The Raising of Lazarus. The Raising of Righteous Lazarus Jesus Christ raised Lazarus from the dead
Parable of the Resurrection of Lazarus- a very significant story in our time, as it testifies to the Great Glory of God. And after reading this story, please answer the question: “How can I reflect the qualities of Christ in my actions?” Let's take our thoughts back to the times when Jesus Christ lived and preached. Jesus had a friend whom he loved very much, his name was Lazarus. One day Lazarus fell ill and his sisters, Mary and Martha, sent a messenger to him with this news. But Jesus was far from Bethany, the city where this family lived. Lazarus' sisters hoped that after receiving such news, Jesus would heal their brother from a distance, because he had done this before.
When the sad news reaches Jesus, he does not rush to help Lazarus. Why? Will he really abandon his best friend in trouble?
But if he falls asleep, he will recover, the disciples tell him. Then Jesus told them that Lazarus was dead.
Before this, Jesus brought people back to life, but they were dead for several hours. And the body righteous Lazarus It had already been in the crypt for several days. When the disciples and Jesus approached Bethany, Martha ran to meet him and said: “Lord, if you were here, my brother would not have died,” and in response she heard the words: “Your brother will rise again.” The people were very sad about the death of Lazarus and cried, Jesus grieved internally, and there were tears in his eyes. Then the Jews said: Look how HE loved him.
Jesus, along with everyone else, comes to the memorial crypt. This is a cave whose entrance is closed with a stone. Jesus orders the stone to be removed. Martha does not understand what Jesus is going to do and objects: “Lord! It already stinks, because he has been in the grave for four days.” But he answers: “If you believe, you will see the glory of God.”
The people took the stone away from the cave, and Jesus began to pray: “Father! I thank You that You heard Me; I knew that You would always hear Me; But I said this for the sake of the people standing here, so that they might believe that You sent Me.” Having said this, HE cried out with a loud voice: “Lazarus, come out!” And the dead man came out, entwined on his hands and feet with burial shrouds, and his face was tied with a scarf. Risen Lazarus continued his life thanks to the Power of God given to Jesus.
So why did Jesus not rush to Lazarus, even though he received sad news? Here lies the great meaning of God's glory. Four days have passed since the death of Lazarus and it is not easy for a person to believe that he can come to life. Jesus chose the right time to show the Glory and Power of God to the people that the dead also come to life again. Nothing is impossible for God! Many people then believed in Christ and became his disciples.
This Bible story tells us that we too can choose the right time to help a friend in need and show our love and devotion. And maybe you will bring back to life someone dear to you who is in a difficult situation. And all you have to do is talk and understand the person. Just extend your hand, as the Lord loves and always rushes to our aid, just believe and everything will work out for you! You can read this story at
The essence of Christianity
The resurrection of Lazarus is an amazing miracle that reminds us of the very essence of Christianity. It is not at all about not “watching the dances and dances” or not “plucking lilacs in the cemetery” (quotes from the list of 437 sins). The essence of Christianity is the victory of God over death. Our death. It is the belief in the resurrection of the dead that radically distinguishes Christianity from all other religions. But we don't just believe that it's possible. We confess the resurrection of Christ, which has ALREADY taken place. And not only the resurrection of Christ, Who is both God and man, but also the fact that He raised Lazarus literally a week before His own death.
Lazarus and us
Using the example of Lazarus, we can see our destiny. Lazarus was a friend of Christ. A true friend. Each of us is called to this. He was sick, and Christ knew about it, but was in no hurry to heal. But this does not mean that Christ did not feel sorry for Lazarus - the opposite is evidenced by the fact that He “teared” when Lazarus died. And then Christ resurrected him.
Christ also feels sorry for us. And if the problem is not solved immediately, it is not because God does not care. And, perhaps, so that everyone can see the glory of God through our resurrection.
We are all dying now. Death is a tragedy, and Christ weeps over our grave. But - He will resurrect us, just as He resurrected Lazarus.
