Mark 16:14Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

After forty days, He revealed Himself to the disciples as they began their meal. With His impending departure to ascend to heaven looming, He took the opportunity this day to correct them, for they did not accept the testimony of those who had witnessed His resurrection until they had personally seen Him. They were called to spread the gospel to nations who would believe without sight. Indeed, as scripture reminds us, "And whoever will not believe shall be condemned," highlighting the challenge of faith in unseen truths. Did they not warrant correction for dismissing the accounts of those who had encountered Him before they had their own experience?

To emphasize the truth of the Lord's resurrection, we must pay close attention to what Luke records, noting that the Lord instructed them not to leave Jerusalem (Acts 1:4). Further, he also states: "They that see them shall be taken up, and the cloud shall lift Him up from their eyes" (Acts 1:9). Consider these words and grasp their significance. The one who dined with them would ascend, illustrating the truth of His incarnation through the act of sharing meals. Mark recounts that before ascending to heaven, the Lord chastised the disciples for their lack of faith and hardness of heart. In this moment, where else should we direct our focus if not on the fact that the Lord spoke these rebukes so that, following His physical departure, His words would resonate more deeply within their hearts?

The Lord reassured them with words of peace; He confirmed the reality of His resurrection through the marks on His hands, feet, and side, and by partaking in their meal together. He then elucidated the necessity of His sufferings and glorification through the resurrection, drawing from the Scriptures, just as He had done with the travelers from Emmaus by opening their understanding of the Scriptures. After affirming the reality of His resurrection to the apostles, with the exception of Thomas, the Lord departed, reiterating to them, “Peace be with you,” as a reminder of their mission. He had completed His earthly ministry and entrusted it to them. For this intent, He imparted to them a share in the powers requisite for their future ministry—powers that He had uniquely secured for humanity through His final victory—and bestowed upon them the authority to utilize these powers with the same freedom with which He Himself would have employed them. Thus concluded the significant day of Christ's resurrection. The apostles came to understand that their Lord was the Master of both life and death; all His claims about Himself were irrefutably true: a miracle like no other had occurred, for one had risen from the dead; consequently, all their previous interactions with Jesus retained their importance: they were once again His apostles. However, when the Risen One appeared and subsequently left, not remaining with them as He had before, it became evident that they were to relate to Him in a new and distinct manner: His appearance was more spiritual than corporeal (as His body had been transformed), signaling a transition. Gradually, they were to move from their former tangible, sensory relationship with Him to a completely spiritual and unseen connection, which would be fully realized at the time of His ascension. Likely on the same day, He also appeared to James (1 Cor. 15:7).

Although John notes that Thomas was absent from this appearance, Luke does not mention this detail, which simply enhances the understanding provided by the earlier Evangelists. Likewise, Mark addresses this event at the conclusion of his Gospel, although he does not specify that the risen Lord's appearance happened on the same first day of the week. This inference can be made for a couple of reasons: First, Mark, aligning with Luke, discusses this event following his mention of the appearance to the two disciples on the way to that village; second, he indicates that this appearance occurred while the eleven apostles were reclining at the table (ανακειμένοις; cf. Matt. 9:10), which aligns with Luke’s account of Christ appearing to the two disciples. Luke further describes how, to affirm the reality of His resurrection, Christ asked for food, and the disciples offered Him baked fish and honeycomb. Third, in both Mark and Luke, Christ addressed the disciples, admonishing them for their disbelief and hardness of heart, further indicating that this incident was indeed the first appearance to the apostles.

Why do you question that it is I and not merely My Spirit? Why do such thoughts arise in your hearts? Behold My hands and My feet; it is indeed I; touch Me, if you doubt My words, and investigate; surely this will alleviate your uncertainties; for a spirit does not possess flesh and bones, as you see that I have.” Having spoken thus, He displayed His hands and feet, and as recorded by the gospel writer John, even His side (John 20:20). The apostles, still gripped by disbelief, drew closer to Jesus, touched Him, and by feeling His flesh and bones, they became assured that it was not a Spirit, but the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. Their certainty in having touched Him is affirmed by the Apostle and Evangelist John in his first epistle: “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled” (1 John 1:1). They examined and touched Him, yet their belief was not fully formed; they rejoiced and marveled instead. To provide them further reassurance that He was not a mere Spirit, Jesus inquired, “Do you have anything to eat?” They offered Him a piece of broiled fish and a honeycomb. He took the food and ate it in their presence.

The deep-seated disbelief of the apostles concerning the resurrection and the explicit proof they desired to dispel their skepticism is telling. Yet, some claim that the apostles were so desperate to see their Master resurrected that they created a false vision in their minds. Can we really attribute to the apostles a disorder of the imagination when they dismissed the testimonies of the women and the two disciples who had encountered the risen Lord, and only came to recognize His resurrection through tactile confirmation—by touching His body and witnessing Him consume fish and honey before them? This unwillingness to believe, alongside their demands for tangible proof, points to a significant unfolding of God’s divine purpose. It was God’s intention for the apostles to gradually develop a conscious faith in Jesus Christ as the Son of God, so they would be equipped to spread His teachings throughout the world, possessing a faith untainted by doubt, one that would radiate through them and their successors to all nations. Presently, blind faith may be embraced by Christians, as doubts have been resolutely dispelled and the truth of the two natures of Christ has been validated. However, during that time, when the message of the cross was a stumbling block for both Jews and Greeks, the apostles could not have accomplished their mission through blind faith alone. They required a conscious belief—one that engaged not only the heart but also the mind, a journey achieved through their prior disbelief and lingering uncertainties.

As joy, wonder, and skepticism overwhelmed them, He asked if they had any food, and to reassure them further, He ate a piece of baked fish in their presence. Then, once again, He said to them, ‘Peace be with you! As the Father has sent Me, so I send you.’ He breathed on them and added, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone's sins, they are forgiven; if you withhold forgiveness from anyone, it is withheld.’

The mention of "those who saw Him risen did not believe" points specifically to Mary Magdalene, the other Myrrh-bearers, Apostle Peter, and the travelers from Emmaus. Although there were numerous witnesses to verify this truth, the Apostles still grappled with doubt, which stemmed in part from their hardened hearts—a shortcoming frequently highlighted by the Savior (e.g., Mk. 8:17ff.). It is crucial to recognize this aspect of their disbelief within the narrative of Christ's resurrection, as it serves as compelling evidence for the reality of this monumental event.

Clearly, the Apostles were not merely mistaken; they could not have been deceived, nor was it a mere illusion or a product of their excited imaginations. They struggled with their disbelief, requiring the Lord’s own admonitions and the physical assurance of His presence to overcome their doubts. Therefore, when the Apostles eventually accepted and proclaimed the reality of their Master’s resurrection, it stands as a definitive truth, and criticism of their faith as naïve is unwarranted.