Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary John 11:17

"So when Jesus came, he found that he had been in the tomb four days already." — John 11:17 (ASV)

The time between Lazarus’s death and Jesus’ arrival at Bethany was four days. Two full days had intervened between the arrival of the messengers and Jesus’ departure for Bethany (v.6). The trip to Bethany would have taken at least a day, since Bethany was more than twenty miles distant from Jesus’ refuge in Perea (10:40–42). So the death of Lazarus must have occurred not long after Jesus was first informed of his illness. After three days all hope of resuscitation from a coma would be abandoned; and in the hot Palestinian climate, decay would have begun.