Jeremiah 29:1 (2-3) 4-14

Jeremiah’s Letter to the Exiles in Babylon

29:1 These are the words of the letter that the prophet Jeremiah sent from Jerusalem to the remaining elders among the exiles, and to the priests, the prophets, and all the people, whom Nebuchadnezzar had taken into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon. 2 This was after King Jeconiah, and the queen mother, the court officials, the leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, the artisans, and the smiths had departed from Jerusalem. 3 The letter was sent by the hand of Elasah son of Shaphan and Gemariah son of Hilkiah, whom King Zedekiah of Judah sent to Babylon to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. It said: 4 Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: 5 Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat what they produce. 6 Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease. 7 But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the LORD on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare. 8 For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Do not let the prophets and the diviners who are among you deceive you, and do not listen to the dreams that they dream, 9 for it is a lie that they are prophesying to you in my name; I did not send them, says the LORD.

10 For thus says the LORD: Only when Babylon’s seventy years are completed will I visit you, and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place. 11 For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the LORD, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope. 12 Then when you call upon me and come and pray to me, I will hear you. 13 When you search for me, you will find me; if you seek me with all your heart, 14 I will let you find me, says the LORD, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, says the LORD, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile. (Jeremiah 29:1 (2-3) 4-14, NRSV)

On October 21, 2007 (the Sunday closest to October 19, Year One), comments were repeated from March 30, 2007 (Friday in the week of the Fifth Sunday of Lent, Year One), when comments were combined with revision and supplement from March 18, 2005 (Friday in the week of the Fifth Sunday of Lent, Year One), and from October 16, 2005 (the Sunday closest to October 19, Year One). The combined comments are repeated here:

Jeremiah writes a letter to people deported from Jerusalem to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar in 597 B.C. (Jer. 29:1-2; cf. 2 Kgs. 24:8-12). Jeremiah writes “to the remaining elders among the exiles, and to the priests, the prophets, and all the people, whom Nebuchadnezzar had taken into exile from Jerusalem” (Jer. 29:1). Jeremiah puts this after the departure of “King Jeconiah [Jehoiachin], and the queen mother, the court officials, the leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, the artisans, and the smiths” (v. 2), who were also in exile, for “King Jehoiachin of Judah gave himself up to the king of Babylon, himself, his mother, his servants, his officers, and his palace officials [as] the King of Babylon took him prisoner in the eighth year of his reign” (2 Kgs. 24:12). This deportation, in 597 B.C., would be followed by another at the time of the siege of the city and destruction of the temple (2 Kgs. 25:11). The letter, we are told, “was sent by the hand of Elasah son of Shaphan and Gemariah son of Hilkiah, whom King Zedekiah of Judah sent to Babylon to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon” (v. 3).

According to Dr. Charles A. Pitts, of the Houston Graduate School of Theology,

This chapter is the record of a series of letters between Jeremiah in Jerusalem and the exiles in Babylon. The primary letter, from Jeremiah to the exiles, is included in Jer. 29:1-23. Verses 24-28 records Jeremiah’s response to a letter from a prophet named Shemaiah, who was in Babylon. This letter could be a part of the first letter, or a second letter, written after the first letter had been received and read, prompting a response from Shemaiah. However, the response in verses 24-28 could simply be an oracle of the prophet, in which case 29:24-32 are a single unit, albeit a somewhat confusing one. The latter seems the best option for interpretation. Jeremiah’s further response to the public reading of Shemaiah’s letter is found in Jer. 29:29-32, perhaps representing a third letter, although the exact chronology of the composition of the letters is impossible to ascertain. (“Lecture Notes” on Jeremiah and Ezekiel, on his Internet web site, at http://www.hgst.edu/Faculty_Staff_Pictures/Pitts/website/Lecture%20Notes--Jer%20Ez%20Jer%2029-30.htm, accessed April 2, 2009; you may need to copy and pasted the URL address in your browser. Note 1 says, “See Fretheim, Jeremiah, 399-400, for the view of three separate letters. Bright, Jeremiah, 210-211, offers the alternative of 29:24-32 as a unit.)

