The First Witnesses

The First Witnesses

By: Vashti Graham

Artist Description:

The Bible says that women were the first people to go to Jesus’ tomb and see that it was empty. This is important because, back then, women’s words were often not taken seriously. At that time, women’s testimony was not highly valued or even considered reliable in legal or public settings. If someone had fabricated (made up) the resurrection story, they wouldn’t have chosen women to be the first witnesses. But God did. Mary Magdalene and the other women were the first to hear that Jesus had risen and were told to share the news (Mark 16:1–6; Matthew 28:5–7). This shows that God values faith and obedience more than popularity or status. The resurrection story is real, and God chose women to tell it first.

Scripture consistently records that women (Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and others) were the first to see that the tomb was empty and the first to hear the angel’s proclamation that Christ had risen (Mark 16:1–6; Luke 24:1–10). God intentionally chose women to be the first witnesses of the resurrection and entrusted them with the responsibility to tell the disciples (Matthew 28:5–7). God trusted women with one of the most important messages in Christianity. God often works through people the world overlooks. This detail strengthens the credibility of the Gospel accounts and reveals a deeper truth: God’s kingdom operates differently than human systems. God values faithfulness over status and often uses those overlooked by society to proclaim His greatest truth, that Jesus Christ is risen.

Scripture References:

Luke 24:1–3 “On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. They found the stone rolled away, … but they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.”

Luke 24:6 “He is not here; He has risen!”

Matthew 28:5–6 “The angel said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid… He is not here; for he has risen, just as He said.’”

Luke 24:9–10 “When they came back from the tomb, they told all these things to the Eleven and to all the others. It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the others with them.”

John 20:17–18 Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: “I have seen the Lord!” And she told them that he had said these things to her.

Additional Facts You May Find Interesting:

Burial customs: Jewish burial practice in the 1st century involved placing the body in a tomb quickly (before Sabbath), then returning later with spices. (This explains why the women came back and why they expected a body, not a resurrection.)

Jesus was buried in Joseph of Arimathea’s tomb, a known and identifiable place (Luke 23:50–53). If the tomb were not empty, authorities could have produced the body immediately to stop the resurrection claim.

In 1st century Jewish culture, women’s testimony was not admissible in court. Luke names specific women: Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James. Naming witnesses invites verification. If the resurrection of Jesus were made up, women would never have been chosen as the first witnesses. Again, in the first century, women’s testimony didn’t hold weight in court or public life. Their words weren’t considered reliable. Everyone knew that. If you’re inventing a story and trying to convince people it’s true, you don’t start by saying, “Trust us. Some women saw it first.” That would weaken your case, not strengthen it. But that’s exactly what the Bible records, because that’s what actually happened. God intentionally chose women to be the first witnesses to the resurrection. Not political leaders. Not religious elites. Not even the apostles. Women. Ordinary, faithful women who showed up when others didn’t. That tells us two big things. First, it makes the resurrection more historically credible, not less. The Gospel writers didn’t tailor the story to sound impressive, they told it as it was, even when it went against cultural norms.

Matthew records Roman guards (Matthew 27:62–66). The presence of guards refutes:

1. Body theft by disciples 2.Accidental relocation 3.Grave robbery. When looking further into this, Authorities never claimed, “The body is still there.” They claimed “the disciples stole the body” (Matthew 28:11–15). This implicitly admits the tomb was empty.

The same core account appears across Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John with minor variations. Independent accounts strengthen historical reliability. All four Gospels agree on the big facts: 1.Women went to the tomb 2. The tomb was empty 3. Jesus had risen 4. The women were told to tell the disciples. The resurrection accounts were written by different people, in different books of the Bible, for different audiences. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John weren’t copying one another word for word. They were recording the same real event from different perspectives. Each Gospel writer emphasized different details based on who they were and who they were writing to, but they all reported the same four core facts listed above. This is exactly how real eyewitness testimony works. When multiple people describe the same event independently, you expect slight differences in wording or detail, but agreement on the main truth. If the stories were perfectly identical, it would look rehearsed. Instead, the natural variations show authenticity. These accounts were written at different times, in different places, yet they all point to the same conclusion. That kind of consistency across multiple authors and books doesn’t happen by accident.

From a biblical, historical, and logical standpoint: 1. The tomb was empty 2. The witnesses were real, named, and unlikely choices 3. The proclamation was immediate and public 4. The disciples were transformed from fear to martyrdom 5. No body was ever produced.

Second, it shows how God’s kingdom works differently than human systems. God doesn’t choose messengers based on status, power, or popularity. He chooses faithfulness. The women stayed. They followed. They returned. And God trusted them with the most important message in Christianity. The resurrection wasn’t announced to kings or scholars, it was announced to women carrying spices in grief. And that’s not an accident. That’s a statement. God elevates the overlooked. He uses the faithful. And He always tells the truth, even when it challenges the culture.