Jesus wept – John 11:35 (NIV & KJV)
Theme: About Our God
It’s the shortest verse in our Bible, but John 11:35 is packed with meaning and insight about our God and Savior. My kids lobbied for this verse to be included because they thought it would be easy to memorize (and it is), but it also communicates a great truth about our God in just two words.
The passage of scripture that includes John 11:35 is a perfect illustration of how Jesus was both God and man. There is much to the story, so I encourage you to read all of John 11 . But the short version is this… Jesus’s friend, Lazarus, had become sick and he died while Jesus was away. Lazarus had been dead for four days when Jesus arrived and Lazarus’s sisters, Mary and Martha, were in mourning. When Jesus saw them crying, He was “deeply moved in spirit and troubled.” Then He wept. In other words, Jesus hurt for them so much that He felt great sadness and was moved to tears. That’s the reaction of a man who feels human emotions.
But He was also still God. The verses that follow describe how Jesus then thanked God for hearing His request and raised Lazarus from the dead. That’s clearly not the work of a man. That’s the work of our God.
John 11:35 — Just two words, but packed with meaning. We have a Savior who’s one with the all powerful God, but who’s also felt the same emotions we feel…even to the point of tears.
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