The Good News by Luke 24

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The Messiah Has Risen from Death

1 On Sunday,* at the emergence of dawn*, the women took the fragrant oils they had prepared, and went to the tomb. 2 They found that the stone had been rolled away from the tomb. 3 So they went in, but they did not find the body of our Master Jesus. 4 While they were in bewilderment about this, two men appeared to them in gleaming clothes and stood near them. 5 The women were frightened and bowed their heads toward the ground. Then the men said to them, “Why are you looking for the living one among the dead? 6 He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he, when he was with you in Galilee, said 7 that the One Who Became Man must be handed over to sinful people and be crucified, and that on the third day he would rise up alive.”* 8 Then the women remembered what he had said.

9 So they came back from the tomb and told the eleven [apostles] and all the rest about all these things.* 10 Those who told the apostles about this were Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the rest of their companions. 11 As for the apostles, they did not believe the women, because what they said seemed to them like nonsense. 12 But Peter got up and ran to the tomb. He bent down and saw the shroud only. Then he returned home bewildered about what had happened.

On the Road to Emmaus

13 On the same day, two of the disciples were on their way to a village called Emmaus, at a distance of about eleven kilometers from Jerusalem. 14 They were talking together about the things that had happened. 15 While they were in conversation and discussion, Jesus himself came and began to walk with them. 16 But it was not possible for their eyes to recognize him.

17 He said to them, “What are you talking about as you're walking together?” So they stopped, and sadness was apparent on their faces. 18 One of them, named Cleopas, answered him, “You must be the only person among the people staying in Jerusalem who doesn't know what has happened there these [last few] days!” 19 So he said to them, “What has happened?”

They said to him, “Jesus of Nazareth was a prophet, powerful in word and deed in the sight of God and of all the people, 20 but our chief priests and our leaders handed him over to [be given] a sentence of execution, and they crucified him.* 21 We had been hoping that he was the one who would save the Children of Israel! Add to that, this is the third day since those events, 22 and now some women from our group have bewildered us: They went to the tomb early in the morning 23 but didn't find his body. Then they returned and said that they had seen angels in a vision, who said that he was alive! 24 Then some of our companions went to the tomb and found the situation just as the women had said. As for [Jesus], they did not see him.”

25 Then [Jesus] said to them, “What foolishness! Why is it so difficult for you to believe all that the prophets have said? 26 It was necessary that the Messiah should undergo these sufferings and then enter into his glory!” 27 Then, beginning with the Torah of Moses and the writings of all the Prophets, he explained to them what is written about him in all the Scriptures.

28 They approached the village to which they were heading, and Jesus acted as if he were going somewhere farther on, 29 but they said, “Please come to our place; the hour is late, and evening is near.” So he went in to spend the night with them. 30 When he had sat down with them for dinner, he took the bread and gave thanks to God. Then he broke [it] and gave [it to] them. 31 Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him, but he vanished from their [sight]. 32 And one of them said to the other, “That's why there was yearning and warmth in our hearts when he was talking with us on the road and explaining the Scriptures to us!”

33 They got up at once and returned to Jerusalem. They found the eleven [apostles] and the rest of their companions gathered together there 34 and saying, “In fact, the Master has risen from death, and he has appeared to Simon.” 35 Then the two told [them] what had happened on the road, and how they had recognized the Master when he broke the bread.

Jesus Appears to the Disciples

36 As they were speaking about this, Jesus himself stood in their midst and said to them, “Peace be upon you.” 37 They were stunned and terrified, and supposed they were seeing a ghost. 38 So he said to them, “Why this agitation? Why is this doubt in your hearts? 39 Look at my hands and my feet;* it's me myself. Touch me and look [at me]. A ghost has no flesh and bones as you see that I have.”

40 As he said this, he showed them his hands and his feet. 41 While they were in disbelief from an intensity of joy and astonishment, he said to them, “Do you have anything here I can eat?” 42 They gave him a piece of grilled fish, 43 and he took it and ate it in front of them.

44 Then he said to them, “This is what I told you when I was with you, namely, that everything will be fulfilled that is stated about me in the Torah of Moses and the Writings of the Prophets and the Psalms.”* 45 Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures. 46 And he said to them, “The Scriptures say that the Messiah will suffer and then rise from death on the third day, 47 and [that] it is necessary to call people of all ethnic groups to repent so their sins may be forgiven through [faith in] his name. So begin at Jerusalem 48 and bear witness to [all] this. 49 I am going to send you what my Father promised,* so stay in the city until you are filled with power from heaven.”

He Ascends to Heaven

50 He took them out to [a place] near Bethany. Then he raised his hands and blessed them. 51 While he was blessing them, he left them and was taken up into heaven. 52 They bowed down to him. Then they returned to Jerusalem with great joy. 53 And they were in the Temple courtyard continually, praising God.

<< Luke 23

Definitions

 *24:1 On Sunday: The date was April 9, AD 30.

 *24:1 at the emergence of dawn: Or at daybreak.

 *24:7 See Luke 9:44.

 *24:9 the eleven: Judas, one of the original twelve apostles, had died, so only eleven remained.

 *24:20 In other words, the leaders of the Jewish community in Jerusalem handed Jesus over to their foreign rulers, who sentenced him to death and crucified him. This is what Jesus said would happen in Luke 18:32-33.

 *24:39 Look at my hands and my feet: In other words, look at the scars in my hands and feet where they were nailed to the cross.

 *24:44 the Torah of Moses and the Writings of the Prophets and the Psalms: the collection of revealed Scripture that is also called the Old Testament. The term Psalms  (الزبور az-zabūr) was used to refer to the Psalms of David along with the Proverbs of Solomon, the book of Job, and a few other writings.

 *24:49 what my Father promised: This is a reference to the Holy Spirit, whom God promised to send to all believers when he spoke through the prophet Joel. See the Book of the Prophet Joel 2:28-32. This passage is quoted at Acts 2:17-21.