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John 20:25
ESV So the other disciples told him, "We have seen the Lord." But he said to them, "Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails, and place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into his side, I will never believe."
NIV So the other disciples told him, "We have seen the Lord!" But he said to them, "Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe."
NASB So the other disciples were saying to him, 'We have seen the Lord!' But he said to them, 'Unless I see in His hands the imprint of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.'
CSB So the other disciples were telling him, "We’ve seen the Lord!" But he said to them, "If I don’t see the mark of the nails in his hands, put my finger into the mark of the nails, and put my hand into his side, I will never believe."
NLT They told him, 'We have seen the Lord!' But he replied, 'I won’t believe it unless I see the nail wounds in his hands, put my fingers into them, and place my hand into the wound in his side.'
KJV The other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the Lord. But he said unto them, Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe.
NKJV The other disciples therefore said to him, “We have seen the Lord.” So he said to them, “Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.”

What does John 20:25 mean?

Modern believers often look back on the disciples in frustration, wondering how they could be so slow to understand. We have the benefit of two thousand years of hindsight, not to mention the completed New Testament. Much of what they confronted had never been considered, or at least not clarified, and they lived those experiences through moments of intense emotion and confusion. In that sense, we should have sympathy. There are reasons why concepts we can now see as obvious went over their heads.

Even so, it's hard to justify Thomas' stubborn skepticism. The other disciples resisted believing that Jesus had been raised, despite having eyewitness accounts (John 20:17–18; Luke 24:10–11). They didn't believe until Jesus appeared in a locked room and showed Himself to them (John 20:19–23). Thomas not only rejects all this evidence, but he also demands the most absolute, personal proof possible. He wants more than adequate evidence, even more than visual proof. He insists on disbelieving until he can physically touch the wounds in Jesus' resurrected body.

The parallel between Thomas and many modern "skeptics" is hard to miss. Jesus was, in fact, alive. There were reliable witnesses to this fact. Jesus had predicted it would happen (John 2:19–22; Luke 18:33). He'd performed miracles to prove His words—including resurrecting someone from death when Thomas thought the trip was a suicide mission (John 11:16, 43–44). Thomas' resistance is not reasonable. He is not asking for evidence or logic. He is deliberately setting the bar so high that there's no good reason to think it will ever be met.

Scripture embraces the idea of reasonable skepticism (Acts 17:11; 1 John 4:1). It does not humor those who are merely looking for excuses not to believe. In Thomas' case, we're not sure what his motives are. He might be worried about multiplying his anguish over Jesus' death. He may be afraid of being taken advantage of. Whatever the explanation, Thomas' "doubt" is driven by a deliberate choice to disbelieve, not sincere caution. When he finally sees Jesus, this is exactly how Christ will describe Thomas' mindset (John 20:27).
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