Verse 7
Peter especially needed this good news in view of his triple denial of Jesus and his consequent despair. Mark only recorded this special reference to Peter probably because it meant so much to Peter. Jesus still regarded Peter as one of His disciples in spite of his failure.
Jesus had predicted the scattering of His sheep and their regathering in Galilee (Mark 14:27-28). Galilee was the appropriate place to launch a worldwide mission to Gentiles as well as Jews. As He had called His disciples to be fishers of men in Galilee (Mark 1:17), now He would commission them to be shepherds of sheep there (John 21:15-19).
"The final scene points back to Galilee, back to the beginning of the story. The young man’s message at the tomb with instructions for the disciples to go to Galilee suggests perhaps a fresh start for the disciples or for anyone in the future of the story world who chooses to follow Jesus. By implication, this fresh journey will result in the same complications and the same hostility met in Galilee by John and then by Jesus. Furthermore, Galilee points away from Jerusalem, the center of Judaism, toward gentile nations, where Jesus had said the good news was to be proclaimed before the end came." [Note: Rhoads and Michie, p. 71.]
However the disciples did not go immediately to Galilee. They needed further proof of Jesus’ resurrection, which Jesus provided, before they went.
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