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27:1,2
Jesus goes to Pontius Pilate
The 'religious' trial was over, but now Jesus had to go through a civil
trial. In the first trial he had been subjected to several travesties of
justice, plus many personal abuses. All night he had suffered the hateful
attacks, and now, tired and hungry, he was condemned unanimously by the whole
Sanhedrin, to death. He was condemned in the morning because the Sanhedrin
wanted to appear as if they were doing things according to the rules.
His hands were bound behind his back and he was pushed and pulled through
the streets to the court of the governor Pontius Pilate.
(Pontius Pilate. According to Philo and Josephus, Pilate expressed an
active dislike for the Jews, and a bewildered contempt for their religious
taboos. He regarded them as dangerous maniacs and instigators of every kind of
sedition. He had the plain, blunt loathing of a soldier for the political
intrigue by which he was surrounded. He lost his temper quickly, and he
frequently ordered his troops to attack the Jews - but, in the times in which he
lived he had little alternative. Roman tolerance was always interpreted as
weakness.
His first act, on taking the procuratorship, aggravated the Judeans.
Normally, the Romans respected the religious customs of their subject peoples -
for example, they would not permit their troops to march into Jerusalem with the
image of their emperor on their standards. Mosaic Law forbade images, so the
Jews, in this case, were respected.
Pilate, however, when moving troops into the city, marched them in in the
dark, with the eagle standards on top of the imperial poles. The uproar started
in the morning. Deputations surrounded his house. After 5 days of this siege, he
threatened to order a massacre, but the Jews said they would all rather die than
go away, so, resignedly, on the 6th day Pontius ordered all the images to be
taken down off the poles.
But he was not always so respectful. At another time, in order to pay for
an aqueduct which ran from Solomon's pool to the Temple, Pilate raided the
enormous funds (called the Corban funds) from the Temple treasury. He was away
at the time, but later, when he came up from his headquarters in Caesarea to the
city, the storm broke. Angry Jews were rising up in revolt - so he ordered his
troops to put them down by force.
This was the sort of strained relationship which Pilate had with the
Jewish nation.
During Passover, Pilate had under his command some 35,000 troops,
consisting of the 5th, 10th and 15th legions plus many auxiliaries. They were
stationed mainly around the fortress of Antonia, which adjoined the Temple.)
27:3-10
Judas dies
Judas, who became known as 'The Traitor', was terribly upset when he saw
Jesus being led away. Suddenly he realised what a horrible thing he had done. He
decided to try and set things right, so he went back to the temple, with the
intention of returning the money.
"Here you are" he said, to the chief priests (Annas and
Caiaphas) and the elders, "I have the 30 shekels you gave me. I don't want
it any more. That man Jesus was innocent. He doesn't deserve to die. I don't
want to be guilty of his murder."
But the Jewish leaders, who had co-operated so enthusiastically with
Judas a few hours before, now refused to have anything to do with him.
"We want nothing to do with it! said the Jewish leaders, "Its
none of our business!"
Judas, though remorseful, was not sorry in the same way Peter had been.
He was saddened by the effects of his crime, but not, like Peter, grieved
because of a broken relationship with Jesus.
Judas, in desperation, threw the money over the barrier and into the
Temple, where the coins bounced across the stone floor where only the priests
were permitted to walk. He then went and hung himself.
(There are two accounts of the way Judas died. Putting them together, it
looks as if he first of all hung himself from a tree, but then fell forward and
disembowelled himself on the rocks below the tree - Acts 1:18)
When the chief priests saw the money scattered across the floor, they
decided, in their usual hypocritical way, that the money was 'too spiritual' to
put into the Temple treasury. They said : "This money was the payment for a
murder", so they decided to use it to buy some land instead. The land had
formerly been used for pottery, but now it was nick-named "The Field of
Blood" because of the connection between the betrayal money and the death
of Jesus. (Or perhaps 'The Field of Innocent Blood'.)
All this happened as part of a fulfillment of what Jeremiah the prophet
once predicted. "The people of Israel traded the Messiah for 30 pieces of
silver. They used the money to buy a field once owned by a potter. The Lord
directed them to do this"
(Notice this is what Jeremiah said. It is not something written, so it is
useless to quote Zech.11:12,13, as some marginal note do.)