Dogmatics and reality
In the story of the resurrection of Lazarus there is an interesting contrast between the fact of resurrection and the dogma of resurrection.
First. Martha, to the words of Jesus: “your brother will rise again,” replies, “I know that he will rise again on the resurrection, on the last day.” Martha professes the dogma of the resurrection of the dead on the last day without connection with “real life.” But Christ is about real life, and Lazarus will rise again now and here.
Second. The Pharisees were a religious group that believed in the resurrection of the dead (this teaching is not explicitly taught in the Torah, and the resurrection was the subject of religious controversy). How did the Pharisees react when they saw their faith realized? They decided to kill Christ. There is some cruel truth about religion in this: those who believe in the resurrection killed the Risen One.
Resurrection and Apocalypse
“Christ is already destroying you with Lazarus, Death, and where is your victory in hell,” the Church sings these days. Lazarus Saturday is an anticipation of Easter, and the triumph of the Lord's Entry into Jerusalem is an anticipation of a true triumph - the triumph of the Cross.
Victory over death and hell is what Christ accomplished. “I hope for the resurrection of the dead and the life of the age to come” - this is our hope and goal. (It’s not at all “I’m terrified of the coming of the Antichrist,” as is often the case now. The fact that jubilation and hope gave way to fear signals something very bad in the history of Christianity).
Implicitly, the fear of the Antichrist correlates with the idea of the living dead - one of the main symbolic figures of our time. Our era (judging by the media, in any case) in principle does not accept the Christian hope of the resurrection of the dead. What she is capable of is the revival of the archaic fear of the dead.
Victory over death, hope for the resurrection of the dead - this is central to Christianity. Let's see what the Fathers and theologians wrote about this.
Immortality of the soul and resurrection of the dead
It seems that belief in the immortality of the soul is integral to Christianity. But that's not true. The immortality of the soul is a Platonic (more broadly, ancient) belief, that is, its roots are pagan. The difference is fundamental: Christians believe in the resurrection of bodies, and pagans (not all) believe in the immortality of the soul. First. Immortality is a property of the Divine. Creation is mortal simply by virtue of its creatureliness: it was created from nothing and is returned to nothing. People do not die only because of their connection to the Immortal - they become gods by grace. Sin is disconnection from God, separation from the Source of being. Therefore sin leads to death. Second. It is generally accepted that pagans are cheerful defenders of the flesh, and Christians are sad defenders of the spirit. It's the other way around. Freeing the immortal soul from the captivity of the flesh is the dream of Platonism and Gnosticism. To resurrect the flesh is the dream of Christians. God became incarnate to save man. Man is not a pure spirit inside a dirty animal, but a unity of spirit and body. Death is the separation of body and soul, and resurrection is their reunion. The Christian struggle is not between flesh and spirit, as it seems to spiritualists of all stripes, but between Life and Death (“there are only two paths - the path of life and the path of death” teaches the Didache). It is the soul that sins, and not the flesh, which is doomed to decay because of the sins of the soul.
Holy Fathers on the Resurrection of the Dead
“If you meet people who call themselves Christians, but do not recognize this [the resurrection of the dead], and even dare to blaspheme the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob, do not recognize the resurrection of the dead and think that their souls are taken to heaven immediately after death , then do not consider them Christians"- St. clearly teaches. Justin Martyr in Dialogue.
“One should not call it [the soul] immortal, for if it is immortal, then it is beginningless.”- he calls, for if the soul is immortal, then it is beginningless, that is, not created, and then it is God. “The soul itself is not immortal, Hellenes, but mortal. However, she may not die. A soul that does not know the truth dies and is destroyed along with the body, and receives death through endless punishment. But if it is enlightened by the knowledge of God, it does not die, although it is destroyed for a while.”- teaches Tatian in “Speech against the Hellenes”
“The being that has received mind and reason is a person, and not a soul in itself; therefore, man must always remain and consist of soul and body; and it is impossible for him to remain like this unless he is resurrected. For if there is no resurrection, then the nature of men as men will not remain.”- Athenagoras teaches about the bodily-spiritual unity of man in his essay “On the Resurrection of the Dead” - one of the best and first texts on this topic.
