THE BURIAL

John did not know what to do with the body of his dearly loved Master. John hated the thought of Jesus' body being handled by rough soldiers who did not care. John wondered what he could do to keep Jesus from being buried in a dishonored place. John knew that the Jewish rulers would give him no favors. He had little hope of help from Pilate.SRme 1.1006

In John's time of need, Joseph and Nicodemus came to help. These men were members of the ruling Sanhedrin. They knew Pilate. Both men had wealth and influence. Joseph and Nicodemus determined that the body of Jesus should have an honorable burial.SRme 1.1007

Joseph went boldly to Pilate. Joseph begged Pilate for the body of Jesus. Pilate ordered that Jesus' body should be given to Joseph. John was still troubled about the burial of Jesus. But Joseph returned with Pilate's order. Nicodemus expected that Joseph would be given Jesus' body, so he came with about one hundred pounds of costly mixture of myrhh and aloes. The most honored person in all Jerusalem could not have been given more respect in death.SRme 1.1008

Gently and reverently, with their own hands, Jesus' friends removed His body from the cross. Their tears fell fast as they looked at Jesus' cruelly torn body. Carefully they washed away the stain of blood.SRme 1.1009

Joseph owned a new tomb near Calvary. The tomb was cut into a rock. Joseph was saving this tomb for himself. But now he prepared it [tomb] for Jesus. Jesus' body was carefully wrapped in a linen sheet, along with the spices that Nicodemus had brought. The three men carried Jesus' body to the tomb. No person had ever been laid in this tomb before. There the three men straightened Jesus' mangled legs and folded His bruised hands over His heart.SRme 1.1010

The Galilean women came to be sure that all had been done that could be done for the body of this beloved teacher. The women watched as the heavy stone was rolled against the entrance of the tomb. There the Son of God was left at rest. The women were the last people to leave the cross and they were the last to leave the tomb of Jesus.SRme 1.1011

The rulers had carried out their devilish purpose in putting Jesus to death. But they were still worried, and they were still jealous of Jesus. The leaders had experienced the joy of revenge, but they were in constant fear that Jesus' dead body would come back to life.SRme 1.1012

"The next day, which was a Sabbath, the chief priests and the Pharisees met with Pilate and said, 'Sir, we remember that while that liar was still alive, He [Jesus] said, "I will be raised to life three days later." Give orders then, for His tomb to be carefully guarded until the third day, so that His disciples will not be able to go and steal the body, and then tell the people that He was raised from death. This last lie would be even worse than the first one'" (Matt. 27:62-64).SRme 1.1013

Pilate agreed with the Jewish leaders. He did not want Jesus to rise again with power, and punish the guilty people who had destroyed Him. So Pilate put a group of Roman soldiers around the tomb as the priests asked.SRme 1.1014

"'Take a guard,' Pilate told them; 'go and make the tomb as secure as you can.' So they left and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and leaving the guard on watch" (Matt. 27:65, 66).SRme 1.1015

The Jews realized the advantage of having a guard around the tomb. They put a seal of authority on the stone that closed the tomb. The stone could not be moved without breaking the seal. Everything possible was done to keep the disciples from stealing the body of Jesus. But all the planning only made the triumph of the resurrection more complete. The seal helped to prove the truth that Jesus Christ had risen from the grave.SRme 1.1016