I’M COMING BACK

The Holy Bible states, “Then Simon Peter . . . arrived and went into the garden tomb, in the Garden of Gethsemane. He saw the strips of linen lying there, as well as the burial cloth that had been around Jesus’ head. The cloth was folded up by itself, separate from the linen.” (Gospel of John 20:6,7 NIV)

This burial cloth had been placed over the face of Jesus just before His burial in the tomb. Traditionally, in accordance with Jewish burial customs the strips of linen, cloth separate from the burial cloth over the face, had been wrapped around Jesus’ body before burial in the tomb. While the strips of linen were simply lying there, the cloth that had covered the face of Jesus was folded up by itself, separated from the grave clothes, the strips of linen. Jesus had put aside His strips of linen and had taken the time to fold up his burial cloth and set it apart from the strip of linen. Why? Why does Holy Writ emphasize the importance of this, taking an entire verse to tell us about it? What is the importance? Is it significant? Keep reading for an amazing revelation!

In order to understand the significance of the folded cloth, you have to understand a little bit about Hebrew tradition. The folded napkin had to do with a clear message between a Master and his Servant. Every Jewish person knows this tradition. When the servant set the dinner table for his master, he made sure that it was exactly the way the master wanted it. After the table was perfectly furnished perfectly then the servant would wait, just out of sight, until the master had finished eating. The servant would not dare touch that table, until the master was finished.

When the master was done eating, he would rise from the table, wipe his fingers, his mouth and clean his beard. The master would then wad up that napkin into a ball and toss it onto the table. The servant would then know to clear the table. The wadded napkin give the clear message, saying, “I’m done.”

However, if the master got up from the table, and folded his napkin, and laid it beside his plate, the servant would not dare touch the table. The folded cloth give this clear message, saying, “I’m not finished yet. I’m coming back!”