Bible Strands
John 11:4
When Jesus heard this, He said, “This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Jesus speaks to his disciples, still at a distance from Bethany, upon receiving word that Lazarus is sick. He has not seen the situation; he speaks before arriving.
The words — ἀσθένεια (astheneia) is rendered "sickness" but literally denotes a state of weakness or infirmity, not a passing ailment. Jesus takes that condition and reassigns its purpose.
The thread — John 9:3 applies the same logic: a man's blindness exists so the works of God may be displayed. John 11:40 is the payoff in this chapter, where Jesus asks Martha to believe so she may see the glory of God.
Why it lands — It asks the reader to accept that a known outcome (Lazarus will die) is not the final word, and to trust without a timeline. The claim is not that the loss is avoided but that it is not the end.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
When Jesus heard that, he said, This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby.
Cross-references
- John 11:40 Jesus replied, “Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?”
- John 9:3 Jesus answered, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but this happened so that the works of God would be displayed in him.
- 1 Peter 4:14 If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you.
- John 5:23 so that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.
- John 17:5 And now, Father, glorify Me in Your presence with the glory I had with You before the world existed.
- Mark 5:39 He went inside and asked, “Why all this commotion and weeping? The child is not dead, but asleep.”
- John 13:31 When Judas had gone out, Jesus said, “Now the Son of Man is glorified, and God is glorified in Him.
- 1 Peter 4:11 If anyone speaks, he should speak as one conveying the words of God. If anyone serves, he should serve with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory and the power forever and ever. Amen.
- John 2:11 Jesus performed this, the first of His signs, at Cana in Galilee. He thus revealed His glory, and His disciples believed in Him.
- John 8:54 Jesus answered, “If I glorify Myself, My glory means nothing. The One who glorifies Me is My Father, of whom you say, ‘He is our God.’