John 20:1-18
Mary's Great Surprise
Occupied?
Leave it to John to weave a very involved tale of intrigue. Mary finds the tomb with the stone rolled away (no indication that she knew it was empty yet), reports it to the disciples and they come to check it out. Presumably John reaches the tomb first, but Peter goes in first, then John. In some narrative interpretations of this, Peter represents authority - which goes in first, but John represents the heart which is necessary for understanding. At any rate they leave only understanding that the tomb is empty. Mary stays behind and recongizes Jesus when he calls her by name, then she reports this back to the disciples. For John, this is the beginning of their understanding of who Jesus was. Another homework assignment - compare Matthew, Mark, Luke and John for similarities and differences.
Introduction | Matthew | Mark | Luke | John | Back Cover