Month: September 2022

16 When the sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him. ² And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb. ³ They had been saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?” ⁴ When they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had already been rolled back. ⁵ As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man, dressed in a white robe, sitting on the right side; and they were alarmed. ⁶ But he said to them, “Do not be alarmed; you are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has been raised; he is not here. Look, there is the place they laid him. ⁷ But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him, just as he told you.” ⁸ So they went out and fled from the tomb, for terror and amazement had seized them; and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.

The shorter ending of Mark

And all that had been commanded them they told briefly to those around Peter. And afterward Jesus himself sent out through them, from east to west, the sacred and imperishable proclamation of eternal salvation.

The longer ending of Mark

⁹ Now after he rose early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons. ¹⁰ She went out and told those who had been with him, while they were mourning and weeping. ¹¹ But when they heard that he was alive and had been seen by her, they would not believe it. ¹² After this he appeared in another form to two of them, as they were walking into the country. ¹³ And they went back and told the rest, but they did not believe them. ¹⁴ Later he appeared to the eleven themselves as they were sitting at the table; and he upbraided them for their lack of faith and stubbornness, because they had not believed those who saw him after he had risen. ¹⁵ And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the good news to the whole creation. ¹⁶ The one who believes and is baptized will be saved; but the one who does not believe will be condemned. ¹⁷ And these signs will accompany those who believe: by using my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues;
¹⁸ they will pick up snakes in their hands, and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.” 

¹⁹ So then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God.
²⁰ And they went out and proclaimed the good news everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the message by the signs that accompanied it. NRSV

Get into the Word

1. What happened when the Sabbath was over? Who is involved in this incident? Where are they going? What are they preparing to do? 

2. What do they find? Who do they find? How do they react? What does the “man” say to the women? What does he tell them to do? How do they respond to his message? How might you have reacted to this situation?

3. Who do they finally talk with? What happens next? Why does the narrative seem to start over [see Notes]?

4. Who is involved in the new narrative? What happens to her? What does she do as a result? How is her news received? Why do you suppose it happened this way?

5. What does Mark describe next? Who is involved? What happened [see Notes]?

6. Who does Jesus talk with next? What does he say to them first? What does he tell them to do? What will believers be able to do? How do you suppose they felt about Jesus’ direction? How might you have reacted? What happens after this?

Get Personal

How do you respond to the empty tomb, the angel, the appearances to Mary and the disciples? Where has Jesus “met” you recently? What was your initial reaction? What changed as a result of the “meeting”?

(Cross-references to Matthew and Luke are given in brackets)

16:1-8. The women at the tomb — Matthew says an earthquake occurred and an angel came and rolled the stone away while the women and the guards were at the tomb. The angel reports Jesus has been raised, as he said. According to Matthew Jesus greeted the women as they were rushing to tell the disciples and repeated the message to go to Galilee, [Matt 28:1-10].
Matthew also says the guards told the religious leaders what happened, [Matt 28:11-15].
Luke names the women (Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the other women) at the end of the story. The stone is already rolled away, as in Mark. Luke reports two men, in dazzling clothes, ask the women, why do you look for the living among the dead? They remind them of Jesus’s prophesies. Luke says the women remembered and told the disciples and everyone else, but these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them. However, Peter did go to the tomb and note the empty cloth wrapping; but he did not understand what had happened, [Luke 24:1-12].
16:6. Has been raised — this is the correct rendering of the Greek. God raised Jesus to validate his ministry and sacrifice on the cross.
16:9-20. The consensus among most scholars is that these verses were added to Mark’s Gospel sometime after 100 CE. They are not included in the earliest manuscripts and there are stylistic differences with the rest of the Gospel.

16:12-13. The appearance to two men —
Matthew does not include this incident.
Luke provides the details for this appearance: Jesus appears as they are walking and explains the prophesies they are not understanding, and is recognized when he asks God’s blessing on the bread. When they get back to Jerusalem the other disciples tell them Jesus has appeared to Peter as well, [Luke 24:13-33].
16:14-18. Jesus’ appearance to the disciples — Matthew reports that the disciples actually do go to Galilee where Jesus meets them and gives them the Great Commission: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age,” [Matt 28:16-20].
Luke’s version of Jesus’ appearance takes place in Jerusalem. The disciples initially are afraid and Jesus tells them to touch me and see; for a ghost does not have flesh and bones as I have. He finally eats some fish to prove his resurrection. Then he explains the prophecies and tells them they are his witnesses, and to stay here in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high, [Luke 24:35-49].
16:19-20. The ascension — Matthew does not mention Jesus’ ascension.
Luke says Jesus led the disciples to Bethany and while he blessed them he was carried up into heaven,[Luke 24:50-53].