![]() Lazarus, out of all people in the Bible, receives the epithet of “friend of Jesus.” Even with this friendship, Jesus hears of his friend’s sickness but waits two days before he visits. Yet, as authors throughout the centuries note, the story of Lazarus is far from a simple story. Lazarus, in case you forgot (or, like me, never learned the New Testament), was raised from the dead by Jesus as written in the Gospel of John. ![]() ![]() Richard Beard, in his new book Lazarus is Dead, makes a compelling case for the relevance of the Bible to literature. Today the Bible appears sporadically in contemporary literature: Marilynne Robinson relies on it often, but for the most part it now stands as an exotic text. Yet authors have long made use of the Bible in one way or another: Dostoevsky made heavy use of Biblical themes and allusions in many if not all of his books, and Melville famously used the story of Jonah in the form of a sermon as the backdrop for Moby Dick. That few (if any) of us ever heard of these novels attests to the irrelevance of the Bible to our literary consciousness. 42 I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, ( AH) that they may believe that you sent me.Over the span of sixteen years, Thomas Mann penned what he thought of as his greatest work: a four part novel entitled Joseph and His Brothers which retells the biblical story of Joseph in Egypt. Then Jesus looked up ( AF) and said, “Father, ( AG) I thank you that you have heard me. “But, Lord,” said Martha, the sister of the dead man, “by this time there is a bad odor, for he has been there four days.” ( AC)Ĥ0 Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believe, ( AD) you will see the glory of God?” ( AE)Ĥ1 So they took away the stone. It was a cave with a stone laid across the entrance. ( V) 34 “Where have you laid him?” he asked.ģ6 Then the Jews said, “See how he loved him!” ( X)ģ7 But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man ( Y) have kept this man from dying?” ( Z) Jesus Raises Lazarus From the Deadģ8 Jesus, once more deeply moved, ( AA) came to the tomb. ( R) 31 When the Jews who had been with Mary in the house, comforting her, ( S) noticed how quickly she got up and went out, they followed her, supposing she was going to the tomb to mourn there.ģ2 When Mary reached the place where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” ( T)ģ3 When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved ( U) in spirit and troubled. 30 Now Jesus had not yet entered the village, but was still at the place where Martha had met him. “The Teacher ( Q) is here,” she said, “and is asking for you.” 29 When Mary heard this, she got up quickly and went to him. ( M) Do you believe this?”Ģ7 “Yes, Lord,” she replied, “I believe that you are the Messiah, ( N) the Son of God, ( O) who is to come into the world.” ( P)Ģ8 After she had said this, she went back and called her sister Mary aside. ( J) The one who believes ( K) in me will live, even though they die 26 and whoever lives by believing ( L) in me will never die. ( E) 22 But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask.” ( F)Ģ3 Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.”Ģ4 Martha answered, “I know he will rise again in the resurrection ( G) at the last day.” ( H)Ģ5 Jesus said to her, “I am ( I) the resurrection and the life. ( D)Ģ1 “Lord,” Martha said to Jesus, “if you had been here, my brother would not have died. ( C) 20 When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went out to meet him, but Mary stayed at home. ( A) 18 Now Bethany ( B) was less than two miles from Jerusalem, 19 and many Jews had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them in the loss of their brother. 17 On his arrival, Jesus found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days.
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