John 20:22
When He had said this, He breathed on them and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit.
And when He had said this
This phrase marks a pivotal moment in the narrative, following Jesus' resurrection. The context is crucial; Jesus has just appeared to His disciples, who were gathered in fear. The phrase indicates a transition from His comforting words of peace to a profound spiritual act. The Greek word for "said" (εἶπεν, eipen) implies a declaration of authority, underscoring the significance of what follows.

He breathed on them
The act of breathing is deeply symbolic, harking back to Genesis 2:7, where God breathes life into Adam. The Greek word used here is ἐνεφύσησεν (enephysēsen), which is unique in the New Testament, emphasizing the divine impartation of life and spirit. This act signifies the impartation of new spiritual life, echoing the creation narrative and symbolizing the new creation in Christ.

and said
The repetition of "said" (εἶπεν, eipen) highlights the authority and intentionality of Jesus' actions. It underscores the importance of His words, which are not mere suggestions but divine commands with transformative power.

Receive the Holy Spirit
This command is both a promise and a fulfillment. The Greek word for "receive" (λάβετε, labete) is an imperative, indicating an active reception. The Holy Spirit, referred to as πνεῦμα (pneuma), is the third person of the Trinity, essential for the life and mission of the Church. This moment prefigures Pentecost, where the Holy Spirit would be poured out in fullness. Theologically, this act signifies the disciples' empowerment for ministry and the continuation of Jesus' work on earth.

Persons / Places / Events
1. Jesus Christ
The resurrected Lord who appears to His disciples, offering them peace and commissioning them for their mission.

2. The Disciples
The followers of Jesus who are gathered together in a locked room, fearful of the Jewish leaders, and who receive the Holy Spirit from Jesus.

3. The Upper Room
The location where the disciples are gathered, symbolizing a place of fear transformed into a place of empowerment.

4. The Breathing of Jesus
A symbolic act reminiscent of God breathing life into Adam, signifying the impartation of spiritual life and empowerment.

5. The Holy Spirit
The third person of the Trinity, given to the disciples to empower them for their mission and to guide them in truth.
Teaching Points
Empowerment for Mission
Just as the disciples were empowered by the Holy Spirit to carry out their mission, believers today are called to rely on the Spirit for strength and guidance in their own lives and ministries.

The Breath of Life
The act of Jesus breathing on the disciples signifies the impartation of spiritual life. Believers are reminded that true life and vitality come from the Spirit of God.

Peace and Presence
Jesus' presence brings peace to the fearful disciples. In the same way, believers can find peace in the presence of Christ, even in times of fear and uncertainty.

The Role of the Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit is essential for understanding and living out the teachings of Jesus. Believers are encouraged to cultivate a relationship with the Spirit for wisdom and discernment.

New Creation
Receiving the Holy Spirit marks the beginning of a new life in Christ. Believers are called to live as new creations, reflecting the character and mission of Jesus.
Bible Study Questions
1. How does the act of Jesus breathing on the disciples in John 20:22 relate to the creation account in Genesis 2:7, and what does this imply about the nature of spiritual life?

2. In what ways does the empowerment of the Holy Spirit in John 20:22 prepare the disciples for their mission, and how can believers today seek similar empowerment for their own callings?

3. How does the peace that Jesus offers in the context of John 20:22 transform the disciples' fear, and how can believers experience this peace in their own lives?

4. What role does the Holy Spirit play in guiding believers into truth, as promised in John 14:16-17, and how can we be more attentive to the Spirit's leading?

5. Reflect on 2 Corinthians 5:17 in light of John 20:22. How does receiving the Holy Spirit contribute to our identity as new creations in Christ, and what practical steps can we take to live out this new identity?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Genesis 2:7
The act of Jesus breathing on the disciples parallels God breathing life into Adam, indicating a new creation and spiritual life.

Acts 2:1-4
The coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost fulfills the promise of empowerment for the disciples, expanding on the initial impartation in John 20:22.

Ezekiel 37:9-10
The vision of the dry bones coming to life through the breath of God foreshadows the spiritual revival and empowerment of the disciples.

John 14:16-17
Jesus promises the coming of the Holy Spirit, who will dwell with and in the disciples, providing guidance and truth.

