11:1 有一個患病的人,名叫拉撒路,住在伯大尼,就是馬利亞和她姊姊馬大的村莊。
11:2 這馬利亞就是那用香膏抹主,又用頭髮擦他腳的;患病的拉撒路是她的兄弟。
11:3 她姊妹兩個就打發人去見耶穌,說:「主啊,你所愛的人病了。」
11:4 耶穌聽見,就說:「這病不至於死,乃是為上帝的榮耀,叫上帝的兒子因此得榮耀。」
11:5 耶穌素來愛馬大和她妹子並拉撒路。
11:6 聽見拉撒路病了,就在所居之地仍住了兩天。
11:7 然後對門徒說:「我們再往猶太去吧。」
11:8 門徒說:「拉比,猶太人近來要拿石頭打你,你還往那裡去嗎?」
11:9 耶穌回答說:「白日不是有十二小時嗎?人在白日走路,就不至跌倒,因為看見這世上的光。
11:10 若在黑夜走路,就必跌倒,因為他沒有光。」
11:11 耶穌說了這話,隨後對他們說:「我們的朋友拉撒路睡了,我去叫醒他。」
11:12 門徒說:「主啊,他若睡了,就必好了。」
11:13 耶穌這話是指著他死說的,他們卻以為是說照常睡了。
11:14 耶穌就明明地告訴他們說:「拉撒路死了。
11:15 我沒有在那裡就歡喜,這是為你們的緣故,好叫你們相信。如今我們可以往他那裡去吧。」
11:16 多馬,又稱為低土馬,就對那同作門徒的說:「我們也去和他同死吧。」
Now a man named Lazarus was sick. He was from Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. 2 (This Mary, whose brother Lazarus now lay sick, was the same one who poured perfume on the Lord and wiped his feet with her hair.) 3 So the sisters sent word to Jesus, “Lord, the one you love is sick.”
4 When he heard this, Jesus said, “This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it.” 5 Now 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 he said to his disciples, “Let us go back to Judea.”
8 “But Rabbi,” they said, “a short while ago the Jews there tried to stone you, and yet you are going back?”
9 Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours of daylight? Anyone who walks in the daytime will not stumble, for they see by this world’s light. 10 It is when a person walks at night that they stumble, for they have no light.”
11 After he had said this, he went on to tell them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I am going there to wake him up.”
12 His disciples replied, “Lord, if he sleeps, he will get better.” 13 Jesus had been speaking of his death, but his disciples thought he meant natural sleep.
14 So then he told them plainly, “Lazarus is dead, 15 and for your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.”
16 Then Thomas (also known as Didymus[a]) said to the rest of the disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.”
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這會不會太奇怪了,拉撒路還生病的時候主耶穌不去,竟然死了以後主耶穌才去!要是主耶穌在拉撒路生病的時候去,就可以的醫治,也就不會損失一條生命,這樣是不是主耶穌對拉撒路「無情」?
照基督徒的信仰而言,基督徒對死亡並不覺得可怕,而且是應該勇敢面對的,在希伯來書也說:「按著定命,人人都有一死,死後且有審判。」(9:27)這裡還用很「時髦」的基督徒話語「命定」呢
既然命定都有一死,就不需要害怕刀劍、瘟疫、洪水、猛獸、…,等等。因為,早死晚死都是死,死後還回到主耶穌那裏,有甚麼好怕兇死或病死?甚至主所愛的拉撒路生病,主都等到他死了才去看他!
親愛的弟兄姊妹,主耶穌這樣的做法是不是「無情」?當然不是!而是要行更大的事,只是在當時不知道!