The Death Of Lazarus

The gospel for the Fifth Sunday of Lent has Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead – image courtesy of Emmanuelthousandoaks.org.

The gospel reading for the Fifth Sunday of Lent is the story of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead. Jesus didn’t raise Lazarus as a random display of power. He did it for two grieving sisters who needed to know that the One standing before them wasn’t just a healer but the Christ, the One who holds life itself. Let’s take a look at the readings.

Gospel Text – John 11:3-7, 17, 20-27, 33b-45

To read the entire gospel, click here.

He became perturbed and deeply troubled, and said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to him, “Sir, come and see.” And Jesus wept. So, the Jews said, “See how he loved him.” But some of them said, “Could not the one who opened the eyes of the blind man have done something so that this man would not have died?”

So, Jesus, perturbed again, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay across it. Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the dead man’s sister, said to him, “Lord, by now there will be a stench; he has been dead for four days.” Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?” So, they took away the stone.

And Jesus raised his eyes and said, “Father, I thank you for hearing me. I know that you always hear me, but because of the crowd here, I have said this, that they may believe that you sent me.” And when he had said this, He cried out in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” The dead man came out, tied hand and foot with burial bands, and his face was wrapped in a cloth. So, Jesus said to them, “Untie him and let him go.”

Now, many of the Jews who had come to Mary and seen what he had done began to believe in him.

1st Reading – Ezekiel 37:12–14 — God Opens Graves

God’s Spirit turns death into life and despair into hope. Israel feels dead — exiled, cut off, hopeless.

God promises:

“I will open your graves.”
“I will put my spirit in you.”
“You shall live.”

This is resurrection language long before the New Testament. It’s God saying, “Your story is not over.” I will restore you myself.

Responsorial Psalm – Psalm 130 — From the Depths to Mercy

Even when we feel buried, God’s mercy pulls us up and out. The psalmist cries from the “depths” — the place of guilt, sorrow, and spiritual suffocation. The Psalmist shifts the message: God is full of mercy, redemption, and is worth waiting for “like the dawn.”

2nd Reading – Romans 8:8–11 — The Spirit Who Raised Jesus Lives in You

The Spirit is God’s resurrection engine inside us — transforming us now and raising us later. Paul makes a stunning claim: The same Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead lives in you and will give life to your mortal bodies. This is not a metaphor. Its resurrection power is already at work in believers.

Gospel Reading –John 11:1–45 — Jesus Raises Lazarus

Jesus is not only the giver of life — He is life. Death obeys His voice. Jesus doesn’t just perform a miracle. He reveals His identity:

“I am the resurrection and the life.”
Then He proves it by calling Lazarus out of the tomb.
For Martha and Mary, this is deeply personal.

For the crowd, it is undeniable. For the Gospel, it is the final sign before the Cross.

The Catholic View

Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead in the gospel reading for the Fifth Sunday of Lent – image courtesy of Vecteezy.com.

God’s Spirit brings life out of death, hope out of despair, and freedom out of the grave — and Jesus is the fullness of that promise. Where humans see a tomb, God sees a beginning. This Sunday’s readings speak with one voice. They declare that God does His best work in places that look finished, hopeless, or sealed shut.