Resurrection – Did It Actually Happen?

Posted on March 31, 2020September 29, 2022 by K.B. Vogelman

Resurrection – Did It Actually Happen?

Resurrection of Jesus has been debated for centuries spawning many questions and theories.^[1] People cannot easily wrap their minds around the impossible concept of being dead and buried, then coming back to life.

Swirling are controversial attempts trying to explain the Resurrection. The tomb was not really empty; the witnesses visited the wrong tomb; the body of Jesus was misplaced or stolen; the third day prophecies are not a factor; the post-crucifixion person the witnesses encountered was just a spirit; etc.^[2]

Circular logic is a common criticism.^[3] In this case, the Gospels cannot be used as proof of the Resurrection because the only proof comes from the Gospels and if the believability of the Gospels is in question, then Gospels cannot be used as evidence.

Gospels are accounts or reports of what happened, not proof that something did or did not occur. Included are identities, statements and quotes of witnesses; and descriptions of events – some detailed, some paraphrased.

Accounts, reports or statements are best assessed on their overall content credibility. Comparing one Gospel to another is one of the most effective ways. At the same time, all four Gospels must be evaluated together in their entirety. As with any investigative case, gaps in one account may be detailed in another.

No statement or report will ever completely provide all the details, all dependent on the writer. Some details may not have been as important to emphasize over other information or simply the information was not known to a particular writer. An investigation is always necessary to weigh all the information – the more information, the better.

Proving that a Resurrection occurred cannot be ascertained scientifically. Medical or scientific tests cannot determine if a living individual was previously dead for days. In the end, it makes no difference if the Resurrection occurred today or 2000 years ago…

No resurrection can be proven without witnesses who would have to bridge three separate events – life, an incontrovertible death, and self-evident life again. Credible witnesses would have to be able to say with certainty that the person whom they once knew, was then known to be dead and is now alive again behaving as before death.

Visual recognition would not be enough to dispel the notion of having seen a vision or an apparition. A witness would be expected to affirm activities of the resurrected person are associated with life itself such as a conversation, eating, drinking, walking, and other physical activities.

Most importantly, resurrection witnesses would be expected to attest to their ability to resume a pre-established personal connection with the resurrected person whom they knew before death occurred – the continuum of a shared personal relationship. A prime example is the resurrection of Lazarus who, a week later, came to a dinner event with Jesus.

First of the eyewitness statements of the resurrected Jesus, aside from angels, comes from Cleopas accompanied by his traveling partner, most likely his wife.^[4] Characteristics described are several – walking; carrying on a conversation over a long period time; references to his own sufferings before his death; reclining at the table; breaking the loaf of bread and…praying.

Next is the profound report of Mary Magdalene’s encounter that bridges the life, death and Resurrection of Jesus with her own experiences. She witnessed Jesus being crucified and buried on Friday.

Now on Sunday, after initially speaking with him, then looking up at him, Mary Magdalene recognized Jesus as the person she had known before he died exclaiming “Rabonni!” (teacher) and wanted to hug him.^[5] Moreover, Mary Magdalene told other people she had seen the resurrected Jesus with her own eyes.^[6]

Peter, who had witnessed the empty tomb with the folded burial linens, also met with the Resurrected Jesus. The only mention of Peter’s encounter is in Luke’s investigative Gospel account.^[7]

Ten Disciples, the Cleopas couple and other followers of Jesus were in a locked room excitedly sharing stories of Resurrection encounters. Suddenly Jesus himself stood among them saying, “Peace be with you.”^[8] Luke reports they were all startled and “terrified” thinking they were seeing a “ghost.”^[9] Jesus responded:

^{LK 24:38-39} “‘Why are you frightened, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? Look at my hands and my feet; it’s me! Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones like you see I have.’ When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet.”_(NET)

Seeing that they required further proof, Jesus asked, “‘Do you have anything here to eat?’ So they gave him a piece of broiled fish, and he took it and ate it in front of them.”^[10] Bridging back to the time before he was crucified, Jesus told them to think back to their experiences together:

^{LK 24:44, 47-48} “These are My words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things which are written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled… ‘Thus it is written, that the Christ would suffer and rise again from the dead the third day, and that repentance for forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in His name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things.’” _(NASB)

Missing the occasion entirely was the Disciple Thomas.^[11] When he finally arrived that Sunday evening, John told him they had seen Jesus. Skeptical, Thomas was not buying any of it, “Unless I see the wounds from the nails in his hands, and put my finger into the wounds from the nails, and put my hand into his side, I will never believe it!”^[12]

Eight days passed when the Disciples regathered in the same house with the door locked, but this time Thomas was present.^[13] Once again, Jesus suddenly appeared in the room and, after a brief greeting, got straight to the point.

