05/21/2026
History often remembers the early days of the New Testament through the lens of the twelve apostles, yet woven into the Gospel narrative is a quieter, more steadfast record of devotion that defied the cultural gravity of the first century. While the accounts of Jesus’ ministry are punctuated by the betrayal of Judas, the denial of Peter, and the desertion of the disciples in the Garden of Gathsemane, there remains a striking historical constant: not a single woman is recorded as having turned against Christ. From the dusty curb of a Samaritan well to the garden of a borrowed tomb, Jesus purposely bypassed the "qualified" elite to entrust His most Earth-shattering revelations. In this article, we explore how these women—last at the Cross and earliest at the Grave—were not merely passive observers but were the first messengers intentionally commissioned by Jesus to bridge the gap between His divinity and a world in need of hope.
The Evidence: A Record of Daily Devotion
Luke 8:1–3: This is the most direct reference to the ongoing support Jesus received. Luke 10:38–42: The account of Martha serving Jesus at her home in Bethany. John 4:7–15: The Samaritan Woman at the Well.
John 19:25: This is the definitive "Standing by the Cross" verse: "Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene."
Matthew 27:55–56: This passage notes that "many women were there watching from a distance," specifically mentioning that they had followed Jesus from Galilee to care for His needs.
Mark 15:40–41: Similarly records the presence of Mary mother of James the younger and of Joseph, and Salome, noting they had "followed him and ministered to him" during his ministry.
Luke 24:1: "On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women came to the tomb, bringing the spices they had prepared."
Mark 16:2: "Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb."
John 20:1: "Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb..."
John 20:17-18: Jesus tells Mary Magdalene, "Go instead to my brothers and tell them..."
Matthew 28:8-10: The women (Mary Magdalene and "the other Mary") hurry from the tomb to tell the disciples, and Jesus meets them on the way.
The theological significance of these two encounters—the Samaritan woman at the well and Mary Magdalene at the tomb—lies in their subversion of the social and legal norms of the first century. By choosing a Samaritan woman as the first person to whom He explicitly revealed His deity (John 4:26), Christ shattered both ethnic and gender barriers, offering the "living water" of His identity to a marginalized figure who, by cultural standards, was an unlikely candidate for such a profound revelation. This theme of elevating the "unlikely witness" reaches its climax in the Resurrection account. In a historical context where a woman’s testimony was legally inadmissible in court, Jesus commissioned Mary Magdalene as the first to proclaim His victory over death (John 20:17–18). This underscores a central New Testament principle: the Gospel does not depend on worldly status or patriarchal validation, but on the steadfast presence of those who, as Talmage noted, remained "His friend and comforter" from the beginning to the end.
The intentionality behind Jesus’ interactions with these women is underscored by His deliberate subversion of rigid first-century social, ethnic, and legal boundaries. In the case of the Samaritan woman, the Gospel of John notes that Jesus "had to pass through Samaria" (John 4:4), a route most Judean Jews pointedly avoided by crossing the Jordan River to bypass the region. By arriving at Jacob’s Well at the "sixth hour" (noon), Jesus positioned Himself to meet a woman whose midday arrival—as opposed to the cooler morning hours favored by the community—suggested social isolation. After revealing His identity, He did not bind her to silence; instead, His engagement prompted her to "go and tell" her entire town. She spoke to the men and women of Sychar without reservation, and the text records that many believed "because of the woman’s testimony" (John 4:39).
Similarly, the post-Resurrection appearance to Mary Magdalene was a profound disruption of Roman and Jewish evidentiary standards. In the Greco-Roman world, the testimonium mulierum (testimony of women) was regarded as legally untrustworthy. Further, according to the Jewish historian Josephus (Antiquities 4.8.15), the testimony of women was not even admitted in court "on account of the levity and temerity of their s*x." This highlights just how radical Jesus' choice was and the significance of His purpose. By appearing first to a woman and explicitly commanding her to "go and tell My brothers" (Matthew 28:10), Jesus ignored the cultural limitations on who a woman could instruct. This command to address the male leadership of His movement—the future Apostles—placed a woman in the position of being the first "apostle to the Apostles."
These actions provide a clear window into Jesus' mindset regarding women: He prioritized the transmission of truth over the preservation of tradition. By issuing these commands without caveats or gender-based restrictions, Jesus signaled that He did not view women as "second class" witnesses or "spiritually limited" messengers. His concern was not with the social standing of the speaker, but with the urgency and accuracy of the message. To Jesus, a woman’s voice was a fully sufficient vessel for the most sacred revelations of His ministry. This suggests a mindset of radical equality in mission, where the call to "go and tell" is predicated on one's encounter with the Savior rather than their status in any social hierarchy. While the historical record identifies men of means, such as Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus, who stepped forward in the eleventh hour to provide the material dignity of a tomb and costly burial spices, it was the women who provided the unbroken heartbeat of the ministry. The men provided the place for Jesus to be laid, but the women—from the well to the foot of the Cross—refused to leave His side. Their contribution was not merely a series of high-value transactions, but a relentless, daily presence that defied every social and legal barrier of their time. In the end, Jesus didn't just accept their support; He validated their voices, entrusting the most pivotal news in human history to the only group that never betrayed Him.
The "unbroken record" of the women in the New Testament is more than a historical curiosity; it is a blueprint for modern discipleship. In a world that still frequently measures a person’s value by their social status, professional "qualifications," or proximity to power, the ministry of Jesus offers a startlingly different metric: loyalty and availability. The women who followed Jesus didn't wait for a seat at the legal tables of their day to begin their mission. They provided the resources they had, stayed present in the moments of deepest suffering, and were ready to "go and tell" the second they were called. For us in 2026, this means recognizing that our "commission" isn't found in a title or a hierarchy, but in our willingness to be the "friend and comforter" to the truth of the Gospel in our own spheres of influence.
Just as Jesus bypassed the religious elite and social order to trust a marginalized woman at a well and a grieving woman at a tomb, He continues to bypass our limitations today. The question for us is the same one those women faced: When the world turns away, will we remain? When the Church and social customs restrict God’s call, will we remain? Most importantly, when the truth is revealed to us, will we have the courage to tell the "Apostles" (religious leaders) and the "townspeople" (everyone in our sphere of influence) alike that we have seen the Lord? As Proverbs 3:5-6 says, “"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight." Just as He did for the women of His day.