The introduction of the letter represents it as a divine oracle. “Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel (lxerAW4y9 yhelox@ tOxbAc4 hvhy rmaxA hKo, kōh ’āmar YHWH ts ^evā’ôth, ’ ^elōhê yiśrā’ēl), to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon” (v. 4). Jack R. Lundbom, based on this formula or variations, including “says the LORD” (vv. 11, 14a, b, 19a, b, NRSV for hvhy-Mxun4, n ^e’um YHWH; “oracle of Yahweh,” Lundbom), counts seven oracles within this letter, (1) verses 5-7, (2) verses 8-9, (3) verses 10-13, (4) verse 14a, (5) verse 14b, (6) verses 16-19, and (7) verses 21-23 (Jeremiah 21-36, Anchor Bible, vol. 21B, 2004, pp. 346-347). The first of these has surprising advice. “Build houses and live in them,” says Jeremiah; “plant gardens and eat what they produce. Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease” (vv. 5-6). It sounds as though they are being told to prepare for a long–perhaps permanent–stay in Babylon. (And we know from later history that some did stay.) According to Biddle, “The exiles of the first deportation . . . were being misled by the same baseless assurances of speedy return as those in Palestine (ch. 27),” and Jeremiah’s letter is sent “to counter this” (op. cit., on v. 3). “First,” says Pitts,

they should make themselves at home in Babylon. All of the expectations of vv. 5-6 are the expectations of normal life. In other words, the exiles were to continue with life as normal, accepting that Babylon is now their home. They are to increase, even in exile. God’s creative work in His people does not cease because of judgment and exile. Still, God is active among His people. Still, God wants to bless His people. Still, God wants to bless His people. As Fretheim states, “this word is testimony to God’s ongoing work of creation and blessing, that flowing, rhythmic, non-dramatic divine activity” [Note 5 cites Fretheim, p. 409.]. God will work in their midst, if they will serve Him, even in a foreign land not of their choosing, if they will accept the judgment that they have earned. Furthermore, the command to plant and build even in exile reflects the call of Jeremiah, which was both destructive and creative. These exiles have experienced the judgment of God, now they must prepare to accept his grace and blessing. (op. cit.)

Furthermore, the Judean exiles are to pray for their enemies (cf. Mt. 5:44; Lk. 6:28; Rom. 12:14, 17-21; 1 Tim. 2:1-2). “But seek the welfare (MOlwA, šālôm) of the city where I have sent you into exile,” says the LORD in Jeremiah’s letter, “and pray to the LORD on its behalf, for in its welfare (MOlwA, šālôm) you will find your welfare (MOlwA, šālôm)” (Jer. 29:7). According to Pitts,

The translation, “peace” [cf. ‘peace and prosperity,’ TNIV] is seldom adequate for shalom [MOlwA, šālôm]; rather a term like “welfare” or “well-being” is probably more appropriate. The well-being of the exiles depends completely upon the welfare of Babylon. If famine or war comes to Babylon, it also comes to the exiles from Judah. Babylon, not Jerusalem, must be the focus of their prayers for blessing. This is an interesting twist to the psalmist admonition in Psalm 122:6-7, “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: May those who love you be secure. May there be peace within your walls and security within your citadels.” Certainly, much to their dislike, the welfare of the exiles is now tied to Babylon, not Jerusalem.

