The empty tomb was found very early on the first day of the week. Here is what the different accounts say, in the NIV:
Matthew:
After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.
2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.
5 The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: 'He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you."
8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them. "Greetings," he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, "Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me."
Mark:
16 When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they could go and anoint Jesus' dead body. 2 Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they came to the tomb. 3 They were saying to each other, "Who's going to roll the stone away from the entrance for us?" 4 When they looked up, they saw that the stone had been rolled away. (And it was a very large stone!) 5 Going into the tomb, they saw a young man in a white robe seated on the right side; and they were startled. 6 But he said to them, "Don't be alarmed! You are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified.[a] He has been raised. He isn't here. Look, here's the place where they laid him. 7 Go, tell his disciples, especially Peter, that he is going ahead of you into Galilee. You will see him there, just as he told you." 8 Overcome with terror and dread, they fled from the tomb. They said nothing to anyone, because they were afraid.[b]
Luke:
24 Very early in the morning on the first day of the week, the women went to the tomb, bringing the fragrant spices they had prepared. 2 They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, 3 but when they went in, they didn't find the body of the Lord Jesus. 4 They didn't know what to make of this. Suddenly, two men were standing beside them in gleaming bright clothing. 5 The women were frightened and bowed their faces toward the ground, but the men said to them, "Why do you look for the living among the dead? 6 He isn't here, but has been raised. Remember what he told you while he was still in Galilee, 7 that the Human One[a] must be handed over to sinners, be crucified, and on the third day rise again." 8 Then they remembered his words. 9 When they returned from the tomb, they reported all these things to the eleven and all the others. 10 It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the other women with them who told these things to the apostles. 11 Their words struck the apostles as nonsense, and they didn't believe the women. 12 But Peter ran to the tomb. When he bent over to look inside, he saw only the linen cloth. Then he returned home, wondering what had happened.
John:
Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. 2 So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, "They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don't know where they have put him!"
3 So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. 4 Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. 5 He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. 6 Then Simon Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, 7 as well as the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus' head. The cloth was still lying in its place, separate from the linen. 8 Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. 9 (They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.) 10 Then the disciples went back to where they were staying.
So, this was the morning after Shabbat. Shabbat had ended at sundown on Saturday night, so the first day actually began when nightfall happened. It was during the darkenss of the first day that the women gathered together and headed out for the tomb. It is pretty clear that, as these women likely slept in different places on Saturday night, that there had been some planning the day before about doing this early in the morning on Sunday. John says that Mary came to the tomb before dawn, even.
I don't think it coincidence that the crucifixion was finished before the end of the day on Friday, and the entirety of the Jewish nation was participating in a God-commanded day of rest during the majority of the time that Jesus was in the tomb. A lot had to be going through the minds of the disciples of Christ during that time period. The women of the disciples, lead by Mary Magdalene, used that time to coordinate the embalming of Jesus body.
What is striking to me is that it was the women who were thinking about and planning what needed to be done next during Shabbat after the crucifixion. Luke says that the women brought spices that they had prepared. When did they prepare the spices? Surely not Friday evening between the crucifixion and the start of Shabbat. Did they start with the preparation during the Crucifixion? If so, Mary Magdalene didn't participate, because she was at the cross. Did they do the preparation of the spices during Shabbat? That would likely have broken the prescriptions against work for Shabbat at the time. Did they do it Saturday night, after the sun went down, but before going to bed? After they woke up, before they went to the tomb? Whenever it happened, it was definitely something that was done with purpose, and not something that just happened to get done organically between Golgotha and the empty tomb.
I don't know if that says more about the women disciples, women in general related to men during times of crisis, or about the spiritual leadership and strength of Mary Magdalene in particular. But, regardless of why, it is clear that the women were spending the time of Shabbat after the crucifixion contemplating the next best thing to do.
Now, they totally got it wrong, what the next thing to do was. There was no need to embalm Jesus' body. The fact that this was a surprise to the women, that the tomb was empty, should not be a surprise to anyone. There were none among the disciples that rushed out to the Tomb early on Sunday before dawn hoping to see the empty tomb. Only the women, who had the difficult job ahead of treating the dead body of their Lord with honor and reverence, headed there first thing Sunday morning.
As I sit here before dawn on Easter Sunday, I do take a minute to consider what I need to be doing next in my life. I am a little different than the disciples of Jesus in that our day of rest is slightly different. Today is the day for me to take the time to partake in that God-commanded time of contemplation. And, my life is as broken and full of trouble as the next persons. But, I do think that it is helpful to take the time to think about what I do need to do next, how my relationship with God fits into where I decide to focus my energy and my time, and whether or not I am leaving room in my life for the unexpected amazing thing to happen to me this week, giving me the opportunity to really shift my expectations and my direction if that is shown to me to be the best way forward.
It is also important to remember the good news that he is risen! None of the mistakes that I have made up until this morning have any weight on my decision on whether or not to do the next right thing. I can choose today to do what is best, and the guilt and shame of the fact that I did not always make that choice every morning has no bearing on that decision.
Hug your family, spend some time thinking about where God is in your life, and know that you are blessed because God loves you for who you are. God bless all of you guys on F15, and Happy Easter.
