The Angels at the Empty Tomb

Illustration of The Angels at the Empty Tomb

On resurrection morning, angels appeared at the empty tomb to announce that Jesus was risen. Mary Magdalene saw two angels in white sitting where the body had lain, who asked why she wept. Throughout the Gospels angels serve as heaven's witnesses and heralds of the resurrection, directing the grieving disciples from death to life.

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Strongest connections in Scripture
John 20

Key Passages

Two Angels in the Tomb

John 20:11-13

Mary finds two angels seated where Jesus had lain, gently turning her grief toward the reality of the resurrection.

B11ut Mary stood without at the sepulchre weeping: and as she wept, she stooped down, and looked into the sepulchre,

12 And seeth two angels in white sitting, the one at the head, and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain. 13 And they say unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? She saith unto them, Because they have taken away my LORD, and I know not where they have laid him.

Explore Related

Characters

Mary Magdalene Mary Magdalene was a woman from the Galilean town of Magdala who became one of Jesus' most dedicatedโ€ฆ Jesus Jesus is portrayed in the Bible as the Son of God and the long-awaited Messiah whose coming fulfilled Oldโ€ฆ

Places

Golgotha Golgotha, meaning the Place of the Skull, was an execution site located just outside the walls of Jerusalemโ€ฆ

Did You Know?

1

All four Gospels record angels at the resurrection, though they differ in detail.

2

Matthew describes the angel's appearance 'like lightning' and clothing 'white as snow.'

3

The guards at the tomb 'became as dead men' from fear.

4

The angels' question to the women - 'Why seek ye the living among the dead?' - is one of Scripture's great lines.