‘Lord,if you had been here …’ (John 11.21): The Absence of Jesus and Strategies of Consolation in the Fourth Gospel

Abstract

This article aims to account for two aspects of the Lazarus story: first, the words with which Martha and Mary greet Jesus on his arrival at Bethany and, second, Jesus’ earlier unexplained delay on learning of Lazarus’s illness. It is claimed that the absence of Jesus was of crucial concern to John’s readership, whose cohesion was threatened by persecution and whose faith in Jesus’ return at the eschaton was growing increasingly fragile. In response, John provides consolation for his flock by means of a twofold strategy: first, he deals with Jesus’ absence by presenting the Holy Spirit advantageously as the abiding presence of Jesus in their midst and, second, he strengthens their resolve in the face of death by his emphasis on resurrection to life on Judgment Day as a present guarantee for those who believe in Jesus. Since these are distinctive aspects of John’s presentation, the question is raised as to whether other characteristic features of his work, even perhaps his choice of the gospel medium, could plausibly be seen as part of the same process of meeting his readers’ needs. The focus thus returns to the Lazarus story, distinctively placed as the centrepiece of the Gospel, and to a possible explanation of those aspects of it with which the study began. Two brief examples from the Gospel’s reception history are offered by way of conclusion.