“[The Apostle Paul] deals a mortal blow to those who degrade the physical nature and reproach our flesh. The meaning of his words is as follows. It is not the flesh, as he says, that we want to lay off, but corruption; not the body, but death. The other is the body and the other is death; the other is the body and the other is corruption. Neither the body is corruption, nor is corruption the body. True, the body is perishable, but it is not corruption. The body is mortal, but it is not death. The body was the work of God, and corruption and death were introduced by sin. So, I want, he says, to remove from myself what is alien, not mine. And what is alien is not the body, but corruption and death attached to it.”- Christians fight death for the flesh, teaches John Chrysostom in his “Discourse on the Resurrection of the Dead.”
Not far from Jerusalem there was a village called Bethany. Lazarus and his sisters Martha and Mary lived there. They were friends of Jesus. One day, while in a secluded place with His disciples, Jesus received sad news. The sick man’s sisters sent him to tell him: “Lord, behold, the one you love is sick.” Jesus, having heard this, said: “This illness is not for death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it.” Then He stayed two more days in the place where He was and went to Bethany, knowing that Lazarus had already died. Many Jews came to the sisters and consoled them in their grief over their dead brother. Martha saw Jesus and said to Him: “Lord, if You were here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever You ask of God, God will give you.” Jesus answered: “Your brother will rise again... I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in Me, even if he dies, will live. And whoever lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?” Martha said: “Yes, Lord! I believe that You are the Christ, the Son of God, coming into the world.” Then she went and called her sister Mary. When Jesus saw the weeping Mary and the weeping Jews who came with her, He Himself was grieved in spirit and said: “Where have you laid him?” They answered him: “Lord! Come and see.” Jesus came to the cave where Lazarus was buried. (In that country at that time people were usually buried in a cave, rolling a stone to the entrance). Jesus ordered the stone to be rolled away, but Martha said that Lazarus had been in the tomb for four days. Jesus answered her: “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?” When the stone was rolled away, Jesus raised his eyes to heaven and said: “Father, I thank You that You heard Me... I knew that You would always hear Me...” Having said this. He called in a loud voice: “Lazarus! come out!” And the dead man came out, wrapped hand and foot in graveclothes...” Many Jews who saw this miracle believed in Him, but the Pharisees and high priests gathered a council to discuss how to kill Jesus.
- ← Return of the Prodigal Son. Continuation
- Return of the Prodigal Son. Continued →
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Only Evangelist John tells about this event. While the Lord was still in Perea, He received news of the illness of His beloved friend Lazarus, who lived in Bethany with his sisters Martha and Mary. This family was especially close to the Lord, and when He was in Jerusalem, it must be assumed, he often visited it in order to rest there from the noise of the crowd constantly watching him and the crafty interrogators of the scribes and Pharisees. The sisters sent to tell the Lord: "Here, the one you love is sick" in the hope that the Lord Himself will hasten to come to them to heal the sick. But the Lord not only did not hurry, but even deliberately remained in the place where he was, “ two days", saying that “This disease does not lead to death, but to the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.” The Lord knew that Lazarus would die, and if he said that his illness did not lead to death, it was because he intended to resurrect him. Only two days later, when Lazarus had already died, the Lord said to the disciples: " let us go again to Judea." The Lord points not to Bethany, but to Judea, as the goal of their journey, in order to bring out the thought known to Him, nested in the hearts of the disciples about the danger threatening Him in Judea.
By this, the Lord wanted to root in them the idea of the necessity, and therefore the inevitability, of the suffering and death of their Teacher. The disciples actually expressed fear for Him, recalling that not long ago the Jews wanted to stone Him in Jerusalem. The Lord responds to this fear of the disciples with allegorical speech, borrowing it from the circumstances in which He was at that time. This was probably early in the morning, at sunrise: they therefore had 12 daylight hours for their journey.
