John 20:3 So Peter and the other disciple went forth, and they were going to the tomb.

John 20:3  So Peter and the other disciple went forth, and they were going to the tomb.

How do Peter and the other disciple respond when Mary Magdalene says, “They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him” (John 20:2)?

“So Peter and the other disciple went forth, and they were going to the tomb” (John 20:3).

•       Ἐξῆλθεν (exēlthen) (“went forth”) 3S Aorist Active Indicative of ἐξέρχομαι “to move out of or away from an area” (BDAG, 347).

•       ἤρχοντο (ērchonto)(“were going”) 3P Imperfect Active Indicative of ἔρχομαι

How quickly do Peter and the other disciple respond?

“The two were running together…” (John 20:4).

•       ἔτρεχον (etrechon) (“were running”) 3P Imperfect Active Indicative of τρέχω

Who arrives at the tomb first?

“…and the other disciple ran ahead faster than Peter and came to the tomb first” (John 20:4).

•       προέδραμεν (proedramen) (“ran ahead”) 3S Aorist Active Indicative of προτρέχω

•       ἦλθεν (ēlthen) (“came”) 3S Aorist Active Indicative of ἔρχομαι

•       πρῶτος (prōtos) (“first”)

o   “The adjective is more developed in Homer than in the Sanskrit and the Greek has its own genius in the use of the adjective. It uses the adjective where other languages might not. So δευτεραῖοι ἤλθομεν (Acts 28:13). A distinction is to be observed between πρῶτος (Rom. 10:19) and πρῶτον (Jo. 1:41). Cf. πρῶτος in Jo. 20:4, 8. So also μόνος (Lu. 24:18) is different from the adverb μόνον (2 Tim. 4:8). Cf. English “feel bad” and “feel badly.”

A. T. Robertson, A Short Grammar of the Greek New Testament, for Students Familiar with the Elements of Greek (New York: Hodder & Stoughton, 1908), 66.

o   What additional insight into the “other disciple” do the following verses offer?

§  John 13:23 There was reclining on Jesus’ bosom one of His disciples, whom Jesus loved.  24 So Simon Peter  gestured to him, and  said to him, “Tell us who it is of whom He is speaking.”

§  John 18:15    Simon Peter was following Jesus, and so was another disciple. Now that disciple was known to the high priest, and entered with Jesus into the court of the high priest,  16  but Peter was standing at the door outside. So the other disciple, who was known to the high priest, went out and spoke to the doorkeeper, and brought Peter in.

§  John 21:7  Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved  said to Peter, “It is the Lord.” So when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put his outer garment on (for he was stripped for work), and threw himself into the sea.

§  John 21:20   Peter, turning around, saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following them; the one who also had  leaned back on His bosom at the supper and said, “Lord, who is the one who betrays You?”  21 So Peter seeing him  said to Jesus, “Lord, and what about this man?”  22 Jesus  said to him, “If I want him to remain  until I come, what is that to you? You follow Me!” 23 Therefore this saying went out among the brethren that that disciple would not die; yet Jesus did not say to him that he would not die, but only, “If I want him to remain until I come, what is that to you?”

§  John 20:8 So the other disciple who had first come to the tomb then also entered, and he saw and believed.

Father,

Messiah died for our sins according to the Scriptures. And He was buried. And He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures. And He appeared to Peter, then to the twelve. After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time. Then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles; and last of all, He appeared to Paul also.

The Gospel is Your power for the salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jews first and also to the Greek. May You open eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the dominion of Satan to You, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in Jesus.

May the Spirit minister gloriously in our midst, sending and equipping Jesus’ servants to spread the good news of Jesus. May the cause of Christ go forth in power, to the praise of Your glory! And may Jesus’ disciples respond immediately to His call to follow. May You cause us to stand firm in the grace, love, and truth of Jesus to the end and bless us with fruitfulness in Christ, that You may be glorified in the Son. May the Spirit renew our mind and strength daily to persevere. May we abound in grace and love others deeply from the heart, proving Jesus’ discipleship. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.