5 Reasons Why “Jesus Wept” Is One of the Bible’s Most Comforting Verses

Grief can make people feel uncomfortable. Some believers may pressure you to stop being sad and cheer up because they think it’s inappropriate to grieve too much. They may make you feel guilty for your tears. “Jesus wept” destroys that guilt. Consider the context. Jesus is the Son of God. He has perfect faith. He has never sinned. He is in constant communion with the Father. And yet, standing before the tomb of his friend Lazarus, surrounded by the wailing of Mary and Martha, the text tells us simply yet significantly that Jesus cried. If Jesus, who has perfect faith, wept, then grief can’t be a sin.

Sorrow over someone’s death is not a sign of a lack of faith; it’s an expression of love. When you see Jesus weeping, you’re seeing God himself validating the human experience of sorrow. Jesus doesn’t ask Mary and Martha to stop crying. Instead, Jesus joins them in their sorrow. This gives you tremendous freedom. You don’t have to hide your tears from God, and you don’t have to sanitize your prayers. You don’t have to pretend everything is okay when your world is falling apart. As Isaiah 53:3 describes him, Jesus was a “man of suffering, and familiar with pain.”

Jesus isn’t offended by your sadness; he’s familiar with it. He knows what it’s like to feel so sad that he wept. When you weep, you’re not showing a lack of faith. You’re actually allowing your heart to break over the things that break God’s heart. John 11:35 invites you to bring all the messiness of your grief to God honestly, without any guilt, and with the confidence that God understands exactly how you feel because he has grieved too. 

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Some people think of God as a distant being who’s detached from humanity and doesn’t really feel emotions. This verse shows that God is closely connected with you and feels the same emotions you do. When God incarnated as Jesus, he took on the full human experience. He didn’t insulate himself from the emotional cost of living in a fallen world. If Jesus had remained stoic at Lazarus’ grave, you might wonder if God really gets how you feel when you’re grieving. Because Jesus wept, you know that he gets it. God doesn’t shout down from heaven for you to cheer up. Instead, God is with you, here and now, and cries along with you.

Hebrews 4:15 points out: “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are – yet he did not sin.” The word “empathize” in that verse means to “feel with.” When you’re grieving, Jesus isn’t just watching you grieve; he’s remembering his own grief over the death of Lazarus, a friend he loved. So, you’re never crying alone. Even if other people aren’t with you, God is with you, and he’s close to you, too.

Psalm 34:18 promises: “The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.” Jesus is closely connected to you, and he empathizes with what you’re going through. 

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When you read the context for the “Jesus wept” verse in John chapter 11, John 11:33 says that when Jesus saw Mary crying, he was “deeply moved in spirit and troubled”, which indicates that Jesus was angry. Why would Jesus be angry? He wasn’t angry at Mary and Martha for crying, and he wasn’t angry at the crowd. It seems to be that Jesus was angry at death itself. Part of Jesus’ grief was that he was angry that death existed. Death wasn’t a part of God’s original design for the world. It’s a reality in this fallen world because of sin that broke the perfect design for creation that God intended.

When Jesus stood before Lazarus’ grave, he saw the pain death causes his beloved people, and he hated it. Jesus’ tears came from a mixture of sorrow for his friends and anger against the “last enemy,” which is death (1 Corinthians 15:26). This is wonderfully comforting because it means God cares very much about the brokenness in this world. God cares about what’s wrong, and he’s not silent about injustice.

When you feel a sense of injustice about a young person dying too soon, or a marriage falling apart, that sense of how it’s not right lines up with God’s own feelings. God grieves over the brokenness in this world. After Jesus wept about death, he went to the cross to defeat death through his sacrifice for sin and resurrection to new life. Jesus’ tears can remind you that he hates the suffering you’re going through even more than you do, and that he can help you overcome it.

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It’s easy to believe that God loves the world in general, but it takes more faith to believe that God loves you personally. Unfortunately, many people don’t see themselves as God sees them, and they may not think they’re lovable. But God not only loves every person, but he loves every person completely and unconditionally. John 11:35 can help you see how much God cares for everyone – including you – personally. Jesus wept because he personally missed his friend Lazarus, and because he personally cared about the suffering that his friends Mary and Martha, Lazarus’ sisters, were going through.

In John 11:36, the people in the crowd recognize this: “Then the Jews said, ‘See how he loved him!’” The people didn’t talk about Jesus’ love for the world in general; they pointed out how Jesus loved Lazarus personally. This verse can comfort you because it assures you that you’re much more than just a number in a heavenly database of God’s creations. Jesus knows your name and your story. Just like Jesus had a personal, affectionate friendship with Lazarus, Mary, and Martha, Jesus wants to be friends with you. He calls you friend (John 15:15), and when you’re hurting, Jesus is there for you personally.

Psalm 56:8 describes how God keeps a record of our suffering: “Record my misery; list my tears on your scroll – are they not in your record?” Some translations say: “put my tears in your bottle.” God treasures your tears. He notices every single one. When you feel like your problems are too small for a big God, remember Jesus crying at Lazarus’ grave. He gave Lazarus’ family personal attention, and he’ll do the same for you. 

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A part of this story that can be confusing is that Jesus wept even though he knew he was about to raise Lazarus from the dead. Jesus knew that the story would end well. So, why did Jesus cry? Jesus shows you that knowing something good is coming doesn’t erase the pain of going through hard times. You can have real hope in the future and real sadness in the present, both at the same time.

As a Christian, you already know that because of Jesus’ sacrificial death and resurrection, you can see your loved ones again in heaven. But that doesn’t erase the pain you feel from missing them right now. Jesus knew Lazarus was coming back, but he still wept over the reality of death and the pain of his friends. This gives you the permission to experience both grief and hope. You don’t have to choose between grieving and believing. You can cry at a grave and still believe in the resurrection. You can weep over a lost dream and still trust God has a plan.

“Jesus wept” reminds you that while your faith is worthwhile, living in this fallen world is still painful. Jesus stands in that gap with you. He doesn’t rush you through the pain just because he knows the solution. Jesus is the Resurrection and the Life, but he’s also the Man of Sorrows, and he walks with you through the valley of the shadow of death until you reach the other side. 

In conclusion, the verse “Jesus wept” is more significant than it seems at first. Try not to rush past it. Take time to really think about how it can comfort you when you’re going through a hard time, like when you’re grieving. The fact that Jesus wept shows you that God understands your suffering, and he cares!

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