John 20:26

ESV Eight days later, his disciples were inside again, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you."

NIV A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you!"

NASB Eight days later His disciples were again inside, and Thomas was with them. Jesus *came, the doors having been shut, and stood in their midst and said, 'Peace be to you.'

CSB A week later his disciples were indoors again, and Thomas was with them. Even though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you."

NLT Eight days later the disciples were together again, and this time Thomas was with them. The doors were locked; but suddenly, as before, Jesus was standing among them. 'Peace be with you,' he said.

KJV And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you.

NKJV And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, “Peace to you!”

What does John 20:26 mean?

After Jesus was crucified, both His empty tomb and resurrected Person were seen alive by several of His followers (John 20:1–18; Luke 24:10–11; 23–24). Most of the disciples resisted that truth until Jesus appeared, miraculously, inside a locked room (John 20:19–23). One of inner circle, Thomas, had not been there. He not only refused to believe what had happened, he made an exaggerated demand. Unless he could stick his fingers into Jesus' crucifixion wounds, he wouldn't believe (John 20:24–25).

As He did in His prior appearance, Jesus again passes through a locked door and declares "peace" to the disciples. Most likely, this caused some of the same emotions as His last visit.

This time, however, Jesus will confront Thomas and his overblown, exaggerated demand. Thomas demanded an absurd level of proof before he would believe—now Jesus is graciously offering what Thomas said he wanted. Scripture does not explicitly say that Thomas touched Jesus in response to this, but it does indicate he responded to Christ's appearance with belief (John 20:27–28).

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Context Summary
John 20:24–29 is the source of an unfortunate nickname: "Doubting Thomas." Thomas was not present when Jesus came through a locked door and proved to the other disciples that He was alive. He makes an exaggerated demand for proof before he will believe, insisting on more evidence than is reasonable. Once again, Jesus passes through a physical barrier to appear. Thomas is reminded of his earlier stubbornness, but humbly confesses that Jesus is God.

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Chapter Summary
Peter and John get a report from Mary Magdalene that Jesus' body is gone. They arrive to find an open grave, and empty grave clothes, along with a folded face cloth. When the two men leave, Mary remains and suddenly encounters a resurrected Jesus. Though she tells the others, they resist believing until they see Jesus in person. Thomas is especially stubborn, and Jesus remarks on how blessed they are to have been given so much proof. John points out that his writing is meant to prove that Jesus is the Messiah, arranged to encourage those who read to come to faith.

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