of the disciples
were thus addressed, we think of John as especially including Jesus and
himself in that word "our," because of the nearness of their relation to
the afflicted family. And then that other word "sleepeth"--it must have
carried him, as well as James and Peter, back to the home of Jairus,
where they heard the same voice to which they were now listening say,
"The child is not dead but sleepeth."

We almost wonder that the three did not turn to their fellow-disciples
and say that "Jesus had spoken of the _death_ of Lazarus," while "they
thought that He spake of taking rest in sleep." But evidently not so;
and when Jesus "said unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead," doubtless John
was the saddest of them all, because of his special interest in him. The
full record--the only one of what transpired in that sad, joyful
home--shows how closely John watched every movement of Jesus and the
sisters, and how carefully he noted what they said. We may give credit
to his memory, even with the aid which he says was promised the
disciples in their remembrance. He notes the coming of Martha to meet
Jesus, while "Mary sat still in the house;" Martha's plaintive cry,
"Lord, if Thou hadst been here, my brother had not died;" the
conversation between her and Jesus concerning the resurrection; the
sudden change from it to His asking for Mary; Martha's return to the
house and whispering in her sister's ear, "The Master is come and
calleth for thee;" the hurried obedience to the call--all these
incidents are recorded by John with the particularity and vividness of
an eyewitness.

It appears as if Jesus would not perform the intended miracle until the
arrival of Mary. John's account of their meeting is full of pathos. He
watches her coming, notices the moment she catches sight of Him through
her tears, and her first act of falling down at His feet, and her
repetition of Martha's cry, "Lord, if thou hadst been here my brother
had not died." He looks into the faces of both as "Jesus sees her
weeping." He contrasts Mary's real and deep sorrow with the outward and
heartless outcries of pretended grief, at which Jesus "groans in
spirit," because a seeming mockery in the presence of His loving friend.
John measures the depth of the Lord's "troubled" spirit by His outward
movements. He opens to us His heart of hearts in the brief, tender
record, "Jesus wept." Where in the whole story of His life do we gain a
keener sense of His humanity, e