“Now when Jesus was risen early the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had cast seven devils.”
King James Version (KJV)
16:9 #John 20:11|.
Mr 16:9 Now when [Jesus] was risen. The remainder of the chapter is not found in the Vatican or Siniatic Greek MSS, but is found in the Alexandrian. These are the three oldest and most reliable MSS. Some hold these verses to be a later addition, but as they are found in all the most ancient versions they must have been a part of Mark's Gospel when the first century. Schaff, Plumptree, Olshausen, Lochman and others regard them genuine, while other critics consider them doubtful. A circumstance in their favor is that the Vatican MS has a vacant space for them. It seems probable that in an early copy, therefore, they were omitted for some cause by a copyist who left space for them, but did not afterwards fill it, and that the Siniatic MS was made from the mutilated copy. It is clear that Mr 16:8 was not designed to conclude Mark's narrative. He appeared first to Mary Magdalene. This appearance is described more fully in Joh 20:11-17.