But when they came to the cave, they saw that the seal was broken, the stone was rolled away, and the soldiers who had been on guard were gone. There stood the tomb of Jesus all open! They did not know that before they came to the tomb there had been an earthquake; and that an angel had come down from heaven and rolled away the stone, and sat upon it. When the soldiers on guard saw the angel, with his flashing face, and his dazzling garments, they fell to the ground as though they were dead, and as soon as they could rise up, they fled away from the spot in terror; so when the women came there was no man in sight.

As soon as Mary Magdalene saw that the tomb was open, without stopping to look into it, she ran quickly to tell the disciples. A moment after she had gone, the other women looked into the tomb and they saw that the body of Jesus was not there. But they saw sitting at each end of the tomb a young man, clothed in a long white garment. Their faces shone like angels, and when the women saw they were filled with fear. One of the angels said to them:

"Do not be afraid; you are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He is not here; he is risen, as he said that he would rise from the dead. Come, see the place where the Lord lay; and then go and tell his disciples, and tell Peter too, that Jesus will go before you into Galilee, and you shall see him there."

Then the women went away in mingled joy and fear. They ran in haste to bring this word of the angel to the disciples.

But while these women were looking into the tomb, and were listening to the angel, Mary Magdalene was seeking the disciples, to tell them that the tomb was open and the body of Jesus was not there; for she did not know that he had risen. She found Peter and John and said to them, "They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him!"

Then Peter and John at once went as quickly as they could go, to the tomb. John outran Peter, and came first to the tomb, perhaps because he was the youngest. But when he saw the open door, and the broken seal, and the stone lying at one side, he stood still for a moment. John stooped and looked into the cave, and he could see the linen cloths that had been wrapped around the body of Jesus lying together. But when Peter came up he did not wait, but pressed at once into the tomb; and then John followed him, and he too walked into the cave. Now he could see not only the long strips of linen rolled up; but in another place, carefully folded, the napkin that had been tied over the face of Jesus.

Then suddenly it flashed upon the mind of John, "Jesus has risen from the dead!" For he had not seen the angel, nor heard his words. From that moment John believed that Jesus was once more living. Both Peter and John went away, to think of the strange things they had seen. And very soon Mary Magdalene came back to the tomb. No one was there, for both the women and the disciples had gone away. Mary Magdalene did not know that Jesus had risen, for she had not heard the angel's message.

She wept as she thought of her Lord, slain by wicked men, and not even allowed to rest in his grave. And still weeping, she stooped and looked into the tomb. There she saw two men in white garments sitting, one at the head, the other at the feet where the body of Jesus had lain. They were the two angels whom the other women had seen, but Mary Magdalene did not know this. One of them said to her, "Woman, why do you weep?"

She answered, "Because they have taken away my Lord and I do not know where they have laid him."

Something caused her to turn around; and she saw a man standing behind her. It was Jesus; but her eyes were held for a moment from knowing him. He said to her, "Woman, why do you weep?"

She supposed that he was the gardener, and said, hardly looking at him, "Sir, if you have carried him out of this place, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away."

Then the stranger spoke her name, "Mary!" and she knew that he was Jesus, no longer dead, but living. She turned around, and fell down before him, and was about to seize his feet, as she said, "My Master!"

But Jesus said to her, "Do not take hold of me; I am not yet going away to my Father. But go to my brothers, and say to them, I go up to my Father and to your Father, to my God, and to your God!"

Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples how she had seen the Lord, and how he had spoken these things to her. So this was the first time that any one saw Jesus after he rose from the dead.