Then said Martha unto Jesus, Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died.
Parallel translations
- WEB Therefore Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you would have been here, my brother wouldn’t have died.
- BSB Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.
- NKJV Now Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.
- NASB Martha then said to Jesus, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.
- NLT Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if only you had been here, my brother would not have died.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Martha tells Jesus that if He had been there, her brother would not have died. Her words mingle faith with sorrow and gentle reproach.
Overview
Martha believes in Jesus' power to heal yet does not yet grasp His power to raise the dead. Her statement expresses both confidence in Him and the ache of disappointment. It opens the way for Jesus to reveal Himself as the resurrection and the life.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- Matt 9:18While he spake these things unto them, behold, there came a certain ruler, and worshipped him, saying, My daughter is even now dead: but come and lay thy hand upon her, and she shall live.
- John 11:32Then when Mary was come where Jesus was, and saw him, she fell down at his feet, saying unto him, Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died.
- 1 Kgs 17:18And she said unto Elijah, What have I to do with thee, O thou man of God? art thou come unto me to call my sin to remembrance, and to slay my son?
- Ps 78:19Yea, they spake against God; they said, Can God furnish a table in the wilderness?
- John 11:37And some of them said, Could not this man, which opened the eyes of the blind, have caused that even this man should not have died?
- Luke 8:49–55While he yet spake, there cometh one from the ruler of the synagogue’s house, saying to him, Thy daughter is dead; trouble not the Master.
- John 4:47–49When he heard that Jesus was come out of Judaea into Galilee, he went unto him, and besought him that he would come down, and heal his son: for he was at the point of death.
- Luke 7:6–10Then Jesus went with them. And when he was now not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to him, saying unto him, Lord, trouble not thyself: for I am not worthy that thou shouldest enter under my roof:
- Luke 7:13–15And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her, and said unto her, Weep not.
- Ps 78:41Yea, they turned back and tempted God, and limited the Holy One of Israel.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
John declares him plainly: the eternal Word made flesh, the Lamb of God, the great 'I AM' — bread, light, door, shepherd, way, truth, life, resurrection — that you may believe and have life in his name.
How John 11:21 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.