For as yet they knew not the scripture, that he must rise again from the dead.
The verse means that the disciples did not yet understand the Old Testament Scripture that Christ must rise from the dead. Their lack of understanding continued even though Jesus had told them beforehand that He would rise, for their grief and perplexity over His crucifixion and the violence done to Him kept them from considering that His words would be fulfilled. That same sorrow left them disappointed at His death and wondering at what they saw instead of expecting the resurrection.
As a group they could not yet believe the report that He had risen, even after finding the tomb empty with His linen clothes lying there, and they returned wondering at what they had seen. John, however, was led to believe when he saw the empty tomb and the burial clothes, carefully folded, and remembered Jesus' foretelling of His resurrection. The evidence thus brought him to believe before he understood the scriptural testimony. His belief rested on the fact that Jesus had told the disciples beforehand that He would rise.
After the resurrection Christ explained the Scriptures concerning Himself and opened their understanding. They then saw that the prophecies had been literally fulfilled and accepted their teaching with new faith and assurance. In its wider setting the verse belongs to the account of Jesus laid in Joseph's new tomb with a great stone rolled before the door, yet He did not remain buried. He is risen as a living Saviour, the Head of the church and the Good Shepherd, so to act as though He is still buried is unbelief. When matters become entangled and cannot be easily adjusted, the resurrection forbids losing heart and courage and faith and speaking doubt and unbelief, and calls for hoping and trusting in God and pressing forward with holy faith and hope in expectation of winning the prize.
The verse means that the disciples did not yet understand the Old Testament Scripture that Christ must rise from the dead. Their lack of understanding continued even though Jesus had told them beforehand that He would rise, for their grief and perplexity over His crucifixion and the violence done to Him kept them from considering that His words would be fulfilled. That same sorrow left them disappointed at His death and wondering at what they saw instead of expecting the resurrection.
As a group they could not yet believe the report that He had risen, even after finding the tomb empty with His linen clothes lying there, and they returned wondering at what they had seen. John, however, was led to believe when he saw the empty tomb and the burial clothes, carefully folded, and remembered Jesus' foretelling of His resurrection. The evidence thus brought him to believe before he understood the scriptural testimony. His belief rested on the fact that Jesus had told the disciples beforehand that He would rise.
After the resurrection Christ explained the Scriptures concerning Himself and opened their understanding. They then saw that the prophecies had been literally fulfilled and accepted their teaching with new faith and assurance. In its wider setting the verse belongs to the account of Jesus laid in Joseph's new tomb with a great stone rolled before the door, yet He did not remain buried. He is risen as a living Saviour, the Head of the church and the Good Shepherd, so to act as though He is still buried is unbelief. When matters become entangled and cannot be easily adjusted, the resurrection forbids losing heart and courage and faith and speaking doubt and unbelief, and calls for hoping and trusting in God and pressing forward with holy faith and hope in expectation of winning the prize.