O
n the day that Lazarus died, he was buried. On noticing that her brother's chest no longer rose and fell in its irregular spasms, Mary released his hand and stood. Her paralyzing grief did not hit her right away. She went to find her sister. It was Martha who upon learning that her brother had died, ran into the room wailing. Mary too, wept in her heart, a solitary tear rolling down her lovely cheek. To weep for loss is one thing; to weep for the loss of intimacy is quite another. This was a close family. The two sisters and brother loved each other. None of them were married. They lived together and they lived for each other. They had been inseparable since they were children. No one breached or came between this triad. Only One was allowed to penetrate their bond and he was miles away.
Not far from Bethany, the Lazarus family owned a parcel of land of about half an acre in size. It was part of a rugged landscape of hills and valleys where the wealthy often purchased land in which to bury their dead. It wasn't a cemetery. That was closer to town (although never closer than 50 cubits) and occupied by those who could not afford the luxury of their own family property. These plots of land were often converted into lovely gardens gaily decorated with shrubs and colorful white and yellow daisies, myrtle, rose and mandrake. The land that belonged to the Lazarus family was one of the loveliest of these. Within its lines lay a small hill out of which was hewn a family crypt. The 'house of silence' it was called, or the 'house of stone.' In its creches, lay the bones of Lazarus' mother and father.
In Galilee the custom was for mourners to precede the body as it was taken in procession to the burial garden. Here in Judea, they followed instead. Every mark of sympathy and respect was shown to Lazarus as he was an enthusiastic participant and supporter of the Synagogue. And as is the case with all distinguished persons, as he lay on the beir before the opening of the tomb an oration was made, extolling a life well lived and how there shall never be another to take his stead and that his place in heaven was sure and certain. His body heavily embalmed with wrapping cloths and spices was placed in one of thirteen creches in a hewn out vault of nine by twelve feet in area. After the goodbyes of loved one and friends, a large circular stone, chisled to the correct proportions was rolled across the opening to the vault and sealed. The funeral concluded on Sunday night, the mourners sent home. The next day, Monday, Jarud reached Jesus.