During all this time, you can travel unhindered: it would be dangerous if you had to travel after sunset, at night, but there is no need for this, because you can reach Bethany even before sunset. In a spiritual sense, this means: the time of our earthly life is determined by the highest Divine will, and therefore, while this time continues, we can, without fear, follow the path determined for us, carry out the work to which we are called: we are safe, for the Divine will protects us from of all dangers, just as the light of the sun protects those who walk during the day. There would be danger if night caught us in our work, that is, when we, contrary to the will of God, decided to continue our activities: then we would stumble. In relation to Jesus Christ, this means that the life and activity of the Lord Jesus Christ will not end before the time determined for it from above, and therefore the disciples should not be afraid of the dangers that threaten Him. Making his way in the light of God's will, the God-man cannot be exposed to unforeseen danger. Having explained this, the Lord points to the immediate purpose of the journey to Judea: “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I am going to wake him up.”
The Lord called the death of Lazarus a dream, as He did in other similar cases (see Matt. 9:24, Mark 5:29). For Lazarus, death really was like a dream due to its short duration. The disciples did not understand that the Lord was talking about the death of Lazarus, taking into account what He had previously said that this illness did not lead to death: they believed that the Lord would come miraculously to heal him. "If you fall asleep, you will recover"- it was said, probably, in order to dissuade the Lord from traveling to Judea: “there is no need to go, since the illness has taken a favorable turn.”
Then the Lord, putting aside any dissent from the disciples and wanting to emphasize the absolute necessity of going to Judea, told them directly: "Lazarus is dead." At the same time, Jesus added that he rejoices for them, the Apostles, that He was not in Bethany when Lazarus was sick, since a simple healing of his illness could not strengthen their faith in Him as much as the upcoming great miracle of his resurrection from the dead. . Decisively stopping the conversation caused by the fears of the disciples, the Lord says: " but let's go to him." Although indecision was overcome, the fears of the disciples were not dispelled, and one of them, Thomas, called Didymus, which means Twin, expressed these fears in a very touching way: " Let's go and die with him." that is, if it is impossible to turn Him away from this journey, then shall we really leave Him? Let us also go to death with Him.
When they approached Bethany, it turned out that Lazarus had been in the tomb for four days. "Bethany was near Jerusalem, about fifteen furlongs away." those. about two and a half miles, half an hour's walk, is said to explain how there were a lot of people in the house of Martha and Mary in a sparsely populated village. Martha, being distinguished by her greater liveliness of character, having heard about the coming of the Lord, hastened to meet him, without even telling her sister Mary about this, who "was at home" in great sorrow, accepting the consolations of those who came to console. With sorrow, she says, not reproaching the Lord, but only expressing regret that this happened: “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.”
Faith in the Lord instills in her the confidence that even now not everything is lost, that a miracle can happen, although she does not express this directly, but says: “I know that whatever you ask of God, God will give you.” To this the Lord directly tells her: " your brother will rise again." As if checking herself to see if she is mistaken and wanting to prompt the Lord to clarify these words, to make her clearly understand what kind of resurrection the Lord is talking about, and whether it is a miracle that He intends to perform now, or only about the general resurrection of the dead at the end of the world, Martha speaks : “I know that he will rise again on the resurrection, on the last day,” Martha expressed faith that God would fulfill every request of Jesus: therefore, she did not have faith in Jesus Himself as the omnipotent Son of God. Therefore, the Lord raises her to this faith, focuses her faith on His face, saying: “I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in Me, even if he dies, will live. And whoever lives and believes in Me will never die.” The meaning of these words is this: in Me is the source of revival and eternal life: therefore, I can, if I want, resurrect your brother now, before the general resurrection. "Do you believe this?" The Lord then asks Martha, and receives an affirmative answer that she believes in Him as the Messiah-Christ who has come to the world.
