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| Chapter 24 |
| Bible Text | Notes and Thoughts |
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1 ¶ Now upon the first day of the week very early in the morning, they came unto the sepulcher, bringing the spices which they had prepared; and certain others were with them. 2 And they found the stone rolled away from the sepulcher. 3 And they entered in and found not the body of the Lord Jesus. 4 And it came to pass, as they were much perplexed about this, behold, two men stood by them in shining garments. 5 And as they were afraid and bowed down their faces to the earth, they said unto them, "Why seek ye the living among the dead? 6 He is not here, but is risen! Remember how He spoke unto you when He was yet in Galilee, 7 saying, ‘The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified, and the third day rise again.’" 8 And they remembered His words, 9 and returned from the sepulcher and told all these things unto the eleven and to all the rest. 10 It was Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James and other women who were with them, who told these things unto the apostles. 11 And their words seemed to them as idle tales, and they believed them not. 12 Then arose Peter and ran unto the sepulcher; and stooping down, he beheld the linen cloths laid by themselves. And he departed, wondering to himself at that which had come to pass. 13 ¶ And behold, two of them were going that same day to a village called Emmaus, which was from Jerusalem about seven miles. 14 And they talked together of all these things which had happened. 15 And it came to pass that while they communed and reasoned together, Jesus Himself drew near and went with them. 16 But their eyes were held, that they should not know Him. 17 And He said unto them, "What manner of communications are these that ye have one to another as ye walk and are sad?" 18 And one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answering said unto Him, "Art thou only a stranger in Jerusalem, and hast not known the things which have come to pass there in these days?" 19 And He said unto them, "What things?" And they said unto Him, "Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people; 20 and how the chief priests and our rulers delivered him to be condemned to death and have crucified him. 21 But we trusted that it had been he who should have redeemed Israel. And beside all this, today is the third day since these things were done. 22 Yea, and certain women also of our company, who were early at the sepulcher, made us astonished. 23 And when they found not his body, they came saying that they had also seen a vision of angels, who said that he was alive. 24 And certain of those who were with us went to the sepulcher and found it even so as the women had said, but him they saw not." 25 Then He said unto them, "O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! 26 Ought not Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into His glory?" 27 And beginning with Moses and all the prophets, He expounded unto them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself. 28 And they drew nigh unto the village whither they were going, and He made as though He would have gone further. 29 But they constrained Him, saying, "Abide with us, for it is toward evening and the day is far spent." And He went in to tarry with them. 30 And it came to pass, as He sat at meat with them, He took bread and blessed it, and broke and gave it to them. 31 And their eyes were opened and they knew Him. And He vanished out of their sight. 32 And they said to one another, "Did not our hearts burn within us while He talked with us on the way and while He opened to us the Scriptures?" 33 And they rose up that same hour and returned to Jerusalem, and found the eleven gathered together and those who were with them, 34 saying, "The Lord is risen indeed and hath appeared to Simon!" 35 And they told what things were done on the way, and how He was known to them in the breaking of bread. 36 ¶ And as they thus spoke, Jesus Himself stood in the midst of them and said unto them, "Peace be unto you." 37 But they were terrified and afraid, and supposed that they had seen a spirit. 38 And He said unto them, "Why are ye troubled, and why do thoughts arise in your hearts? 39 Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself. Handle Me and see, for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see Me to have." 40 And when He had thus spoken, He showed them His hands and His feet. 41 And while they yet believed not for joy, and wondered, He said unto them, "Have ye here any meat?" 42 And they gave Him a piece of a broiled fish and of a honeycomb. 43 And He took it and ate before them. 44 And He said unto them, "These are the words which I spoke unto you while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and in the Prophets and in the Psalms concerning Me." 45 Then opened He their understanding, that they might understand the Scriptures, 46 and said unto them, "Thus it is written, and thus it behooved Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, 47 and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. 48 And ye are witnesses of these things. 49 And behold, I send the promise of My Father upon you; but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem until ye be endued with power from on high." 50 ¶ And He led them out as far as to Bethany, and He lifted up His hands and blessed them. 51 And it came to pass, while He blessed them, He was parted from them and carried up into Heaven. 52 And they worshiped Him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy, 53 and were continually in the temple, praising and blessing God. Amen. |
