JOHN—NOTE ON JOHN 20:1 Chapter John 20:1 covers the aftermath of Jesus’ crucifixion and burial: the empty tomb, the risen Jesus’ encounter with Mary Magdalene, and Jesus’ appearances to his disciples and their commissioning (v. John 20:21). ⇐ ⇔ ⇒ var images = document.getElementsByTagName("img"); f... [ Continue Reading ]
JOHN—NOTE ON JOHN 20:2 At this point Mary has no thought of resurrection. The plural WE suggests the presence of other women besides Mary. On the OTHER DISCIPLE, see vv. John 20:3 and note on 18:15–16. ⇐ ⇔ ⇒ var images = document.getElementsByTagName("img"); for (var i=0, len=images.length, img; i [ Continue Reading ]
JOHN—NOTE ON JOHN 20:5 STOOPING TO LOOK IN, HE SAW. Apparently by now it is daylight. HE (the “other disciple,” vv. John 20:2) DID NOT GO IN, perhaps because of Simon Peter’s status among the Twelve (e.g., John 6:67). ⇐ ⇔ ⇒ var images = document.getEle [ Continue Reading ]
JOHN—NOTE ON JOHN 20:6 THE LINEN CLOTHS LYING THERE are clear evidence that Jesus’ body had not been taken by grave robbers or by his disciples (see Matthew 27:62; Matthew 28:11), or by his enemies, who would not have taken the time to remove these cloths (see John 19:40). The NT elsewhere affirms t... [ Continue Reading ]
JOHN—NOTE ON JOHN 20:7 The reference to the FACE CLOTH being FOLDED UP IN A PLACE BY ITSELF suggests that Jesus himself had taken it off and folded it neatly. ⇐ ⇔ ⇒ var images = document.getElementsByTagName("img"); for (var i=0, len=images.length, img; i [ Continue Reading ]
JOHN—NOTE ON JOHN 20:8 THE OTHER DISCIPLE... ALSO WENT IN. The presence of two male witnesses made evidence acceptable under Jewish law (see Deuteronomy 17:6; Deuteronomy 19:15). AS YET THEY DID NOT UNDERSTAND THE SCRIPTURE proves that the disciples did not make up a story to fit what they thought w... [ Continue Reading ]
JOHN—NOTE ON JOHN 20:11 MARY (Magdalene, see vv. John 20:1, John 20:18) saw TWO ANGELS IN WHITE. Angels often appear in pairs (e.g., Acts 1:10) and are often depicted as dressed in white (e.g., Daniel 10:5; Revelation 15:6).... [ Continue Reading ]
JOHN—NOTE ON JOHN 20:15 Mary mistook Jesus for the GARDENER, perhaps because it was not fully light (see v. John 20:1). She may also have turned and seen someone there but had then turned back toward the tomb as she spoke (in v. John 20:16 she “turned” again to speak directly to Jesus). After his re... [ Continue Reading ]
JOHN—NOTE ON JOHN 20:16 JESUS SAID TO HER, “MARY.” Hearing only her name, Mary recognizes the voice of Jesus (compare John 10:3). ⇐ ⇔ ⇒ var images = document.getElementsByTagName("img"); for (var i=0, len=images.length, img; i [ Continue Reading ]
JOHN—NOTE ON JOHN 20:17 I HAVE NOT YET ASCENDED does not deny the fact that Jesus’ spirit went to the Father in heaven at the moment of his death (see note on 19:30). Rather, it means that his bodily ascension after his resurrection had not yet occurred (see Luke 24:51; Acts 1:9). TO MY FATHER AND Y... [ Continue Reading ]
JOHN—NOTE ON JOHN 20:19 Some interpreters understand THE DOORS BEING LOCKED to imply that Jesus miraculously passed through the door or the walls of the room. Since Jesus clearly had a real physical body with flesh and bones after he rose from the dead (see note on v. 6 and verses mentioned there),... [ Continue Reading ]
JOHN—NOTE ON JOHN 20:21 These verses contain the “Great Commission” (compare Matthew 28:16). They provide the conclusion of the entire Gospel’s presentation of Jesus as the one sent from the Father (see note on John 3:17). The Sent One (Jesus) has now become the Sender. He sends his followers to ser... [ Continue Reading ]
JOHN—NOTE ON JOHN 20:23 The expressions THEY ARE FORGIVEN and IT IS WITHHELD both represent perfect-tense verbs in Greek and could also be translated, “they have been forgiven” and “it has been withheld.” The idea is not that individual Christians or churches have authority on their own to forgive o... [ Continue Reading ]
JOHN—NOTE ON JOHN 20:25 Apparently, Thomas thinks the disciples may have seen a ghost (compare Matthew 14:26). ⇐ ⇔ ⇒ var images = document.getElementsByTagName("img"); for (var i=0, len=images.length, img; i [ Continue Reading ]
JOHN—NOTE ON JOHN 20:26 EIGHT DAYS LATER refers to the following Sunday, one week after Easter (see v. John 20:19), because the first day was also included in counting the number of days. THE DOORS WERE LOCKED. See note on v. 19. ⇐ ⇔ ⇒ var images = document.getElementsByTagName("img"); for (var i=0... [ Continue Reading ]
JOHN—NOTE ON JOHN 20:28 Thomas’s confession of Jesus as his LORD and GOD confirms the references to Jesus as God in John 1:1, John 1:18. This is one of the clearest NT texts on the deity of Christ. Some false religious cults try to explain this away by arguing that Thomas’s statement was merely an e... [ Continue Reading ]
JOHN—NOTE ON JOHN 20:29 Note the possible echo of this text in 1 Peter 1:8. ⇐ ⇔ ⇒ var images = document.getElementsByTagName("img"); for (var i=0, len=images.length, img; i [ Continue Reading ]
JOHN—NOTE ON JOHN 20:30 John’s purpose statement and conclusion repeat his major themes: Jesus’ identity as THE CHRIST and SON OF GOD (see John 1:41, John 1:34), his selected messianic “signs” (see notes on 1:19–12:50; 2:11), the importance of believing in Jesus, and the gift of eternal LIFE (see Jo... [ Continue Reading ]