] was in torment [and] saw Abraham from a distance, and Lazarus {at his side}. And he called out [and] said, 'Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus so that he could dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am suffering pain in this flame!' But Abraham said, 'Child, remember that you received your good [things] during your life, and Lazarus likewise bad [things]. But now he is comforted here, but you are suffering pain. And in [addition to] all these [things], a great chasm has been established between us and you, so that those who want to cross over from here to you are not able [to do so], nor can they cross over from there to us.' So he said, 'Then I ask you, father, that you send him to my father's house,
So he said, 'Then I ask you, father, that you send him to my father's house,
So he said, 'Then I ask you, father, that you send him to my father's house, for I have five brothers, so that he could warn them, in order that they also should not come to this place of torment!'
for I have five brothers, so that he could warn them, in order that they also should not come to this place of torment!'
for I have five brothers, so that he could warn them, in order that they also should not come to this place of torment!' But Abraham said, 'They have Moses and the prophets; they must listen to them.'
But Abraham said, 'They have Moses and the prophets; they must listen to them.' And he said, 'No, father Abraham, but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent!'
And he said, 'No, father Abraham, but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent!'
And he said, 'No, father Abraham, but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent!'
And he said, 'No, father Abraham, but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent!' But he said to him, 'If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone rises from the dead.'"
But he said to him, 'If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone rises from the dead.'"
And when he approached [and] saw the city, he wept over it,
Truly, truly I say to you that the one who hears my word and who believes the one who sent me has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life. "Truly, truly I say to you, that an hour is coming--and now is [here]--when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and the ones who hear will live.
So they were seeking again to seize him, and he departed out of their hand. And he went away again on the other side of the Jordan, to the place where John was baptizing at an earlier time, and he stayed there.
Now a certain man was sick, Lazarus from Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha.
(Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.)
(Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.)
The disciples said to him, "Rabbi, the Jews were seeking just now to stone you, and are you going there again?" Jesus replied, Are [there] not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks around in the daylight, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. read more. But if anyone walks around in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him. He said these [things], and after this he said to them, "Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I am going so that I can awaken him."
So many of the Jews came to Martha and Mary in order to console them concerning their brother.)
Martha said to him, "I know that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day."
And [when she] had said this, she went and called her sister Mary privately, saying, "The Teacher is here and is calling for you."
The one who had died came out, his feet and his hands bound with strips of cloth, and his face wrapped with a facecloth. Jesus said to them, "Untie him and let him go." Then many of the Jews who had come with Mary and saw [the things] which he did believed in him. read more. But some of them went to the Pharisees and told them [the things] which Jesus had done.
But some of them went to the Pharisees and told them [the things] which Jesus had done. So the chief priests and the Pharisees called together the Sanhedrin and said, "What are we doing? For this man is performing many signs! read more. If we allow him [to go on] in this way, everyone will believe in him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation." But a certain one of them, Caiaphas (who was high priest in that year), said to them, "You do not know anything at all! Nor do you consider that it is profitable for you that one man should die for the people, and the whole nation not perish." (Now he did not say this from himself, but being high priest in that year, he prophesied that Jesus was going to die for the nation, and not for the nation only, but also that the children of God who are scattered would be gathered into one.) So from that day they resolved that they should kill him.
So they made him a dinner there, and Martha was serving, but Lazarus was one of the ones reclining at table with him.
So they made him a dinner there, and Martha was serving, but Lazarus was one of the ones reclining at table with him.
So the chief priests decided that they would kill Lazarus also,
So the chief priests decided that they would kill Lazarus also,
So the chief priests decided that they would kill Lazarus also, because on account of him many of the Jews were going and believing in Jesus. read more. On the next day the large crowd who had come to the feast, [when they] heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem,
So the crowd who was with him when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead were continuing to testify. Because of this also the crowd went to meet him, for they had heard [that] he had performed this sign.
He leaned back accordingly against Jesus' chest [and] said to him, "Lord, who is it?"
His disciples said, "Behold, now you are speaking {plainly} and are telling [us] no figurative saying!
Then Simon Peter also came following him, and he went into the tomb and saw the [strips of] linen cloth lying there, and the facecloth that was on his head--not lying with the [strips of] linen cloth, but folded up separately in one place.
And he did not give him an inheritance in it--not even a footstep--and he promised to give [it] to him for his possession, and to his descendants after him, {although he did not have} a child.
