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and she saw two angels in white sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and the other at the feet.
John 20:12 · Berean Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB and she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head, and one at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain.
  • KJV And seeth two angels in white sitting, the one at the head, and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain.
  • NKJV And she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain.
  • NASB and she *saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and one at the feet, where the body of Jesus had been lying.
  • NLT She saw two white-robed angels, one sitting at the head and the other at the foot of the place where the body of Jesus had been lying.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Quick answer

Mary sees two angels in white where Jesus' body had lain. Their presence signals that something divine has occurred.

Overview

The angels, seated at the head and feet of the empty place, mark the tomb as the site of a heavenly act. Their position recalls the mercy seat between the cherubim (Exodus 25:18-22), where atonement was made. Far from a robbed grave, this is holy ground witnessing the triumph of God.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 10

  • Luke 24:3–7but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.
  • Rev 3:4But you do have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their garments, and because they are worthy, they will walk with Me in white.
  • Dan 7:9As I continued to watch, thrones were set in place, and the Ancient of Days took His seat. His clothing was white as snow, and the hair of His head was like pure wool. His throne was flaming with fire, and its wheels were all ablaze.
  • Rev 7:14“Sir,” I answered, “you know.” So he replied, “These are the ones who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
  • Mark 16:5–6When they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed.
  • 2 Chr 5:12all the Levitical singers—Asaph, Heman, Jeduthun, and their sons and relatives—stood on the east side of the altar, dressed in fine linen and playing cymbals, harps, and lyres, accompanied by 120 priests sounding trumpets.
  • Luke 24:22–23Furthermore, some of our women astounded us. They were at the tomb early this morning,
  • Acts 1:10They were looking intently into the sky as He was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them.
  • Matt 28:2–5Suddenly there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, rolled away the stone, and sat on it.
  • Matt 17:2There He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (4)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — John videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on John 20:12YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on JohnMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

John declares him plainly: the eternal Word made flesh, the Lamb of God, the great 'I AM' — bread, light, door, shepherd, way, truth, life, resurrection — that you may believe and have life in his name.

How John 20:12 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Original language

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.