Luke24

On the first day of the week, women found Jesus' tomb empty, and angels declared His resurrection, reminding them of His words. Jesus then appeared to two disciples on the road to Emmaus, expounding scriptures and being recognized in the breaking of bread. Later, He appeared to the gathered apostles, proving His physical resurrection, opening their understanding of the scriptures, and commissioning them to preach. Finally, Jesus ascended into heaven, and the disciples returned to Jerusalem with great joy, continually praising God.

The Empty Tomb and Angelic Message

but the next day, while it was still very early, they took the spices they had prepared, went to the tomb,

and found the stone rolled away from the tomb!

On entering, they discovered that the body of the Lord Yeshua was gone!

They were standing there, not knowing what to think about it, when suddenly two men in dazzlingly bright clothing stood next to them.

Terror-stricken, they bowed down with their faces to the ground. The two men said to them, “Why are you looking for the living among the dead?

He is not here; he has been raised. Remember how he told you while he was still in the Galil,

‘The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be executed on a stake as a criminal, but on the third day be raised again’?”

Then they remembered his words;

and, returning from the tomb, they told everything to the Eleven and to all the rest.

The women who told the emissaries these things were Miryam of Magdala, Yochanah, Miryam the mother of Ya‘akov, and the others in their circle.

But the emissaries didn’t believe them; in fact, they thought that what they said was utter nonsense!

However, Kefa got up and ran to the tomb. Stooping down, he saw only the burial cloths and went home wondering what had happened.

The Road to Emmaus

That same day, two of them were going toward a village about seven miles from Yerushalayim called Amma’us,

and they were talking with each other about all the things that had happened.

As they talked and discussed, Yeshua himself came up and walked along with them,

but something kept them from recognizing him.

He asked them, “What are you talking about with each other as you walk along?” They stopped short, their faces downcast;

and one of them, named Cleopas, answered him, “Are you the only person staying in Yerushalayim that doesn’t know the things that have been going on there the last few days?”

“What things?” he asked them. They said to him, “The things about Yeshua from Natzeret. He was a prophet and proved it by the things he did and said before God and all the people.

Our head cohanim and our leaders handed him over, so that he could be sentenced to death and executed on a stake as a criminal.

And we had hoped that he would be the one to liberate Isra’el! Besides all that, today is the third day since these things happened;

and this morning, some of the women astounded us. They were at the tomb early

and couldn’t find his body, so they came back; but they also reported that they had seen a vision of angels who say he’s alive!

Some of our friends went to the tomb and found it exactly as the women had said, but they didn’t see him.”

He said to them, “Foolish people! So unwilling to put your trust in everything the prophets spoke!

Didn’t the Messiah have to die like this before entering his glory?”

Then, starting with Moshe and all the prophets, he explained to them the things that can be found throughout the Tanakh concerning himself.

They approached the village where they were going. He made as if he were going on farther;

but they held him back, saying, “Stay with us, for it’s almost evening, and it’s getting dark.” So he went in to stay with them.

As he was reclining with them at the table, he took the matzah, made the b’rakhah, broke it and handed it to them.

Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him. But he became invisible to them.

They said to each other, “Didn’t our hearts burn inside us as he spoke to us on the road, opening up the Tanakh to us?”

They got up at once, returned to Yerushalayim and found the Eleven gathered together with their friends,

saying, “It’s true! The Lord has risen! Shim‘on saw him!”

Then the two told what had happened on the road and how he had become known to them in the breaking of the matzah.

Jesus Appears to the Disciples

They were still talking about it when — there he was, standing among them!

Startled and terrified, they thought they were seeing a ghost.

But he said to them, “Why are you so upset? Why are these doubts welling up inside you?

Look at my hands and my feet — it is I, myself! Touch me and see — a ghost doesn’t have flesh and bones, as you can see I do.”

As he said this, he showed them his hands and feet.

While they were still unable to believe it for joy and stood there dumbfounded, he said to them, “Have you something here to eat?”

They gave him a piece of broiled fish,

which he took and ate in their presence.

Yeshua said to them, “This is what I meant when I was still with you and told you that everything written about me in the Torah of Moshe, the Prophets and the Psalms had to be fulfilled.”

Then he opened their minds, so that they could understand the Tanakh,

telling them, “Here is what it says: the Messiah is to suffer and to rise from the dead on the third day;

and in his name repentance leading to forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed to people from all nations, starting with Yerushalayim.

You are witnesses of these things.

Now I am sending forth upon you what my Father promised, so stay here in the city until you have been equipped with power from above.”

The Ascension and Return to Jerusalem

He led them out toward Beit-Anyah; then, raising his hands, he said a b’rakhah over them;

and as he was blessing them, he withdrew from them and was carried up into heaven.

