for as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead.
English Standard Version (ESV)
What's striking here is that the disciples' faith began with the empty tomb, not with a deep understanding of Scripture. It wasn't until after they saw the evidence that they began to connect it with what the Old Testament had predicted all along.
for as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead.
English Standard Version (ESV)
Mary Magdalene has just reported to the disciples that Jesus' tomb is empty, and John has raced to the tomb to see for himself, discovering the grave clothes. Even though they now know Jesus is gone from the tomb, the disciples still don't fully grasp that the Scriptures predicted this resurrection, a truth only beginning to dawn on them. This realization about God's predetermined plan, revealed through ancient prophecies, would fully come later as Jesus himself would help them understand.
The disciples race to the tomb. What they find there is shocking, yet their minds are still catching up. This moment reveals a key aspect of how faith often begins.
When Jesus' closest followers arrive at the empty tomb, their immediate reaction isn't a sudden grasp of prophecy. John's Gospel notes they 'did not yet understand the Scripture.'
This is crucial! It means their initial belief wasn't born from perfectly recalling and interpreting Old Testament predictions.
Instead, the experience of the empty tomb – the undeniable fact of the missing body – was the catalyst. This encounter with reality, with the impossible, began to unlock their understanding of what the Scriptures had foretold.
The text uses a powerful word: 'must.' It points to something more than just a possibility; it signals a divine plan unfolding.
The phrase 'he must rise' isn't just John’s observation; it reflects a divine necessity woven into God’s plan from the beginning. This wasn't an optional add-on to Jesus' mission.
Ask a follow-up
The disciples saw the empty tomb before they fully understood the prophecies. What does this say about how we learn and grow in faith?
This verse highlights a beautiful pattern: God often uses direct experience to open our eyes to His Word.
The disciples’ initial belief was grounded in the undeniable evidence of the empty tomb. It was the fact of the resurrection that gave them a new lens through which to read the Scriptures.
Understand the original words
graphē · Greek Noun
The inspired, authoritative written Word of God. Throughout the New Testament, it serves as the foundation for understanding God's plan of salvation and the necessity of the Messiah's suffering and glory.
anastasis · Greek Noun
The act of being physically raised from the dead back to life. In Christian theology, it is the cornerstone of the faith, validating Christ's divinity, His victory over sin and death, and the promise of future resurrection for believers.
The disciples' initial belief in the resurrection stemmed from the stark reality of the empty tomb and Jesus' appearances, not from a prior understanding of prophecy; the full grasp of Scripture's witness to the resurrection only came later through Jesus' teaching and the Holy Spirit.
c. 30 AD— this verse
Jesus' Crucifixion and Burial
Jesus of Nazareth is crucified and buried, a pivotal event that deeply confuses and grieves his followers.
c. 30 AD
Discovery of the Empty Tomb
Mary Magdalene and other followers discover Jesus' tomb is empty, a shocking event that sparks their initial belief in his resurrection.
c. 30 AD
Jesus Appears to Disciples
The resurrected Jesus begins to appear to his followers, gradually revealing himself and the reality of his victory over death.
c. 30 AD
Jesus Explains Scripture
Jesus spends time with his disciples, opening their minds to understand how the Old Testament scriptures foretold his suffering and resurrection.
c. 33 AD
Pentecost and the Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit is poured out on the disciples, empowering them and fully enabling them to understand and proclaim the scriptures concerning Christ.
c. 48-50 AD
Early Church Preaching
Apostles like Peter and Paul begin to preach boldly, explaining how Jesus' resurrection fulfilled Old Testament prophecies, solidifying the theological understanding.
This passage shows Jesus rebuking the two disciples on the road to Emmaus for their dullness of heart in not believing all the prophets had spoken, explaining that the Messiah had to suffer these things before entering his glory, directly highlighting the disciples' lack of understanding of scriptural necessity.
Acts 2:24-32Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, explains Jesus' resurrection by explicitly quoting and interpreting Old Testament passages (like Psalm 16), demonstrating how the understanding of Scripture concerning Christ's rising was made clear after Pentecost, contrasting with the disciples' earlier confusion.
1 Corinthians 15:3-4Paul summarizes the core gospel message, stating that Christ died for our sins, was buried, and rose again 'according to the Scriptures,' underscoring that the resurrection was foretold and is a foundational scriptural truth that the early disciples initially failed to grasp.
Psalm 16:10This Old Testament psalm, often cited in the New Testament, speaks of God not abandoning the speaker's soul in the realm of the dead and not letting his holy one see decay, which the apostles later understood as a prophecy of Christ's resurrection.
barnesJohn 20:9: "For as yet they knew not the scripture, that he must rise again from the dead."
The scripture - See Luke 24:26 , Luke 24:46 . The sense or meaning of the various predictions that foretold his death, as, for example, Psalm 2:7 , compare Acts 13:33 ; Psalm 16:9-10 , compare Acts 2:25-32 ; Psalm 110:1 , compare Acts 2:34-35 . For an account of the resurrection of Christ, see the notes at Matthew 28.
cambridgeJohn 20:9: "For as yet they knew not the scripture, that he must rise again from the dead."
9 . they knew not the scripture ] S. John’s belief in the Resurrection was as yet based only on what he had seen in the sepulchre. He had nothing derived from prophecy to help him. The candour of the Evangelists is again shewn very strongly in the simple avowal that the love of Apostles failed to grasp and remember what the enmity of the priests understood and treasured up. Even with Christ to expound Sc…
What's striking here is that the disciples' faith began with the empty tomb, not with a deep understanding of Scripture. It wasn't until after they saw the evidence that they began to connect it with what the Old Testament had predicted all along.
Mary Magdalene has just reported to the disciples that Jesus' tomb is empty, and John has raced to the tomb to see for himself, discovering the grave clothes. Even though they now know Jesus is gone from the tomb, the disciples still don't fully grasp that the Scriptures predicted this resurrection, a truth only beginning to dawn on them. This realization about God's predetermined plan, revealed through ancient prophecies, would fully come later as Jesus himself would help them understand.
Mary Magdalene has just reported to the disciples that Jesus' tomb is empty, and John has raced to the tomb to see for himself, discovering the grave clothes. Even though they now know Jesus is gone from the tomb, the disciples still don't fully grasp that the Scriptures predicted this resurrection, a truth only beginning to dawn on them. This realization about God's predetermined plan, revealed through ancient prophecies, would fully come later as Jesus himself would help them understand.
"for as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead." — What's striking here is that the disciples' faith began with the empty tomb, not with a deep understanding of Scripture. It wasn't until after they saw the evidence that they began to connect it…
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Last reviewed October 2026