John 11:35

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Jesus wept.

John 11:35 (NKJV)

Jesus wept.

John 11:35 (NIV)

Jesus wept.

John 11:35 (KJV)

Then Jesus wept.

John 11:35 (NLT)

Jesus wept.

John 11:35 (ESV)

Jesus wept.

John 11:35 (NASB)

Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. www.lockman.org

Jesus wept.

John 11:35 (AMP)

Scripture quotations taken from the Amplified® Bible (AMP), Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. www.lockman.org

Jesus wept.

John 11:35 (AMPC)

Scripture quotations taken from the Amplified® Bible (AMPC), Copyright © 1954, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. www.lockman.org

Now Jesus wept.

John 11:35 (MSG)

Scripture quotations from The Message. Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress. All rights reserved. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers.

New Covenant Meaning

The God Who Weeps With You

John 11:35 is the shortest verse in the Bible, and one of the most theologically important. Jesus knew Lazarus would be raised from the dead. He had already told Martha: "Your brother will rise again" (v. 23). He had just declared Himself to be the resurrection and the life (v. 25). And yet, when He saw Mary weeping and the mourners with her, He was deeply moved in spirit and wept. Jesus did not weep because He had no solution. He wept because He cares. The presence of grief in the people He loves moved the Son of God to tears. This is who God is: not detached, not impassive, not watching from a distance. Present. Moved. Weeping with the ones He loves.

Two Different Words for Weeping

The Greek word for Jesus's weeping in verse 35 (edakrusen) is different from the word used for Mary's weeping in verse 33 (klaiousa). Mary and the crowd klaiousin: they were wailing, weeping loudly in visible grief. Jesus edakrusen: He shed tears, a quieter but no less real expression of sorrow. Jesus did not perform grief to appear relatable. He entered into the moment with genuine tears. The distinction matters because it shows that Jesus was not mimicking human grief for effect. He was experiencing His own grief at what sin and death do to those He loves.

The crowd's response in verse 36 is one of the most significant observations in the passage: "Then the Jews said, 'See how He loved him!'" They interpreted the tears correctly. This was not a polite display of social sympathy. It was love made visible. Hebrews 4:15 says Jesus is a High Priest who can "sympathize with our weaknesses." John 11:35 is the event that proves that claim. He does not sympathize from a distance. He enters the grief, stands in the middle of it, and weeps. When you grieve, you do not grieve before a God who watches unmoved. You grieve before the one who wept at Lazarus's tomb.

Application for Your Life

Your Grief Does Not Push God Away

Many people pull back from God in grief, feeling either too broken to approach Him or afraid that their sorrow signals a lack of faith. John 11:35 addresses both fears directly. Jesus did not reprove Mary for weeping. He did not say "stop crying, I am about to fix this." He entered the grief with her. Your tears do not disqualify you from His presence. They move Him. He is drawn toward grief, not repelled by it. Whatever you are mourning, you do not mourn alone.

Jesus Prays for You as Hebrews 4:15 Describes

Hebrews 4:15 says Jesus sympathizes (sumpatheo) with our weaknesses because He has been tempted in every way as we are. John 11:35 is the evidence for that sympathy. He did not just observe human grief from heaven. He stood in it with tears on His face. This means when you bring your grief to Him in prayer, He is not receiving it as a high priest who lacks understanding. He is receiving it as one who has wept. That changes the nature of your approach to Him in suffering.

Prayer Based on This Verse

Jesus, I come to You with the grief I am carrying. You already know it. And I know from John 11 that You are not unmoved by it. You wept. Not because You had no answer but because You cared. You care about me in my grief the same way You cared about Mary in hers. I do not need to perform faith in front of You. I can bring my sorrow to You because You are safe with it. You receive it. You enter it. You stand with me in it. Thank You for not being distant. Thank You for weeping. In Your name. Amen.