2 Corinthians 5:17
The concept of being a new creation in Christ is linked to the transformative power of the Holy Spirit received by the disciples.
Christ Among His PeopleT. Whitelaw, D. D.John 20:19-23
Christ's Appearance to His DisciplesD. Thomas, D. D.John 20:19-23
Christ's Peace the Antidote for the World's DistractionsDean Stanley.John 20:19-23
Christ's SalutationJ. BeaumontJohn 20:19-23
Jesus in Our MidstC. H. Spurgeon.John 20:19-23
Jesus Meeting His Disciples After the ResurrectionT. H. Day.John 20:19-23
SalutationsDean Stanley.John 20:19-23
The Appearance to the Second CompanyC. Stanford, D. D.John 20:19-23
The First Lord's Day EveningProf. J. R. Thomson.John 20:19-23
The First Lord's Day EveningJ.R. Thomson John 20:19-23
The Risen Jesus Appearing to His DisciplesC. Bradley, M. A.John 20:19-23
The Risen Lord's Greetings and GiftsA. Maclaren, D. D.John 20:19-23
The Tears of ChristCanon Liddon.John 20:19-23
Christ's Mission One with OursJames Owen.John 20:21-23
Receiving the Holy GhostJames Owen.John 20:21-23
The Correspondence Between the Two MissionsR. Besser, D. D.John 20:21-23
The Gift of the SpiritLay PreacherJohn 20:21-23
The Gospel of AbsolutionT. G. Selby.John 20:21-23
The Remission of SinsBp. Ryle.John 20:21-23
The True Spirit of MissionsW. Arthur, M. A.John 20:21-23
People
Didymus, Jesus, Mary, Peter, Simon, Thomas
Places
Jerusalem
Topics
Breathed, Breathing, Ghost, Holy, Receive, Says, Spirit
Dictionary of Bible Themes
John 20:22

     3120   Holy Spirit, descriptions
     3257   Holy Spirit, gift of
     3269   Holy Spirit, in Christ
     7028   church, life of

John 20:11-31

     9311   resurrection, of Christ

John 20:21-22

     1513   Trinity, mission of
     3215   Holy Spirit, and peace
     4804   breath
     6670   grace, and Holy Spirit
     7708   apostles, function
     7742   missionaries, support
     7950   mission, of Christ

John 20:21-23

     3275   Holy Spirit, in the church
     6654   forgiveness, Christ's ministry
     7770   priests, NT tasks

John 20:22-23

     2012   Christ, authority

Library
May 20 Evening
Jesus saith unto her, Mary.--JOHN 20:16. Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by name: Thou art mine.--The sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name. And the sheep follow him: for they know his voice. Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me. The foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his.--We have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God.
Anonymous—Daily Light on the Daily Path

September 5. "He Breathed on Them" (John xx. 22).
"He breathed on them" (John xx. 22). The beautiful figure suggested by this passage is full of simple instruction. It is as easy to receive the Holy Ghost as it is to breathe. It almost seems as if the Lord had given them the very impression of breathing, and had said, "Now, this is the way to receive the Holy Ghost." It is not necessary for you to go to a smallpox hospital to have your lungs contaminated with impure air. It is enough for you to keep in your lungs the air you inhaled a minute ago
Rev. A. B. Simpson—Days of Heaven Upon Earth

October 9. "Peace be unto You" (John xx. 19, 21).
"Peace be unto you" (John xx. 19, 21). This is the type of His first appearing to our hearts when He comes to bring us His peace and to teach us to trust Him and love Him. But there is a second peace which He has to give. Jesus said unto them again, "Peace be unto you." There is a "peace," and there is an "again peace." There is a peace with God, and there is "the peace of God that passeth understanding." It is the deeper peace that we need before we can serve Him or be used for His glory. While
Rev. A. B. Simpson—Days of Heaven Upon Earth

Thomas and Jesus
'And after eight days, again His disciples were within, and Thomas with them. Then came Jesus.'--JOHN xx. 26. There is nothing more remarkable about the narrative of the resurrection, taken as a whole, than the completeness with which our Lord's appearances met all varieties of temperament, condition, and spiritual standing. Mary, the lover; Peter, the penitent; the two disciples on the way to Emmaus, the thinkers; Thomas, the stiff unbeliever--the presence of the Christ is enough for them all; it
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture: St. John Chaps. XV to XXI

The Resurrection Morning
'The first day of the week cometh Mary Magdalene early, when it was yet dark, unto the sepulchre, and seeth the stone taken away from the sepulchre. 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. Peter therefore went forth, and that other disciple, and came to the sepulchre. So they ran both together: and the other disciple did outrun Peter,
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture: St. John Chaps. XV to XXI