27:11-14
Jesus meets Pontius Pilate
The Jewish leaders had religious grievances, but these were not
sufficient to bring the death penalty on to Jesus, because Rome had taken that
prerogative from them. The only way the Jews could get the death penalty, was if
Rome itself actioned it, but Rome would not see 'religion' as sufficient reason.
So the Jewish leaders had to bring a second, equally false charge - political
insurrection - against Jesus. (Luke 23:2). This was doubly hypocritical because
the Jews hated Rome, and they would hardly be inclined to bring an
insurrectionist (anti-Rome leader) to Rome for trial.
Jesus was brought to the court of Pontius Pilate, who usually began his
sessions in the early mornings (about 6 a.m.) because by doing so he avoided the
heat of the day.
The three charges which the Jewish leaders raised against Jesus were :
1.
He was a revolutionary who posed a threat to Rome (therefore challenging Rome's
control)
2.
He was urging people not to pay taxes (therefore undermining Rome's prosperity)
3.
He claimed to be a King (therefore threatening the 'divine' power and position
of the emperor.)
When Pilate met Jesus, he asked him : "Are you the king of the Jews?
Jesus answered : "Yes." (Jesus used a Hebrew manner of speaking
here. He said, literally : "You yourself say it". This is a powerful
way of affirming something. It means 'yes, definitely this is so'.)
The momentary silence was broken by a torrent of angry voices, as the
crowd of religious leaders started to shout accusations, slander and abuse at
Jesus, but Jesus resolutely ignored them.
Pilate was curious. Usually a condemned person made some effort to plead
their innocence, because if they failed to persuade the judge that they were
guiltless, they would be sentenced to some terrible punishment, even death, but
Jesus showed no interest in defending his cause.
"Can you hear what they're saying?" said Pilate, "You are
free to reply if you so wish."
But Jesus refused to defend himself. Pilate was amazed. He had never seen
an accused person remain so composed in the face of so many insults.
27:15-26
Barabbas
It was customary for the Roman authorities to show some act of providence
(or indulgence, benevolence, or some show of placation) to the Jews every
Passover. They would do this by releasing one of the many Jewish prisoners - any
prisoner which the Jews asked for. In some ways it was a very foolish method of
showing benevolence, but the Jews were a difficult nation to control, so
anything was better than all-out war with them.
At this time there was a suitable prisoner available - a man called
Barabbas, who had been arrested for insurrection and murder (Mark 15:7)
('Barabbas' is an Aramaic name. Aramaic was a form of the Hebrew
language, which developed after the people of Judea went to Babylon. It was
called Aramaic because it was said to have come from Aram, another name for
Mesopotamia, or 'the land between the rivers'. The name Barabbas means
Bar-abbas, or 'son of the Rabbi')
When Jesus began his public work, the Syrian governor was Pomponius
Flaccus, and the procurator of Judea, the fifth to hold this office, was Pontius
Pilate. The Jewish philosopher Philo, of Alexandria, has left a black portrait
of Pontius, accusing him of cruelty, violence, immorality, injustice and
encouraging corruption. Although Philo is not necessarily to be believed,
because of the strong possibility that he was biased, it is a fact that Pontius
was recalled in 37 AD on account of his brutality.
Pontius Pilate's make-up or psychology was partly a result of several
influences. 1. He had a perpetual fear of being denounced to Caesar by some
delegation or other, 2. He had a complete contempt for the people he governed,
3. He loved his position of power, wealth, prestige and authority. His was a
Roman world, and he was an integral part of it.
Pontius shared the typical Roman attitude towards the Jews - contempt,
disdain, and a total incuriosity. He had an almost wilful lack of comprehension.
He regarded the people he ruled as a strange kind of animal, or as
underdeveloped children. It was his job, therefore, to chastise them from time
to time, but not to take them seriously. This was why he was not willing to live
in Jerusalem, but rather chose the more Roman city of Caesarea.
