"But not his death, Mary, not his death! He is dead four days already, and how can the grave give glory to the power of Jesus? Will he raise him up, since corruption hath begun, nay, begun ere we laid him in the cold sepulchre? Oh, speak not to me of the Prophet! He loved not Lazarus, or he had not the power to save him! Nay, leave me, Mary, to the bitterness of my grief."
"Ah, dear Martha, how soon is thy faith in Jesus, when tried, become naught!" said Mary, bending upon her, from her dark, earnest eyes, looks of sad reproach. "Shall one day overturn your years of holy friendship for him? Because he answered not our prayer to come to Lazarus, think you he loved him not, and is indifferent to our anguish? He is wronged by your reproof, and injured by your want of confidence in his love and care for us."
While they were thus discoursing, one came running swiftly towards the house, and breathless with haste, cried to them and to the Jews sitting there, who had come to comfort them concerning their brother:
"The Prophet! The Nazarene! He comes!"
Almost at the same moment Elec, the Gibeonite, entered and said:
"Jesus, Messias of God, is at hand! He already entereth the village followed by his disciples."
At this intelligence the mourners who sat with Mary and Martha in the vine porch, rose up to go and meet him; but Martha, shrieking with the reaction of sudden joy, sprang up and, more quickly than they, reached the street, and flying with great speed, came where Jesus was.
Mary, who had received the news without betraying any other emotion than the secret and holy joy of a heart that had confidence all along in her Lord, instead of hastening to meet him rending her hair with grief, like her sister, proceeded to prepare a room for the hospitable entertainment of the beloved Prophet, when he should come in, thus taking Martha's usual place; and when she had arranged all, she sat down with me in the house, her heart filled with joy and her face expressive of calm and quiet happiness.
When Martha had come near Jesus, whom she met just entering Bethany, walking with four of his disciples along the dusty road, and looking weary and travel-worn, she ran and threw herself at his feet, crying:
"Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died!"