Journal: Bibliotheca Sacra
Volume: BSAC 168:669 (Jan 2011)
Article: The Significance Of Jesus’ Raising Lazarus From The Dead In John 11
Author: Stephen S. Kim

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The Significance Of Jesus’ Raising Lazarus From The Dead In John 11

Stephen S. Kim

Stephen S. Kim is Professor of Bible, Multnomah Biblical Seminary, Portland, Oregon.

The fourth Gospel aims to present Jesus as the promised Messiah and the divine Son of God, so that His disciples may believe (or continue to believe) in Him and have eternal life (cf. 20:30-31). And the means by which John revealed Jesus as the divine Messiah is the seven sign-miracles1 and their attendant contexts, all of which are recorded in the Book of Signs (chaps. 2-13).2 While the Book of Signs presents the case that Jesus is indeed the promised Christ and the divine Son, the “Book of Glory” (chaps. 13-20) confirms the claims made in the earlier chapters about Him.

The Book of Signs has two major sections following the introductory Prologue (1:1-18) and Testimonium (1:19-51): the Cana Cycle (chaps. 2-4) and the Festival Cycle (chaps. 5-12). The first two sign-miracles, both performed in Cana of Galilee, form a literary

BSac 168:669 (January-March 2011) p. 54

bracket around chapters 2-4.3 The remaining sign-miracles are displayed in the context of Jewish festivals.4 While the Festival Cycle is generally outlined to include chapters 5-12, it is possible to separate chapters 5-10 from 11-12.5 Though chapters 11-12 are technically still part of the Festival Cycle, in a sense they move the key themes developed in chapters 5-10 to their climax. For instance the theme of presenting Jesus as the divine Messiah who grants life reached a climactic point in His raising of Lazarus, and the theme of opposition to the One who offers that life also reached a climactic point in the enemies’ decision to kill Him. Therefore these two chapters serve as both a climax to the sign-miracles in the Book of Signs and as a transition to the “Book of Glory.”

This article examines Jesus’ seventh and climactic sign-miracle, namely, His raising of Lazarus from the dead (11:1-44). Whereas the first sign-miracle of Jesus’ turning of water into wine serves as the representative sign among the seven sign-miracles, raising Lazarus is the climactic sign.

The Miracle Of Raising Lazarus From The Dead

As the seventh and climactic sign of Jesus in the Fourth Gospel, this miracle completes the selected Johannine signs that present Jesus as the promised Messiah and the Son of God. If the first miracle of Jes...