💫WEB · John 20:17
What does John 20:17 mean?
"Jesus said to her, “Don’t hold me, for I haven’t yet ascended to my Father; but go to my brothers, and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’”"
— John 20:17 (World English Bible)
Surrounding context
When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing, and didn’t know that it was Jesus.
Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Who are you looking for?” She, supposing him to be the gardener, said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.”
Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned and said to him, “Rabboni!” which is to say, “Teacher!”
Jesus said to her, “Don’t hold me, for I haven’t yet ascended to my Father; but go to my brothers, and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’”
Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord, and that he had said these things to her.
When therefore it was evening, on that day, the first day of the week, and when the doors were locked where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the middle, and said to them, “Peace be to you.”
When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. The disciples therefore were glad when they saw the Lord.
Explanation
John 20:17 records the moment right after Mary Magdalene recognizes the risen Jesus outside the empty tomb. Having just called her by name and dispelled her grief and confusion, Jesus now gives her a specific instruction: she is not to cling to him, because he has not yet ascended to the Father, and instead she is to go and tell the other disciples that he is ascending to "my Father and your Father, to my God and your God." In plain language, Jesus is telling Mary that this reunion, joyful as it is, is not the final resting point — there is more to come — and that she has an urgent mission to deliver good news to the rest of the disciples.
The context is the Gospel of John's resurrection narrative. John, traditionally identified as the apostle John, wrote this account for early Christian communities to establish belief in Jesus as the Son of God and to provide assurance of the resurrection's reality. Mary Magdalene had come to the tomb early, found it empty, and was weeping in confusion until Jesus appeared to her, initially mistaken for the gardener. Once he speaks her name, she recognizes him and apparently reaches out to embrace or hold onto him, perhaps out of relief and a desire to keep him with her as before. Jesus's response redirects her from clinging to the past toward participating in what comes next — spreading the news of the resurrection.
Theologically, this verse carries rich meaning. Jesus's statement that he has "not yet ascended" points to a transitional stage in the resurrection story — he is risen, but the process of his exaltation to the
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