Jesus, the Son of God, came to the world as a human being among the people. He faced all the phases of human beings, or something more than a human being could go through. The Bible records that three times Jesus wept. Weeping is not only a physical exercise but also an emotional matter.
Let’s take a look at the biblical texts where we find those episodes.
Jesus Wept First Time:
“Jesus wept.” (John 11:35)
John 11:35 is the shortest verse in the English translations of the Bible. That two-word verse from the book of John tells us of Jesus’s reaction when He got to the tomb of Lazarus, who had died four days before (John 11:39). Jesus and Lazarus were close friends. Lazarus was the brother of Mary and Martha. The Bible tells us that Jesus loved them (John 11:5).
All that grief over Lazarus’s death moved Jesus to tears. He later turned grief into joy when He resurrected Lazarus (John 11:38-44). But that miracle was the tipping point that made the religious leaders decide to kill Him (John 11:45-53).
Jesus Wept Second Time:
“And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it,” (Luke 19:41 KJV)
Luke 19:28-40 tells us of Jesus Christ’s triumphal entry into the city of Jerusalem a few days before His crucifixion. That’s when verse 41 comes. Luke is the only evangelist that recorded that reaction of Jesus. Our Savior knew that the people of Jerusalem would soon reject and condemn Him. He also knew the calamity that would come upon that city because of it (Luke 19:44), which happened a few decades later, in 70 A.D.
Jesus Wept Third Time :
“Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared;” (Hebrews 5:7)
The context of this verse doesn’t identify when that event happened, but it is clear that it was very close to Jesus’s death. Some scholars attribute this reference to Jesus’s prayers at the garden of Gethsemane, right before He was arrested (Matthew 26:36-56; Mark 14:32-52; Luke 22:40-53; John 18:1-11). Even though none of the evangelists mentioned that Jesus wept, they wrote that Jesus was very sorrowful (Matthew 26:37; Mark 14:33-34) and in such agony that He sweated drops of blood (Luke 22:44).
Even though Scripture doesn’t make it clear why Jesus wept on all of those occasions, we can still find possible reasons for His tears and learn from them. So, let’s take a look at the lessons that Jesus’s tears teach us about Him and how we should apply them to our lives.
Lessons for Us
1. Jesus was Fully a Human
The Bible teaches us that Jesus Christ is both fully God and fully a man (John 1:1,14; Colossians 2:9; Titus 2:13; 1 John 4:2). He didn’t get any divine consideration from His birth itself.
As a man, Jesus experienced everything a human does, including human emotions. He felt sorrow (Matthew 26:37), marvel (Matthew 8:10), agony (Luke 22:44). And He wept. His body was not merely some kind of shell for a divine being (Luke 24:39)
2. Jesus was Compassionate towards those who were Grieving
The Gospel of John tells us that, before Jesus got to the town of Bethany, where Lazarus’s tomb was located, He already knew that He was going to bring His good friend back to life (John 11:11-15). His purpose was to show the glory of God and be glorified through that amazing miracle (John 11:4). However, a logical question comes to mind: if Jesus knew that, why did He weep?
He wept because He felt compassion for those grieving for His dear friend, especially Lazarus’s sisters. Even though He was going to solve the problem miraculously, He still partook in the sadness and grief of the people there.
3. Jesus was Troubled by the People’s Lack of Faith
When Jesus met Martha at Lazarus’s burial site, He told her that He was going to resurrect him (John 11:20-28). However, both she and later Mary told Jesus that their brother wouldn’t have died if He had arrived sooner (John 11:21,32). Then, the Bible tells us that Jesus “groaned in the spirit, and was troubled” (John 11:33 KJV), right before He wept.
A few days earlier, Jesus’s disciples didn’t believe Him either when He told them His plan (John 11:11-16). It seems that everyone there thought it was too late for Jesus to do something about it (John 11:37). Lazarus had been dead for four days by then (John 11:39). Which may suggest that Jesus also wept because of their lack of faith. No one believed that Lazarus’s resurrection was even possible. They probably didn’t think that the power of Jesus could bring a dead man back to life.
4. Jesus Cares about Us
Analyzing the three episodes that mention that Jesus wept, we can notice how Jesus cares about us, humans. First, He wept with those who were grieving, not ignoring their pain. Second, He wept for those who were going to reject Him, not ignoring their terrible fate. Third, He wept to the Father, not giving up on His mission to pay the terrible price for our sins.
Jesus’s tears show that He cares about us. In fact, He showed how much He loves us (John 15:13), even though we don’t deserve it (Romans 5:8). And those tears also remind us of a precious promise: one day, God Himself will wipe away every tear from our eyes, and there will be no more reason for weeping, ever again (Revelation 21:4).
Jesus Christ wept with those who were grieving, even though He knew He could overcome and fix the situation in a short time. He wept for those who rejected Him, for He knew the consequences of their choices. And, when He was suffering Himself, He wept to the Father, to the only One who could do something about it. May we learn from Him and do our best to live our lives in a way that honors His tears and brings God glory.