Speaking directly to Thomas, Jesus said “Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side.^[14] Do not doubt but believe.”^[15] Thomas touched the physical body of Jesus and witnessed the proof of his miraculously healed pierced hands and side. Thomas’ excited utterance was telling: “My Lord and my God!”^[16]

John’s eyewitness Gospel continued beyond where Matthew, Mark and Luke left off. Describing the third appearance of the resurrected Jesus to some of the Disciples, he describes the scene on the shore of the Sea of Tiberas (Sea of Galilee, Sea of Gennesaret or Sea of Kinneret).^[17]

Seven disciples, five others identified by name as Peter, Thomas, Nathanael, and the sons of Zebedee (James and John) encountered Jesus who teased them; performed a quantifiable miracle; met the Disciples at a campfire, cooked breakfast, ate and conversed with them.^[18]

Gospel accounts of the Resurrection of Jesus came in the form of witnesses, actions, words and behavior of the various people who are part of the story line – various women of Galilee, the koustodia, the Jewish leadership, the Disciples, and other followers of Jesus.

Do the Gospels meet the criteria for demonstrating a genuine Resurrection had occurred – did Jesus actually rise from the dead?

Updated September 19, 2022.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

REFERENCES:

[1] Habermas, Gary R. “Resurrection Research from 1975 to the Present: What are Critical Scholars Saying?” 2005. Dr. Gary R. Habermas. <http://garyhabermas.com/articles/J_Study_Historical_Jesus_3-2_2005/J_Study_Historical_Jesus_3-2_2005.htm> Saifullah, Usman Sheikh, et. al. “Textual Reliability / Accuracy Of The New Testament.” Islamic Awareness. 2007. <http://www.islamic-awareness.org/Bible/Text/Bibaccuracy.html> Lowder, Jeffery Jay. “Independent Confirmation and the Historicity of Jesus (1997).” The Secular Web. n.d. <https://infidels.org/library/modern/jeff_lowder/indconf.html> Seidensticker, Bob. “Contradictions in the Resurrection Account.” Patheos.com. April 2, 2012. <https://www.patheos.com/blogs/crossexamined/2012/04/contradictions-in-the-resurrection-account-2>
[2] “Resurrection.” Infidels.org. n.d. <http://infidels.org/library/modern/theism/christianity/resurrection.html> Lowder, Jeffery Jay. “Historical Evidence and the Empty Tomb Story.” Infidels.org. <http://infidels.org/library/modern/jeff_lowder> Lowder, Jeffery Jay. “How Not to Argue Against the Historicity and Resurrection of Jesus.” The SecularWeb. n.d. <https://infidels.org/library/modern/jeff_lowder/edelen.html> “New Testament.” Jewish Encyclopedia. 2011. http://jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/11498-new-testament> Holding, James Patrick. “Please Pardon This Interruption.” Creation Ministries International. 2009. <http://creation.com/review-jesus-interrupted-by-bart-ehrman> Steinhart, Eric. “Some Resurrection Theories.” Eric Steinhart. n.d. http://www.ericsteinhart.com/articles/reztheories.pdf> Qu’ran. An-Nisa 157, Al-Maeda 110. <http://search-the-quran.com> “Did Jesus Resurrect From the Dead in an Invisible Spirit-Body?” 4Jehovah.org. 2014. <http://4jehovah.org/the-resurrection-of-jesus-a-spirit-body> “Was Jesus Resurrected as an Invisible Spirit?” Tower to Truth Ministries. n.d. Archived URL. <http://www.towertotruth.net/dialoguept2.htm>
[3] “Circular Reasoning.” Logically Fallacious. 2020. <https://www.logicallyfallacious.com/logicalfallacies/Circular-Reasoning> Van Der Zee, Tim. “Circular arguments are perfectly valid.” The Skeptical Scientist. 2017. <http://www.timvanderzee.com/circular-arguments> Andrews, Ben. Atheist Republic. 2020. <https://www.atheistrepublic.com/blog/ben-andrews/circular-reasoning>
[4] Luke 24:13-27.
[5] John 20:16. “Centuries later, archaeologists opened the tomb of Jesus.” News24hours. photo. 2016. <https://news24hours.in/2016/10/31/centuries-later-archaeologists-opened-the-tomb-of-jesus-christ>
[6] John 20:18.
[7] Luke 24:34.
[8] Luke 24:36 – NET, NIV, NLT, NRSV. John 20:19 – NET, NIV, NLT, NRSV, NASB, NKJV.
[9] Luke 24:36-37. NET. CR Mark 16:14.
[10] Luke 24:38-43. NET. CR Mark 5:43; Luke 8:55.
[11] John 20:24.
[12] John 20:25. NET. CR Matthew 28:17.
[13] John 20:26.
[14] John 20:27
[15] John 20:27. NRSV.
[x16] John 20:28. NET, NIV, NASB, NRSV, NKJV.
[17] “The Sea of Galilee (Kinneret).” Jewish Virtual Library. 2020. <https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/the-sea-of-galilee> “Gennesaret.” Jewish Encyclopedia. 2011. <http://jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/6583-gennesaret-lake-of>
[18] John 21:4-14.