Matthew:
After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.
2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.
5 The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: 'He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you."
8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them. "Greetings," he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, "Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me."
Mark:
16 When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they could go and anoint Jesus' dead body. 2 Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they came to the tomb. 3 They were saying to each other, "Who's going to roll the stone away from the entrance for us?" 4 When they looked up, they saw that the stone had been rolled away. (And it was a very large stone!) 5 Going into the tomb, they saw a young man in a white robe seated on the right side; and they were startled. 6 But he said to them, "Don't be alarmed! You are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified.[a] He has been raised. He isn't here. Look, here's the place where they laid him. 7 Go, tell his disciples, especially Peter, that he is going ahead of you into Galilee. You will see him there, just as he told you." 8 Overcome with terror and dread, they fled from the tomb. They said nothing to anyone, because they were afraid.[b]
Luke:
24 Very early in the morning on the first day of the week, the women went to the tomb, bringing the fragrant spices they had prepared. 2 They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, 3 but when they went in, they didn't find the body of the Lord Jesus. 4 They didn't know what to make of this. Suddenly, two men were standing beside them in gleaming bright clothing. 5 The women were frightened and bowed their faces toward the ground, but the men said to them, "Why do you look for the living among the dead? 6 He isn't here, but has been raised. Remember what he told you while he was still in Galilee, 7 that the Human One[a] must be handed over to sinners, be crucified, and on the third day rise again." 8 Then they remembered his words. 9 When they returned from the tomb, they reported all these things to the eleven and all the others. 10 It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the other women with them who told these things to the apostles. 11 Their words struck the apostles as nonsense, and they didn't believe the women. 12 But Peter ran to the tomb. When he bent over to look inside, he saw only the linen cloth. Then he returned home, wondering what had happened.
John:
Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. 2 So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, "They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don't know where they have put him!"
3 So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. 4 Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. 5 He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. 6 Then Simon Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, 7 as well as the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus' head. The cloth was still lying in its place, separate from the linen. 8 Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. 9 (They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.) 10 Then the disciples went back to where they were staying.
So, this was the morning after Shabbat. Shabbat had ended at sundown on Saturday night, so the first day actually began when nightfall happened. It was during the darkenss of the first day that the women gathered together and headed out for the tomb. It is pretty clear that, as these women likely slept in different places on Saturday night, that there had been some planning the day before about doing this early in the morning on Sunday. John says that Mary came to the tomb before dawn, even.
I don't think it coincidence that the crucifixion was finished before the end of the day on Friday, and the entirety of the Jewish nation was participating in a God-commanded day of rest during the majority of the time that Jesus was in the tomb. A lot had to be going through the minds of the disciples of Christ during that time period. The women of the disciples, lead by Mary Magdalene, used that time to coordinate the embalming of Jesus body.
What is striking to me is that it was the women who were thinking about and planning what needed to be done next during Shabbat after the crucifixion. Luke says that the women brought spices that they had prepared. When did they prepare the spices? Surely not Friday evening between the crucifixion and the start of Shabbat. Did they start with the preparation during the Crucifixion? If so, Mary Magdalene didn't participate, because she was at the cross. Did they do the preparation of the spices during Shabbat? That would likely have broken the prescriptions against work for Shabbat at the time. Did they do it Saturday night, after the sun went down, but before going to bed? After they woke up, before they went to the tomb? Whenever it happened, it was definitely something that was done with purpose, and not something that just happened to get done organically between Golgotha and the empty tomb.
I don't know if that says more about the women disciples, women in general related to men during times of crisis, or about the spiritual leadership and strength of Mary Magdalene in particular. But, regardless of why, it is clear that the women were spending the time of Shabbat after the crucifixion contemplating the next best thing to do.
Now, they totally got it wrong, what the next thing to do was. There was no need to embalm Jesus' body. The fact that this was a surprise to the women, that the tomb was empty, should not be a surprise to anyone. There were none among the disciples that rushed out to the Tomb early on Sunday before dawn hoping to see the empty tomb. Only the women, who had the difficult job ahead of treating the dead body of their Lord with honor and reverence, headed there first thing Sunday morning.
As I sit here before dawn on Easter Sunday, I do take a minute to consider what I need to be doing next in my life. I am a little different than the disciples of Jesus in that our day of rest is slightly different. Today is the day for me to take the time to partake in that God-commanded time of contemplation. And, my life is as broken and full of trouble as the next persons. But, I do think that it is helpful to take the time to think about what I do need to do next, how my relationship with God fits into where I decide to focus my energy and my time, and whether or not I am leaving room in my life for the unexpected amazing thing to happen to me this week, giving me the opportunity to really shift my expectations and my direction if that is shown to me to be the best way forward.
It is also important to remember the good news that he is risen! None of the mistakes that I have made up until this morning have any weight on my decision on whether or not to do the next right thing. I can choose today to do what is best, and the guilt and shame of the fact that I did not always make that choice every morning has no bearing on that decision.
Hug your family, spend some time thinking about where God is in your life, and know that you are blessed because God loves you for who you are. God bless all of you guys on F15, and Happy Easter.
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