Raskolnikov's visit to Sonya in her lodgings is in preparation for his later confession. Dostoevsky's theory that "suffering leads to salvation" and that through suffering man's sins are purified (or expiated) are now brought into the foreground. It now becomes apparent that Raskolnikov is attracted to Sonya because he sees in her the symbol and the representative of "all the suffering of humanity." Even though she is thin and frail, she can carry a very heavy burden. Thus Raskolnikov will test her further to see how much she can bear. Since she is capable of "great suffering," he torments her with taunts such as the death of Katerina, the possibility that Polenka will be forced into prostitution, and the distressing state in which she now lives. These taunts are used to test her ability to suffer intensely and ultimately to see if she will be capable of withstanding Raskolnikov's confession. Will she be able to take his suffering upon herself and help him to "bear his own cross"?
Earlier in the novel, Porfiry Petrovitch has asked Raskolnikov if he believed in the raising of Lazarus from the dead. Now he asks Sonya to read him that same story. Thus the two principal redemptive figures, Porfiry and Sonya, are both connected through the same biblical episode. A further note of coincidence is that the story is read from the Bible that belonged to Lizaveta, the woman he did not intend to murder. The story of Lazarus is pertinent mainly in the general outline rather than in the specific detail. Raskolnikov, like Lazarus, died one type of death as a result of the crime; in other words, his crime isolated him from society and from his family to the point that he is figuratively dead. Through Christ, Lazarus was raised from the dead and became one of the living. Now through Sonya, Raskolnikov hopes to again assume his place among the living. Therefore, both stories are of people who were separated from the living and through some incredible miracle were restored to the living. The incredible aspect of the Lazarus story also appeals to Raskolnikov. The raising of Lazarus is considered one of the greatest miracles that Christ performed. In a lesser aspect, that story is one of suffering, of great suffering that was alleviated by the miracle of restoring life. Therefore, if Sonya can restore Raskolnikov to life, his suffering will be alleviated. And finally, note that Lazarus had been dead for four days before Christ performed the miracle. Likewise, it has been four days since Raskolnikov's crime.
