John 20:11-12, Mary Magdalene Sees Two Angels

11 But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept she stooped to look into the tomb. 12 And she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and one at the feet.

John believed; Mary did not. Alone, she wails in agony. Not only did they beat and crucify her Master, but now his body is gone—the last humiliation and inhumane act by evil men. Sometimes I wonder why Peter and John left her alone. Were they simply uncaring, or did she ask them to let her stay? We simply do not know, but as all the gospels attest, the first person to see the resurrected Jesus is Mary Magdalene. Her love for Jesus is undeniable and unconditional. She who is forgiven much loves much.

Mary peers into the tomb and sees two angels. John and Luke record two angels. That does not mean a second angel was not there in the other gospels. It only means they record both whereas Matthew and Mark record the one angel who spoke. Jesus, who died between two sinners is buried between two angels, one at his head the other at his feet. Scripture records two angels on either side of God in Exodus 25:17-22 as God speaks to Moses.

“You shall make a mercy seat of pure gold. Two cubits and a half shall be its length, and a cubit and a half its breadth. And you shall make two cherubim of gold; of hammered work shall you make them, on the two ends of the mercy seat. Make one cherub on the one end, and one cherub on the other end. Of one piece with the mercy seat shall you make the cherubim on its two ends. The cherubim shall spread out their wings above, overshadowing the mercy seat with their wings, their faces one to another; toward the mercy seat shall the faces of the cherubim be. And you shall put the mercy seat on the top of the ark, and in the ark you shall put the testimony that I shall give you. There I will meet with you, and from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim that are on the ark of the testimony, I will speak with you about all that I will give you in commandment for the people of Israel.”

Without getting into too much detail, the two cherubim are angel-like. The mercy seat is the top of the ark of the covenant that contains the testimony (the Ten Commandments), a jar of manna, and the staff of Aaron (and Moses) used to lead the Israelites out of Egypt through the Red Sea, representing the authority and power of God. The mercy seat is the location where God promises to come and meet with Moses and his people and make himself known. For a God who makes himself known via symbols throughout the Old Testament that ultimately find their fulfilment in Jesus, this similarity of images seems too coincidental to ignore. In a sense, Jesus is the content of the ark of the covenant. He is the Word of God. He is the Bread of Life. He is the authority and power of God who has just led his people in an exodus from slavery to sin and death into a promised land of forgiveness and life. In his resurrection, Jesus promises to meet continually with his followers. Jesus is alive and there is nothing that can separate us from him. “For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:38-39)

In a minute or two, Mary will know this. In the meantime, she continues to weep, wailing the unimaginable loss of her Master and Friend.

God Almighty, we praise your holy name. We thank you, Lord, because through your death and resurrection we have won the victory and your redeeming grace and love. Loving Father God, fill us with new life so that we may love one another and do what you want us to do in sharing your love with those who don’t know you. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Mothers’ Union