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SCRIPTURE: John 20:19-31
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CONCISE EXEGESIS:
SERMONWRITER SUBSCRIBERS can use their password to access the complete exegesis. We also include the complete exegesis in their weekly email.
You can access the following sermons on this text FREE (no password required):
• "Other Resurrections," by the Rev. Charles Hoffacker
• "What the Wounds Reveal," by the Rev. Charles Hoffacker
• "Honest Doubt, Honest Faith," by the Rev. Charles Hoffacker
• "Thomas," by Emily Sylvester
VERSES 19-31: JESUS APPEARS TO THE DISCIPLES
The two appearances of Jesus take place a week apart, the first being on Easter evening and the second being after eight days (meth hemeras okto) –– often translated "a week later.
Jesus speaks to the disciples three times (vv. 19, 21; 22-23; 27). "Each time his words give power to the disciples who hear them" (Althouse, 107).
This Gospel tells us that disciples are gathered, but not which disciples (see also Luke 24:36-49).
This Gospel shows us that there are different kinds of faith, and that faith comes in different ways and with differing intensities to different people. The beloved disciple believes upon seeing the empty tomb (v. 8). Mary believes when the Lord calls her name (v. 16). The disciples must see the risen Lord (v. 20). Thomas says that he must touch the wounds (v. 25) –– although that need seems to evaporate once he sees the risen Christ (v. 28). People have differing needs and find various routes to faith.
VERSES 19-23: THE FIRST APPEARANCE
19When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked (Greek: kekleismenon –– from kleio –– closed or locked) for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you." 20After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. 21Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you." 22When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. 23If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained."
"When it was evening on that day" (v. 19a). This is Easter evening. The locked doors reflect the fear of the disciples, but will also demonstrate the power of the risen Christ, who can be contained neither by a rock tomb nor a locked door.
It is surprising that the disciples are afraid, because Peter and "the other disciple" have seen the empty tomb (vv. 6-8) and "the other disciple" has seen and believed (v. 8). Mary Magdalene has spoken with the risen Christ and has told the disciples of her experience (v. 14-18). Their fear disappoints us, because they are acting like disciples whose leader is dead.
"Peace be with you" (v. 19c). To these frightened disciples, Jesus gives his peace, even as he has promised (14:27). The disciples will have peace in spite of persecution by a world that will hate them even as it hates Jesus (15:18-25).
"After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side" (v. 20a). On one hand, Jesus enters through a closed door, suggesting that his body has assumed a different quality. On the other hand, his wounds confirm his bodily resurrection, and his body is clearly recognizable by the disciples. Luke tells of Jesus eating a meal with the disciples (Luke 24:43). There is mystery here.
"The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord" (v. 20b). This is the turning point for the disciples. Never again will they be fearful and unbelieving.
Jesus gives the disciples his peace a second time and then says, "As the Father has sent me, so I send you" (v. 21; see also 17:18). This is the Johannine equivalent of the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19-20). God is present in the work of Jesus; Jesus will be present in the work of the disciples.
"When he had said this, he breathed on them" (v. 22a). However, to send these disciples into the world alone would be futile, so Jesus prepares them by breathing on them –– or breathing into them (Greek: enephusesen). Just as God breathed into man the breath of life (Genesis 2:7 –– LXX), Jesus breathes into the disciples the Spirit of life.
"Receive the Holy Spirit" (v. 22b). In Luke's account, the disciples receive the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost in preparation for their Pentecostal witness (Acts 2:4).
"If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained" (v. 23; see also Matthew 16:19; 18:18). Rabbis have the authority to "bind" and "loose" in the sense that they interpret the law to determine what is and is not allowed, but they do not forgive sins. Jesus breaks new ground here.
This verse raises two questions: First, does Jesus give power to forgive or retain sins –– or only power to discern the will of God in particular cases and to make God's judgment known? Second, does Jesus give this power to individual Christians or to the church?
VERSES 24-25: UNLESS I SEE, I WILL NOT BELIEVE
24But Thomas (who was called the Twin [Greek: didymos]), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. 25So the other disciples told him, "We have seen the Lord." But he said to them, "Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe."
"But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came" (v. 24). Thomas is Hebrew for twin. Didymos is Greek for twin. We don't know why Thomas was absent, but we do know that he earlier thought that going to Bethany with Jesus would mean death for the disciples as well as Jesus (11:16).
"So the other disciples told him, 'We have seen the Lord' " (v. 25a). Their words to Thomas ("We have seen the Lord") are essentially the same words ("I have seen the Lord") that Mary used to tell the disciples of her encounter with Jesus.
"Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe" (v. 25b).Thomas does not believe the disciples, but neither did the disciples believe Mary. They were a despondent, defeated people until they saw Jesus with their own eyes. Thomas was not the sole doubter and will not remain a doubter.
A Preaching Point: "Thomas was not with the disciples when Jesus made his first appearance to them. As a result, he refused to believe. This should serve as a warning to us. It is difficult to believe when we do not strengthen ourselves with the fellowship of other believers" (Gossip, 798).
