John 20:1–18

Jesus Comes Back to Life—Matthew 28:1–10; Mark 16:1–8; Luke 24:1–12

¹Early on Sunday morning, while it was still dark, Mary from Magdala went to the tomb. She saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb’s entrance. ²So she ran to Simon Peter and the other disciple, whom Jesus loved. She told them, “They have removed the Lord from the tomb, and we don’t know where they’ve put him.” 

³So Peter and the other disciple headed for the tomb. ⁴The two were running side by side, but the other disciple ran faster than Peter and came to the tomb first. ⁵He bent over and looked inside the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there but didn’t go inside. 

⁶Simon Peter arrived after him and went into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there. ⁷He also saw the cloth that had been on Jesus’ head. It wasn’t lying with the strips of linen but was rolled up separately. ⁸Then the other disciple, who arrived at the tomb first, went inside. He saw and believed. ⁹They didn’t know yet what Scripture meant when it said that Jesus had to come back to life. ¹⁰So the disciples went back home. 

Jesus Appears to Mary from Magdala

¹¹Mary, however, stood there and cried as she looked at the tomb. As she cried, she bent over and looked inside. ¹²She saw two angels in white clothes. They were sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying. One angel was where Jesus’ head had been, and the other was where his feet had been. ¹³The angels asked her why she was crying. 

Mary told them, “They have removed my Lord, and I don’t know where they’ve put him.” 

¹⁴After she said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there. However, she didn’t know that it was Jesus. ¹⁵Jesus asked her, “Why are you crying? Who are you looking for?” 

Mary thought it was the gardener speaking to her. So she said to him, “Sir, if you carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I’ll remove him.” 

¹⁶Jesus said to her, “Mary!” 

Mary turned around and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabboni!” (This word means “teacher.”) 

¹⁷Jesus told her, “Don’t hold on to me. I have not yet gone to the Father. But go to my brothers and sisters and tell them, ‘I am going to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’ ” 

¹⁸Mary from Magdala went to the disciples and told them, “I have seen the Lord.” She also told them what he had said to her.