Why is it thought incredible by you [people] that God raises the dead?
For we do not have a high priest who is not able to sympathize with our weaknesses, but who has been tempted in all [things] in the same way, without sin.
These all died in faith without receiving the promises, but seeing them from a distance and welcoming [them], and admitting that they were strangers and temporary residents on the earth.
"And to the angel of the church in Sardis write: "This is what the one who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars says: 'I know your works, that you have a name that you are alive, and you are dead.
Hastings
A common Jewish name, a colloquial abbreviation of Eleazar.
1. The brother of Martha and Mary, the friend of Jesus (Joh 11:3,11,36, where 'love' and 'friend' represent the same root in Greek). The family lived at Bethany, a village within two miles of Jerusalem just over the brow of Olivet. Lazarus was the subject of the greatest miracle of the Gospel story (Joh 11:1-44). In the last year of His ministry Jesus sojourned at Jerusalem from the Feast of Tabernacles in October to that of the Dedication in December; and, on being driven out by the violence of the rulers (Joh 10:31,39), He retired to 'Bethany beyond Jordan' (Joh 10:40; cf. Joh 1:28 RV). A crowd followed Him thither, and in the midst of His beneficent activities of teaching and healing tidings reached Him that His friend had fallen sick. He might have responded immediately to the sisters' appeal either by hastening to their home and laying His hand on the sick man, or by sending forth His word of power and healing him across the intervening distance of some twenty miles (cf. Joh 4:46-54; Mt 15:21-28 = Mr 7:24-30). But He did neither; He remained where He was for two days, until Lazarus was dead. He desired not only to manifest His power to His friends, but to make a signal appeal to impenitent Jerusalem, by working a miracle which would attest His Messiahship beyond all question.
At length He set forth. If the messenger started in the morning, he would reach Jesus the same evening. Jesus stayed two days, and setting out early would arrive on the evening of the fourth day. Thus on His arrival Lazarus had been dead four days (Joh 11:39). In that sultry climate burial followed immediately on death, and it sometimes happened that a swoon was mistaken for death, and the buried man came to life again. The Jewish belief was that the soul hovered about the sepulchre for three days, fain to re-animate its clay. On the fourth day decomposition set in, and hope was then abandoned. Jesus arrived on the fourth day, and there was no doubt of the reality of Lazarus' death and of the ensuing miracle. It was not a recovery from a trance, but a veritable resurrection. He went to the rock-hewn sepulchre, and in presence of the sisters and a large company of mourners, including many of the rulers who had come from the adjacent capital to testify their esteem for the good Lazarus and their sympathy with Martha and Mary (Joh 11:19), summoned the dead man forth and restored him, alive and well, to his home. It was a startling miracle. It made a profound impression on the multitude, but it only exasperated the rulers. They convened a meeting of the Sanhedrin and determined to put Jesus to death (Joh 11:47-53).
He retired to Ephraim near the frontier of Samaria, and stayed there until the Passover drew near; then He set out for Jerusalem to keep the Feast and to die. Six days before it began (Joh 12:1), He reached Bethany, and despite the Sanhedrin's decree He received a great ovation. He was honoured with a banquet in the house of one of the leading men of the village, Simon, who had been a leper and had probably been healed by Jesus (Joh 12:2-11 = Mt 26:6-13 = Mr 14:3-9). Lazarus was one of the company. The news of His arrival at Bethany reached Jerusalem, and next day the multitude thronged out and escorted Him in triumph into the city. It was the raising of Lazarus that excited their enthusiasm (Joh 12:3,17-18).
After this Lazarus appears no more in the Gospel story. Surely he of all men should have stood by Jesus at His trial and crucifixion; and the explanation of his absence is probably that he had been forced to flee. Observing the popular enthusiasm, the infuriated rulers had determined to put him also to death (Joh 12:10-11). He would withdraw more for Jesus' sake than for his own. His presence only increased the Master's danger.
2. The beggar in our Lord's parable (Lu 16:19-31).
See Verses Found in Dictionary
But I say to you that many will come from east and west and {be seated at the banquet} with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.
