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That nails were used in the crucifixion of Christ, is certain from this place, though nowhere else mentioned; whereby the prophecy of him in Psalm 22:16 was fulfilled; for these were not always used in this kind of death. The bodies of men were sometimes fastened to the cross with cords, and not nails. How many were used, whether three, as some, or four, as others, or more, as were sometimes used, is not certain, nor material to know. The Alexandrian copy, and some others, and the Vulgate Latin, Syriac, and Persic versions read, "the place of the nails"; that is, the place where the nails were drove. Thomas knew that Christ was fastened to the cross with nails, and that his side was pierced with a spear; which he, though not present, might have had from John, who was an eyewitness thereof; but though they had all seen him alive, he will not trust to their testimony; nay, he was determined not to believe his own eyes; unless he put his finger into, as well as saw, the print of the nails, and thrust his hand into his side, as well as beheld the wound made by the spear, he is resolved not to believe. And his sin of unbelief is the more aggravated, inasmuch as this disciple was present at the raising of Lazarus from the dead by Christ, and had heard Christ himself say, that he should rise from the dead the third day. We may learn from hence how great is the sin of unbelief; that the best of men are subject to it; and that though this was over ruled by divine providence to bring out another proof Christ's resurrection, yet this did not excuse the sin of Thomas: and it may be observed, that as Thomas would not believe without seeing the marks of the nails and spear in Christ's flesh; so many will not believe, unless they find such and such marks in themselves, which often prove very ensnaring and distressing. Just such an unbeliever as Thomas was, the Jews make Moses to be, when Israel sinned: they say, "he did not believe that Israel had sinned, but said, "if I do not see, I will not believe"'

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Ἐὰν μὴ ἴδω ἐν ταῖς χερσὶν αὐτοῦ τὸν τύπον τῶν ἥλων

EAN MÊ IDÔ EN TAIS XERSIN AUTOU TON TUPON TÔN hELÔN 

Unless I see in his hands the marks of the nails

The print (ton tupon). The mark or stamp made by the nails, here the original idea. Various terms as in Act 7:44; 1Ti 4:12. Finally our “type” as in Rom 5:14. Clearly the disciples had told Thomas that they had seen the tupon of the nails in his hands and the spear in his side. (RWP).

 

1) the mark of a stroke or blow, print

2) a figure formed by a blow or impression (Thayer)

 

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Jehovah's Witnesses

Robert Bowman¹

Jehovah's Witnesses claim that Jesus appeared to his disciples in a physical body to convince them he wasn't a demon, since demons couldn't appear in physical bodies. If that was the point, then why appear in a body that had marks apparently produced by Jesus' execution ordeal?

Indeed, this wasn't just apparent: the marks *were* produced by Jesus' crucifixion. In John, Thomas said he wanted to "see in his hands the imprints of the nails and put my fingers into the place of the nails" (John 20:25). This was after Jesus had appeared to the disciples in Luke 24:36-43 and convinced them, according to Jehovah's Witnesses, that he had been resurrected as an angelic spirit. Why would Thomas have expected to see "the imprints of the nails" in the hands of an angelic spirit?

The word tupos refers to "the mark of a stroke or a blow" (Thayer). Friberg explains that the word's etymology was "blow" and that "by metonymy" it referred to "the impression made by the blow," a "mark" or "trace." Louw and Nida state that it refers to a "visible impression or trace made as the result of a blow or pressure - 'scar, wound.'" "Though both stigma (8.55) and tupos may mean scars, there are significant differences in meaning. Stigma bears the connotation of brand or mark of ownership, while tupos indicates a wound or scar resulting from the shape and form of some object, for example, nails in the case of Jn 20.25." All of these lexical references agree that tupos in John 20:25 refers to the mark, wound, or scar resulting from the blow to Jesus' hand by the nail. The genitive "of the nails" is an example of the genitive of production (Wallace, pp.104-7); that is, the nails produced the marks.

In short, Thomas's statement presupposes that what he would see and touch would be actual marks left behind from the actual nails used to penetrate Jesus' actual hands. There would have been no reason for Thomas to have had any such expectation if his fellow disciples had told him that Jesus had been resurrected as a spirit or angel. Furthermore, Jesus gave Thomas just what he had requested: showing him his hands and side and inviting Thomas to see and touch them (John 20:27).

Notes

1.  Posted on the Evangelicals and Jehovah's Witnesses Discussion Board Aug. 26, 2006, with minor format changes to suit this website.