John 20

The Resurrection of Jesus

1-2 Mary Magdalene comes to the tomb early in the morning and, seeing the stone removed, runs to tell Peter and John, the beloved disciple. (See notes on 19:26.)

3-10 Peter and John run to the tomb, go inside, and see the empty burial clothes, still not understanding about the resurrection. Then they return home.

Jesus Appears to Mary Magdalene

11-13 Mary stays, weeping. When she looks into the tomb, she sees two angels in white, sitting where Jesus had lain. When they ask why she’s weeping, she replies it’s because “they’ve” taken his body, and she doesn’t know where it is.
14-16 She turns around, and Jesus, whom she supposes is a gardener, asks her why she’s crying and who she’s looking for. She asks him where the body is, so she can take it away. When he calls her by name, she recognizes him.
17-18 He tells her to report to his brothers that he is about to ascend back to “my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.” She goes and tells them, “I have seen the Lord.”

Jesus Appears to the Disciples

19-20 On the first day of the week, the disciples have gathered behind locked doors (for fear of the Jews), when Jesus appears among them, showing them his hands and side. They rejoice.
21-23 He grants them peace, passes his mission to them, and breathes on them, giving them the Holy Spirit and the power to forgive sins. This commission is a fulfillment of Matthew 16:19 and John 14:26, an instruction repeated in Matthew 20:18-20, and a prophecy of what would happen in Acts 2, when the gospel of salvation would be preached for the first time.

Jesus and Thomas

24-25 Thomas, who was not with them, insists on seeing Jesus’ wounds before he will believe that Jesus is alive.
26-29 A week later, Jesus appears among them again and shows Thomas his wounds, telling him to believe, to which Thomas answers, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus blesses those who believe without seeing. Thomas’s confesses Jesus not only as his master, but as his God. He believes after seeing the wounds, just as the other disciples did. Only his confession is recorded, though.

The Purpose of This Book

30-31 That by reading about some of the things Jesus did we might come to believe that He is the Messiah, the Son of God. By doing so, we gain life in His name. Interesting that this is stated toward the end of the book and not at the beginning. It makes one want to start again from the beginning and look for those things that would specifically inspire belief. (John 1:1 certainly sets the stage.) The last chapter appears almost as an addendum, though in the context, the placement of this is appropriate, in that the apostles’ have just come to terms with the significance of Jesus’ resurrection, just as we must.