At the command of the Lord, Martha then went after her sister Mary in order to bring her to the Lord. Since she called Mary secretly, the Jews who consoled her did not know where she was going and followed her, thinking that she went to the tomb of Lazarus, " cry there." Mary fell with tears at the feet of Jesus, uttering the same words as Martha. Probably, in their grief, they often said to each other that their brother would not have died if the Lord and their Teacher had been with them, and so, without saying a word, they express their hope in the Lord in the same words. Lord "he was grieved in spirit and indignant" at the sight of this spectacle of sadness and death. Ep. Michael believes that this grief and indignation of the Lord is explained by the presence of the Jews, who were crying insincerely and burning with anger against Him, who was about to perform such a great miracle. The Lord wanted to perform this miracle in order to give His enemies the opportunity to come to their senses, repent, and believe in Him before the suffering that lay ahead of Him: but instead, they became even more inflamed with hatred towards Him and resolutely pronounced a formal and final death sentence on him. Having overcome this disturbance of the spirit within himself, the Lord asks: "Where did you put it?" The question was addressed to the sisters of the deceased. “The God-man knew where Lazarus was buried, but when dealing with people, he acted humanly” (Blessed Augustine). The sisters answered: "Lord! come and look." “Jesus shed a tear” – This, of course, is a tribute to His human nature. The evangelist further speaks about the impression that these tears made on those present. Some were touched, while others gloated, saying: “Could not He, who opened the eyes of the blind, prevent this one from dying?” If he could, then, of course, loving Lazarus, he would not have allowed him to die, and since Lazarus died, then, therefore, he could not, and therefore now he is crying. Suppressing the feeling of sorrow in Himself from the anger of the Jews, the Lord approached the tomb of Lazarus and told them to take away the stone. Coffins in Palestine were arranged in the form of a cave, the entrance to which was closed with a stone.
The opening of such caves was carried out only in extreme cases, and even then only after burial soon, and not when the corpse was already decomposing. In the warm climate of Palestine, the decomposition of corpses began very quickly, as a result of which the Jews buried their dead on the same day on which they died. On the fourth day, the decomposition was to reach such a degree that even the believing Martha could not resist objecting to the Lord: “Lord, he already stinks; for he has been in the grave for four days!” Reminding Martha of what was said to her before, the Lord says: “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?” When the stone was taken away, the Lord raised His eyes to heaven and said: “Father, I thank You that You heard Me.” Knowing that His enemies attribute His miraculous power to the power of demons, the Lord wanted to show with this prayer that He works miracles by virtue of His complete unity with God the Father. Lazarus' soul returned to his body, and the Lord cried out in a loud voice: "Lazarus! Get out!" The loud voice here is an expression of a decisive will, which is confident of unquestioning obedience, or, as it were, the excitement of a deep sleeper. The miracle of the resurrection was joined by another miracle: Lazarus, bound hand and foot in burial shrouds, was able to leave the cave himself, after which the Lord commanded to untie him. The details of the depiction of this event indicate that it was described by an eyewitness. As a result of this miracle, the usual division between the Jews occurred: many believed, but others went to the Pharisees, the worst enemies of the Lord, obviously with bad feelings and intentions, in order to tell them about what had happened.
The parable of the Resurrection of Lazarus is a story about a great miracle, about great faith in God and true love.
It is no coincidence that the scene from the Gospel is included in the novel almost in its entirety; this shows the author’s emphasis on this topic. Thanks to this scene, we can feel the deep religious meaning of the novel, its essence.
There are a lot of details that matter in this episode.
Raskolnikov comes to a house in a ditch, this is the place where Sonya lived. Its location in space indicates its proximity to the decline into the “ditch.” She seems to be on a cliff. It is also important that her room was “the only one that emanated from the Kapernaumovs.” These people were very kind and affectionate. They lived as a big happy family. Sonya’s room resembled a “barn”. In all this we can see a piece of the biblical story. It was as if Jesus had been in the barn for a while. But the name of the owners of this room is even more interesting. Capernaum is mentioned in the New Testament as the hometown of the apostles Peter, Andrew, John and James. Jesus Christ preached in the synagogue of Capernaum and performed many miracles in this city. It turns out that the author wants to show us that Sonechka Marmeladova’s room “from the residents” is a kind of place where miracles happen. And this miracle can happen to Raskolnikov, and it will gradually happen after reading Lazarus.
