Road to Emmaus

Text and Content

The account appears in Luke 24:13–35. On the day Jesus rose from the dead (see Resurrection), two members of the wider circle of disciples were traveling from Jerusalem to a village called Emmaus, "threescore furlongs" away (KJV; 60 stadia in Greek, about 11 km). One of them was named Cleopas (24:18); the other is not named.

Jesus drew near and walked with them, "but their eyes were holden that they should not know him" (24:16). They told him how they had hoped he was the one who would redeem Israel, yet he had been crucified, and how some women had reported that the tomb was empty. Jesus replied, "Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory?" (24:26), and, beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded to them the things concerning himself (24:27).

When they reached the village, the two urged Jesus to stay with them, saying, "it is toward evening, and the day is far spent" (24:29). As Jesus took bread, blessed it, broke it, and gave it to them, their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he vanished from their sight. The two said, "Did not our heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures?" (24:32), and they returned at once to Jerusalem. There they heard the eleven disciples saying, "The Lord is risen indeed, and hath appeared to Simon" (24:34), and they in turn reported what had happened to them and how Jesus "was known of them in breaking of bread." Mark 16:12–13 also briefly records that Jesus appeared to two people "in another form," but this passage belongs to the so-called Longer Ending, which is absent from some manuscripts.

Background

The location of Emmaus is uncertain. Some manuscripts give the distance as 160 stadia. Several sites have therefore been proposed, including Amwas (Emmaus Nicopolis), a little over 30 km west of Jerusalem, but there is no scholarly consensus.

Significance in the Wider Biblical Context

This event is one of the resurrection appearances (appearances of the risen Jesus) recorded in Luke. At its heart is the understanding that the whole Old Testament points to the sufferings and glory of Christ, a theme taken up again in Luke 24:44–46. The action "he took bread, and blessed it, and brake, and gave to them" parallels Jesus' actions at the feeding of the five thousand (Luke 9:16) and at the Last Supper (Luke 22:19). It is also commonly read in connection with the account in Acts 2:42–47 that the early church gathered for "breaking of bread."

Interpretations and Points of Discussion

• Relationship to the Eucharist: Traditions that place the Eucharist at the center of worship—Roman Catholic, Anglican, and Lutheran—tend to read this meal as a prototype of worship consisting of the Word (the exposition of Scripture) and the Sacrament (the breaking of bread). Many other Protestant interpreters regard it as an ordinary meal rather than a celebration of the Lord's Supper, while understanding it as a scene that recalls the Last Supper. This discussion also touches on the Eucharistic controversies.
• Why they did not recognize him: Because Luke uses the passive "their eyes were holden," many interpreters understand that God temporarily prevented them from recognizing him. Others, citing the phrase "in another form" in Mark 16:12, hold that the risen body had a different appearance.
• The unnamed companion: One view identifies this person as the wife of Cleopas, linking the passage with "Mary the wife of Cleophas" in John 19:25. Some ancient church writers instead identified the companion as a man named Simon. The text, however, does not give the name, and it is also uncertain whether the Cleopas of Luke and the Cleophas of John are the same person.

In the Korean Church

The passage is frequently used as a sermon text around Easter. The words "Did not our heart burn within us" are widely quoted to encourage Bible study and meditation on the Word. The hymn "Abide with Me," written by the nineteenth-century English clergyman Henry Francis Lyte on the basis of Luke 24:29, appears in the Korean hymnal under the title "Ttae jeomureoseo nari eoduni" ("As the hour grows late and the day grows dark").