While they were still speaking about this, he stood in their midst and said to them, “Peace be with you.” 37 But they were startled and terrified and thought that they were seeing a ghost. 38 Then he said to them, “Why are you troubled? And why do questions arise in your hearts? 39 Look at my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me and see, because a ghost does not have flesh and bones as you can see I have.” 40 And as he said this, he showed them his hands and his feet. 41 While they were still incredulous for joy and were amazed, he asked them, “Have you anything here to eat?” 42 They gave him a piece of baked fish; 43 he took it and ate it in front of them. 44 He said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the law of Moses and in the prophets and psalms must be fulfilled.” 45 Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures. 46 And he said to them, “Thus it is written that the Messiah would suffer and rise from the dead on the third day 47 and that repentance, for the forgiveness of sins, would be preached in his name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. 48 You are witnesses of these things. 49 And [behold] I am sending the promise of my Father upon you; but stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”
50 Then he led them [out] as far as Bethany, raised his hands, and blessed them. 51 As he blessed them he parted from them and was taken up to heaven. 52 They did him homage and then returned to Jerusalem with great joy, 53 and they were continually in the temple praising God.
Jesus comes to his disciples while they are still talking about the reports that he is alive (v. 36). He stands in their midst and says, ‘"Peace be with you" (v. 36). In Luke, peace is the gift of reconciliation and wholeness that God gives through Jesus, and this brings the deep inner peace that flows from restored communion with God (Jn. 14:27; 20:19-21; Rom. 5:1). They are startled and terrified and think they are seeing a ghost (v. 37). Luke shows that the disciples come to faith gradually. They are facing something real, but they do not yet understand it fully.
Jesus addresses their fear. He asks why they are troubled and why questions arise in their hearts (v. 38). Then he tells them to look at his hands and his feet and to touch him (v. 39). He is showing them that the one standing before them is the same Jesus who was crucified. He has truly risen in the body. When Jesus says that a ghost does not have flesh and bones as they see that he has (v. 39), he is showing that his Resurrection is real and bodily. The risen Jesus is truly present in his body, and he now lives in a transformed and glorified human life. John’s Gospel shows this as well, when Jesus comes and stands among the disciples though the doors are locked (Jn. 20:19). Luke adds another concrete detail. Jesus asks for something to eat, and they give him a piece of baked fish. He takes it and eats it in front of them (vv. 41-43). This shows the reality of his risen body. It also shows restored fellowship with his disciples. The risen Lord is present among them.
Then the passage turns to the meaning of these events. Jesus reminds them that what has happened to him fulfills what was written about him in the law of Moses and in the prophets and psalms (v. 44). This expression refers to the whole of the Scriptures. Luke is showing that the suffering, death, and Resurrection of Jesus are part of God’s saving purpose for humanity. Then Jesus opens their minds to understand the Scriptures (v. 45). The risen Jesus gives his disciples the understanding they need to grasp how the Scriptures are fulfilled in him. Jesus then states the heart of the message clearly: the Messiah would suffer and rise from the dead on the third day (v. 46). Jesus is the Messiah whose suffering and Resurrection bring salvation. His rising on the third day shows God’s saving power at work in him.
Jesus then says that repentance, for the forgiveness of sins, would be preached in his name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem (v. 47). Repentance means turning back to God. Forgiveness of sins means that through Jesus, sinners can be restored to right relationship with God. This message is to be preached to all nations. Luke presents that mission as part of the fulfillment of Scripture. Jerusalem is the starting point (v. 47). In Luke, Jerusalem is the city where Jesus completed his saving work, and it is also the place from which the mission of the Church begins. What is announced here unfolds in the Acts of the Apostles. Jesus then says, “You are witnesses of these things” (v. 48). The disciples are to bear witness to what God has done in Jesus Christ. They speak as those who have seen and received what the risen Lord has made known to them.
Finally, Jesus tells them that he is sending the promise of his Father upon them, that is, the Holy Spirit whom the risen Christ will pour out upon his disciples (Lk. 24:49; Acts 1:4-5; 2:33).
Luke then brings the Gospel to its close by showing Jesus leading the disciples out as far as Bethany, raising his hands, and blessing them (vv. 50-51). His final act before the Ascension is a blessing. Then he is taken up to heaven (v. 51), not to become distant from his disciples, but to enter fully into heavenly glory. The disciples respond by doing him homage and returning to Jerusalem with great joy (v. 52). Luke ends where his Gospel began, in the temple, with the disciples continually praising God (v. 53). The risen Lord has completed his earthly work, opened the Scriptures, commissioned his witnesses, and returned to the Father, while his disciples begin to live in worship, joy, and hope.
Lord Jesus Christ, you came to your disciples in their fear and gave them peace. Open our minds to understand your word. Strengthen our faith in your Resurrection. Turn our hearts back to God, forgive our sins, and make us faithful witnesses to what you have done for our salvation. Amen.
–––––––––––––––––––
Sources and References
- The New American Bible, Revised Edition. Washington, DC: Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, 2011. Luke 24:36-53 and notes.
- Scott Hahn and Curtis Mitch, Ignatius Catholic Study Bible: New Testament. San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 2010, 155.
- José María Casciaro, gen. ed., The Navarre Bible: New Testament, Expanded Edition. Dublin: Four Courts Press; New York: Scepter Publishers, 2008, 353-54.
- Raymond E. Brown, Joseph A. Fitzmyer, and Roland E. Murphy, eds., The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1990, 721, pars. 197-98.
- José Enrique Aguilar Chiu, Carol J. Dempsey, Oscar Edgardo Mendoza, and Christopher M. Hays, eds., The Paulist Biblical Commentary. New York: Paulist Press, 2018, 1102-4.
- John J. Collins, Gina Hens-Piazza, Barbara Reid OP, and Donald Senior CP, eds., The Jerome Biblical Commentary for the Twenty-First Century. Third Fully Revised Edition. With a Foreword by Pope Francis. London: Bloomsbury T&T Clark, 2022, 1360-61.
Comments