Raskolnikov and Sonya Marmeladova are both sinners. She is a harlot, he is a murderer, but Sonechka is also a murderer, because she ‘killed herself’ by labeling herself as a “yellow ticket”. They both have rooms “with low ceilings” - “from the tenants.” Perhaps this oppressive atmosphere is one of the factors in the unfortunate fate of both heroes. But Sonya always knew that there was a God, and that he would protect her, and even if not her, then her loved ones. "no no! God will protect her, God!” Sonya spoke about Polechka when Raskolnikov told her the most tragic scenarios for the development of events. He himself left the right path, his godless mind, obsessed with the terrible idea of killing, led him away from the path of repentance and faith, for he became a great sinner. After all, as his own theory shows, he did not have the right to do this. Although Sonechka was a sinner, walking with God in her soul, she realized her sins. In her position, many would most likely commit suicide, and Sonya also thought about this, but love for her neighbors did not allow her to do such a thing. And Rodion, without faith in God, is not capable of such a thing. “Yes, maybe there is no God at all,” Raskolnikov answered with some gloating, laughed and looked at her. Raskolnikov carries sin and pride within himself. Moreover, the hero is sinful not only in his actions, but also in his thoughts.
Raskolnikov lives by reason, protests, does not accept life, and Sonya is the complete opposite of him, she lives, because the main thing in life for her is love and faith in God. Sonya is a kindred spirit for Raskolnikov and he is trying to provoke a protest in her soul, talking about her unhappy future and find support for his crime under the motto “One life and thousands of lives in return!” But Sonya does not rebel, she humbles herself and believes in God. Raskolnikov felt its power! Her strength lay in faith, and he also wanted to believe. Shame and baseness in Sonya are combined with opposite holy feelings; she turns out to be spiritually higher, stronger than Raskolnikov. Sonya believes with her heart in the existence of a higher divine meaning in life.
“There was a book on the chest of drawers. Every time he walked back and forth, he noticed her. It was the New Testament in Russian translation." Coming to Sonya, it was not for nothing that Raskolnikov noticed the New Testament several times, with this he laid the path for becoming on the true path. Raskolnikov turns to the Gospel and, according to the author, it is there that he should find answers to the questions that torment him. He seems to have to take the path of correction. Dostoevsky suggests that a person who has committed a sin is able to be spiritually resurrected if he believes in Christ and begins to live according to his commandments.
The fact that the book was brought by Lizaveta, who was killed by him, who, according to Sonya, “will see God,” indicates the connection of this book with Raskolnikov. Towards the end of the book there will be an episode that confirms the mysterious connection between Raskolnikov and Lizaveta. (When Raskolnikov goes to hard labor, that is, accepts suffering, Sonechka will give him a cypress cross, which previously belonged to Lizaveta, whom he killed.) Lizaveta seems to be helping him atone for his sins.
