Charles Ellicott Commentary John 11:54

"Jesus therefore walked no more openly among the Jews, but departed thence into the country near to the wilderness, into a city called Ephraim; and there he tarried with the disciples." — John 11:54 (ASV)

Jesus therefore walked no more openly among the Jews.—He had heard of the decree of the Sanhedrin which had been publicly made known (John 11:57), and therefore avoided persons who would have carried it into effect.

“The Jews” are, as before, the hostile party. The passage is a good illustration of St. John’s use of the term, for He was, of course, among Jews, in the ordinary meaning of the word, during the sojourn at Ephraim. (Compare to the note on John 1:19.)

But went thence unto a country near to the wilderness.—All the better manuscripts read “into the country . . .” as in contrast to the city, Jerusalem, where “the Jews” lived. He went from Bethany, when He had heard of what had taken place at Jerusalem, “into the country.” This is further defined as “near to the wilderness,” and then the name of the city is given.

Into a city called Ephraim.—The position of this “city” is not known. The manuscripts spell it variously as Ephraim, Ephrem, Ephram, and Ephratha. Eusebius and Jerome both assumed it to be the same place as Ephron, but differed as to its position, the former fixing it at eight, and the latter at twenty miles, northeast of Jerusalem.

Both would therefore place it in Judea, which agrees with its position “near to the wilderness,” because the desert of Judea extended nearly as far as Jericho. In 2 Chronicles 13:19, we find an Ephrain or Ephron (according to the written text and the Septuagint) in connection with the neighborhood of Bethel. This location is mentioned by Josephus (Wars, iv. 9, § 9) and is near the wilderness of Bethaven.

It is possibly the place named here; however, a Jew would naturally use the phrase “the wilderness” to mean the desert of Judea. Dr. Robinson would identify Ephraim and Ephron with Ophrah (Joshua 18:23; 1 Samuel 17:23) and fix the locality at the modern el-Taiyibeh, four or five miles east of Bethel and sixteen from Jerusalem, which would roughly agree with the position assigned by Jerome. We must be content to leave the matter in this uncertainty. (Compare to the Note on Luke 17:11.)