The next oracle seeks to counter the deception of false prophets among the Judean exiles in Babylon. “For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Do not let the prophets and the diviners who are among you deceive you, and do not listen to the dreams that they dream, for it is a lie that they are prophesying to you in my name; I did not send them, says the LORD” (Jer. 29:8-9). According to Biddle, the Judeans taken to Babylonian exile “were being misled by the same baseless assurances of speedy return as those in Palestine (ch. 27)” (op. cit., on Jer. 29:3). According to Lundbom, prophets in exile “are making grand claims about how things will improve markedly in Jerusalem” (op. cit., on Jer. 29:1-32). In Jerusalem, Jeremiah has predicted the destruction of the Jerusalem temple and the Babylonian captivity by wearing “a yoke of straps and bars” in an acted out prophecy (Jer., chap. 27). The prophet Hananiah–a false prophet–contradicts Jeremiah’s prophecies. “Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel,” says Hananiah: “I have broken the yoke of the king of Babylon. Within two years I will bring back to this place all the vessels of the LORD’s house, which King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon took away from this place and carried to Babylon. I will also bring back to this place King Jeconiah son of Jehoiakim of Judah, and all the exiles from Judah who went to Babylon, says the LORD, for I will break the yoke of the king of Babylon” (Jer. 28:2-4). Later in the present context, Jeremiah says, “Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning Ahab son of Kolaiah and Zedekiah son of Maaseiah, who are prophesying a lie to you in my name: I am going to deliver them into the hand of King Nebuchadrezzar of Babylon, and he shall kill them before your eyes” (29:21).

Jeremiah tells the exiles that they are to prepare for a lifetime (“seventy years,” v. 10) in Babylon. As we know from hindsight, Jeremiah’s prediction proved to be correct, at least approximately. (For various views on the exact meaning of “seventy years,” see the comments of Dr. Pitts, op. cit., i.e. on his Internet web site.) The edict of Cyrus which permitted the Jews to return (538 B.C., 2 Chron. 36:22-23; Ezra 1:1-4) took some years to be fully realized, and many Jews settled permanently in Babylon. Later it was said of Hillel that, like Ezra, he came up from Babylon to teach Jerusalem the Law. Eventually it was the Babylonian Talmud (not the Palestinian Talmud) that became the official Jewish Talmud.

Jeremiah, while giving sound advice, was hardly aware of what the centuries would bring. But he passes on the word of the LORD for the exiles. “Only when Babylon’s seventy years are completed will I visit you, and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place” (v. 10). They are not forgotten, as the word of the LORD continues, “For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the LORD, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope” (v. 11). Their restoration will require repentance, for the LORD tells the exiles, “Then when you call upon me and come and pray to me, I will hear you” (v. 12). “When you search for me,” he says, “you will find me; if you seek me with all your heart, I will let you find me” (vv. 13, 14a). And the LORD adds, “I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, says the LORD, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile” (v. 14b). Here, as often in Jeremiah, he must contradict the superficial optimism of false prophets with sound advice which may seem bitter for the moment, but in the long run, holds out more substantial hope.

Romans 11:13-24

13 Now I am speaking to you Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I glorify my ministry 14 in order to make my own people jealous, and thus save some of them. 15 For if their rejection is the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead! 16 If the part of the dough offered as first fruits is holy, then the whole batch is holy; and if the root is holy, then the branches also are holy.

17 But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, a wild olive shoot, were grafted in their place to share the rich root of the olive tree, 18 do not boast over the branches. If you do boast, remember that it is not you that support the root, but the root that supports you. 19 You will say, “Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.” 20 That is true. They were broken off because of their unbelief, but you stand only through faith. So do not become proud, but stand in awe. 21 For if God did not spare the natural branches, perhaps he will not spare you. 22 Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God’s kindness toward you, provided you continue in his kindness; otherwise you also will be cut off. 23 And even those of Israel, if they do not persist in unbelief, will be grafted in, for God has the power to graft them in again. 24 For if you have been cut from what is by nature a wild olive tree and grafted, contrary to nature, into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these natural branches be grafted back into their own olive tree. (Romans 11:13-24, NRSV)

On July 15, 2008 (Tuesday in the week of the Sunday closest to July 13, Year Two), comments were repeated with editing and supplement from March 30, 2007 (Friday in the week of the Fifth Sunday of Lent, Year One), when comments were combined and revised from July 13, 2004, in an email sent July 12, 2004 for July 12-18, from March 18, 2005 (Friday in the week of the Fifth Sunday of Lent, Year One), and from July 18, 2006 (Tuesday in the week of the Sunday closest to July 13, Year Two). The combined comments are repeated here with editing and supplement.