And departing from there, Jesus went away to the region of Tyre and Sidon. And behold, a Canaanite woman from that district came [and] cried out, saying, "Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David! My daughter [is] severely possessed by a demon!" read more. But he did not answer her a word. And his disciples came up [and] asked him, saying, "Send her away, because she is crying out after us!" But he answered [and] said, "I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." But she came [and] knelt down before him, saying, "Lord, help me!" And he answered [and] said, "It is not right to take the children's bread and throw [it] to the dogs!" So she said, "Yes, Lord, for even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master's table." Then Jesus answered [and] said to her, "O woman, your faith [is] great! Let it be done for you as you want." And her daughter was healed from that hour.
Now [while] Jesus was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, a woman came up to him holding an alabaster flask of very expensive perfumed oil, and poured [it] out on his head [while he] was reclining at table. read more. And [when] the disciples saw [it] they were indignant, saying, "{Why} this waste? For this could have been sold for a large sum and given to the poor!" But Jesus, knowing [this], said to them, "Why do you cause trouble for the woman? For she has done a good deed for me. For the poor you always have with you, but you do not always have me. For [when] this woman poured this ointment on my body, she did [it] in order to prepare me for burial. Truly I say to you, wherever this gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be told in memory of her."
And from there he set out [and] went to the region of Tyre. And [when he] entered into a house, he wanted no one to know, and [yet] he was not able to escape notice. But immediately a woman whose young daughter was possessed by an unclean spirit, [when she] heard about him, came [and] fell down at his feet, read more. Now the woman was a Greek--a Syrophoenician by nationality--and she was asking him that he would expel the demon from her daughter. And he said to her, "Let the children be satisfied first, for it is not right to take the children's bread and throw [it] to the dogs!" But she answered and said to him, "Lord, even the dogs under the table eat the children's crumbs." And he said to her, "Because of this statement, go! The demon has gone out of your daughter." And [when she] went to her home, she found the child lying on the bed and the demon gone.
And [while] he was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, [as] he was reclining for a meal, a woman came holding an alabaster flask of very costly perfumed oil of genuine nard. [After] breaking the alabaster flask, she poured [it] out on his head. But some were expressing indignation to one another: "Why has there been this waste of perfumed oil? read more. For this perfumed oil could have been sold for more than three hundred denarii and given to the poor!" And they began to scold her. But Jesus said, "Leave her alone. Why do you cause trouble for her? She has done a good deed to me. For the poor you always have with you, and you can do good for them whenever you want, but you do not always have me. She has done what she could; {she has anointed my body beforehand} for burial. And truly I say to you, wherever the gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her.
And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth, so that when it runs out they will welcome you into the eternal dwellings.
"Now a certain man was rich, and dressed [in] purple cloth and fine linen, feasting sumptuously every day. And a certain poor man {named} Lazarus, covered with sores, lay at his gate, read more. and was longing to be filled with what fell from the table of the rich man. But even the dogs came [and] licked his sores. Now it happened that the poor man died, and he was carried away by the angels to {Abraham's side}. And the rich man also died and was buried. And in Hades he lifted up his eyes [as he] was in torment [and] saw Abraham from a distance, and Lazarus {at his side}. And he called out [and] said, 'Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus so that he could dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am suffering pain in this flame!' But Abraham said, 'Child, remember that you received your good [things] during your life, and Lazarus likewise bad [things]. But now he is comforted here, but you are suffering pain. And in [addition to] all these [things], a great chasm has been established between us and you, so that those who want to cross over from here to you are not able [to do so], nor can they cross over from there to us.' So he said, 'Then I ask you, father, that you send him to my father's house, for I have five brothers, so that he could warn them, in order that they also should not come to this place of torment!' But Abraham said, 'They have Moses and the prophets; they must listen to them.' And he said, 'No, father Abraham, but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent!' But he said to him, 'If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone rises from the dead.'"
These [things] took place in Bethany on the other side of the Jordan, where John was baptizing.
Now he came again to Cana in Galilee, where he had made the water wine. And [there] was at Capernaum a certain royal official whose son was sick. This man, [when he] heard that Jesus had come from Judea into Galilee, went to him and asked that he come down and heal his son, for he was about to die. read more. So Jesus said to him, "Unless you [people] see signs and wonders, you will never believe!" The royal official said to him, "Sir, come down before my child dies!" Jesus said to him, "Go, your son will live." The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him, and he departed. Now [as] he was going down, his slaves met him, saying that his child was alive. So he inquired from them the hour at which he had gotten better. Then they said to him, "Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him." So the father knew that [it was] that same hour at which Jesus said to him, "Your son will live," and he himself believed, and his whole household. Now this [is] again a second sign Jesus performed [when he] came from Judea into Galilee.
