John 20:12

12 She saw two white-robed angels, one sitting at the head and the other at the foot of the place where the body of Jesus had been lying.

John 20:12 Meaning and Commentary

John 20:12

And seeth two angels in white
Matthew and Mark speak but of one, but Luke of two, as here; whom he calls men, because they appeared in an human form, and in shining garments, or white apparel; and which appearance is entirely agreeable to the received notion of the Jews, that as evil angels or devils are clothed in black, so good angels, or ministering spirits, (Mynbl yvwbl) , "are clothed in white" F12, expressive of their spotless purity and innocence:

sitting the one at the head, and the other at the feet, where the
body of Jesus had lain;
in what position the body of Christ was laid, whether from west to east, as some, or from north to south, as others, is not certain; since the Jews observed no rule in this matter, as appears from the form of their sepulchres, and the disposition of the graves in them; some lying one way, and some another, in the same vault; (See Gill on Luke 24:12).


FOOTNOTES:

F12 Gloss. in T. Bab. Kiddushin, fol. 72. 1.

John 20:12 In-Context

10 Then they went home.
11 Mary was standing outside the tomb crying, and as she wept, she stooped and looked in.
12 She saw two white-robed angels, one sitting at the head and the other at the foot of the place where the body of Jesus had been lying.
13 “Dear woman, why are you crying?” the angels asked her. “Because they have taken away my Lord,” she replied, “and I don’t know where they have put him.”
14 She turned to leave and saw someone standing there. It was Jesus, but she didn’t recognize him.
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