They bowed in worship to him, then returned to Yerushalayim, overflowing with joy.

And they spent all their time in the Temple courts, praising God.

Study Notes for Luke 24

Verse 1

The 'first day of the week' (Sunday) marks the beginning of the new creation week and becomes the established day of Christian worship. The women came to fulfill the burial rites interrupted by the Sabbath.

Verse 4

Luke emphasizes the vision of 'two men' (angels), consistent with the requirement for two witnesses (Deut. 19:15). Their 'shining garments' indicate heavenly glory.

Verse 5

This rhetorical question highlights the absurdity of seeking a living, resurrected Lord among the deceased. It is the central, triumphant message of the Easter event.

Verse 6

The angels remind the disciples that Jesus’ resurrection was not a surprise, but the fulfillment of his previous teachings given while he was in Galilee (e.g., Luke 9:22).

Verse 11

The apostles’ initial disbelief underscores the radical nature of the resurrection claim and validates the women’s testimony by showing it was not easily accepted.

Verse 12

Peter’s action confirms the empty tomb but leaves him 'wondering.' Luke mentions Peter's initial visit, foreshadowing his later leadership and the special resurrection appearance to him (v. 34).

Verse 13

Emmaus was approximately seven miles (60 furlongs) from Jerusalem. This journey provides the setting for Jesus' most extensive post-resurrection teaching on the fulfillment of Scripture.

Verse 16

The phrase 'their eyes were holden' suggests a divine, temporary blindness or disguise, preventing the disciples from recognizing Jesus until the appointed moment of revelation.

Verse 18

Cleopas is only mentioned here. His astonishment reveals how widely known the events of Jesus' crucifixion had become even among visitors in Jerusalem.

Verse 21

The disciples’ despair is rooted in their expectation that the Messiah would immediately bring political and national 'redemption' for Israel by overthrowing Roman rule.

Verse 25

Jesus rebukes them for their failure to integrate the necessity of suffering into their understanding of messianic prophecy. He emphasizes the primacy of faith in the prophetic word.

Verse 26

This verse is the theological core of the Emmaus road narrative: suffering (crucifixion) is the necessary prerequisite for the Christ to enter into glory (resurrection and exaltation).

Verse 27

Jesus demonstrates that the entire Old Testament (Moses/Law, Prophets, Writings/Psalms) points forward to his life, death, and resurrection. This is the key to Christian biblical interpretation.

Verse 30

The actions—taking, blessing, breaking, and giving the bread—strongly echo the institution of the Lord's Supper (Luke 22:19). This meal is the moment of divine recognition.

Verse 31

Recognition comes during the shared meal, emphasizing the real presence of Christ in the breaking of bread. His immediate vanishing underscores the supernatural nature of his resurrected body.

Verse 34

This is a crucial aside, confirming that Jesus had already appeared privately to Peter (Simon), an event not described in detail by Luke but affirmed by Paul (1 Cor. 15:5).

Verse 36

This appearance occurs quickly in Jerusalem. Jesus’ greeting, 'Peace be unto you,' is a traditional salutation (Shalom) but here carries the theological weight of reconciled relationship.

Verse 39

Jesus emphasizes the physical reality of his resurrection body, countering any idea that he was merely a ghost or spiritual apparition. He has 'flesh and bones,' affirming physicality.

Verse 41

The request for food further solidifies the physical, non-spectral nature of his body. Their mixed emotions of disbelief and overwhelming joy are psychologically realistic.

Verse 44

Jesus confirms that his entire mission fulfilled the tri-partite division of the Hebrew Scriptures: the Law of Moses, the Prophets, and the Psalms (the Writings).

Verse 45

This verse describes a divine act of revelation. Understanding the Scriptures requires not just intellectual effort but the opening of the mind by Christ himself.

Verse 47

This summarizes the content of the apostolic preaching: the message of 'repentance and remission of sins,' which must be proclaimed universally ('all nations'), beginning in Jerusalem.

Verse 49

'The promise of my Father' refers to the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:4-5). This command to 'tarry' links the end of Luke's Gospel directly to the beginning of Acts, where Pentecost occurs.

Verse 50

Bethany, located on the Mount of Olives, is the traditional site of the Ascension. Luke provides the only detailed account of this event in the Gospels.

Verse 51

Luke explicitly states that Jesus was 'carried up into heaven,' marking the conclusion of his earthly ministry and his exaltation to the right hand of God.

Verse 53

The disciples obey Jesus' command to remain in Jerusalem (v. 49) and demonstrate their renewed commitment by continually worshipping in the Temple, transitioning into the early Christian community.

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Luke24

The Empty Tomb and Angelic Message

The Road to Emmaus

Jesus Appears to the Disciples

The Ascension and Return to Jerusalem

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