Matthew 9:24

9:24 he said, “Go away, for the girl is not dead but asleep.” And they began making fun of him. ¹ 

Mark 5:39

5:39 When he entered he said to them, “Why are you distressed and weeping? The child is not dead but asleep.”

Luke 7:13

7:13 When ²  the Lord saw her, he had compassion ³  for her and said to her, “Do not weep.” ⁴ 

John 11:11

11:11 After he said this, he added, ⁵  “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep. ⁶  But I am going there to awaken him.”

John 11:40

11:40 Jesus responded, ⁷  “Didn’t I tell you that if you believe, you would see the glory of God?”

¹ tn Grk “They were laughing at him.” The imperfect verb has been taken ingressively.

² tn Grk “And seeing her, the Lord.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style. The participle ἰδών (idwn) has been taken temporally.

³ sn He had compassion. It is unusual for Luke to note such emotion by Jesus, though the other Synoptics tend to mention it (Matt 14:14; Mark 6:34; Matt 15:32; Mark 8:2).

⁴ tn The verb κλαίω (klaiw) denotes the loud wailing or lamenting typical of 1st century Jewish mourning.

⁵ tn Grk “He said these things, and after this he said to them.”

⁶ tn The verb κοιμάω (koimaw) literally means “sleep,” but it is often used in the Bible as a euphemism for death when speaking of believers. This metaphorical usage by its very nature emphasizes the hope of resurrection: Believers will one day “wake up” out of death. Here the term refers to death, but “asleep” was used in the translation to emphasize the metaphorical, rhetorical usage of the term, especially in light of the disciples’ confusion over what Jesus actually meant (see v. 13).

⁷ tn Grk “Jesus said to her.”