So they were seeking again to seize him, and he departed out of their hand. And he went away again on the other side of the Jordan, to the place where John was baptizing at an earlier time, and he stayed there.
Now a certain man was sick, Lazarus from Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. (Now it was Mary who anointed the Lord with perfumed oil and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick.) read more. So the sisters sent [word] to him, saying, "Lord, behold, [the one] whom you love is sick."
So the sisters sent [word] to him, saying, "Lord, behold, [the one] whom you love is sick." And [when he] heard [it], Jesus said, "This sickness is not to death, but for the glory of God, in order that the Son of God may be glorified through it." read more. (Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.) So when he heard that he was sick, then he remained in the place {where} he was two days. Then after this he said to the disciples, "Let us go to Judea again." The disciples said to him, "Rabbi, the Jews were seeking just now to stone you, and are you going there again?" Jesus replied, Are [there] not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks around in the daylight, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. But if anyone walks around in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him. He said these [things], and after this he said to them, "Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I am going so that I can awaken him."
He said these [things], and after this he said to them, "Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I am going so that I can awaken him." So the disciples said to him, "Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will get well." read more. (Now Jesus had been speaking about his death, but they thought that he was speaking about {real sleep}.) So Jesus then said to them plainly, "Lazarus has died, and I am glad {for your sake} that I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him." Then Thomas (the one who is called Didymus) said to his fellow disciples, "Let us go also, so that we may die with him." So [when he] arrived, Jesus found he had already [been] four days in the tomb. (Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, about fifteen stadia. So many of the Jews came to Martha and Mary in order to console them concerning their brother.)
So many of the Jews came to Martha and Mary in order to console them concerning their brother.) Now Martha, when she heard that Jesus was coming, went to meet him, but Mary was sitting in the house. read more. So Martha said to Jesus, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. Even now I know that whatever you ask God, God will grant you." Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again." Martha said to him, "I know that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day." Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die {forever}. Do you believe this?" She said to him, "Yes, Lord, I have believed that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who comes into the world." And [when she] had said this, she went and called her sister Mary privately, saying, "The Teacher is here and is calling for you." So that one, when she heard [it], got up quickly and went to him. (Now Jesus has not yet come into the village, but was still in the place where Martha went to meet him.) So the Jews who were with her in the house and were consoling her, [when they] saw Mary--that she stood up quickly and went out--followed her, [because they] thought that she was going to the tomb in order to weep there. Then Mary, when she came where Jesus was [and] saw him, fell at his feet, saying to him, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died." Then Jesus, when he saw her weeping and the Jews who came with her weeping, was deeply moved in spirit and was troubled within himself. And he said, "Where have you laid him?" They said to him, "Lord, come and see." Jesus wept. So the Jews were saying, "See how he loved him!"
So the Jews were saying, "See how he loved him!" But some of them said, "Was not this man who opened the eyes of the blind able to do [something] so that this man also would not have died?" read more. Then Jesus, deeply moved within himself again, came to the tomb. Now it was a cave, and a stone was lying on it. Jesus said, "Take away the stone." Martha, the sister of the one who had died, said to him, "Lord, he is stinking already, because it has been four days."
Jesus said, "Take away the stone." Martha, the sister of the one who had died, said to him, "Lord, he is stinking already, because it has been four days." Jesus said to her, "Did I not say to you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?" read more. So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes above and said, "Father, I give thanks to you that you hear me. And I know that you always hear me, but for the sake of the crowd standing around I said [it], so that they may believe that you sent me." And [when he] had said these [things], he cried out with a loud voice, "Lazarus, come out!" The one who had died came out, his feet and his hands bound with strips of cloth, and his face wrapped with a facecloth. Jesus said to them, "Untie him and let him go."
So the chief priests and the Pharisees called together the Sanhedrin and said, "What are we doing? For this man is performing many signs! If we allow him [to go on] in this way, everyone will believe in him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation." read more. But a certain one of them, Caiaphas (who was high priest in that year), said to them, "You do not know anything at all! Nor do you consider that it is profitable for you that one man should die for the people, and the whole nation not perish." (Now he did not say this from himself, but being high priest in that year, he prophesied that Jesus was going to die for the nation, and not for the nation only, but also that the children of God who are scattered would be gathered into one.) So from that day they resolved that they should kill him.
