diff --git a/context.module b/context.module
index 613cf98..3977485 100644
--- a/context.module
+++ b/context.module
@@ -533,7 +533,13 @@ function _context_registry($key = NULL, $reset = FALSE) {
  */
 function context_block_view_alter(&$data, $block) {
   if (context_isset('context_ui', 'context_ui_editor_present') && empty($data['content'])) {
-    $data['content']['#markup'] = "<div class='context-block-empty'>" . t('This block appears empty when displayed on this page.') . "</div>";
+    if (!empty($block->content)) {
+      $rendered_blocks = _block_render_blocks(array($block)); // For E_STRICT warning
+      $block = array_shift($rendered_blocks);
+      if (empty($block->content['#markup'])) {
+        $block->content['#markup'] = "<div class='context-block-empty'>" . t('This block appears empty when displayed on this page.') . "</div>";
+      }
+    }
   }
 }