Chapter 1: Before Dawn

Early Sunday morning, before sunrise, Mary Magdalene and several other women set out for the tomb on the outskirts of Jerusalem. They carried spices to anoint the body of Jesus. Jewish burial custom required this preparation. As they walked they talked through one practical problem.

WOMEN“Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?”— Mark 16:3

The stone was large and heavy. None of them could move it alone. They kept walking anyway.

What they did not know was that the tomb was already open. Before any of them arrived, the ground had shaken. A violent earthquake. An angel of the Lord had descended from heaven, rolled the stone from the entrance, and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, his clothing white as snow. The Roman soldiers posted to guard the tomb shook with terror and fell to the ground like dead men.

Mary was moving faster than the others. She arrived first, while it was still dark. She saw the stone rolled away and the soldiers on the ground. She turned and ran back toward the city to find Peter and John.

The other women arrived shortly after. They stepped inside. The body was gone. Two men in gleaming white stood before them. The women bowed their faces to the ground in fear.

ANGEL“Why do you look for the living among the dead? Do not be afraid. I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here. He has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: He has risen from the dead.”— Matthew 28:5-6

They left trembling — afraid and yet filled with a joy they had no category for. They ran.