Paul turns from his discussion of the situation of the Jews to a warning: “Now I am speaking to you Gentiles,” Paul says (Rom. 11:13a). He claims the right, even the obligation, to address them. “Inasmuch then as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I glorify my ministry in order to make my own people jealous, and thus to save some of them” (Rom. 11:13b, 14). According to C. K. Barrett, “Gentiles might think that a long discussion of the remnant of Israel had little to do with them.” He adds,

The drift of his [Paul’s] argument appears to be: I know I am the ‘Gentile-apostle’, and I know that I am speaking to Gentiles . . . Yet my concern for my fellow-Jews is not derogatory to or inconsistent with my office; in fact, my work among Gentiles–because it is work among Gentiles–is connected with the Jews. The more I make of my Gentile mission the more jealous will the Jews become, and this will lead in the end to what I desire–their salvation. (A Commentary on the Epistle to the Romans, Harper’s New Testament Commentaries, 1957, on Rom. 11:13-14)

According to Ben Witherington III, “v[erse] 14 brings a note of realism. Paul hopes to make his fellow Jews jealous and so save some of them (tina;V ejx aujtw:n, tinas ex autōn).” Against Käsemann, Witherington adds, “He [Paul] does not expect by himself to bring the fulness of Israel into the Christian faith” (Paul’s Letter to the Romans; A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary, 2004, p. 268, on Rom. 11:14). But in some sense Paul does expect the conversion of Israel, for he continues: “For if their rejection is the reconciliation (katallaghv, katallagē) of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead!” (v. 15). Reconciliation (katallaghv, katallagē)) is defined as “reestablishment of an interrupted or broken relationship, reconciliation . . . which, according to Paul, is brought about by God alone” Bauer-Danker-Arndt-Gingrich [BDAG], A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and other Early Christian Literature, 3^rd ed., 2000, s.v. katallaghv, katallagē). The Lexicon cites this meaning for this verse (Rom. 11:15) and refers to the related verb in 2 Corinthians 5:19, “the exchange of hostility for a friendly relationship, reconcile . . .someone tiniv to someone” as an act of God who reconciles “us to himself through Christ” (s.v katallavssw, katallassō). Barrett, in reference to Romans 11:15 and “reconciliation,” refers to his earlier discussion:

The same truth [i.e., about justification, Rom. 5:9, cf. vv. 1-9] is now differently expressed in an illuminating parallel. For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, much more, now that we have been reconciled, shall we be saved by his life [Rom. 5:10, Barrett’s translation]. It is important here to notice the introduction of a new term–reconciliation, and the close parallel between this and justification. The two verses (9 and 10) can be set out in outline as follows:

                        1. Justified                             1. Reconciled

                        2. Through the death of         2. Through the death of

                                    Christ                                      Christ

                        3. We shall be saved              3. We shall be saved.

Justification and reconciliation are different metaphors describing the same fact. (op. cit., pp. 107-108 on Rom. 5:9, 10)

Continuing in chapter 11, Paul illustrates his point with a metaphor. “If the part of the dough offered as first fruits is holy, then the whole batch is holy; and if the root is holy, then the branches also are holy” (11:16). According to John Knox and John Reumann, Paul describes “a converted remnant of Jewish Christians” as the “dough” which is the “first fruits” required by Numbers 15:18-21, LXX (Greek Translation) (NOAB, 2^nd ed. on Rom. 11:13-16), where one of the Greek terms, ajfaivrema (aphairema), means “that which is taken away as the choice part” (Liddell-Scott-Jones Greek-English Lexicon, new ed., with supplement, 1968, s.v. ajfaivrema, aphairema). Wouldn’t it be great to be called by God “the choice part”? According to the Christian gospel, that’s what we are. “For God so loved the world . . .” (Jn. 3:16). Paul seems to include a larger group when he says, “If the part of the dough offered as first fruits is holy, then the whole batch is holy; and if the root is holy, then the branches also are holy” (v. 16). The “remnant” (9:27-29; 11:1-4) is “the part of the dough offered as first fruits,” which is “holy” and makes “the whole batch” (the whole of Israel) “holy”; and the holy “root” makes “the branches . . . holy” (v. 16).

