John 20:1-9
Chapter 20
Resurrection of Jesus
Early on the first day of the week, Mary of Magdala arrived at the tomb before sunrise and saw that the stone covering the entrance had been rolled away.So she ran and went to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and told them:
“They have taken the LORD from the tomb, and we don’t know where they put him.”
So Peter and the other disciple then went out and came to the tomb.
They both ran, but the other disciple outran Peter and got there first.
He leaned down and saw the linen cloths lying flat, but he did not go inside.
Then Simon Peter arrived after; he went into the tomb and saw the linen cloths lying there.
The cloth, which had been around his head, was not lying flat like the other linen cloths but lay rolled up in its place.
Then the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went in; he saw and believed.
Scripture clearly said that Jesus must rise from the dead, but they had not yet understood that.
Commentaries
Resurrection of Jesus.
Mary Magdalene is the first to witness the resurrection. “It was still dark” is the symbol from which Easter faith begins. Mary sees the stone removed and runs to tell Peter and the beloved disciple, providing two witnesses who can give reliable testimony. Both respond positively. The beloved disciple arrives at the tomb first, sees the linen cloths but does not enter; after Peter enters, he does: “he saw and believed.” What did he see? That the tomb was empty, and he believed in the resurrection. This belief should not be understood as complete certainty but rather as “he began to believe,” as indicated by the tense of the original Greek verb. This belief emerged at the sight of the empty tomb, a negative “sign”: the absence of a body; not based on Jesus’s words, because “they did not yet know the Scriptures” that speak of the resurrection. Since it is not a complete belief, he does not share it with the others but goes home.