John 20:11
“But Mary stood without at the sepulchre weeping: and as she wept, she stooped down, and looked into the sepulchre,”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
Read Full Chapter →Mary Magdalene remains at the tomb, weeping, and looks into it as the disciples have gone.
Context
After Peter and the beloved disciple have left, Mary returns to the sepulchre alone, grieving.
What Does John 20:11 Mean?
While the disciples depart, Mary stands without at the sepulchre weeping. Her love will not let her leave. The others have seen and gone, have begun to puzzle it out, but Mary remains. She stands alone, weeping, and in her weeping she stoops down and looks into the sepulchre. Her grief draws her back repeatedly to the place where death seemed final. She does not leave the body behind. She does not abandon her search, even when the men have gone.
There is something beautiful in her stubborn refusal to leave. She grieves, yes; she does not understand, yes; she is afraid, perhaps. But she will not go away. She will stand at the tomb. She will keep watch. And in this faithfulness of her grief, she positions herself to be the first to meet the risen Lord. It is not the bold disciples who first encounter the resurrection; it is the woman who would not leave, who loved so much she could not abandon the place of death.
Application
Our love—even when it seems ordinary, even when we are simply refusing to leave—can position us to encounter Christ in ways the bold or the clever might miss.