The metaphor changes to the olive tree. Addressing Gentiles, Paul says, “But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, a wild olive shoot, were grafted in their place to share the rich root of the olive tree, do not boast over the branches” (vv. 17, 18a). Neil Elliott says that the passive voice in the phrase, “broken off . . . reflects divine action” (NOAB, 3^rd ed., 2001, referring to the phrase in Rom. 11:17, 19, and 20). According to T. W. Manson, “The broken off branches [v. 17] are the Jews who have refused to become a part of the true Israel; the ingrafted shoots of wild olive are Gentile converts to Christianity, who by conversion become part of the true Israel” (Peake’s Commentary on the Bible, 1962, reprinted 1972, sec. 824k, p. 949 on Rom. 11:17). “If you do boast,” says Paul, “remember that it is not you that support the root, but the root that supports you” (v. 18). Paul anticipates a Gentile objection and admonishes humility. “You will say, ‘Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.’ That is true. They were broken off because of their unbelief, but you stand only through faith. So do not become proud, but stand in awe” (vv. 19-20). The Christian has no right to boast over the Jew, but all are responsible to God. According to Elliott, “The remnant preserved by God (see 9:27-29; 11:1-5), like a portion of dough offered in worship (Num. 15:18-21) or the root of a tree (Jer. 11:16-17), guarantees God’s continuing care for the whole of Israel” (op. cit., on Rom. 11:16). So the tree will live, though it loses “some branches,” and if a “wild olive shoot,” the Gentile Christians [of Rome?] were grafted in the place of the lost branches (v. 17), they must be careful. “For if God did not spare the natural branches, perhaps he will not spare you” (v. 21). The point is “the kindness and the severity of God”: “Note then the kindness and the severity of God,” says Paul: “severity toward those who have fallen, but God’s kindness toward you, provided you continue in his kindness; otherwise you also will be cut off” (v. 22). If it is possible for Christians to be cut off for failing to “continue in his kindness,” it is also possible for those Jews–cut off branches–to be restored. “And even those of Israel, if they do not persist in unbelief, will be grafted in, for God has the power to graft them in again” (v. 23). The point is reinforced by a positive, a fortiori (i.e., ‘all the more’) argument. “For if you have been cut from what is by nature a wild olive tree and grafted, contrary to nature, into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these natural branches be grafted back into their own olive tree.” (v. 24). Such restoration of Jews would be no more than God has done for Gentile Christians.

John 11:1-27 or

John 12:1-10 (below)

The Death of Lazarus

11:1 Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. 2 Mary was the one who anointed the Lord with perfume and wiped his feet with her hair; her brother Lazarus was ill. 3 So the sisters sent a message to Jesus, “Lord, he whom you love is ill.” 4 But when Jesus heard it, he said, “This illness does not lead to death; rather it is for God’s glory, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.” 5 Accordingly, though Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus, 6 after having heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was.

7 Then after this he said to the disciples, “Let us go to Judea again.” 8 The disciples said to him, “Rabbi, the Jews were just now trying to stone you, and are you going there again?” 9 Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours of daylight? Those who walk during the day do not stumble, because they see the light of this world. 10 But those who walk at night stumble, because the light is not in them.” 11 After saying this, he told them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I am going there to awaken him.” 12 The disciples said to him, “Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will be all right.” 13 Jesus, however, had been speaking about his death, but they thought that he was referring merely to sleep. 14 Then Jesus told them plainly, “Lazarus is dead. 15 For your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.” 16 Thomas, who was called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.”

