John 20:2

Then she runneth, and cometh to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and saith unto them, They have taken away the Lord out of the sepulchre, and we know not where they have laid him.

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(2) To Simon Peter, and to the other disciple.—St. Matthew has, “to His disciples;” St. Luke has, “to the Eleven, and to all the rest.” St. John relates only that announcement of which he had special personal knowledge.

For “the other disciple” comp. Introduction, p. 375. For the connection between St. John and St. Peter, comp. Introduction, p. 371.

Whom Jesus loved.—Comp. Note on John 11:3; John 21:15. The word here used of St. John is that which is used of Lazarus in John 11:3. It is not the word which occurs in John 19:26; John 21:7; John 21:20.

We know not where they have laid him.—The plural has frequently been pressed to prove that Mary included the other women with herself in what she says—i.e., that St. John’s narrative here implies that of the earlier Gospels. This certainly may be so, but we cannot say more than this. It certainly may be that, in her feeling of despair, she speaks generally of the utter hopelessness of human effort, whether her own or that of others. It is the passionate cry of her woman’s heart. They have not only crucified the Lord, but have robbed the body of the resting-place which love had provided for it, and of the tender care with which love was seeking to surround it—“They have taken away the Lord; and we know not to what fresh indignity their hatred, against which even the grave is not proof, has subjected the body of Him whom we have loved. We know not where they have laid Him.”

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

20:1-10 If Christ gave his life a ransom, and had not taken it again, it would not have appeared that his giving it was accepted as satisfaction. It was a great trial to Mary, that the body was gone. Weak believers often make that the matter of complaint, which is really just ground of hope, and matter of joy. It is well when those more honoured than others with the privileges of disciples, are more active than others in the duty of disciples; more willing to take pains, and run hazards, in a good work. We must do our best, and neither envy those who can do better, nor despise those who do as well as they can, though they come behind. The disciple whom Jesus loved in a special manner, and who therefore in a special manner loved Jesus, was foremost. The love of Christ will make us to abound in every duty more than any thing else. He that was behind was Peter, who had denied Christ. A sense of guilt hinders us in the service of God. As yet the disciples knew not the Scripture; they Christ must rise again from the dead.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

For an account of the resurrection of Christ, see the notes at Matthew 28.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

CHAPTER 20

Joh 20:1-18. Mary's Visit to the Sepulchre, and Return to It with Peter and John—Her Risen Lord Appears to Her.

1, 2. The first day … cometh Mary Magdalene early, &c.—(See on [1914]Mr 16:1-4; and Mt 28:1, 2).

she runneth and cometh to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and saith unto them, They have taken away the Lord out of the sepulchre—Dear disciple! thy dead Lord is to thee "the Lord" still.

Matthew Poole's Commentary

Then she runneth; that is, Mary Magdalene ran into the city to tell Peter; and that seemeth to be the reason why John mentions only her going to the sepulchre: but yet Luke Luke 24:10 makes not Mary Magdalene only, but Joanna, and Mary the mother of James, the reporters of the news to the apostles; but possibly she was the most forward and first reporter of it. She came to the eleven, and told all these things to them, Luke 24:9, but possibly her chief discourse was with Simon Peter, and John, the beloved disciple: she complains to them that her Lord was removed out of the sepulchre, whither and by whom she knew not. But how did they know that? Mark saith, they entered into the sepulchre, Mark 16:5. Or if that were after, as it should seem by John 20:11 of this chapter; they guessed that the body was gone when they saw the stone rolled away, and the door open.

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

Then she runneth and cometh to Simon Peter,.... That is, after she had not only seen that the stone was took away, but had looked into the sepulchre, and saw that the body of Christ was removed; for otherwise she could not have said, that it was took away out of it: upon which she made all the haste she could to Peter; who, where he was she knew; and she was particularly bid by the angel she saw in the sepulchre, to go to him:

and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved; John the writer of this Gospel; for these two were together, as they usually were; nor were they alone, for the rest of the disciples were with them:

and saith unto them, they have taken away the Lord out of the sepulchre, and we know not where they have laid him. The Oriental versions, the Syriac, Arabic, Persic, and Ethiopic, read, "I know not where they have laid him"; who they were that had taken the body of Christ away, whether friends or enemies, she could not say; nor did she, or any of the women that were with her, know where it was put; whether in some other grave, or was exposed to the insults of men, or to birds and beasts of prey; whether it was laid in a more suitable and convenient place, or in a scandalous one; and whether this removal was for his greater honour, or reproach; to know this, gave her great concern and uneasiness, as she knew it must the disciples also: so Christ, in a spiritual sense, may be removed from his people for a time, and they know not where he is; sometimes he removes himself, to chastise them for their former carriage, to try and exercise their grace, to inflame their love to him, and sharpen their desires after him, and to endear his presence to them the more, when they enjoy it again; sometimes he is taken away from them by preachers, when they leave him out of their discourses; and by their own sins and transgressions, which separate between him and them, with respect to communion; and who, for a time, may not know where to find him: and for the direction of such it may be observed, that he is to be found in the ministration of his word and ordinances in his churches.