The Gospel Resurrection Contradiction – an Investigation

Posted on February 22, 2020November 10, 2022 by K.B. Vogelman

The Gospel Resurrection Contradiction – an Investigation

A contradiction between the Matthew and John Gospel Resurrection accounts of Jesus of Nazareth are cited by critics and skeptics as proof the Gospels lack integrity.^[1] On the surface, a contradiction indeed appears to exist, but is there one?

Matthew 28:9 says multiple women at the empty tomb, including Mary Magdalene, hurried to tell the Disciples of their experience and were interrupted with a Resurrection appearance by Jesus. John 20:12-16 details the lone Mary Magdalene’s Resurrection encounter with Jesus at the tomb. How can both be correct?

Two primary questions emerge regarding Matthew 28:9 – did “they” include Mary Magdalene and when did the event occur? Four accounts, in the form of the Gospels, chronicle the Resurrection events of Jesus of Nazareth providing a much fuller context of what actually happened.

In the investigative world questions arising from statements, as they always do, in a best case scenario would be to interview the witnesses to fill in the blanks. Interviews not being possible leaves only the comparison of the accounts themselves where word usage and the Greek texts provide additional insights.

Matthew names two women, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary, present at the tomb during the angelic incident.^[2] Mark and Luke together also identify Joanna, Mary the mother of James, Salome and “other women” of Galilee at the tomb.^[3]

Many or all the women of Galilee in John’s account hastily went back into Jerusalem to tell the Disciples about their angelic experience at the empty tomb, not knowing where or how the body had been mysteriously “taken“. Only two Disciples – Peter and John – are actually present when the women announce their experience.^[4]

Running to see the empty tomb for themselves, Peter and John are followed by Mary Magdalene. She waited as they inspected the empty tomb and marveling at what they had witnessed, Peter and John went back home leaving Mary Magdalene, weeping. Although other women from Galilee were with her when she announced to John and Peter, the account does not indicate if the other women were with her when she returned to the tomb.

It then happened – the resurrected Jesus appeared to Mary Magdalene alone at the tomb.^[5] Afterwards, “Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”; and she told them that he had said these things to her.”^[6] Time required for this interlude is subjective although measured in hours rather than minutes. Questions: are “the disciples” still only Peter and John; where are the other women from Galilee?

Understandably excited, Mary Magdalene had wanted to hug Jesus, but he did not allow it saying, don’t “haptou” me. The Greek word’s meaning is a very important detail. Appearing in the Greek texts of the New Testament, the word haptou appears 36 times of which 86% are commonly translated as “touch” or “touched.”^[7] The King James Bible translates haptou in John 20:17 as “touch me not.” ^[8]

A disparity exists with translations of John 20:17. Of 30 English Bible translations, instead of 86%, only slightly more than half translate haptou using a form of “touch.” The remainder use variations such as “hold” and “cling” implying that touching has already occurred.^[9]

Applying the most common translations of New Testament translations of haptou as “touch” to John 20:17, Jesus told Mary Magdalene not to “touch” him because he had not yet ascended to “My Father.” Matthew 28:9, on the other hand, does not use the word haptou where the women were allowed to touch Jesus and worship him. In the interim, based on these two accounts, it appears Jesus has already ascended to his Father.

