Empty tomb

The empty tomb is a central idea in Christian tradition. It means that the tomb of Jesus was found empty after his crucifixion.

According to the stories in the canonical gospels, some women went to visit Jesus' tomb and saw that it was empty. They were told by angels—or by a young man in a white robe—that Jesus had risen.

Folio 117r of the Pericopes of Henry II, Reichenau, c. 1002–1012: the Angel on the Tomb. The facing folio, 116v, contains an illumination of the three Maries approaching the empty tomb.

At the time, people from Jewish, Greek, and Roman cultures had different ideas about resurrection. Early Christians believed that Jesus' resurrection was special and important for saving people. Scholars today talk about whether the story of the empty tomb really happened or if it was made up later. Some think it was part of an early story shared by many followers of Jesus. Others see it as a way to show that Jesus truly came back to life. Some also connect the empty tomb to stories of people seeing Jesus after he had died.

Gospel accounts

Further information: Life of Jesus in the New Testament

The four canonical gospels tell the story of Jesus' empty tomb after his death. These stories were written long after Jesus died and are not from people who saw it happen. Three of the gospels—Mark, Luke, and Matthew—are called the synoptics because their stories are very similar. Scholars think Matthew and Luke used Mark to help them write.

In the Gospel of Mark, women go to Jesus' tomb and find it empty. A young man in a white robe tells them that Jesus will meet his disciples in Galilee. The women leave quickly and do not tell anyone. Matthew adds more details, like angels and guards at the tomb, and says the women met Jesus and were told to meet the disciples in Galilee. Luke changes some details, such as having two men in white robes instead of one, and does not mention Galilee. John tells a different story, focusing on Mary Magdalene finding the empty tomb and meeting Jesus.

	Mark 16:1–8	Matthew 28:1–10	Luke 24:1–12
The women at the tomb	Mark 16:1–4 When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus' body. Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb, and they asked each other, "Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?" But when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away.	Matthew 28:1–4 After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it.	Luke 24:1–2 On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb,
The angelic message	Mark 16:5–7 As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed. "Don't be alarmed," he said. "You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter, 'He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.'"	Matthew 28:5–7 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: 'He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you."	Luke 24:3–7 but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, "Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: 'The Son of Man must be delivered over to the hands of sinners, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.' " Then they remembered his words.
Informing the disciples	Mark 16:8 Trembling and bewildered, the women went out and fled from the tomb. They said nothing to anyone, because they were afraid.	Matthew 28:8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples.	Luke 24:9–11 When they came back from the tomb, they told all these things to the Eleven and to all the others. It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the others with them who told this to the apostles. But they did not believe the women, because their words seemed to them like nonsense.
The message from Jesus		Matthew 28:9–10 Suddenly Jesus met them. "Greetings," he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, "Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me."
Disciples at the tomb			Luke 24:12 Peter, however, got up and ran to the tomb. Bending over, he saw the strips of linen lying by themselves, and he went away, wondering to himself what had happened.

	John 20:1–10 Discovery of the empty tomb	John 20:11–18 Appearance of Jesus to Mary Magdalene
Mary Magdalene at the tomb	John 20:1 Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance.	John 20:11 Now Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb
The angelic message		John 20:12–13 and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus' body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot. They asked her, "Woman, why are you crying?" "They have taken my Lord away," she said, "and I don't know where they have put him."
Informing the disciples	John 20:2 So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, "They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don't know where they have put him!"
Disciples at the tomb	John 20:3–10 So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. Then Simon Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, as well as the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus' head. The cloth was still lying in its place, separate from the linen. Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. (They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.) Then the disciples went back to where they were staying.
The message from Jesus		John 20:14–18 At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus. He asked her, "Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?" Thinking he was the gardener, she said, "Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him." Jesus said to her, "Mary." She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, "Rabboni!" (which means "Teacher"). Jesus said, "Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, 'I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'" Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: "I have seen the Lord!" And she told them that he had said these things to her.

Origins

Main article: Jewish-Hellenistic background

The empty tomb is a key part of Christian tradition. It means that Jesus' tomb was found empty after his crucifixion. This story is told in the four Gospels. They say that women went to the tomb and saw that it was empty. Angels, or a young man in white clothes, told them that Jesus had risen.

Many scholars have looked at this story and have different ideas. Some think the empty tomb shows that Jesus really came back to life. Others believe it might be connected to older stories about heroes who disappeared. The empty tomb was very important to early Christians, even though not every old writing talks about it.

Gospel accounts

Origins

Images

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