Matthew 27: 56-61; 28:1f

Mark 15:40-47; 16:1-9

Luke 8:2; 23:55; 24:10

John 19:25; 20:11-18

The name Mary is derived from the Hebrew Miryam. Magdalene indicates the area from which she came. Therefore, this Mary was most likely from the fishing town of Magdala which is located on the southwest coast of the Sea of Galilee 75-80 miles from Jerusalem.

          We are not told how she made her living. Some believe she was the known sinner of Bethany who anointed Jesus’ feet while He was eating dinner at the Pharisee’s house. (Jesus and Courageous Women, p. 74) However, it is possible she was a different woman.  She had seven demons before Jesus made her clean. Demons caused all kinds of situations from illnesses to super human intelligence and enormous physical strength. Seven was seen as a full or complete number. She must have been totally depraved.  Perhaps she was a prostitute or maybe she practiced magic. The Scriptures simply do not tell us. Did she seek Jesus to fine relief like the servant girl in Acts 16:16-18? Or did Jesus have compassion on her and demand the demons depart from her as He did with the demonic man in Mark 5: 9-13?         Demons recognize Jesus and know He has power over them. In the case of the demonic man, Legion (the number of demons) spoke to Jesus and asked they be cast into a herd of swine. When the demons left the man, he was later found clothed and in his right mind, a condition that had not existed before he met Jesus. How thankful Mary Magdalene must have been to be rid of those unclean spirits; so thankful, in fact that she became a devout follower of Jesus. Along with many other women, she followed Jesus as He traveled throughout the cities and villages in Galilee. (Matthew 4:23) She gave of her own means to provide for the needs of Jesus and the other Disciples. While some of the women who followed Jesus were married, there is no mention of Mary Magdalene’s husband. She followed Jesus to Jerusalem, but did she know about His purpose? Was she prepared for His death and resurrection? Did she understand that His mission was to die on the cross for the sins of the world? Did any of the Disciples understand? John reported. Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of Jesus, and Mary, wife of Clopas were by the cross when Jesus was crucified. Other sources place Mary Magdalene as watching from afar. It was dangerous for her to be near the cross. Often friends and family were killed when they became too involved or showed grief for a convicted criminal. Therefore, she showed a great deal of courage by being there. (Jesus and Courageous Women, p. 75.)  She was not only at the cross, but she was also seen sitting across from the sepulcher, in the garden (Matthew 27:61) where Joseph of Arimathea  placed Jesus’ body for burial. (John 19:41)

          On that Sunday, Mary Magdalene and some other women came before day-light to anoint Jesus’ body with oil and spices. They wondered how they would remove the large heavy stone that had been placed over the door of the sepulcher; but to their surprise it had already been removed and the body of Jesus was gone. Mary assumed someone had taken the body. She ran and told Peter and John and they went to the tomb. All they found was Jesus’ grave clothes. After Peter and John left, Mary Magdalene stood weeping outside the tomb. She stooped to look inside the tomb and saw two angels dressed in dazzling white sitting where Jesus’ body had been. The angels asked her why she was weeping. She said “because they have taken away my Lord and I do not know where they have laid him.”(John 20:13) Mary did not realize Jesus had been raised from the dead. She turned and saw a man whom she presumed to be the gardener and asked where he might have taken her Lord. But, then the man spoke, “Mary,” and she recognized His voice and replied in Hebrew, “Rabboni” which means teacher.  It’s easy to picture her running to Him and hugging Him. Her sorrow had turned to joy! Jesus told her “do not hold on to me for I have not yet ascended to my Father and your Father, My God and your God.” (John 20: 17) Jesus elevated Mary to sisterhood with Him. They share the same Father and the same God.  Mary Magdalene had the privilege of being the first Disciple to see and touch the resurrected Lord.  All four Gospels report that Jesus appeared to Mary Magdalene first.  Jesus told her to go and tell the brethren. Therefore, she went and told the other Disciples that she had seen and spoken with Jesus. (John 20:18) “As a result of Mary Magdalene’s role as one sent (apostellein) by Jesus to witness to the male apostles . . . she was the only woman besides Jesus’ mother on whose feast the creed was recited in the Western church. (Jewish Antiquities) Because of her mission to the apostles, Mary Magdalene is often referred to as the Apostle to the Apostles. (The Mass of the Roman Rite, p. 470.) In Jesus and Courageous Women, p.78., Elsa Tamez  considers Mary Magdalene to have been an Apostle: “She had all the necessary qualifications that are established by the church today for someone to be called an Apostle. She followed and was a part of the movement of Jesus in Galilee, and witnessed his death and resurrection.” Perhaps Jesus considered her to be one of the elite. He certainly singled her out for a special blessing and for a very special place in the Gospel story.