Greek text words of kai idou begin the sentence of Matthew 28:9 offering more clues that the Resurrection appearance of Jesus to these women did not occur immediately after leaving the tomb. The true meaning of the Greek words, again, are important factors.

A conjunction, kai is interpreted the same in almost all English Bible translations.^[10] The word appears over 9000 times in the New Testament Greek texts where, in about 98% of instances, kai is interpreted as “and.”^[11]

Second is idou, appearing about 200 times in the New Testament Greek texts, where almost 90% are translated with English words of exclamation that do not denote a specific point of occurrence in the narrative, such as “Behold,” “Look,” and “lo.”^[12] Barely more than just 10% of the translations use a word that indicates a specific point in time such as “now” and “here.”

Factoring in the most common Greek word textual meanings, another translation disparity exists with Matthew 28:9. Rather than 90%, only slightly more than half of 30 English translations use words that do not establish a precise moment in the narrative by using such words as “Suddenly,” “Behold,” and “Look” that could have occurred at any time.^[13]

On the flip side, a little less than half of English translations use words or phrases suggesting the encounter occurred immediately after leaving the empty tomb, such as “Just then,” “As they went” and “But.” A bit more vague is “As they were going.”^[14]

Applying the most common English translations of kai idou to Matthew 28:9, the verse would begin with something like, “And look” or “And behold.” Neither denotes a specific point in time when Jesus appeared to the women as they were on their way to tell their news to the Disciples.

An actual eyewitness statement is always of great value and Luke quotes Cleopas who said of that morning, “Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just exactly as the women also had said; but Him they did not see.”

Cleopas corroborates John’s Gospel on four details: the unnamed women reported their experience at the tomb; the tomb was empty; and just “some,” not including the women, went to verify the empty tomb. Most significantly, no one had encountered the resurrected Jesus.^[15]

Timeline details are also more clearly defined when Luke says Cleopas and his traveling partner “were going that very day to a village named Emmaus, which was about seven miles from Jerusalem.”^[16] Cleopas further states that toward the end of their journey “…it is getting toward evening, and the day is now nearly over.”^[17]

How long does it take to walk 7 miles? Probably less than 2 hours. Working backward, the pair had left Jerusalem early to mid-afternoon at which point no one had yet reported seeing the resurrected Jesus. Add in time for preparing the evening meal, baking bread and sitting down to eat it.

Easter sunset in Jerusalem was around 6:00-6:30pm.^[18] Hurrying back to Jerusalem to report their Resurrection appearance by Jesus in Emmaus, the walk was probably a faster paced trip.

Rejoining the gathering of Jesus’ followers back in Jerusalem after the evening meal time, everyone shared their stories of that Resurrection day.^[19] It is revealed Jesus had appeared that afternoon to Peter, too. The unexplained time gap is the afternoon of Resurrection day.

Summarizing, women of Galilee including Mary Magdalene, ran back from the empty tomb right after sunrise that morning into the City and reported their angelic experience at the empty tomb to Peter and John. Only these two Disciples, followed by Mary Magdalene, are reported to have gone back outside the City to the see for themselves that the tomb is indeed empty. The other women from Galilee are no longer mentioned as being present.

Completely understandable, the other women already had a traumatic angelic experience at the tomb – why go all the way back outside the City to see an empty tomb again? Further, the angels had instructed the women to tell the Disciples, presumably all of them, but only Peter and John were in a single location meaning the women had to go to other places to inform the remainder of the Disciples.

From this investigative information, two distinct Resurrection appearances are described at different times in Matthew 28:9 and John 20:12-16. First, the Resurrection appearance by Jesus to Mary Magdalene. At some point later, Jesus appeared to the women from Galilee. Both incidents occurred after the departure of Cleopas.

Was Mary Magdalene with the other women in Matthew’s account? The possibility exists that she had rejoined these women when Jesus appeared to them as they were seeking out the other Disciples. Is there actually a Gospel Resurrection conflict?

