New Testament · Gospel

Mark 16:3

The Empty Tomb

They were asking one another, “Who will roll away the stone from the entrance of the tomb?” Mark 16:3 · Berean Standard Bible
What It Means

Mark 16:3, in plain English

On the way, they're asking each other, 'Who's going to move that huge stone for us?'

Why it's here

They went even though they had no plan for the biggest obstacle. Love drove them forward when logic said stay home.

Who's speaking

The women discuss a practical problem as they walk.

Where it sits in the story

They don't know how they'll get in. They just know they need to go. Sometimes love means showing up even when you don't have all the answers.

A Closer Look

The scholarly reading

En route, the women discuss who will apokulisei (roll away) the lithos (stone) from the tomb entrance, recognizing the practical obstacle of its weight.

Language and setting

Rolling stones for Jewish tombs typically weighed several hundred pounds and required multiple people to move. The women's concern highlights their expectation of a sealed, occupied tomb.

Voice

The women discuss among themselves the practical problem they face.

Significance

The women's worry about the stone is deeply human and realistic. They go despite having no solution, driven by love rather than logistics.

In context

Mark 16:1–5

1When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so they could go and anoint the body of Jesus.

2Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they went to the tomb.

3They were asking one another, “Who will roll away the stone from the entrance of the tomb?”

4But when they looked up, they saw that the stone had been rolled away, even though it was extremely large.

5When they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed.

Read all of Mark 16 — Three women arrive at dawn expecting a corpse. They find a young man in white and a message that rewrites everything: he is risen.

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