Now Jesus had not yet entered the village, but was still at the place where Martha had met him.
Why did Jesus stop outside of the town? Why didn’t He go to the house of the sisters? Some speculate that He wanted to remain near the cemetery, but He was still some distance from it and did not even know where it was located as we shall see in verse 34. Jesus stopped outside of the village in order to get some quiet, personal time alone with Martha and Mary. Lazarus was not the only one He wanted to minister to that day.
John 11:34 “Where have you laid him?” he asked. “Come and see, Lord,” they replied.