Updated November 10, 2022.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

REFERENCES:

[1] Cline, Austin. “Jesus: Contradictions in Resurrection and Ascension.” Learn Religions. 2019. <https://www.learnreligions.com/jesus-resurrection-and-ascension-contradictions-250145> Lowder, Jeffery Jay. “The Historicity of Jesus’ Resurrection The Debate between Christians and Skeptics.” TheSecularWeb. Chapeter 4. 1995. <https://infidels.org/library/modern/jeff_lowder/jesus_resurrection/chap4.html> Seidensticker, Bob. “Contradictions in the Resurrection Account.” Patheos.com. 2012. <https://www.patheos.com/blogs/crossexamined/2012/04/contradictions-in-the-resurrection-account-2> Heuvel, Curt van den. “The Resurrection of Jesus Christ.” 2Think.org. 1997. <http://www.2think.org/hundredsheep/bible/ressur.shtml> Agard, Margaret. In His Footsteps. “The Tomb Is Only Empty Because Christ is Risen.” image. 2013. <https://inhisfootsteps.com/wp-content/uploads/jesus_christ_empty_tomb_goshen_utah.jpeg>
[2] Matthew 28:1. “Archaeological Sites in Jerusalem: Burial Sites & Tombs of the Second Temple Period.” 2020. Jewish Virtual Library. <https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/burial-sites-and-tombs-in-jerusalem-of-the-second-temple-period> Schaalje, Jacqueline. “Tombs in Jerusalem’s Valleys.” Archaeology in Israel. 2001. <http://www.jewishmag.com/47mag/jerusalemtombs/jerusalemtombs.htm>
[3] Mark 16:1-2; Luke 24:10.
[4] John 20:2. NKJV. Luke 24:10. CR Mark 16:10.
[5] John 20:10-17; Mark 16:9.
[6] John 20:18. NRSV.
[7] “haptomai <680>”. NetBble.net. 2020. <http://classic.net.bible.org/strong.php?id=680> “ἁψάμενος.” BibleHub.com. 2020. <https://biblehub.com/greek/apsamenos_680.htm> “ἅπτου.” BibleHub.com. 2020. <https://biblehub.com/greek/haptou_680.htm>
[8] John 20:17. NetBible.org. 2020. http://classic.net.bible.org/verse.php?book=Joh&chapter=20&verse=17>
[9] John 20:l7. BibleHub.com. Parallel. <https://biblehub.com/john/20-17.htm> John 20:17. NetBible.org. <http://classic.net.bible.org/verse.php?book=Joh&chapter=20&verse=17>
[10] “kai.” Netbible.org. Matthew 28:9. kai <2532>. 2020. <http://classic.net.bible.org/strong.php?id=2532> Matthew 28:9. Footnote 1. NetBible.org. 2020. <http://classic.net.bible.org/verse.php?book=Mat&chapter=28&verse=9#> “kai.” BibleHub.com. Strong’s Greek 2532. 2011. <https://biblehub.com/parallel/matthew/28-9.htm>
[11] “kai <2532>.” NetBible.org. 2020. <https://biblehub.com/greek/2532.htm>; <http://classic.net.bible.org/strong.php?id=2532>
[12] “idou <2400>.” NetBible.org. 2020. <http://classic.net.bible.org/strong.php?id=2400> Matthew 28:9. Footnote 1. NetBible.org. 2020. <http://classic.net.bible.org/verse.php?book=Mat&chapter=28&verse=9#> “2400. idou.” BibleHub.com. 2020. <https://biblehub.com/greek/2400.htm> “idou.” BibleHub.com. Strong’s Greek 2400. 2020. <https://biblehub.com/parallel/matthew/28-9.htm>
[13] Matthew 28:9. BibleHub.com. 2020. <https://biblehub.com/matthew/28-9.htm> Matthew 28:9. NetBible.org. 2020. <http://classic.net.bible.org/verse.php?book=Mat&chapter=28&verse=9>
[14] Matthew 28:9. BibleHub.com. Interlinear. 2020. <https://biblehub.com/interlinear/matthew/28-9.htm> Matthew 28:9. BibleHub.com. Lexicon. 2020. <https://biblehub.com/lexicon/matthew/28-9.htm>
[15] Luke 24:24. NASB. CR Mark 16:12.
[16] Luke 24:13. NASB.
[17] Luke 24:29. NASB.
[18] “Jerusalem, Israel — Sunrise, Sunset, and Daylength, April 2020.” TimeAndDate.com. 2020. <https://www.timeanddate.com/sun/israel/jerusalem?month=4>
[19] Luke 24:33-35, 41-43.

What are the odds Jesus is the Son of God?

Resurrection – Did It Actually Happen?

Like this:

The Gospel Resurrection Contradiction – an Investigation

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this: