Now when the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, that they might come and anoint Him. Very early in the morning, on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb when the sun had risen. Mark 16:1-2
Unbeknownst, (Sorry to use that old time word on a Monday!) to the women, the religious authorities had worked to have the tomb of Jesus secured. The tomb was both sealed and guarded against the disciples coming to move the body. So the women were on a mission they could not complete. It is possible that they could not physically move the stone and seal (v3 confirms this), and they would surely be turned away by the soldiers standing guard there. Also, they would likely have had to endure some crude remarks from those same soldiers. We chuckle a bit, not at the harassment they might have received, but that we know something these women did not know. No one is home! The tomb is empty. Of course we only know this from the story of their testimony. Mary Magdalene will soon be the first to have our most powerful witness: the Lord Jesus is risen!
He is risen indeed!
Bucky
