11:13a

They thought that Jesus was talking about actual sleep: This expression indicates that the disciples had understood Jesus literally. They thought he spoke about normal sleep, not death. The disciples wrongly understood Jesus. Here are other ways to translate this expression:

they thought he meant natural sleep (Good News Translation)
-or-
the disciples thought Jesus meant Lazarus was only sleeping (God’s Word)

11:13b

but: The word but here introduces a contrast between what Jesus meant (11:13a) and what the disciples thought he meant (11:13b).

He was speaking about the death of Lazarus: This clause is an explanation by the author of the true situation. Translate this in a way that is natural for explanations given by an author or storyteller. For example:

Jesus really meant that Lazarus was dead (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
Actually Jesus had spoken about his death (Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English)

General Comment on 11:13a–b

In some languages it may be natural to reorder 11:13a–b. For example:

13b Jesus was speaking about the death of Lazarus, 13a but they thought that Jesus was talking about actual sleep.

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