In John 11:25 Jesus tells Martha, whose brother Lazarus has been dead four days, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live. He does not only promise that there will be a resurrection someday. He says that resurrection and life are found in Him personally. Verse 26 adds that whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die: the believer's body may die, but his life in Christ cannot end. Jesus then proves His words by calling Lazarus out of the tomb, and a few weeks later He rose from the dead Himself.
John 11:25 is the fifth of the seven I am sayings in John's Gospel, and it is read at many Christian funerals and in the weeks before Easter. The setting matters. Lazarus of Bethany, a close friend of Jesus, fell sick. His sisters Mary and Martha sent word, but Jesus waited two more days before going, saying the sickness was for the glory of God. By the time He arrived, Lazarus had been in the tomb four days. Martha met Him on the road with words of grief and faith mixed together. Jesus told her that her brother would rise again. She answered that she knew he would rise at the last day. Then Jesus said something more: the resurrection is not only a future event; it is a person, and He was standing in front of her. He asked her, Believest thou this? Below are 12 KJV passages in three groups: the scene at Bethany, the promise itself, and the resurrection hope it gives every believer.
I am the resurrection: Jesus and Martha at Bethany
1. John 11:25
"Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:"
Martha had said, I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day (John 11:24). That was good Jewish faith, and true. But Jesus moves her from a doctrine to a person: I am the resurrection, and the life. Resurrection is what He gives to those who have died. Life is what He gives to those who are living. He that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: a believer who dies is not lost. Physical death is real, but it is not the end, because the believer belongs to the One who is life itself. Jesus could say this only because He is God.
2. John 11:21-22
"Then said Martha unto Jesus, Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died. But I know, that even now, whatsoever thou wilt ask of God, God will give it thee."
Martha's first words are honest: Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died. Mary says the same thing a little later (John 11:32). Many grieving people have said something like it to God: If only You had acted sooner. Jesus does not rebuke her. He listens, and then He answers. Martha also says, But I know, that even now, whatsoever thou wilt ask of God, God will give it thee. Her faith and her grief are side by side. The Bible gives us permission to bring both to Jesus. He meets us in our questions, not only after we have stopped asking them.
3. John 11:35
"Jesus wept."
The shortest verse in the KJV is one of the most comforting: Jesus wept. He knew He was about to raise Lazarus, and still He wept with Mary and the mourners. His tears show that grief is not a lack of faith. Death is an enemy (1 Corinthians 15:26), and Jesus was moved and troubled by it. The Jews who saw Him said, Behold how he loved him! (John 11:36). The One who calls Himself the resurrection and the life is not cold or distant. He shares our sorrow before He ends it. See our Bible verses about grief.
4. John 11:43-44
"And when he thus had spoken, he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth. And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with graveclothes: and his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus saith unto them, Loose him, and let him go."
Jesus prayed, and then he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth. It has often been said that if He had not named Lazarus, every grave would have opened. He that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with graveclothes. Then Jesus told the people, Loose him, and let him go. The miracle proved that His words to Martha were not a figure of speech. He had power over death. Lazarus would die again one day, but this was a sign of the greater resurrection to come, Jesus' own, and the final one when all who are in the graves shall hear his voice (John 5:28).
And the life: whosoever believeth shall never die
5. John 11:26
"And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?"
Jesus continues, And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this? Verse 25 speaks of believers who have died: they will live. Verse 26 speaks of believers who are alive: they will never die, in the sense that matters most. Their bodies may stop breathing, but the eternal life they have in Christ cannot be interrupted. Then comes the personal question. Jesus does not leave the promise as an idea. He asks Martha, and every reader, whether we believe it. Martha's answer is a full confession: Yea, Lord: I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of God (John 11:27).
6. John 5:24
"Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life."
Earlier in John's Gospel Jesus said, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life. Notice the tenses. The believer hath everlasting life now and is passed from death unto life already. This is what Jesus means by and the life. Eternal life does not start at the funeral. It starts the moment a person believes, and death cannot cancel it. This is why Christians can grieve with hope. Their loved ones in Christ crossed from death to life long before they died.
7. John 14:19
"Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more; but ye see me: because I live, ye shall live also."
On the night before the cross Jesus told His disciples, because I live, ye shall live also. The believer's life depends on Christ's life. As long as He lives, they live, and He will never die again. This is the deepest meaning of I am the resurrection, and the life. Our hope is not that we are strong enough to survive death, but that we are joined to the One who conquered it. The disciples were about to see Him die, and the world would see Him no more. But they would see Him alive again, and His life would become theirs.
