11:1 Now a certain man named Lazarus was sick. He was from Bethany, the village where Mary and her sister Martha lived. 12 11:2 (Now it was Mary who anointed the Lord with perfumed oil 13 and wiped his feet dry with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick.) 14
11:28 And when she had said this, Martha 16 went and called her sister Mary, saying privately, 17 “The Teacher is here and is asking for you.” 18
1 tn Grk “answered and said to him.”
2 tn Grk “Well have you said.”
3 tn The word order in Jesus’ reply is reversed from the woman’s original statement. The word “husband” in Jesus’ reply is placed in an emphatic position.
4 sn Woman was a polite form of address (see BDAG 208-9 s.v. γυνή 1), similar to “Madam” or “Ma’am” used in English in different regions.
5 tn Grk “an hour.”
6 tn The verb is plural.
7 tn Or “The scribes.” The traditional rendering of γραμματεύς (grammateu") as “scribe” does not communicate much to the modern English reader, for whom the term might mean “professional copyist,” if it means anything at all. The people referred to here were recognized experts in the law of Moses and in traditional laws and regulations. Thus “expert in the law” comes closer to the meaning for the modern reader.
8 sn See the note on Pharisees in 1:24.
9 tn Or “he straightened up.”
10 tn Grk “and said to them.”
11 tn Or “sinless.”
12 tn Grk “from Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha.”
13 tn Or “perfume,” “ointment.”
14 sn This is a parenthetical note by the author. It is a bit surprising that the author here identifies Mary as the one who anointed the Lord with perfumed oil and wiped his feet dry with her hair, since this event is not mentioned until later, in 12:3. Many see this “proleptic” reference as an indication that the author expected his readers to be familiar with the story already, and go on to assume that in general the author in writing the Fourth Gospel assumed his readers were familiar with the other three gospels. Whether the author assumed actual familiarity with the synoptic gospels or not, it is probable that he did assume some familiarity with Mary’s anointing activity.
15 tn That is, will come to life.
16 tn Grk “she”; the referent (Martha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
17 tn Or “in secret” (as opposed to publicly, so that the other mourners did not hear).
18 tn Grk “is calling you.”
19 tn Grk “from that very hour.”
20 tn The conjunction καί (kai, “and”) has not been translated here.
21 sn Woman was a polite form of address (see BDAG 208-9 s.v. γυνή 1), similar to “Madam” or “Ma’am” used in English in different regions. This occurs again in v. 15.
22 tn Grk “She said to them.”
23 tn The words “she told them” are repeated from the first part of the same verse to improve clarity.
24 tn Grk “the things.”
25 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) is specified in the translation for clarity.
26 tn The first part of Mary’s statement, introduced by ὅτι (Joti), is direct discourse (ἑώρακα τὸν κύριον, Jewraka ton kurion), while the second clause switches to indirect discourse (καὶ ταῦτα εἶπεν αὐτῇ, kai tauta eipen auth). This has the effect of heightening the emphasis on the first part of the statement.