He asks to find out about Lazarus. Why specifically about Lazarus? And why does he ask Sonya to read? And he doesn’t ask, but practically demands! The fact is that he was tired of living with grave sin in his soul, he was able to “transcend”, but his nature, which from childhood had absorbed the commandment “Thou shalt not kill!”, because Raskolnikov read the gospel “A long time ago ... when I studied,” does not allow him overcome the feeling of criminality of what has been done, live in peace. That is why Raskolnikov is tormented; the longing for mercy and mutual understanding through the Gospel and the parable of the resurrection brings him back to life. Sonya asks Raskolnikov ‘Why do you need it? After all, you don’t believe?...’. To which he replies ‘Read! I WANT IT SO MUCH!’. Raskolnikov in the depths of his soul remembered the resurrection of Lazarus and hoped for a miracle of the resurrection of himself. This is more desirable than Raskolnikov - an attempt to accept something divine; perhaps he wanted to free himself from sin and take the path of correction. Sonya started reading ‘just for him, so that he can hear’! The author, between the lines of reading 'Lazarus', describes Sonya, her emotional state, and this is worth paying attention to. She begins to read with effort, her voice breaks, “breaks like a too-tight string,” but she continues. Raskolnikov understands that she does not dare to read to him, but at the same time she wants to read to him. She instinctively understood the importance of this reading for Raskolnikov and, despite her doubts, was glad to read this chapter of the Eternal Book to him. She wants to put him on the right path, she wants to help him resurrect. And after the words of the text, “But even now I know that whatever you ask of God, God will give you,” Sonya stopped, “bashfully anticipating that her voice would tremble and break again.” What causes this shame? Perhaps Sonya is simply embarrassed by Raskolnikov, such an atheist. Before reading the episode of the true proof of faith, “Jesus says to her: Your brother will rise again. Martha said to Him: I know that He will rise again on the resurrection, on the last day. Jesus said to her: I am the resurrection and the life; He who believes in Me, even if he dies, will live. And everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. “Her voice became more confident, strength appeared in it! Sonechka, anticipating a great miracle, grew stronger internally, “her voice became a ringing sound, like metal.” When she read this, it was clearly visible how much it meant to her, the innermost trembled in her soul, engulfing her with new and new impulses, “she was already trembling all over in reality, with a real fever.” Joy strengthened her, joy for the existence of God and the true miracles of those who believed. She didn’t read it the first time or the second time, she “knew it by heart.” She knew it by heart, because she believed and was in awe of the Lord God, “What is God doing to you for this? - asked Raskolnikov. Does everything! “Sonya quickly whispered, looking down again.” She read for Raskolnikov in order to show him the true miracles of believers, to bring about a revolution in his soul. Sonya’s religiosity “infects” him: “Here you yourself will become a holy fool! contagious!”
When reading the last verse, she conveys “doubt, reproach and blasphemy to non-believers,” meaning Raskolnikov by them. And he, too, will hear and believe, Sonya dreamed, and she “trembled with joyful anticipation,” as if anticipating victory over unbelief. “For he has been in the grave for four days.” Sonya emphasized word four in order to let Rodion understand that not all is lost, that there is still a chance of resurrection. It is not for nothing that Sonya reads this parable in the fourth chapter of the fourth part of the novel. Moreover, Sonya reads Lazarus to Raskolnikov on the fourth day after the crime, which also has its own symbolism. It is the period of four days that becomes the period when not everything is lost and you can start living again, even if you have already been “dead for four days.” At the same time, it is not a coincidence that the old woman-pawnbroker, that is, Raskolnikov’s victim, lives on the fourth floor and Semyon Marmeladov’s room is also on the fourth floor. The police office is located on the fourth floor. Sonya advises Raskolnikov to bow to all four sides. Therefore, the number four in this case is the number of atonement for sin, the number with the help of which our hero can be reborn. And when reading the very end of the scene, she pronounced it loudly and enthusiastically, so that Raskolnikov believed in a miracle. So that he can be resurrected.
Sonya herself, when reading the episode, compared Raskolnikov with the Jews who stood watching the miracle of the resurrection of the already stinking Lazarus, for whom nothing could help, since four days is the period when the body begins to decompose, and then they believed in Jesus Christ. The episode of reading Lazarus begins with the words “There was a certain Lazarus from Bethany who was sick...”. I think a parallel can be drawn between the image of the patient and Rodion. At first Raskolnikov was sick, he became sick with the theory of the “superman”. The episode ends with Lazarus resurrecting, having survived death and spending four days in the grave, like Raskolnikov, who suffered and was as if dead for four days. On the fourth day, Jesus came and helped him to resurrect, while Sonechka Marmeladova on the fourth day “helps Raskolnikov” by reading Lazarus. This allows us to draw a parallel between Sonechka and Jesus. And at the end of the novel, when Sonya accompanies Raskolnikov from afar as he sets out on his way of the cross - to voluntarily confess to the crime he has committed and suffer the appropriate punishment, the main character is clearly compared with Christ, who was followed from afar by myrrh-bearing women on His way of the cross. Consequently, Raskolnikov visited all three images, from unbelieving Jews to Jesus Christ, which shows his rebirth and “resurrection.”
