© 2010 William D. Roberts
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The First Word
“After the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. And suddenly there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord, descending from heaven, came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. For fear of him the guards shook and became like dead men. But the angel said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid; I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for he has been raised, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples, “He has been raised from the dead, and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him.” This is my message for you.’ So they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them and said, ‘Greetings!’” (Matthew 28:1-9)
The First Word, “Greetings!” is literally the first word, not a sentence or conversation. And if St. Matthew’s is the earliest Gospel, this is also literally the first word that Jesus spoke after he was raised from the dead.
The Greek verb cairw [chairō] had an essentially secular meaning, so Jesus’ “Greetings!” could also be translated “hello!” or “good day!” Yet the literal meaning of the imperative verb is “rejoice!” and it’s hard to imagine that the risen Jesus would have met his beloved friends and disciples with anything less than a shout of the greatest joy.
© 2010 William D. Roberts
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