Jesus the Resurrection and the Life

17 When Jesus arrived, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days. 18 Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, some two miles away, 19 and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them about their brother. 20 When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, while Mary stayed at home. 21 Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. 22 But even now I know that God will give you whatever you ask of him.” 23 Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” 24 Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.” 25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, 26 and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” 27 She said to him, “Yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one coming into the world.” (John 11:1-27, NRSV)

On September 10 and 11, 2008 (Wednesday and Thursday in the week of the Sunday closest to September 7, Year Two), comments on John 11:1-16 and 17-29 were repeated from September 13, 2006 (Wednesday in the week of the Sunday closest to September 7, Year Two) and from January 5, 2008 (Saturday in the week of the First Sunday after Christmas, Year Two, refs. for Jan. 5, Year Two), and from earlier comments as indicated there. Relevant comments are repeated here:

This reading brings us to the seventh of Jesus’ signs as presented in John’s Gospel–miracles that point to his identity as the divine Son of God–signs that are central to John’s purpose in writing (Jn. 20:30-31). The first two signs are enumerated: water to wine (2:1-11), “the first of his signs” (v. 11), and healing the royal official’s son (4:46-54), “the second sign that Jesus did” (v. 54). The remaining signs are (3) healing the lame man on the sabbath (at the pool called Bethzatha (5:1-18), (4) feeding the five thousand (6:1-15), (5) walking on the sea (6:16-21), (6) healing the man born blind (9:1-41), and (7) the raising of Lazarus (11:1-44). Other “signs” are mentioned (e.g., 2:23; 3:2; cf. 6:26), but these seven are described in detail. It is worth noting that while only 16% of John’s Gospel is about events and sayings of Jesus in Galilee, four of these signs take place there. It is also significant that while each of the signs performed in or near Jerusalem, healing the lame man and the blind man, the raising of Lazarus, provoked swift, significant opposition, there was none of that in Galilee, or at least none in John’s narrative. The discussion of the bread of life after the feeding of the five thousand led some to see Jesus’ teaching as “difficult (Jn. 6:60), and caused many disciples to turn back (v. 66), but the most the opponents, the “Jews” (John’s term for Jewish leaders), do is “complain about him because he said, ‘I am the bread that came down from heaven’” (v. 41). Some of them, right after the feeding of the five thousand and the walking on the sea, were brazen enough to ask, “What sign are you going to give us then, so that we may see it and believe you?” (v. 30).

In the present reading, we are told that “a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha” (Jn. 11:1). John’s description of Mary anticipates his account of her anointing Jesus with perfume and wiping his feet with her hair (12:1-9), which was still to come in John’s story line, because “Jesus came to Bethany, the home of Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead” (12:1), but in the past with reference to John’s memory of these occasions and his telling the stories in his Gospel. “Mary,” he says, “was the one who anointed (hJ ajleivyasa, hē aleipsasa, aorist [past tense] participle) the Lord with perfume and wiped ( ejkmavxasa, ekmaksasa, another aorist [past tense] participle, paired with the previous one) his feet with her hair; her brother Lazarus was ill” (11:2). In being told that “the sisters sent a message to Jesus, ‘Lord, he whom you love is ill’ ” (v. 3), we are informed for a third time (in the space of three verses) that Lazarus is ill–ill indeed! we might say.

Jesus, however, seems insensitive at first. He appears to ignore the implicit call for help. As earlier, when he told his brothers, who urged him to go to Jerusalem for the Feast of Tabernacles (7:3-4), Jesus waits for the opportune time. “This illness does not lead to death; rather it is for God’s glory, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it,” he says (11:4; cf. “My time has not yet come,” 7:6). And Jesus delays going to see Lazarus and his sisters though he “loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus” (v. 5), staying “two days longer in the place where he was” (v. 6).

