In a cut and paste world... do we forget the things that we hold most dear, in an attempt to rush to press. I had mentioned that I was not going to include any "filler crap" just a couple of days ago... and look what I have gone and done.

Here are my questions of the John 11 text... my advanced exegesis:

What are the relationships between Mary, Martha, and Lazarus? Do names mean anything particular to this passage? Jesus is called both “Rabbi” and “Lord” in this section. Is John trying to show two different understandings of the role of Jesus? Why is Thomas named but the other disciples are not? What does Jesus mean by the following sentences?

“Aren’t there twelve hours in a day? If anyone walks around in the day, that one doesn’t trip, because he sees the light of the world.” “But if anyone walks around in the night, he trips because the light is not in him.”

Do these allude to something else? What was the Hellenistic view of hours, night, and day? What is relationship between sleep and death? Does Thomas suggest that they go to die with Jesus or with Lazarus? What does it mean to be a friend to Jesus and the disciples? Is this the first time in John that Mary is mentioned? How does Jesus know that Lazarus is dead? What is significant about Bethany? Are there different types of love being mentioned—and what do these mean (filei/j and hvga,pa)? What do glory (do,xhj) and glorification (doxasqh/) look like? How else is death talked about in John?

Interesting Facts
There are seven “signs” in the gospel of John—and each has a corresponding “I am” statement. I would like to look further into that relationship and do some research into the “Signs Gospel.” Moses used “signs” to mold the faith of the people. Is Jesus using them in the same manner? Lazarus comes from the Hebrew “Elazar) and means “God has helped.” How is Lazarus connected to death? There is a possibility that the Lazarus story shares some aspects with the story of Osiris being raised from the dead. There are also several tails depicting the later life of Lazarus—fleeing for his life and becoming a bishop in the church.