When they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed.
Parallel translations
- WEB Entering into the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, dressed in a white robe, and they were amazed.
- KJV And entering into the sepulchre, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clothed in a long white garment; and they were affrighted.
- NKJV And entering the tomb, they saw a young man clothed in a long white robe sitting on the right side; and they were alarmed.
- NASB And entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting at the right, wearing a white robe; and they were amazed.
- NLT When they entered the tomb, they saw a young man clothed in a white robe sitting on the right side. The women were shocked,
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
Inside they see a young man in a white robe and are amazed. An angelic messenger awaits them at the empty tomb.
Overview
The 'young man' in a white robe is understood as an angel, his appearance signaling a heavenly announcement. The women's amazement is the natural response to the supernatural. Where they came to tend a corpse, they instead encounter a messenger ready to proclaim the resurrection.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 11
- John 20:11–12But Mary stood outside the tomb weeping. And as she wept, she bent down to look into the tomb,
- Luke 24:3–5but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.
- John 20:8Then the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went in. And he saw and believed.
- Matt 28:3His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow.
- Luke 1:29–30Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.
- Luke 1:12When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and gripped with fear.
- Mark 9:15As soon as all the people saw Jesus, they were filled with awe and ran to greet Him.
- Mark 6:49–50but when they saw Him walking on the sea, they cried out, thinking He was a ghost—
- Dan 8:17As he came near to where I stood, I was terrified and fell facedown. “Son of man,” he said to me, “understand that the vision concerns the time of the end.”
- Dan 10:5–9I lifted up my eyes, and behold, there was a certain man dressed in linen, with a belt of fine gold from Uphaz around his waist.
- Dan 10:12“Do not be afraid, Daniel,” he said, “for from the first day that you purposed to understand and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them.
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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 16:5 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.