Luke’s record of the events after the crucifixion includes some events not recorded by the other Gospels. v1-12 The tomb is empty. Matt 28:1-6; Mark 16:1-8; John 20:1-17. v1-3 The day, under the Jewish system, commenced at sundown, Mark 16:1,2 records that the women purchased and prepared the spices on Saturday evening, then early the next morning they set out for the tomb. On arrival they find the stone rolled away and the body gone. The tomb was empty. v4 The women could not understand what had happened, they knew that the disciples had not removed the body, as the Jewish leaders later stated. Perhaps Joseph had moved the body for safety, while they discus the problems "two men stood by them in shining garments." Both the records in Matthew and Mark record that an angel gave the message. v5-8 "Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is risen, just as He told you." It had been revealed on the mount of Transfiguration what was to happen at Jerusalem, Luke 9:31, and before they left Galilee Jesus had told them what the future held, Luke 18:31-34. Suddenly, they understood, the missing body had a different meaning. v9 Not only were the disciples in Jerusalem but many other followers. v10 Joanna was the wife of Chuza, Herod’s steward, Luke 8:3. Mary Magdalene, Luke 8:2. v11 The Greek word used for "idle tales," means nonsense, the disciples were not prepared to believe. v12 Peter runs (with John) to the sepulcher, sees the linen cloth and starts to wonder. John 20:2-10. The linen clothes would have been wound around the body, now they were laying empty as if the body had passed through them without being unwrapped. v13-35 The walk to Emmaus . Some think that the villages Kubeibeh or Mozah, some 7 miles to the north-west was Emmaus, however there is also a village today called Amwas, about nineteen miles to the west of Jerusalem which could also be the village Emmaus as two older copies of the Luke’s manuscript give 20 miles as the distance. Two were making this journey, Cleopas, a husband of one of the Mary’s, John 19:25, the second person could have been his wife, it was normal refer to the man and not to mention women. While they were walking, Jesus joins them on the walk. v16 It may seem strange that they did not recognize Jesus, but they had seen Him die and would not be expecting Him to appear in this way. v17,18 "Why so sad?" is the greeting given by Jesus, The two just could not understand that someone did not know what had happened in Jerusalem. v19,20 They spoke of "Jesus of Nazareth, who was a prophet," indicating that they still had not appreciated the divine nature of Jesus, His deity. v21 They had expected that Jesus was to bring in the Messianic Kingdom, now they were totally disappointed, three days had passed, "it’s all over, there is no hope," was their attitude. The women and certain disciples had reported an empty tomb, a strange report, yet there was not a physical report of a resuscitation, no sign of Jesus. v25-27 Jesus now, starting at Moses, shows that it was prophesied that the Messiah was to suffer and die. A clear indication that the coming of Christ was predicted in the Old Testament. The events of the passed week should not have been a surprise to them. v28,29 Out of fellowship the two men offered the ‘stranger’ a share in their accommodation. It was dangerous to travel at night. v30-32 As he takes the bread and blesses it they realize who He was, did they see the nail prints in His hands? Jesus vanishes, they have their proof of a living Jesus. v33 The discovery was so important they risked all and returned to Jerusalem in the dark with the news of a risen Jesus. v34 There is no record of this appearance to Peter except 1 Cor 15:5. v35-45 Jesus appears to the Ten disciples. Matt 28:16,17; Mark 16:14; John 20:19-23. 36-43 While the ten disciples were discussing the appearance of Jesus to those on the way to Emmaus and to Peter, suddenly Jesus is there in the room with them. The risen Lord has the power to appear and disappear, His resurrected body has powers that exceed the laws of a natural body and matter. They were obviously not expecting this to happen, they think they are seeing a spirit. Jesus speaks peace to them, then shows His hands and feet as proof of who He was. He then told them to touch Him, prove I am not a spirit, a ghost. Finally He asked for some food, completely proving that this was a risen Jesus, a ghost does not eat food!! Acts 10:41. Jesus now reminds them of the words He had spoken with them before the crucifixion, He points out that all that happened was predicted in the Old Testament, then just as with the two on the road to Emmaus, Jesus reveals to them all the teaching about Him. It was all arranged that Jesus Christ was to suffer, die and rise again on the third day, it was all written about by Moses and the prophets. Now Jesus gives them their future task, to preach "repentance and remission of sins," starting in Jerusalem then the whole world. This started at Pentecost, Acts 2:38, and is still a believers task today. v49 Jesus tells that the promised power from God will soon come, just wait in Jerusalem. And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: Joel 2:28. Luke does not record all of the many appearances of Jesus before He ascends back into heaven. Matt 28:16-20; Mark 16:14-20; John 20:19-23; Acts 1:6-11. v50,51 Luke now records that Jesus took the disciples out to Bethany, while blessing them He is taken up into heaven. Acts 1:9. The disciple and followers return to Jerusalem, and worship with great joy. Luke and Acts were written as one document and should be read as one. |
Easy English Translation
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