1. There was a man named Lazarus who was sick. He lived in the town of Bethany, where Mary and her sister Martha lived.
2. (Mary is the same woman who put perfume on the Lord and wiped his feet with her hair.) Mary’s brother was Lazarus, the man who was now sick.
3. So Mary and Martha sent someone to tell Jesus, “Lord, your dear friend Lazarus is sick.”
4. When Jesus heard this he said, “The end of this sickness will not be death. No, this sickness is for the glory of God. This has happened to bring glory to the Son of God.”
5. Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.
6. So when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was two more days
7. and then said to his followers, “We should go back to Judea.”
8. They answered, “But Teacher, those Jews there tried to stone you to death. That was only a short time ago. Now you want to go back there?”
9. Jesus answered, “There are twelve hours of light in the day. Whoever walks in the day will not stumble and fall because they can see with the light from the sun.
10. But whoever walks at night will stumble because there is no light.”
11. Then Jesus said, “Our friend Lazarus is now sleeping, but I am going there to wake him.”
12. The followers answered, “But, Lord, if he can sleep, he will get well.”
13. They thought Jesus meant that Lazarus was literally sleeping, but he really meant that Lazarus was dead.
14. So then Jesus said plainly, “Lazarus is dead.