John 11:12

"He said these things, and after that, he said to them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I am going so that I may awake him out of sleep.”"

Key Reflection

In John 11:12, Jesus uses the metaphor of death as a form of spiritual sleep to comfort his disciples about Lazarus’s illness. This choice of words was deliberate and significant; in first-century Jewish culture, "sleep" was often used euphemistically for death, reflecting the belief that the deceased would eventually wake up in the resurrection. By telling them that Lazarus had fallen asleep, Jesus gently prepares them for the upcoming events while hinting at the ultimate victory over death through his own resurrection.

From the Scholars: Barnes' Notes

Verse 12. If he sleep, he shall do well. Sleep was regarded by the Jews, in sickness, as a favourable symptom; hence it was said among them, "Sleep in sickness is a sign of recovery, because it shows that the violence of the disease has abated" (Lightfoot.) This seems to have been the meaning of the disciples. They intimated that if had this symptom, there was no need of his going into Judea to restore him. __________________________________________________________________

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