With such an emotional reading of this episode, Sonya tries to convey the meaning to Raskolnikov. Perhaps that is why Raskolnikov decided to open up to Sonya completely and completely, thereby getting rid of part of his sin.
After this episode, he decides to confess to Sonya about the murder, and says that he “chose” her, since she was also able to step over, only she killed herself (but that doesn’t matter). But this is exactly what is important! Raskolnikov imagines himself to be Napoleon and commits murder, and Sonechka, with her sincere and pure faith, sacrifices herself for the sake of saving others, her neighbors, and does not consider others a “trembling creature.” But Raskolnikov, on the contrary, believed that the majority is a “trembling creature” and the minority are “lords”, called from birth to rule the majority, standing outside the law and having the right, like Napoleon, to step over the law and disrupt divine peace and order in the name of the goals he needs. “Freedom and power! And most importantly, power! Over all the trembling creatures and over the entire anthill! Remember this!". After these words, Sonya looked at him as if he were crazy.
Suddenly Raskolnikov spoke with determination in his eyes: “Let's go together, if I came to you. We are cursed together, we will go together!”
After this visit to Sonya, a miracle happened. Raskolnikov realized that it was no longer possible to live like this and decided to confess to the crime and suffer punishment, that is, to take the suffering upon himself and atone for his sins. Sonya, by her example, directed him to the right path and strengthened his attitude towards life and faith. Also, love for Sonya helps him cleanse himself of his sins, because this divine feeling is capable of creating real, incomparable miracles. God is our father, he loves us all and tells us to love our neighbor. That's what our hero did. After committing the crime, Raskolnikov lies in his apartment, which looks like a “coffin,” and falls ill from the sinfulness of his soul. After all, such concepts as suffering, purification and love are the most important in the Christian worldview. His theory beyond man was defeated, and the author himself was also defeated, who decided to test his theory on his own experience. Raskolnikov does not want to communicate with anyone and has abandoned his family. It was as if he had died for everyone. And after reading Lazarus, he begins to gradually resurrect and be reborn. He improves his relationship with his mother and sister and begins to live a more or less normal life. And at the end of the novel he realizes that the devil led him to all these crimes. “Kill her and take her money, so that with their help you can then devote yourself to serving all of humanity and the common cause” - this phrase was one of the driving reasons for the crime. When Raskolnikov heard it in the tavern, he saw some symbolism in it. And yet the author gives the hero the opportunity to purify himself, thereby trying to convey to the reader that miracles are possible. The main idea that the author carries through the entire novel: a person must live like a Christian, be meek, be able to forgive and have compassion, and all this is possible only with the acquisition of true faith. And true faith is a miracle. Raskolnikov himself now expects a miracle of resurrection from Sonya: “Everything about Sonya became somehow stranger and more wonderful for him, every minute.”
On Sennaya Square, when he remembers Sonya’s advice, he is born with a feeling of the fullness of life: “one sensation took possession of him at once, captured him completely - with his body and thoughts, he rushed into the possibility of this whole, new, complete sensation. Everything in him softened at once, and tears flowed... he knelt down in the middle of the square, bowed to the ground and kissed this dirty earth with pleasure and happiness.” It was he who repented, bowing before the people, and his soul immediately felt better.
The kneeling scene is typical for church scenes. To kneel means to pay tribute to a person of a higher position, to beg for something, to acknowledge one's subordination and lower position. Consequently, Raskolnikov kneels twice: the first time to “all human suffering” in the person of Sonya, and the second time, at Sonya’s request, he kneels in the square. And both times he does it involuntarily, as if unconsciously.
As a result, Raskolnikov himself confesses to the murder and goes to hard labor.
The Gospel of John about the resurrection of Lazarus shows a person what faith in God and repentance lead to, because true faith in God is capable of working miracles. And in our case, Raskolnikov accepts this path and follows the right path of purification through great suffering.