Geneva Study Bible

Then she runneth, and cometh to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and saith unto them, They have taken away the LORD out of the sepulchre, and we know not where they have laid him.

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Expositor's Greek Testament

John 20:2. τρέχει οὖν … αὐτόν. She therefore runs, disregarding unseemliness, and comes to those who would be most interested, and without preface, breathless and anxious, exclaims: ἦραν … “they have removed the Lord from the tomb, and we know not where they have laid Him”. Evidently she had no idea that a resurrection had taken place. The plural οἴδαμεν may naturally be accepted as confirming Mark’s account that she was not alone.

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

2. Then she runneth] She runneth therefore, concluding that the body must be gone.

Simon Peter] His fall was probably known and his deep repentance also: he is still chief of the Apostles, and as such the one consulted first.

and to the other] The repetition of ‘to’ implies that the two Apostles were not lodging together, although John 20:3 implies that they were close to one another.

whom Jesus loved] Perhaps the expression is meant to apply to Simon Peter also; ‘the other disciple whom Jesus loved.’ This becomes probable when we notice that the word for ‘loved’ is not that used of S. John in John 19:26, John 21:7; John 21:20 (agapân), but the more general word (philein). See on John 11:5.

They have taken] She does not attempt to determine who, whether friends or foes.

we know not] This possibly implies that other women had been with her, as stated by the Synoptists. If so, she may have outstripped them in going to the garden.

Bengel's Gnomen

John 20:2. Καὶ πρὸς, and to) From the preposition being repeated before both, it may be inferred that both disciples were not together. Yet they went forth together, after that one had sought out the other. It is not said that Mary Magdalene brought the tidings also to the mother of Jesus. The latter confined herself to the house.—ἐφίλει, esteemed [‘diligebat’]) In other passages the word used is ἠγάπα, loved.[397] Comp. note on ch. John 21:15.—ΤῸΝ ΚΎΡΙΟΝ, the Lord) She retains her exalted estimation of Jesus: John 20:15, “My Lord.”—οὐκ οἴδαμεν, we know not) She speaks in the name of the other women also, or in that of the disciples, whom she knew to be distressed on the same account. [She perhaps was conjecturing that Joseph had laid the body of Jesus only for a time in his own sepulchre, until he should find another place for it.—V. g.]

[397] ‘Amabat.’ But Trench reverses the words, making φιλεῖν answer to ‘amare;’ and ἀγαπᾶν to ‘diligere.’ The Vulgate mostly supports Trench’s view, giving also at times ‘osculari’ for. φιλεῖν. Here, however, some MSS. of Vulg. have ‘amabat,’ others ‘diligebat,’ as Bengel gives it.—E. and T.

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 2. - Then she runneth in advance of the other women, who are each intent on communicating what she had seen and heard, and cometh to Simon Peter - why not, if, as Mark says, Peter had been specially mentioned by the angel? - and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved. The form of the expression suggests that they were living in different houses. [There were two disciples on whom Jesus poured out the abundance of his love. The word here used is not ἠγάπα, that which is used in John 13:23 and John 21:7-20, and which denotes the love of high regard, but ἐφίλει, the love of personal affection, the kind of love showered on Lazarus and his sisters (John 11:5). So far, then, from John especially exalting himself at the expense of Peter, he gives to Peter the first place in the affection of his Master.] And she saith to them, They have taken away the Lord - even the corpse of Jesus was the Lord to this urgent and impassioned disciple - out of the sepulcher, and we know not where they - Joseph and Nicodemus, or the chief priests, or Roman soldiers, or Jews - have laid him. We know not what other burying-place "they" have chosen! The anti-harmonistic commentators, with ponderous literalism, insist that Mary could have said nothing more. A gushing woman like Mary of Magdala uttered one sentence, and that was all: It is, however, entirely evident that she must have said enough to excite great wonderment, haste, and activity in the breasts of these two disciples (see above on the three hypotheses). John 20:2

Vincent's Word Studies

Loved (ἐφίλει)

The word for personal affection. In John 13:23; John 21:7, John 21:20, ἠγάπα is used. See on John 5:20.

We know not

The plural indicates that Mary was not alone, though she alone is mentioned as coming to the tomb. She may have preceded the others.