lan Warner
The shortest verse in the entire Bible is “Jesus Wept.” You can find it in John 11:35, and it was not the shortest verse in the original text, but it became the shortest verse in English when translated to the King James Version. It’s also important to remember that verses and chapters of the Bible were added after the fact. Number each verse made it much easier for readers to follow the text. The original text did not have verses to make this the shortest verse.
Understanding the Shortest Verse in The Bible: Why Jesus Wept
It’s important to understand the context of the verse because it will grow your love for Jesus even more. It speaks to the character of Jesus and why we as Christians are called to bear one another’s burdens (Galatians 6:2). Jesus was asked to come and help Lazarus, but he showed up four days after he had already died. Jesus came and saw Lazarus’s family crying and hurting over his death. Jesus didn’t do anything but weep with them first.
Romans 12: 15 – “Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.”
Think about this for a second. Jesus is aware that Lazurus is going to die, and he shows up right on time. When he sees his family hurting, he does not tell them not to worry because he is here. Instead, he takes the time to be with them and hurt with them. He does not go into fix mode right away. Instead, he sits with them and cries with them for some time.
The shortest verse in the Bible verse packs so much power because it represents Jesus and his compassionate heart. I know if I could bring someone back from the dead, my focus would be on doing that. I would not waste any time crying because I would want to focus on action!
I am broken, though, and I don’t know better than Jesus. He came down from the right hand and God to earth to live a life of no sin so that he could be the sacrificial lamb for our sin. The wages of sin is death, and Jesus took it all on because he loves us so much. The fact that broken sinners deserving hell could receive all of this love speaks to the God that we serve.
Are We Too Quick to Act
When I read this passage, I am always convicted by my rush to take action in every situation. I personally am not good at sitting in hurt and brokenness. So when I see people hurting and crying, I want to go and do something about it, even when I have no power to do anything. Jesus had all of the power, and he perfectly submitted himself to the father, yet he still took the time to be compassionate.
That should make you pause and think for a second. If Jesus knew he had the power to do something and he stopped to be` compassionate, then why don’t you? Your goal is to imitate Christ so that people can imitate you and get closer to him.
What this means is that we need to drop our action-driven mindset and sometimes BE. There is nothing wrong with walking into a situation and taking time to weep with those who are hurting.
Why Do People Want to Know The Shortest Verse In The Bible?
One of the reasons people even look for this is because of memorization. They have been challenged to memorize scripture, and they choose something short and easy.
I would challenge you not to include this because the verse only impacts reading much more of the chapter. For example, Jesus wept, which does not mean much without understanding more in the story.
The whole purpose of memorizing scripture is to memorize something that matters and that will make an impact. You want to be able to memorize something that you can use to change or help another person. If your goal is just to remember something easy, you’re wasting your time.
You don’t get more saved because you remember scripture, so spend your time on scripture that matters to you.