The Risen Lord's Charge and Gift
'Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto yon: as My Father hath sent Me, even so send I you. And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost. Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained.'--JOHN xx. 21-23. The day of the Resurrection had been full of strange rumours, and of growing excitement. As evening fell, some of the disciples, at any rate, gathered together, probably in the upper
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture: St. John Chaps. XV to XXI

The Silence of Scripture
'And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book: But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through His name.' --JOHN XX. 30, 31. It is evident that these words were originally the close of this Gospel, the following chapter being an appendix, subsequently added by the writer himself. In them we have the Evangelist's own acknowledgment of the incompleteness
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture: St. John Chaps. XV to XXI

The Lord is Risen Indeed
But now the Lord is risen from the dead, and become the first fruits of them that slept. A s, in the animal economy [As, in the function of physical bodies], the action of the heart and of the lungs, though very different, are equally necessary for the maintenance of life, and we cannot say that either of them is more essentially requisite than the other; so, in the system of divine revelation, there are some truths, the knowledge and belief of which, singly considered, are fundamentals with respect
John Newton—Messiah Vol. 2

Supposing Him to be the Gardener
It is not an unnatural supposition, surely; for if we may truly sing "We are a garden walled around, Chosen and made peculiar ground," that enclosure needs a gardener. Are we not all the plants of his right hand planting? Do we not all need watering and tending by his constant and gracious care? He says, "I am the true vine: my Father is the husbandman," and that is one view of it; but we may also sing, "My well-beloved hath a vineyard in a very fruitful hill: and he fenced it, and gathered out the
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 29: 1883

The Evidence of Our Lord's Wounds
Among us at this day we have many persons who are like Thomas--dubious, demanding signs and tokens, suspicious, and ofttimes sad. I am not sure that there is not a slight touch of Thomas in most of us. There are times and seasons when the strong man fails, and when the firm believer has to pause a while, and say, "Is it so?" It may be that our meditation upon the text before us may be of service to those who are touched with the malady which afflicted Thomas. Notice, before we proceed to our subject
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 34: 1888

Easter Day.
Then the disciples went away again unto their own home. With this verse ends the portion of the scripture chosen for the gospel in this morning's service. It finishes the account of the visit of Peter and John to the sepulchre; and, therefore, the close of the extract at this point is sufficiently natural. Yet the effect of the quiet tone of these words, just following the account of the greatest event which earth has ever witnessed, is, I think, singularly impressive; the more so when we remember
Thomas Arnold—The Christian Life

Sermon for Thursday in Easter Week
How we ought to love God, and how Christ is a Master of the Eternal Good, wherefore we ought to love Him above all things; a Master of the Highest Truth, wherefore we ought to contemplate Him; and a Master of the Highest Perfectness, wherefore we ought to follow after Him without let or hindrance. John xx. 16.--"She turned herself and said unto Him, Rabboni; which is to say, Master." WHEN our Lord had risen from the dead, Mary Magdalene desired with her whole heart to behold our blessed Lord; and
Susannah Winkworth—The History and Life of the Reverend Doctor John Tauler

Sermon for the First Sunday after Easter
(From the Gospel for the day) How we are to ascend by three stages to true peace and purity of heart. John xx. 19.--"Peace be to you." PEACE be with you," said our beloved Lord to His disciples after His resurrection. All men by nature desire rest and peace, and are ever striving after it in all their manifold actions, efforts, and labours; and yet to all eternity they will never attain to true peace, unless they seek it where alone it is to be found,--in God. What, then, are the means and ways to
Susannah Winkworth—The History and Life of the Reverend Doctor John Tauler

The Eternal Manhood
(First Sunday after Easter.) John xx. 29. Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed; blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed. The eighth day after the Lord Jesus rose from the dead, he appeared a second time to his disciples. On this day he strengthened St. Thomas's weak faith, by giving him proof, sensible proof, that he was indeed and really the very same person who had been crucified, wearing the very same human nature, the very same man's
Charles Kingsley—Town and Country Sermons

The Higher Faith.
Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.--JOHN xx. 29. The aspiring child is often checked by the dull disciple who has learned his lessons so imperfectly that he has never got beyond his school-books. Full of fragmentary rules, he has perceived the principle of none of them. The child draws near to him with some outburst of unusual feeling, some scintillation of a lively hope, some wide-reaching imagination
George MacDonald—Unspoken Sermons

