John 20:9
“For as yet they knew not the scripture, that he must rise again from the dead.”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
Read Full Chapter →The disciples had not yet understood the scriptures that foretold the resurrection.
Context
John reflects on why Peter and the beloved disciple did not immediately grasp the meaning of the empty tomb.
What Does John 20:9 Mean?
John pauses here to tell us something essential about the disciples' condition: they did not yet know the scripture. They had heard Jesus speak of his rising on the third day. They possessed the scriptures of the Old Testament that pointed toward resurrection and restoration. Yet the scriptures had not opened to them. The prophecies had not clicked into place in their hearts. They knew the words, perhaps, but the words had not yet become knowledge.
This honest observation shows us that faith is not simply a matter of information. The disciples had been told; they had been instructed. Yet something in the soul must change before true knowledge comes. The beloved disciple's belief came through seeing the empty grave and letting his mind and heart connect the evidence. But the fuller understanding—that the resurrection of the Messiah was written in the law and the prophets—would come later, opened by the risen Jesus himself. Sometimes we must see before we can understand; sometimes experience must precede the reading of scripture.
Application
We, too, may possess the scriptures without yet grasping their deepest meaning. Faith grows as understanding grows, and sometimes what we see in our own lives helps us finally understand what scripture has been saying all along.