Joh 20:4 So they ran both together: and the other disciple did outrun Peter, and came first to the sepulchre.
Joh 20:5 And he stooping down, and looking in, saw the linen clothes lying; yet went he not in.
Joh 20:6 Then cometh Simon Peter following him, and went into the sepulchre, and seeth the linen clothes lie,
Joh 20:7 And the napkin, that was about his head, not lying with the linen clothes, but wrapped together in a place by itself.
Joh 20:8 Then went in also that other disciple, which came first to the sepulchre, and he saw, and believed.
Why did Jesus fold the linen burial cloth after His resurrection?
This is very, very good!
The Gospel of John (20:7) tells us that the napkin, which was placed
over the face of Jesus, was not just thrown aside like the grave
clothes. The Bible takes an entire verse to tell us that the napkin was
neatly folded,and was placed at the head of that stony coffin.
Early Sunday morning, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the
tomb and found that the stone had been rolled away from the
entrance.She ran and found Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one
whom Jesus loved. She said, "They have taken the Lord's body out of the
tomb, and I don't know where they have put him!" Peter and the other
disciple ran to the tomb to see.The other disciple outran Peter and got
there first. He stooped and looked in and saw the linen cloth lying
there, but he didn't go in. Then Simon Peter arrived and went inside.
He also noticed the linen wrappings lying there, while the cloth that
had covered Jesus' head was folded up and lying to the side.
Is that important? Absolutely! Is it really significant? Yes!
In order to understand the significance of the folded napkin, you have to
understand a little bit about Hebrew tradition of that day...
The folded napkin had to do with the Master and Servant,
and every Jewish boy knew this tradition.When the servant set the dinner
table for the master, he made sure that it was exactly the way the master
wanted it.
The table was furnished perfectly, and then the servant would wait, just out
of
sight, until the master had finished eating, and the servant would not
dare touch that table, until the master was finished. Now if the master
was done eating, he would rise from the table, wipe his fingers, his
mouth,and clean his beard, and would wad up that napkin and toss it
onto the table.The servant would then know to clear the table. For in
those days, the wadded napkin meant, "I'm done". But if the master
got up from the table, and folded his napkin, and laid it beside his
plate, the servant would not dare touch the table, because the servant knew
that the folded napkin meant, "I'm not finished yet."
The folded napkin meant, "I'm coming back!"
HE IS COMING BACK!
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Topic: the folded napkin (Read 7928 times)