Then, six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. So they made him a dinner there, and Martha was serving, but Lazarus was one of the ones reclining at table with him. read more. Then Mary took a pound of ointment of very valuable genuine nard [and] anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the ointment.
Then Mary took a pound of ointment of very valuable genuine nard [and] anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the ointment. But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (the one who was going to betray him) said, read more. "{Why} was this ointment not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?" (Now he said this not because {he was concerned} about the poor, but because he was a thief, and having the money box, he used to steal what was put into [it].) So Jesus said, "Leave her alone, so that she may keep it for the day of my preparation for burial. For you have the poor with you always, but you do not always have me." Now a large crowd of Jews found out that he was there, and they came, not only because of Jesus, but so that they could see Lazarus also, whom he raised from the dead. So the chief priests decided that they would kill Lazarus also,
So the chief priests decided that they would kill Lazarus also, because on account of him many of the Jews were going and believing in Jesus.
So the crowd who was with him when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead were continuing to testify. Because of this also the crowd went to meet him, for they had heard [that] he had performed this sign.
One of his disciples--the one whom Jesus loved--was reclining {close beside} Jesus.
One of his disciples--the one whom Jesus loved--was reclining {close beside} Jesus.
he himself also will drink of the wine of the anger of God that has been mixed full strength in the cup of his wrath, and will be tortured with fire and sulphur in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb.
Morish
Laz'arus
1. Brother of Martha and Mary, and a resident at Bethany. Jesus loved them all, and He spoke of Lazarus as 'our friend.' Very little is recorded of him except the striking fact that he was raised from the dead by the Lord Jesus, which manifested the glory of God and glorified the Son of God. When his sisters made the Lord a supper at Bethany, Lazarus was one of those who sat with Him. He was a living witness of the power of the Son of God over death, and as such he was in danger of being killed by the Jews, on account of many believing on the Lord because of him. Joh 11:1-43; 12:1-17.
2. The poor man in the parable of Luke 16. His circumstances are related
See Verses Found in Dictionary
"Now a certain man was rich, and dressed [in] purple cloth and fine linen, feasting sumptuously every day. And a certain poor man {named} Lazarus, covered with sores, lay at his gate, read more. and was longing to be filled with what fell from the table of the rich man. But even the dogs came [and] licked his sores. Now it happened that the poor man died, and he was carried away by the angels to {Abraham's side}. And the rich man also died and was buried. And in Hades he lifted up his eyes [as he] was in torment [and] saw Abraham from a distance, and Lazarus {at his side}. And he called out [and] said, 'Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus so that he could dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am suffering pain in this flame!' But Abraham said, 'Child, remember that you received your good [things] during your life, and Lazarus likewise bad [things]. But now he is comforted here, but you are suffering pain. And in [addition to] all these [things], a great chasm has been established between us and you, so that those who want to cross over from here to you are not able [to do so], nor can they cross over from there to us.' So he said, 'Then I ask you, father, that you send him to my father's house, for I have five brothers, so that he could warn them, in order that they also should not come to this place of torment!' But Abraham said, 'They have Moses and the prophets; they must listen to them.' And he said, 'No, father Abraham, but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent!' But he said to him, 'If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone rises from the dead.'"
