Many therefore of the Jews, who were come to Mary and Martha and had seen the things that Jesus did, believed in him.
πολλοι ουν εκ των ιουδαιων οι ελθοντες προς την μαριαν και θεασαμενοι α εποιησεν ο ιησους επιστευσαν εις αυτον
10 Church Fathers comment on this verse
“Lazarus, come forth!” This was for the increase and strengthening of the faith of those assembled, so that the garments and wrappings might bear witness to his death, while his immediate obedience and unhindered awe proclaimed the authority of the Lord.
Many, struck by the miracle, believed. But others, wounded by envy, turned the miracle into a pretext for doing what belongs to the envious. They reported what had happened to the rulers, so that, by grieving them also over the work accomplished by Christ, they might find some consolation for their own grief in having others like-minded with them and sharing in this irrational sorrow. And since they themselves were unable to harm the One who had done no wrong, they sought to stir up those more powerful against Him.
Not all the Jews who had come to Mary believed, but nevertheless many did. Some of them, whether of the Jews, or of those who had come, or of those who had believed, went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done. This was either to inform them so that they too might believe, or, more likely, to denounce Him so that they might become indignant. For one reason or the other, the matter reached the Pharisees.
Therefore sins must be examined, and only then should the authority to bind and loose be used. One must consider what guilt preceded, or what repentance followed after the guilt. Thus the judgment of the pastor may loose those whom Almighty God visits with the grace of compunction. For the absolution of the external judge is true when it agrees with the mind of the inner Judge. This is well expressed figuratively in the resurrection of the four-day-dead man. It shows that the Lord first called and gave life to the dead man, saying, “Lazarus, come forth.” Only afterward was the one who came out alive loosed by the disciples.
As it is written: “Then many of the Jews who had come to Mary, and had seen what Jesus did, believed in Him.” See, the disciples loose one already alive, whom the Teacher raised from the dead. For if the disciples had loosed Lazarus while dead, they would have disclosed stench rather than power. From this reflection we must see that by pastoral authority we should loose those whom we know our Author gives life by raising grace. This enlivening, before the act of justification, is already known in the very confession of sin. Therefore even to this dead Lazarus it is not said, “Live,” but “Come forth.” For every sinner, when he hides his guilt within his conscience, is then hidden inwardly and concealed in his secret places. But the dead man comes forth when the sinner freely confesses his sins. Therefore it is said to Lazarus, “Come forth.” It is clearly as though this were said to everyone dead in sin: “Why do you hide your guilt in your conscience? Come forth now through confession, you who by denial hide within yourself.” Therefore, “Come forth,” dead man. That is, sinner, confess your guilt. But the disciples loose the one who comes forth, so that the pastors of the Church may turn aside deserved punishment from him who was not ashamed to confess what he had done.
Blessed is he who has completed this good purchase of faith, and who has not gone out of Bethany empty and without gain. I mean fasting. Blessed is he who has acquired its glorious and excellent adornments through abstinence and humility.
Blessed is he who, truly believing in Christ, has bought the good pearls of His teaching, giving faith and receiving knowledge. Blessed is he who, through dispassion, has woven for himself the radiant wedding garment of union with Christ.
Thus he may partake without shame of the slain Pascha and meet with glory the Lord coming forth from Bethany. He spreads before Him the whitened garments of conscience and says: "Over me, Lord, over me, let the feet of the living creature on which You have sat proceed."
This is the all-holy flesh in which He was clothed for our sake above nature. Where is the prudent possessor who has purchased his salvation in this way? Would that you also, people of Christ and new inheritance, had purchased it in the days of fasting that have passed.
A weighty purchase is made in these days by those who know the value of things. Here pure gold is abstinence. Pearls are tears. Precious stones are virtuous deeds. Silver is virginity. Pure garments are uncorrupted morals. Aromatic spices are the words of the Lord.
Here the ornament of the neck is meekness, which commands obedience. The earrings, hairbands, and golden necklaces are the precious fulfillments of the commandments. But why describe in detail the rich gifts of fasting, when experience itself teaches us that everything proceeding from it turns to good for the one who has acquired it?
Who, then, has worthily completed this glorious contest? Who has become like Martha? Who has imitated Mary, the sisters of Lazarus? Who, like them, has acquired the good pearls, tears, and brought them to Christ, weeping over his dead soul as they wept over Lazarus?
Who has acquired the precious cornerstone, Christ, who commanded the stone to be rolled away in order to raise Lazarus? What God-loving soul has bought precious spices: cassia, ormos, cinnamon, onycha, nard, and calamus? Having prepared fragrant myrrh, what soul has anointed the Lord at supper?
What soul, falling at His feet, has anointed His untouchable head and washed His feet with myrrh and tears? What soul has been counted worthy to hear this merciful voice: "Your sins are forgiven you"?
What soul abounds so greatly in myrrh and tears that it has anointed Christ, the inexhaustible myrrh? But perhaps, hearing this, someone will say: "I imitate the sinful woman and bring, if not myrrh, then tears. Where, then, is the supper? Where is Christ? Where is the forgiveness of sins?"
Where? Listen, and I will tell you plainly. In the Church. In your inner chamber. Why do I say, in the Church? In your heart. There is Christ. There pour out myrrh upon Him. There shed tears.
"But I have no myrrh," you say, "nor an alabaster vessel." Do you have no myrrh? No, you have myrrh: grace. You have an alabaster vessel: the heart. You have tears: confession. You have hair: meek sighs. Bring these, dedicate these, and you will receive forgiveness.
