John 11:38

John 11:38 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Jesus therefore again groaning in himself cometh to the grave. It was a cave, and a stone lay upon it.
• New International Version (NIV)Jesus, once more deeply moved, came to the tomb. It was a cave with a stone laid across the entrance.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Then Jesus, again groaning in Himself, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it.

Context of John 11:38

36So the Jews were saying, “See how He loved him [as a close friend]!” 37But some of them said, “Could not this Man, who opened the blind man’s eyes, have kept this man from dying?” So Jesus, again deeply moved within [to the point of anger], approached the tomb. It was a cave, and a boulder was lying against it [to cover the entrance]. 39Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to Him, “Lord, by this time there will be an offensive odor, for he has been dead four days! [It is hopeless!]” 40Jesus said to her, “Did I not say to you that if you believe [in Me], you will see the glory of God [the expression of His excellence]?”

John 11:38 word by word

Ἰησοῦς οὖν πάλιν ἐμβριμώμενος ἐν ἑαυτῷ ἔρχεται εἰς τὸ μνημεῖον· ἦν δὲ σπήλαιον, καὶ λίθος ἐπέκειτο ἐπ᾽ αὐτῷ.Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• JesusἸησοῦςIēsous · JesusG2424
• thereforeοὖνoun · therefore/thenG3767
• againπάλινpalin · againG3825
• groaningἐμβριμάομαιembrimaomai · be agitatedG1690
• inἐνen · in/on/amongG1722
• himselfἑαυτοῦheautou · themselfG1438
• comethἔρχομαιerchomai · to come/goG2064
• toεἰςeis · towardG1519
• the graveὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• the graveμνημεῖονmnēmeion · graveG3419
• It wasεἰμίeimi · to beG1510
• a caveσπήλαιονspēlaion · caveG4693
• andκαίkai · andG2532
• a stoneλίθοςlithos · stoneG3037
• layἐπίκειμαιepikeimai · to lay onG1945
• uponἐπίepi · upon/to/againstG1909
• itαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
• ·δέde · thenG1161

Cross-references for John 11:38

• John 11:33When Jesus saw her sobbing, and the Jews who had come with her also sobbing, He was deeply moved in spirit [to the point of anger at the sorrow caused by death] and was troubled,
• Ezekiel 9:4The Lord said to him, “Go through the midst of the city, throughout all of Jerusalem, and put a mark on the foreheads of the men who sigh [in distress] and grieve over all the repulsive acts which are being committed in it.”
• Ezekiel 21:6As for you, son of man, groan with breaking heart and bitter grief, groan in their sight.
• Mark 8:12He groaned and sighed deeply in His spirit and said, “Why does this generation demand a sign? I assure you and most solemnly say to you, no sign will be given to this generation!”
• Genesis 23:19After this, Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the cave of the field of Machpelah to the east of Mamre (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan.
• Genesis 49:29He charged them and said to them, “I am to be gathered to my people; bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of Ephron the Hittite,
• Isaiah 22:16‘What business do you have here? And whom do you have here, That you have hewn out a tomb here for yourself, You who hew a sepulcher on the height, You who carve a resting place for yourself in the rock?
• Matthew 27:60and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had cut in the rock; and he rolled a large stone over the entrance of the tomb and went away.

Commentaries on John 11:38

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 38It was a cave, etc. - It is likely that several of the Jewish burying-places were made in the sides of rocks; some were probably dug down like a well from the upper surface, and then hollowed under into niches, and a flat stone, laid down upon the top, would serve for a door. Yet, from what the evangelist says, there seems to have been something peculiar in the formation of this tomb. It might have been a natural grotto, or dug in the side of a rock or…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 38It was a cave - This was a common mode of burial. See the notes at Matthew 8:28. A stone lay upon it - Over the mouth of the cave. See Matthew 27:60.Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 33-46Verses 33-46 Christ's tender sympathy with these afflicted friends, appeared by the troubles of his spirit. In all the afflictions of believers he is afflicted. His concern for them was shown by his kind inquiry after the remains of his deceased friend. Being found in fashion as a man, he acts in the way and manner of the sons of men. It was shown by his tears. He was a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief. Tears of compassion resemble those of…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-57The resurrection of Lazarus points to the future death and resurrection of Jesus. The description of Lazarus’s tomb is similar to the description of the tomb Jesus was placed in after he died (11:38, 44; 20:1, 7). Both accounts mention a cave and burial cloths. These details connect the two events and help us see that Lazarus’s story is a sign. Soon after Lazarus was raised, a woman anointed Jesus for burial (12:3). This act prepared him for his coming…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33-3833-38. When Jesus ... saw her weeping, and the Jews ... weeping ... he groaned in the spirit--the tears of Mary and her friends acting sympathetically upon Jesus, and drawing forth His emotions. What a vivid and beautiful outcoming of His "real" humanity! The word here rendered "groaned" does not mean "sighed" or "grieved," but rather "powerfully checked his emotion"--made a visible effort to restrain those tears which were ready to gush from His eyes…Read the comment

Topics related to John 11:38

• Burial
• Cave
• Friendship
• Jesus, the Christ
• Lazarus
• Miracles
• Readings, Select
• Sorrow

In the dictionaries

• Jesus
• Jesus, Jesus Christ, Christ Jesus
• Awake
• Burial
• Cave
• Lazarus
• Martha
• Mourn
• Bethany
• Dead

Commentaries on John 11

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Catena Aurea
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• John Lightfoot Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• The Fourfold Gospel and Commentary on Acts
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings