Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of John 11:18
Now Bethany was nigh unto Jerusalem, about fifteen furlongs off:
18. Now Bethany was nigh unto Jerusalem ] The ‘was’ need not imply that when S. John wrote Bethany had been destroyed, but this is the more probable meaning; especially as no other Evangelist speaks of places in the past tense, and S. John does not always do so. The inference is that he wrote after the destruction of Jerusalem; and that what was destroyed in the siege he speaks of in the past tense; e.g. Bethany (here), the garden of Gethsemane (Joh 18:1), Joseph’s garden (Joh 19:41) what was not destroyed, in the present tense; e.g. Bethesda ( Joh 11:2, where see note).
about fifteen furlongs ] Literally, about fifteen stades. A Greek stade Isaiah 18 yards less than an English furlong; but the translation is sufficiently accurate, like ‘firkin’ (Joh 2:6). This distance, therefore, was under two miles, and is mentioned to account for the many Jews who came to condole with the sisters.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Nigh unto Jerusalem – This is added to show that it was easy for many of the Jews to come to the place. The news that Jesus was there, and the account of the miracle, would also be easily carried to the Sanhedrin.
Fifteen furlongs – Nearly two miles. It was directly east from Jerusalem. Dr. Thomson (The Land and the Book, vol. ii. p. 599) says of Bethany: It took half an hour to walk over Olivet to Bethany this morning, and the distance from the city, therefore, must be about two miles. This agrees with what John says: Now Bethany was nigh unto Jerusalem, about fifteen furlongs off. The village is small, and appears never to have been large, but it is pleasantly situated near the southeastern base of the mount, and has many fine trees about and above it. We, of course, looked at the remains of those old edifices which may have been built in the age of Constantine, and repaired or changed to a convent in the time of the Crusades. By the dim light of a taper we also descended very cautiously, by 25 slippery steps, to the reputed sepulchre of Lazarus, or El Azariyeh, as both tomb and village are now called. But I have no description of it to give, and no questions about it to ask. It is a wretched cavern, every way unsatisfactory, and almost disgusting.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 18. Fifteen furlongs] About two miles: for the Jewish miles contained about seven furlongs and a half. So Lightfoot, and the margin.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
That, as we count, wants of two miles half a quarter.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
18. Bethany was nigh Jerusalem,about fifteen furlongsrather less than two miles; mentioned toexplain the visits of sympathy noticed in the following words, whichthe proximity of the two places facilitated.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Now Bethany was nigh unto Jerusalem,…. Which was a reason why them were so many of the Jews come there to condole the two sisters upon the death of their brother; and by this means the following miracle became more known there: it was
about fifteen furlongs off; that is, about two miles, for seven furlongs and a half made a Jewish mile, as appears from one of their canons c, which runs thus:
“they do not spread nets for doves, except it be distant from an habitable place, , “thirty furlongs”;”
which the commentators say d are “four miles”: and still more expressly it is said e, that
“between Jerusalem and Zuck, (the place where the scape goat was had,) there were ten tents, and ninety furlongs, “seven and a half to every mile”.”
Hence a furlong was called one seventh and a half of a mile f, which was 266 cubits, and two thirds of one.
c Misn. Bava Kama, c. 7. sect. 7. d Maimon. Jarchi, & Bartenora in ib. e Misn. Yoma, c. 6. sect. 4. f T. Bab. Bava Metzia, fol. 33. 1. Maimon. Hilch. Rotzeach, c. 13. sect. 6.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
About fifteen furlongs off ( ). The idiom of with the ablative for distance is like the Latin a millibus passum duobus (Caesar, Bell. Gall. ii. 7), but it ( also, Joh 12:1) occurs already in the Doric and in the Koine often (Moulton, Proleg., p. 101; Robertson, Grammar, p. 110). See it again in John 21:8; Rev 14:20.
Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament
Fifteen furlongs. About two miles.
Fuente: Vincent’s Word Studies in the New Testament
1) “Now Bethany was nigh unto Jerusalem,” (en de Bethania engus ton lerosolumon) “Now Bethany was near to Jerusalem,” on the Eastside, in Judea, Joh 11:1. It was in walking distance of Jerusalem, so that many Jewish women went out from there to comfort Martha and Mary, Joh 11:19.
2) “About fifteen furlongs off:” (hos apo stadion dekapente) “About fifteen furlongs away,” on the East side of the city. One furlong is one eighth of a mile; This means Bethany was about one and seven eighths miles from the city of Jerusalem; This is the place our Lord blessed His church-disciples for the last time on earth, then from where He ascended into heaven, Luk 24:50-53; Act 1:8-11.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
18. Now Bethany was near Jerusalem. The Evangelist diligently follows out all that contributes to the certainty of the narrative. He relates how near Jerusalem was to the village of Bethany, that no one may be astonished that, for the purpose of comforting the sisters, many friends came from Jerusalem, whom God intended to be witnesses of the miracle. For, though the desire of performing an office of kindness was their inducement to go, yet they were assembled there, by a secret decree of God, for another purpose, that the resurrection of Lazarus might not remain unknown, or that the witnesses might not be only those who belonged to the family. Now it is a convincing proof of the base ingratitude of the nation, that this striking demonstration of Divine power at a well-known place, amidst a vast crowd of men, and near the gates of the city, and which might almost be said to be erected on a stage, instantly vanishes from the eyes of men. We should rather say that the Jews, by maliciously shutting their eyes, intentionally do not see what is before their eyes. Nor is it a new or uncommon occurrence, that men who, with excessive eagerness, continually gape for miracles, are altogether dull and stupid in the consideration of them.
About fifteen furlongs This distance between the two places was somewhat less than two thousand paces, or, two miles; for the Stadium, or furlong, contains six hundred feet; that is, one hundred and twenty-five paces. (316)
(316) The Roman Passus , or pace — measured from the spot where either foot was planted to the spot where the same foot was planted after two ordinary steps — was five feet; so that the Mille , or thousand paces, contained five thousand feet, rather less than an English mile; and the Stadium , or furlong, which contained, as Calvin states, “one hundred and twenty-five paces,” was equal to six hundred and twenty-five feet. — Ed.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(18) Bethany was nigh unto Jerusalem.This way of speaking of places in the past tense is not found in the other Gospels. (Comp., in this Gospel, Joh. 18:1; Joh. 19:41; and, on the other hand, Note on Joh. 5:2.) The explanation may be that from St. Johns point of view, writing after the destruction of Jerusalem, the buildings and gardens could no longer be described as still existing.
About fifteen furlongs off.The Greek stadium which is here rendered furlong was 606 English feet. The distance was, then, as the margin gives it, not much short of two English miles. This is mentioned to account for the fact stated in the following verse, that many of the Jews came to comfort Martha and Mary.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
18. Fifteen furlongs Near two miles.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
‘Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, about two miles off (fifteen stadia), and many of the Judaisers had come to Martha and Mary to console them about their brother.’
Because Bethany was so close to Jerusalem they knew many people there and many had come to comfort Mary and Martha. The fact that they are linked to ‘the Judaisers’, along with the reminder that it is only two miles from Jerusalem, suggests that these included many important and influential people, which explains why the news so quickly reached ‘the Pharisees’ (v. 46). What was about to happen was not done quietly. It was done before some of the most influential people in the land. So what Jesus was about to do, and He did it quite dramatically, was a deliberate revelation to those in the highest places. He had determined that they must now face up to Who He is. It is a direct challenge to the authorities. But its deeper significance must also not be lost, and John brings this out in Joh 11:20-37.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Joh 11:18-19. Now Bethany was nigh unto Jerusalem, The evangelist mentions the vicinity of Bethany to Jerusalem, and speaks of the company of friends that were with the two sisters, to shew that, by the direction of divine providence, this great miracle had many witnesses, some of whom were persons of note, and inhabitants of Jerusalem. See on ch. Joh 12:5. Our Saviour might have delayed his coming, amongst other reasons, in order to meet a greater number of persons assembled to condole with the sisters; and as these guests had met for that purpose, it is evident that they could not be any parties with Jesus in raising Lazarus from the dead: for the very end of their coming shewed that they had no apprehension of his being recalled to life; and the place whence they came, makes it probable, that they were rather enemies than friends to Jesus; and the sequel of the narrative shews, that many of them atleast were really so. The general time of mourning for deceased relations, both among Jews and Gentiles, was seven days: during these days of mourning, the friends and neighbours of the mourners visited them, to condole with and comfort them. Many therefore, in so populous a part of the country, must have been going to and coming from the sisters, while the days of their mourning for Lazarus lasted. The concourse too would be the greater, as it was the time of the passover; and besides, a great multitude now attended Jesus in his journey.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Joh 11:18 . This observation explains the fact mentioned in the following verse, that so many of the (from the neighbouring capital) were present.
] The use of the praet . does not of itself necessarily imply that Bethany had ceased to exist at the time when the writer wrote, but might be explained (as it usually is) from the general connection with the past events narrated (see on Act 17:21 ; Krger on Xen. Anab . i. 4. 9; Breitenbach, ad Xen. Hier . 9. 4). At the same time, as John is the only one of the evangelists who uses the praet . thus (see besides Joh 18:1 , Joh 19:41 ), and as he further wrote a considerable time after the destruction of Jerusalem, it is more natural to suppose that Jerusalem and the surrounding neighbourhood was presented before his mind as lying waste, and Bethany also as no longer existing .
.] fifteen stadia off , i.e . about three-eighths of a geographical mile. On this mode of describing the distance (Rev 14:20 ) see Buttm. Neut. Gr . p. 133 [E. T. p. 153]. Compare also Joh 12:1 , and on Act 10:30 . A stadium = 589 feet Rhenish (606 feet English) measure.
Fuente: Heinrich August Wilhelm Meyer’s New Testament Commentary
18 Now Bethany was nigh unto Jerusalem, about fifteen furlongs off:
Ver. 18. About fifteen furlongs ] Not fully two miles: a short walk, and hence so great a resort to the place; not without a special providence of God, who ordereth all to his own glory. The Jews came only to comfort the sisters, and to condole with them (it is a mercy in misery to find such friends, qui maeroris et funeris pondera luctuosa participabunt, as Cyprian hath it, that will set to their shoulders, and bear a part), but God had a further end in that meeting, ne obscura esset Lazari resurrectio, that there might be many witnesses of Lazarus’ resurrection; who might also thereby be made partakers of the first resurrection,Rev 20:6Rev 20:6 .
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
18. ] The geographical notice is given, to account for the occurrence detailed in the next verse. A stadium = of a Roman mile.
Meyer remarks, that does not necessarily imply that the places no longer existed when the Apostle wrote, but may arise from the word occurring in context with a history which is past. So Xen. Anab. i. 4. 9, . But seeing that John alone uses this form of designation (cf. ch. Joh 18:1 ; Joh 19:41 ), and that he probably wrote after the destruction of Jerusalem, it is more natural (as Meyer himself confesses) to explain the past tense by his regarding Jerusalem and its neighbourhood as laid waste at the time when he published his Gospel.
Fuente: Henry Alford’s Greek Testament
about, &c. = as it were from (Greek. apo. App-104.)
fifteen furlongs, i.e. 11 miles.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
18.] The geographical notice is given, to account for the occurrence detailed in the next verse. A stadium = of a Roman mile.
Meyer remarks, that does not necessarily imply that the places no longer existed when the Apostle wrote, but may arise from the word occurring in context with a history which is past. So Xen. Anab. i. 4. 9, . But seeing that John alone uses this form of designation (cf. ch. Joh 18:1; Joh 19:41), and that he probably wrote after the destruction of Jerusalem, it is more natural (as Meyer himself confesses) to explain the past tense by his regarding Jerusalem and its neighbourhood as laid waste at the time when he published his Gospel.
Fuente: The Greek Testament
Joh 11:18
Joh 11:18
Now Bethany was nigh unto Jerusalem, about fifteen furlongs off;-[A little less than two miles and located on the eastern slope of Mount Olivet.]
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
fifteen furlongs: that is, about two miles, Joh 6:19, Luk 24:13, Rev 14:20, Rev 21:16
Reciprocal: Mat 21:17 – Bethany Act 1:12 – a sabbath
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
8
This verse gives us about two miles for distance from Bethany to Jerusalem.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Now Bethany was nigh unto Jerusalem, about fifteen furlongs off:
[About fifteen furlongs.] That is, two miles. For the Jewish miles did not hold out full eight furlongs, as other miles do, but seven and a half.
One of those seven and a half which make up a mile is a furlong.
“They do not lay the net for pigeons any less distance from the houses than thirty furlongs;” i.e. Four miles.
“What is furlong? It is a flight-shot. And why is furlong called a flight-shot? It is according to the numeral value of the letters, which is two hundred sixty-six: for two hundred sixty-six [cubits] make a flight shot. Now count, and you will thus find it: Seven times [Resh] two hundred make one thousand four hundred. Seven times [Samek] sixty make four hundred and twenty. Number them together, and they mount to one thousand eight hundred and twenty. Seven times [Vav] six make forty-two: half a furlong one hundred thirty-three: number them together, and the whole amounts to one thousand nine hundred ninety-five. Behold two thousand cubits excepting five.”
Fuente: Lightfoot Commentary Gospels
Joh 11:18. Now Bethany is nigh unto Jerusalem, about fifteen furlongs off. This verse is of importance, not merely as preparing for Joh 11:19, but also as showing that Jesus in visiting Bethany was coming into the immediate presence of His enemies. They had pronounced Him a blasphemer, and they were determined to bring Him to the blasphemers death (Joh 10:31; Joh 10:39).
Fuente: A Popular Commentary on the New Testament
Bethany was about 15 stadia (approximately one and three-quarters miles) east of Jerusalem. John implied that many family friends came from Jerusalem to console Mary and Martha. Prolonged grieving often lasting several days was customary in the ancient Near East. [Note: Cf. ibid., 2:320-21.] Therefore many people from Jerusalem either witnessed or heard about Jesus’ miracle.