The Folded Napkin

I wish I could say this post is “original” but this was actually forwarded to my husband – and it listed no author – but I so enjoyed it…I thought I would pass it along.

The question was why did Jesus fold the linen burial cloth after His resurrection as noted in John 20:7?

The Bible takes an entire verse to explain that the napkin was neatly folded, and placed at the head of that stony coffin. When Mary Magdalene came to the tomb, the stone had been rolled away. She ran to get Peter and the other disciple. When the other disciple arrived (as he outran Peter), he stooped, looked in and saw the linen cloth lying there, but did not go in. When Simon Peter arrived, he did go inside and noticed the linen wrappings lying there, while the cloth that had covered Jesus’ head was folded up and lying to the side.

Is this important? Absolutely! Is it really significant? Yes! In order to understand the significance of the folded napkin, you have to understand a bit about Hebrew tradition of the day. The folded napkin had to do with the master and servant, and every Jewish boy knew this tradition.

When the servant set the dinner table for the master, he made sure that it was exactly the way the master wanted it. The table was furnished perfectly, and the servant would wait, just out of sight, until the master finished eating, as he would not dare touch the table until the master was finished.

If the master was done eating, he would rise from the table, wipe his fingers, his mouth and clean his beard, and would wad up his napkin and toss it onto the table. The servant would then know to clear the table. For in those days, the wadded napkin meant, ‘I’m done’.

But if the master got up from the table, and folded his napkin and laid it beside his plate, the servant would dare not touch the table, because the folded napkin meant, ‘I’m coming back!’


He is Coming Back!! I hope that thought will influence all you do this week!