Christ is everywhere. Everywhere He appears when invoked. Only let Judas not be there. Only call with a good intention. Only let your supper be without hypocrisy. Be Simon, if you wish. Invite the Lord. But do not doubt like the Pharisee.
Call upon the One who is everywhere present. But do not call Judas. Be Lazarus, if you desire: dead to the world, stinking from wounds, and bearing silence like a stone upon your lips. But it is better first to become the Lord's friend.
You too have sisters: soul and flesh. Make them friends of Christ, so that when you rest, they may send to Jesus like Martha and Mary. Let one send thoughts and the other deeds, saying: "Lord, behold, he whom You love is sick."
Then, if you die completely to the world and to all that is worldly, Christ will come and raise you. He will say to His angels: "Loose him, and let him go." Loose him from what? From the bonds of sin.
And let him go where? Into Abraham's bosom, into the eternal dwellings, to the unending blessedness of divine rest. May we all obtain this by the grace and love for mankind of Christ, who calls us all to His knowledge, our true God, with whom be glory to the Father and the Holy Spirit unto the ages. Amen.
The great miracle of Lazarus’s resurrection produced a powerful effect on all who saw it and heard about it. Many of the Jews who witnessed this miracle, until then indifferent to the Lord, now believed in Him. But the Jews hostile to the Lord were all the more troubled by it. They went to Jerusalem and told the Pharisees everything that Jesus had done. Then the chief priests and Pharisees gathered a council and began to deliberate. What should they undertake against Jesus? He works many miracles, and if they leave Him thus, all will believe in Him. Then the people will rise in revolt against the Romans, but it will end with the Romans utterly destroying Jerusalem and the temple.
They will also take from the Jewish people even the small political independence it had so far enjoyed under Roman rule. Then the high priest Caiaphas said: “Why so much discussion? It is better, of course, that one man should die for the people than that the whole nation should perish in the event of an uprising. Therefore, whoever this Jesus may be, He must be put to death as soon as possible.” These words came from a malicious heart. But the thought expressed in them, that Jesus should die for the people, was true. Thus the impious lips of Caiaphas, because he was high priest that year, involuntarily uttered a prophecy. For in antiquity the high priest was an organ of divine revelation (Ex 28:30; Num 27:21). For by the decree of God, Jesus Christ truly had to die for the salvation of mankind. “And not for the nation only,” the Evangelist observes, “but also to gather into one the children of God who were scattered abroad.” That is, Christ had to die not only for the salvation of the Jewish people. He died in order to make one universal Church of Christ from all people throughout the whole world (cf. 10:16). After this judgment of Caiaphas, the Sanhedrin made the final decision to kill Jesus.
This miracle made a shattering impression on the people. Even many of the Jews believed in Him. But some of them, concealing their malice, silently withdrew and hastened to Jerusalem to announce to the Sanhedrin what had happened.
Then, raising His voice to a shattering and commanding authority, He cried out in the strong and brief words usual with Him in all such cases: “Lazarus, come forth!” To the terror of all present, the dead man rose from the tomb and came out again into God’s light, in his fearful burial clothing. Christ commanded that the burial bands be removed from him, and Lazarus could go home freely. The whole crowd present, in fear and amazement, watched the man who had been raised and reasoned about Him who had performed so great a miracle. Many believed in Him. But there were also some whose stubborn unbelief could not be conquered even by Lazarus returned from the life beyond the grave. They merely hurried to Jerusalem to report what had happened to the Sanhedrin.
“Many believed,” but “some went to the Pharisees,” and so on. Again there is the usual division among the Jews, to which John commonly points, and now the division is deeper than before. Those less blinded, struck by the majesty of the undeniable miracle performed before their eyes, believed in the wonderworker as the Messiah. But those more completely blinded became, so to speak, finally blind and hardened in unbelief (cf. Jn 11:36-37).
Every word of the Lord, every deed and sign of His, brought after it that “division on earth” (Lk 12:51) which the Lord foretold. Believers were separated from unbelievers, for, as the Baptist said, “His winnowing fork is in His hand” (Mt 3:11). The winnowing fork used for grain threshed on the floor serves to separate the light chaff from the heavy grain. Such was the meaning of this image. The sheep were separated from the goats, the sons of light from the sons of the devil and of darkness. The great act of creation, which revealed the unity of the Lord Jesus with the Father, kindled the fire of faith in many chosen hearts. Having flared up, it undoubtedly brought them to Christ the Savior. But among the Jews there were also sons of perdition.
Those who go to the Pharisees know that they are going to the Lord’s enemies. The great miracle stirs in their deadened hearts not compunction, not tears of joy and love, but bitterness. They cannot deny that from now on they are unable to fight or contend with this man. Yet in Him they also cannot deny the Godhead. And now the word of the Lord is fulfilled upon them: “A bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire” (Mt 7:18-19; cf. Mt 3:10; Lk 3:19). And another word of the Lord: “If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and withers. Such branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned” (Jn 15:6). And Jerusalem burned, and with it the people once belonging to the promise. For it rejected the Lord, withered, and was thrown into the fire. Only those were saved from the fire who cried out: “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord” (Mt 23:37-39).
Passages read together with this verse.
Greek text, 17 words with lemma, transliteration and Strong’s number. Tap to expand.
THEOSIS