Now a certain man was sick, Lazarus from Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. (Now it was Mary who anointed the Lord with perfumed oil and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick.) read more. So the sisters sent [word] to him, saying, "Lord, behold, [the one] whom you love is sick." And [when he] heard [it], Jesus said, "This sickness is not to death, but for the glory of God, in order that the Son of God may be glorified through it." (Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.) So when he heard that he was sick, then he remained in the place {where} he was two days. Then after this he said to the disciples, "Let us go to Judea again." The disciples said to him, "Rabbi, the Jews were seeking just now to stone you, and are you going there again?" Jesus replied, Are [there] not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks around in the daylight, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. But if anyone walks around in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him. He said these [things], and after this he said to them, "Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I am going so that I can awaken him." So the disciples said to him, "Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will get well." (Now Jesus had been speaking about his death, but they thought that he was speaking about {real sleep}.) So Jesus then said to them plainly, "Lazarus has died, and I am glad {for your sake} that I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him." Then Thomas (the one who is called Didymus) said to his fellow disciples, "Let us go also, so that we may die with him." So [when he] arrived, Jesus found he had already [been] four days in the tomb. (Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, about fifteen stadia. So many of the Jews came to Martha and Mary in order to console them concerning their brother.) Now Martha, when she heard that Jesus was coming, went to meet him, but Mary was sitting in the house. So Martha said to Jesus, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. Even now I know that whatever you ask God, God will grant you." Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again." Martha said to him, "I know that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day." Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die {forever}. Do you believe this?" She said to him, "Yes, Lord, I have believed that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who comes into the world." And [when she] had said this, she went and called her sister Mary privately, saying, "The Teacher is here and is calling for you." So that one, when she heard [it], got up quickly and went to him. (Now Jesus has not yet come into the village, but was still in the place where Martha went to meet him.) So the Jews who were with her in the house and were consoling her, [when they] saw Mary--that she stood up quickly and went out--followed her, [because they] thought that she was going to the tomb in order to weep there. Then Mary, when she came where Jesus was [and] saw him, fell at his feet, saying to him, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died." Then Jesus, when he saw her weeping and the Jews who came with her weeping, was deeply moved in spirit and was troubled within himself. And he said, "Where have you laid him?" They said to him, "Lord, come and see." Jesus wept. So the Jews were saying, "See how he loved him!" But some of them said, "Was not this man who opened the eyes of the blind able to do [something] so that this man also would not have died?" Then Jesus, deeply moved within himself again, came to the tomb. Now it was a cave, and a stone was lying on it. Jesus said, "Take away the stone." Martha, the sister of the one who had died, said to him, "Lord, he is stinking already, because it has been four days." Jesus said to her, "Did I not say to you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?" So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes above and said, "Father, I give thanks to you that you hear me. And I know that you always hear me, but for the sake of the crowd standing around I said [it], so that they may believe that you sent me." And [when he] had said these [things], he cried out with a loud voice, "Lazarus, come out!"
Then, six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. So they made him a dinner there, and Martha was serving, but Lazarus was one of the ones reclining at table with him. read more. Then Mary took a pound of ointment of very valuable genuine nard [and] anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the ointment. But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (the one who was going to betray him) said, "{Why} was this ointment not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?" (Now he said this not because {he was concerned} about the poor, but because he was a thief, and having the money box, he used to steal what was put into [it].) So Jesus said, "Leave her alone, so that she may keep it for the day of my preparation for burial. For you have the poor with you always, but you do not always have me." Now a large crowd of Jews found out that he was there, and they came, not only because of Jesus, but so that they could see Lazarus also, whom he raised from the dead. So the chief priests decided that they would kill Lazarus also, because on account of him many of the Jews were going and believing in Jesus. On the next day the large crowd who had come to the feast, [when they] heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, took the branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, and began crying out, "Hosanna! Blessed [is] the one who comes in the name of the Lord, even the king of Israel!" So Jesus found a young donkey [and] sat on it, just as it is written, "Do not be afraid, daughter of Zion! Behold, your king is coming, seated on the foal of a donkey!" (His disciples did not understand these [things] at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these [things] had been written about him and they did these [things] to him.) So the crowd who was with him when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead were continuing to testify.
Smith
Laz'arus
(whom God helps), another form of the Hebrew name Eleazar.
1. Lazarus of Bethany, the brother of Martha and Mary.
Joh 11:1
All that we know of him is derived from the Gospel of St. John, and that records little more than the facts of his death and resurrection. The language of
Joh 11:1
implies that the sisters were the better known. Lazarus is "of Bethany, of the village of Mary and her sister Martha." From this and from the order of the three names in
Joh 11:5
we may reasonably infer that Lazarus was the youngest of the family. All the circumstances of John 11 and 12 point to wealth and social position above the average.
2. The name of a poor man in the well-known parable of
Lu 16:19-31
The name of Lazarus has been perpetuated in an institution of the Christian Church. The leper of the Middle Ages appears as a lazzaro. The use of lazaretto and lazarhouse for the leper hospitals then founded in all parts of western Christendom, no less than that of lazaroni for the mendicants of Italian towns, is an indication of the effect of the parable upon the mind of Europe in the Middle Ages, and thence upon its later speech.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
Watsons
LAZARUS, brother to Martha and Mary. He dwelt at Bethany with his sisters, near Jerusalem; and the Lord Jesus did him the honour sometimes of lodging at his house when he visited the city. See the account of his resurrection related at large in Joh 11:5, &c.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
(Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.)