<h3>JESUS BRINGS LAZARUS BACK TO LIFE</h3>
<p>Now a certain man, Lazarus of Bethany, was sick. He was the
brother of Martha and of the Mary who anointed the Master with
perfume and wiped his feet with her hair. Jesus loved Martha, and
her sister, and Lazarus. So the sisters sent word to him, "Master,
he whom you love is sick." But when Jesus heard it he said, "This
sickness is not to end in death, but it is for the glory of God, that
the Son of God may be glorified by it."</p>
<p>So when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was
two days. After that he said to the disciples, "Let us go again into
Judea. Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I am going to
waken him." The disciples said to him, "Master, if he has fallen
asleep he will get well." Now Jesus had spoken of his death, but
they thought that he meant taking rest in sleep. So Jesus said to
them plainly, "Lazarus is dead, and for your sakes I am glad that
I was not there, so that you may learn to believe. But let us go<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_267" id="Page_267">[267]</SPAN></span> to
him."</p>
<p>When Jesus came he found that Lazarus had been in the tomb
four days. Now Bethany was only about two miles from Jerusalem,
and many of the Jews had come to comfort Mary and Martha about
their brother.</p>
<p>When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went out to meet
him, while Mary stayed at home. Martha said to Jesus, "Master,
if you had been here my brother would not have died, but I know
that even now God will give you whatever you ask him." Jesus
said to her, "Your brother shall rise again." Martha said to him,
"I know that he shall rise again, at the resurrection on the last day."
Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes
in me shall live even though he die; and whoever lives and
believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?" She said to
him, "Yes, Master, I do believe that you are the Christ, the Son
of God who was to come into the world."</p>
<p>When Martha had said this she went away to call Mary, her
sister, telling her secretly, "The Master is here and is calling you."
When Mary heard this she rose quickly and went to him. Jesus
had not yet come into the village but was still in the place where
Martha met him. When the Jews who were trying to comfort Mary
in the house saw her rise up quickly and go out, they followed her,
supposing that she was going to weep at the tomb. But when Mary
reached the place where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet,
saying to him, "Master, if you had been here, my brother would
not have died."</p>
<p>When Jesus saw her and the Jews who came with her weeping,
he was deeply moved, and said in great distress, "Where have you
laid him?" They said to him, "Master, come and see." Jesus wept.
The Jews therefore said, "See how he loved him!" Some of them
said, "Could not this man who gave sight to the blind have also
kept Lazarus from dying?"</p>
<p>Jesus was again deeply moved, as he came to the tomb. It was
a cave, and a stone lay against it. Jesus said, "Take away
the stone." Martha, the dead man's sister, said to him, "Master, by
this time his body has begun to decay, for he has been dead four days."
Jesus said to her, "Did I not tell you that if you only would believe
you should see the glory of God?" So they removed the stone, and
Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, "Father, I thank thee that thou
hast heard me. I knew that thou always dost listen to me, but I<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_268" id="Page_268">[268]</SPAN></span>
spoke for the sake of the people standing near, that they may believe
that thou hast sent me." When he had said this, he cried in a loud
voice, "Lazarus, come forth." Then he who was dead came forth
with his hands and feet wrapped in bandages and his face bound
with a cloth. Jesus said to them, "Untie him and let him go."</p>
<p>Then many of the Jews who had come with Mary and had seen
what Jesus did, believed in him.</p>
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