But when she told them that Jesus was alive and she had seen him, they didn’t believe her.
Parallel translations
- WEB When they heard that he was alive, and had been seen by her, they disbelieved.
- KJV And they, when they had heard that he was alive, and had been seen of her, believed not.
- BSB And when they heard that Jesus was alive and she had seen Him, they did not believe it.
- NKJV And when they heard that He was alive and had been seen by her, they did not believe.
- NASB And when they heard that He was alive and had been seen by her, they refused to believe it.
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
Hearing that Jesus is alive and seen by Mary, the disciples do not believe. Even his closest followers struggle to grasp the resurrection.
Overview
The disciples' disbelief shows that faith in the resurrection was not the product of wishful thinking or easy credulity. They were slow to accept news that seemed too good to be true. Their reluctance underscores that only the risen Christ himself could overcome their unbelief.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 6
- Luke 24:11These words seemed to them to be nonsense, and they didn’t believe them.
- Mark 16:13–14They went away and told it to the rest. They didn’t believe them, either.
- Mark 9:19He answered him, “Unbelieving generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him to me.”
- Luke 24:23–35and when they didn’t find his body, they came saying that they had also seen a vision of angels, who said that he was alive.
- Exod 6:9Moses spoke so to the children of Israel, but they didn’t listen to Moses for anguish of spirit, and for cruel bondage.
- Job 9:16If I had called, and he had answered me, yet I wouldn’t believe that he listened to my voice.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Mark drives urgently to the cross, showing Jesus the Son of God as the suffering Servant who 'came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.'
How Mark 16:11 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.