Albert Barnes Commentary John 11:1

"Now a certain man was sick, Lazarus of Bethany, of the village of Mary and her sister Martha." — John 11:1 (ASV)

A certain man was sick. The resurrection of Lazarus has been recorded only by John. Various reasons have been conjectured why the other evangelists did not mention such a notable miracle. The most probable reason is that at the time they wrote, Lazarus was still living. The miracle was well known; yet, to have recorded it might have exposed Lazarus to opposition and persecution from the Jews .

Besides, John wrote for Christians who were outside of Palestine, while the other Gospels were written chiefly for those in Judea. Therefore, there was a greater need for him to provide a detailed account of the miracle, while the others did not consider it necessary or proper to record an event so well known.

Bethany was a village on the eastern slope of the Mount of Olives (see Barnes on Matthew 21:1).

The town of Mary was the place where she lived. Simon the leper also lived there (Matthew 26:6), and our Lord spent a considerable part of His time there when He was in Judea.

The event recorded in this chapter occurred nearly four months after those mentioned in the previous chapter. The earlier events took place in December, and this one occurred as the Passover in April approached.