Thoughts Upon Self-Denyal.
THE most glorious Sight questionless that was ever to be seen upon the face of the Earth, was to see the Son of God here, to see the supreme Being and Governour of the World here; to see the Creator of all things conversing here with his own Creatures; to see God himself with the nature, and in the shape of Man; walking about upon the surface of the Earth, and discoursing with silly Mortals here; and that with so much Majesty and Humility mixed together, that every expression might seem a demonstration
William Beveridge—Private Thoughts Upon a Christian Life

Sixth Appearance of Jesus.
(Sunday, One Week After the Resurrection.) ^D John XX. 26-31; ^E I. Cor. XV. 5. ^d 26 And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them. ^f then he appeared to the twelve; ^d Jesus cometh, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you. [He came in the same manner and with the same salutation as formerly, giving Thomas a like opportunity for believing.] 27 Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and see my hands; and reach hither thy hand,
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

The Person and Work of the Holy Spirit as Revealed in his Names.
At least twenty-five different names are used in the Old and New Testaments in speaking of the Holy Spirit. There is the deepest significance in these names. By the careful study of them, we find a wonderful revelation of the Person and work of the Holy Spirit. I. The Spirit. The simplest name by which the Holy Spirit is mentioned in the Bible is that which stands at the head of this paragraph--"The Spirit." This name is also used as the basis of other names, so we begin our study with this.
R. A. Torrey—The Person and Work of The Holy Spirit

The Work of the Holy Spirit
The Holy Scriptures in the New Testament. "But these are written that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through His name."--John xx. 31. Having considered the apostolate, we are now to discuss God's gift to the Church, viz. the New Testament Scripture. The apostolate placed a new power in the Church. Surely all power is in heaven; but it has pleased God to let this power descend in the Church by means of organs and instruments, chief
Abraham Kuyper—The Work of the Holy Spirit

Ambassadors for Christ
T. P. John xx. 21 "Who are these who come amongst us, Strangers to our speech and ways? Passing by our joys and treasures, Singing in the darkest days? Are they pilgrims journeying on From a land we have not known?" We are come from a far country, From a land beyond the sun; We are come from that geat glory Round our God's eternal throne: Thence we come, and thither go; Here no resting-place we know. Far within the depth of glory, In the Father's house above, We have learnt His wondrous secret,
Frances Bevan—Hymns of Ter Steegen, Suso, and Others

Whether Sacred Doctrine Proceeds by Argument
Whether Sacred Doctrine Proceeds by Argument We proceed to the eighth article thus: 1. It seems that sacred doctrine does not proceed by argument. For Ambrose says: "where faith is sought, eschew arguments" (De Fid. Cath.), and it is especially faith that is sought in this doctrine. As it is said in John 20:31: "these are written, that ye might believe." It follows that sacred doctrine does not proceed by argument. 2. Again, if sacred doctrine proceeded by argument, it would argue either on the ground
Aquinas—Nature and Grace

Whether God Always Loves Better Things the More
Whether God Always Loves Better Things the More We proceed to the fourth article thus: 1. It seems that God does not always love better things the more. It is obvious that Christ is better than the entire human race. Yet according to Rom. 8:32 God loved the human race more than he loved Christ. "He that spared not his only Son, but delivered him up for us all . . ." Thus God does not always love better things the more. 2. Again, an angel is better than a man, according to Ps. 8:5: "Thou hast made
Aquinas—Nature and Grace

It was but a Little that I Passed by them when I Found Him whom My Soul Loveth. I Held Him; Neither Will I Let Him Go Until I Bring Him into My Mother's House, and into the Chamber of Her that Conceived Me.
The soul having thus come forth from self and left all creatures behind, finds her Well-beloved, who manifests Himself to her with new charms; which causes her to believe that the blessed moment for the consummation of the divine marriage is at hand, and that she is about to enter into permanent union. She exclaims in a transport of joy, I have found Him whom my soul loveth, I embrace Him and will never let Him go. For she thinks she can retain Him, and that He only left her on account of some fault
Madame Guyon—Song of Songs of Solomon

The Resurrection.
"Now on the first day of the week cometh Mary Magdalene early, while it was yet dark, unto the tomb, and seeth the stone taken away from the tomb. She runneth therefore, 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 tomb, and we know not where they have laid Him. Peter therefore went forth, and the other disciple, and they went toward the tomb. And they ran both together: and the other disciple outran Peter, and
Marcus Dods—The Expositor's Bible: The Gospel of St John, Vol. II

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