Thomas "is only prepared to lay aside his unfaith if the risen Jesus meets his criteria" (Moloney, 537).
But we must remember that the crucifixion has broken Thomas' heart. Perhaps this is the reason for the great compassion and sensitivity with which Jesus reaches out to Thomas in the verses below.
VERSES 26-29: THE SECOND APPEARANCE
26A week later (Greek: meth hemeras okto –– after eight days) his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you." 27Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe." 28Thomas answered him, "My Lord and my God!" 29Jesus said to him, "Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe."
"A week later (meth hemeras okto –– after eight days) his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them" (v. 26a). The eight days are to be counted inclusively –– Sunday through Sunday –– it is once again the first day of the week.
"Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them" (v. 26b). Once again the doors are shut, but no longer is there any mention of fear.
"Peace be with you" (v. 26c). Once again Jesus gives them his peace. The scene is very much parallel to that of a week earlier.
"Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side" (v. 27a). Jesus does not condemn Thomas for his failure to believe, but gives him that which enables him to believe (v. 27).
"Do not doubt but believe" (v. 27b). Jesus says, "kai me ginou (and do not be) apistos (unbelieving) alla pistos (but believing)." We think of this as the Doubting Thomas story, but the word doubt does not appear unless we translate apistos as doubting rather than unbelieving.
"My Lord and my God!" (v. 28). In response, Thomas makes "the supreme christological pronouncement of the Fourth Gospel" (Brown, 1047). His confession goes far beyond any titles or confessions found elsewhere in this Gospel.
Jesus responds by offering a blessing to "those who have not seen and yet have come to believe" (v. 29). In biblical times, a blessing had great meaning (see Genesis 12:2; 27; 48:15-16, 49; Psalm 37:26; Isaiah 19:24).
"Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe" (v. 29). This is Jesus' final beatitude or blessing. These words will encourage early Christians who will feel cheated, having missed seeing Jesus by only a few months or years. They also encourage us, who are among those who have not seen but who have believed.
VERSES 30-31: THESE ARE WRITTEN THAT YOU MIGHT BELIEVE
30Now (Greek: men oun –– therefore) Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. 31But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.
In verse 29, Jesus pronounced a blessing on those who will believe. Now the narrator says, "Therefore (Greek: men oun)... these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God." The purpose of this Gospel is that we, the readers of this Gospel, may enjoy the promised blessing.
"and that through believing you may have life in his name" (v. 31b). Faith rather than works determines salvation (Romans 1:6; 4:1-3; 9:31-32; 10:9; 1 Corinthians 1:21; Galatians 3:1-12; Ephesians 2:8).
Most scholars agree that these verses conclude this Gospel in its original form.
–– Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. All rights reserved. Used by permission
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Althouse, LaVonne, "Words of Power," Clergy Journal (May-June, 1996)
Barclay, William, The Daily Study Bible, "The Gospel of John," Vol. 2 (Edinburgh: The Saint Andrew Press, 1955)
Beasley-Murray, George R., Word Biblical Commentary: John (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1999)
Brown, Raymond, The Anchor Bible: The Gospel According to John XIII-XXI (Garden City: Doubleday, 1970)
Bruce, F. F., The Gospel of John (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1983).
Brueggemann, Walter; Cousar, Charles B.; Gaventa, Beverly R. and Newsome, James D., Texts for Preaching: A Lectionary Commentary Based on the NRSV--Year B (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1993)
Carson, D. A., The Pillar New Testament Commentary: The Gospel of John (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1991).
Craddock, Fred R.; Hayes, John H.; Holladay, Carl R.; and Tucker, Gene M., Preaching Through the Christian Year B (Valley Forge: Trinity Press International, 1993)
Gossip, Arthur John and Howard, Wilbert F., The Interpreter's Bible, Volume 8 (Nashville: Abingdon, 1952)
Howard-Brook, Wes, Becoming the Children of God: John's Gospel and Radical Discipleship (New York: Maryknoll, 1994).
Hultgren, Arland J. in Van Harn, Roger (ed.), The Lectionary Commentary: Theological Exegesis for Sunday's Text. The Third Readings: The Gospels (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2001)
Krenz, Edgar and Vogel, Arthur A., Proclamation 2, Easter, Series C
Lindberg, Paul H., Lectionary Bible Studies: The Year of Luke: Lent/Easter, Study Book (Minneapolis/Philadelphia: Augsburg Publishing House/Fortress Press, 1976)
Moloney, Francis J., Sacra Pagina: The Gospel of John (Collegeville: The Liturgical Press, 1998)
Morris, Leon, The New International Commentary on the New Testament: The Gospel According to John (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1995).
O'Day, Gail R., The New Interpreter's Bible, Volume IX (Nashville: Abingdon, 1995)
Palmer, Earl F., The Book That John Wrote (Vancouver: Regent College Publishing, 1975)
Sloyan, Gerald, "John," Interpretation (Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1988)
Smith, D. Moody, Jr., Abingdon New Testament Commentaries: John (Nashville: Abingdon, 1999)
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