What Does Matthew 28:1 Mean?

XXVIII. (1) It will probably help the student to place before him, in their right order, the recorded appearances of our Lord Jesus after His resurrection:— (1.) To Mary Magdalene, John 20:14; Mark 16:9. (2.) To Mary Magdalene and the other Mary, Matthew 28:9. (3.) To Peter, Luke 24:34; 1Corinthians 15:5. (4.) To Cleopas and another disciple at Emmaus, Luke 24:13-35. (5.) To the eleven, or more strictly, the ten Apostles at Jerusalem, Mark 16:14; Luke 24:36; John 20:19. (6.) To the eleven Apostles at Jerusalem, John 20:26. (7.) To the disciples—five named, and others—by the Sea of Galilee, John 21:1-24. (8.) To the Eleven on a mountain in Galilee, Matthew 28:16; Mark 16:15. (9.) To the five hundred brethren, possibly identical with. (8), 1Corinthians 15:6. (10.) To James the brother of the Lord, 1Corinthians 15:7. (11.) To the Eleven at Jerusalem before the Ascension, Mark 16:19-20; Luke 24:50; Acts 1:3-12. **In the end of the sabbath.**—Literally, *late on the Sabbath;* St. Mark, “when the Sabbath was over;” St. Luke, “very early in the morning.” St. Matthew’s addition, “as it began to dawn,” brings his narrative into harmony with St. Luke’s. The order of facts appears to have been as follows:—(1) Mary Magdalene and the other Mary, the mother of James the Little, watched the burial just before the Sabbath began on the evening of the day of the crucifixion. (2.) They stayed at home during the twenty-four hours of the Sabbath. (3.) On the evening of that day (the Sabbath-rest being over) they bought spices for the embalmment. (4.) At earliest dawn, say about 4 A.M., they set out to make their way to the sepulchre, and they reached it when the sun had risen (Mark 16:2).