8. John 6:40
"And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day."
Jesus describes the Father's will: that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day. Here both halves of John 11:25-26 come together. Everlasting life now, and resurrection at the last day. Jesus says I will raise him up four times in John 6 (verses 39, 40, 44, 54). The resurrection of believers is not a hope we hold on our own. It is a promise Jesus makes personally, again and again. Martha was right that there would be a last day. Jesus is the One who will raise the dead on it.
Yet shall he live: the hope of the resurrection
9. 1 Corinthians 15:20
"But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept."
Paul writes, But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept. Firstfruits were the first part of the harvest, offered to God as a pledge that the rest would follow. Christ's resurrection is the first sheaf, and the resurrection of His people is the rest of the harvest. Paul calls believers who have died them that slept, the same picture Jesus used for Lazarus (John 11:11). Sleep is real, but it is not permanent. Easter is the proof that John 11:25 is true. See our Bible verses about the resurrection of Jesus.
10. Romans 6:9
"Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him."
Lazarus was raised, but he would die again. Christ's resurrection was different: Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him. He did not return to the old life. He rose to a new, unending life, and that is the life He gives. Dominion means rule. Death once ruled over everyone. It has no rule over the risen Christ, and Paul goes on to say it has lost its claim on those who are united with Him by faith. This is the difference between a revived body and a resurrection.
11. 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17
"For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord."
Paul comforts believers who were worried about Christians who had died. The Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout ... and the dead in Christ shall rise first. Then the living believers will be caught up together with them, and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Here the two groups in John 11:25-26 appear again: believers who have died will live, and believers who are alive will never be parted from Him. Paul ends, Wherefore comfort one another with these words (1 Thessalonians 4:18). This is why John 11:25 is read at so many funerals.
12. Revelation 1:18
"I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death."
When John saw the risen Christ on Patmos, he fell at His feet as dead. Jesus laid His right hand on him and said, I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death. Keys mean authority. The One who called Lazarus out of the tomb holds the keys of death itself. No one goes into death without His permission, and no one stays there against His will. For believers this is not a fearful thought. The One who holds the keys is the One who wept at Lazarus's grave and died for them.
A short prayer
Lord Jesus, You are the resurrection and the life. Thank You that You wept at the grave of Your friend, and that You share our sorrow when we lose the people we love. Thank You that You called Lazarus out of the tomb and rose from the dead Yourself, never to die again. I believe that whoever lives and believes in You shall never die. Comfort those who grieve today with this hope, and help me to live each day in the life You give. In Your name, Amen.
Go deeper: a SOAP study prompt
Pick one verse above and write: - Scripture: copy the verse by hand. - Observation: what does it say? Who is speaking, to whom? - Application: what does it mean for you today? - Prayer: turn it into a two-line prayer.
New to this method? See our Bible study guide or pick a Bible reading plan.
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Frequently asked questions
What does John 11:25 mean?
In John 11:25 Jesus says that He Himself is the resurrection and the life. Believers who die will live again because they are joined to Him, and believers who are alive have a life in Him that death cannot end (John 11:26). He said it to Martha four days after her brother Lazarus died, and then raised Lazarus from the tomb.
Who did Jesus say I am the resurrection and the life to?
Jesus said it to Martha of Bethany, the sister of Lazarus and Mary, when she met Him outside the village after Lazarus had been in the tomb four days (John 11:20-26). He asked her, Believest thou this? and she replied that she believed He was the Christ, the Son of God.
Is John 11:25 read at funerals?
Yes. John 11:25-26 is one of the most common funeral readings and opens the burial service in the Book of Common Prayer. It gives grieving Christians the hope that their loved ones who believed in Jesus will live again. Our free funeral program template includes it among suggested readings.
What are the seven I am sayings in John?
The seven I am sayings are: I am the bread of life (6:35), the light of the world (8:12), the door (10:9), the good shepherd (10:11), the resurrection and the life (11:25), the way, the truth, and the life (14:6), and the true vine (15:1). John 11:25 is the fifth. See our I am verses.
Sources: All Scripture quotations are from the King James Version (KJV), public domain in the United States. References were checked against the KJV text from bible-api.com.
Related: Resurrection of Jesus · Christ the Lord Is Risen Today · Up from the Grave He Arose · 1 Corinthians 15 KJV · John 3:16 Meaning · Easter · Eternal Life · Grief
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