Later, at Lazarus’ tomb, he would weep (v. 35). But he would be reminded by both sisters, Martha, and later Mary, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died” (vv. 21, 32). When Jesus decides to go to Judea again (v. 7), he is cautioned by the disciples. “Rabbi, the Jews were just now trying to stone you, and are you going there again?” (v. 8). Jesus responds with confidence. “Are there not twelve hours of daylight? Those who walk during the day do not stumble, because they see the light of this world. But those who walk at night stumble, because the light is not in them” (vv. 9-10). Jesus is saying that “his life would end when God willed; his enemies could not shorten it” (Obery M. Hendricks, Jr., NOAB, 3^rd ed., on Jn. 11:9). He admits that “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep,” “a frequent euphemism for death” (ibid., on v. 11, cf. v. 13), but adds, “but I am going there to awaken him” (v. 11). When the disciples misunderstand (v. 12), Jesus explains without the metaphor. “Lazarus is dead. For your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him” (vv. 14b, 15). Thomas, who–like the others–apparently misunderstands, expresses his misgivings. “Let us also go, that we may die with him” (v. 16). The danger, of course, was all too real, from the human point of view.

When Lazarus dies, Jesus faces what must have been an impossible situation in human terms. Due to his delay in coming (Jn. 11:6), when he arrived, “Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days” (v. 17). John notes the proximity to Jerusalem (v. 18) and tells us that “many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them about their brother” (v. 19). But Martha, the woman of action goes out to meet Jesus (v. 20), and expresses a degree of faith: “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that God will give you whatever you ask of him” (vv. 21-22). But she does not expect the immediate raising of Lazarus, for she pins her hopes on “the resurrection in the last day” (v. 24). While affirming that hope (v. 23), Jesus also emphasizes the present reality of resurrection life for those who believe in him. “I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” (vv. 25-26) . Martha’s response affirms the faith that John’s Gospel was written to engender in its readers: “But these [“signs,” John’s terms for miracles] are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name (20:31). She says “Yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one coming into the world” (11:27). But she does not yet realize the immediate blessing that is in store for her.

John 12:1-10

Mary Anoints Jesus (Mt 26.6-13; Mk 14.3-9)

12:1 Six days before the Passover Jesus came to Bethany, the home of Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. 2 There they gave a dinner for him. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those at the table with him. 3 Mary took a pound of costly perfume made of pure nard, anointed Jesus’ feet, and wiped them with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. 4 But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (the one who was about to betray him), said, 5 “Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and the money given to the poor?” 6 (He said this not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief; he kept the common purse and used to steal what was put into it.) 7 Jesus said, “Leave her alone. She bought it so that she might keep it for the day of my burial. 8 You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me.”

The Plot to Kill Lazarus

9 When the great crowd of the Jews learned that he was there, they came not only because of Jesus but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. 10 So the chief priests planned to put Lazarus to death as well, (John 12:1-10, NRSV)

The following comments are based on those of September 15, 2008 (Monday in the week of the Sunday closest to September 14, Year Two), comments for John 11:55-12:8 were repeated from September 18, 2006 (Monday in the week of the Sunday closest to September 14, Year Two), when comments were repeated from February 23, 2006 (Thursday in the week of the Seventh Sunday after the Epiphany, Year Two); compare the comments of March 30, 2007 (Friday in the week of the Fifth Sunday of Lent, Year One), and earlier comments as indicated there.

After the council’s decision (John 11:47-55), Jesus withdraws “to a town called Ephraim.” Due to the decision, “he no longer walked about openly among the Jews” (Jn. 11:54). John reports that the chief priests and Pharisees “were looking for Jesus.” They asked one another, “What do you think? Surely he will not come to the festival [Passover], will he?” (v. 56). You might say they put out an “all points bulletin” on Jesus. They had given orders that anyone who knew where Jesus was should let them know, so that they might arrest him” (v. 57). It is ironic (again) that the authorities cannot locate such a public figure as Jesus to carry out their decision, but we know that more than a merely human drama is being played out in John’s narrative. Jesus has already stated that he, not the Jewish leaders nor the Roman officials, is in control of his own destiny.

For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life in order to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it up again. I have received this command from my Father. (John 10:17-18, NRSV)

His “hour,” which had not yet come at the wedding in Cana (Jn. 2:4; cf. 7:30), will soon be upon him (12:23, 27; 13:1; 17:1). As he would later tell Pilate, “You would have no power over me unless it had been given you from above; therefore the one who handed me over to you is guilty of a greater sin” (19:11).

John’s account of the anointing of Jesus at Bethany is one of four similar accounts in the Gospels (Mt. 26:6-13; Mk. 14:3-9; Lk. 7:36-50; and Jn. 12:1-8). The text of each is in a separate file, Anointing at Bethany. The stories in Matthew and Mark are very similar, and set after the Triumphal Entry (Mt. 21:1-9; Mk. 11:1-10; Lk. 19:28-40; Jn. 12:12-19), which follows John’s account of the anointing. Mark puts the event “two days before the Passover” (Mk. 14:1) which, while in the preceding paragraph, may not exactly date the anointing. For Matthew and Mark, the anointing is at the house of Simon the Leper (Mt. 26:6; Mk. 14:3), for John it is at the home of Lazarus (Jn. 12:1), but the similar event in Luke is in Galilee (after an event at Nain (Lk. 7:11-17) and before a preaching tour (8:1) and takes place at the house of a Pharisee (7:36) who is called Simon (7:43, 44). The person who anoints Jesus is an unnamed woman in Matthew and Mark, who anoints Jesus’ head, and is praised. “Truly I tell you, wherever the good news is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will be told in remembrance of her” (Mk. 14:9=Mt. 26:13). Those who object are the disciples (Mt. 26:8) or “some [who] were there” (Mk. 14:4). In Matthew and Mark Jesus says that she is anointing his body for burial, and John says, “She bought it so that she might keep it for the day of my burial” (Jn. 12:7). In Luke, the person who anoints Jesus is described as “a woman in the city, who was a sinner” (Lk. 7:37). She bathes Jesus feet in her tears as well as the ointment. It is the Pharisee, Simon, who objects, but Jesus explains with a parable of two debtors, one who owed five hundred denarii and the other fifty, but the creditor cancelled both debts (Lk. 7:41, 42). Jesus asks, “Now which of them will love him more? (Lk. 7:42). After further explanation, Jesus forgives the woman (Lk. 7:48), which raises questions among Simon’s guests. “Who is this who even forgives sins?” (Lk. 7:49). In John, the woman is Mary, sister of Martha and Lazarus, which relates chapter 12 to chapter 11. In Luke and John it is Jesus’ feet, not his head, that are anointed, which has a certain significance in John’s account, according to Raymond E. Brown:

Mary’s action constituted an anointing of Jesus’ body for burial, and thus unconsciously she performed a prophetic action. And indeed this may explain why the rather implausible detail of the anointing of the feet was kept in the Johannine narrative–one does not anoint the feet of a living person, but one might anoint the feet of a corpse as part of the ritual of preparing the whole body for burial. (The Gospel According to John I-XII, Anchor Bible, 29, 1966, p. 454)

In spite of these and other differences in detail, some have considered these accounts as reports of the same event, with differing details due to the oral tradition. C. H. Dodd “posits one basic incident behind all three accounts” (cited from Tradition, pp. 162-73, by Brown, p. 450). But Brown suggests that Luke’s incident is different from the one reported by Matthew and Mark, and that John’s account of the latter has been influenced by details from the former. In John’s account, it is Judas, the “thief” (Jn. 12:6) who raises the objection (v. 5). Commenting on various references to Judas and his betrayal, Brown concludes by suggesting, “The picture of Judas’ cupidity was naturally painted in darker and darker tones as the story was retold. John’s portrait of Judas in xii 4-6 is even more hostile than that of Matthew [‘demanding money,’ Mt. 26:15], for John presents Judas as a thief” (ibid., p. 453). But for John, Mary is a model disciple.

Ronald D. Worden, Ph.D.

rdworden@hgst.edu

deanworden@comcast.net