Pilate was not too concerned at this stage. He was familiar with the
religious fanaticism of the Jewish leaders, and as far as he could see, there
was hardly an issue. He offered the Jewish leaders and the small crowd of
general public, the choice of prisoners for their pick for release, and they
chose Barabbas. This came as no surprise to Pilate, because it was obvious to
him that the Jewish leaders, as usual, had moulded public opinion. He could see
also that Jesus had been brought to him on no provable charge - but merely the
religious zeal and hate so common to these people he had the misfortune to have
to govern.
But while these proceedings were under way, Pilate's wife sent a message
to him. Pilate was sitting on the judgement seat, about to pronounce sentence,
and he paused. The servant passed the scroll to him and he unrolled it. It was
his wife's hand-writing.
"Have nothing to do with this man Jesus" she wrote, "He is
not guilty of any crime. He is a good man. I have had a terrible nightmare
because of him - let him go!"
Pilate hesitated. He was now deeply concerned that he deal with this
matter in a wise and tactful way, but then he realised that he had already given
the Jews their opportunity to choose a prisoner for release.
"So who do you want me to release this year?" asked Pilate,
knowing the answer already.
"Barabbas!" shouted the people, whipped into excitement by the
Jewish leaders, irrational and blind to any kind of sensible consideration.
Pilate was now snared by his own words.
"So what should I do with this man Jesus? he asked, "The man
you call the Messiah?"
The crowd responded like a wild animal.
"Order his crucifixion! Send him to the stake! Get rid of him!"
Pilate waited for a space to try and argue on behalf of Jesus, (He wanted
to reason with them), but the Jews continued to shout louder and harder. The
Jewish leaders shouted with them, encouraging them.
"What crime has he committed?!" said Pilate, trying to be heard
above the din, but his words were drowned out by the chant "Crucify him!
Crucify him!" Every voice was straining as mob hysteria took over, and the
court was becoming a dangerous place to be. If Pilate didn't do something
quickly, he might have a riot on his hands.
"A bowl of water" said Pilate to one of his servants,
"Quickly!"
The man hurried away and returned with a bowl. Pilate dipped his hands
into the water and washed them. The crowd began to quieten down, distracted by
this curious sight.
"This man has committed no crimes worthy of death" said Pilate,
"I am innocent. It is your fault that he is about to be murdered - not
mine."
(Of course this was not true. Pilate buckled under public pressure, and
compromised what he knew to be clear standards of good law. This was a grave
miscarriage of justice on his part, and he should have known that no amount of
pleading innocent could absolve him from personal accountability.)
"His blood be on us and on our children!" shouted the crowd,
taking the responsibility on themselves. (They did not say "On us and our
successive generations for the next two thousand years". While it is true
that the Jews have gone from ghetto to pogrom, from concentration camp to gas
chamber, this, as I see it, is not an extended punishment for their rejection of
the Messiah. If this was the reason, then all nations should be suffering in a
similar way. There are many other reasons for Jewish misery.)
Reluctantly, and with a sense of foreboding, Pilate formally released
Barabbas, who walked back into the fresh air of freedom from his prison in
surprise and relief. (This is how things have been many times since then -
people would rather choose the bad, the hateful and the rebellious, rather than
the pure, the good, and morally upright Christian way.)
Pilate then ordered that Jesus be scourged. (This was accomplished by use
of a large leather whip, with bits of sharp metal embedded in it. As each lash
struck home, pieces of flesh were ripped out, releasing streams of blood.)
Having subjected Jesus to this agonising indignity, Pilate ordered that
Jesus be taken away for crucifixion. At this point Pilate's soldiers took over
the proceedings, seizing Jesus and moving him out of the court room and into the
Praetorium.
27:27-31
The soldiers mock Jesus
The soldiers who served under Pontius Pilate were tough and hardened men.
In succeeding years they became so dominant that they could elevate or depose
emperors, and demand whatever they liked from Rome. They were a law unto
themselves, with huge influence, and in the long run, they were one of the main
reasons why Rome crumbled into ruins.
Once the garrison of soldiers had Jesus cornered in the Praetorium, they
began to abuse him. (Greek = cohort = about 600 men) Tough, cruel, callous,
vulgar men, inflicting unspeakable indignities on the Creator and Sustainer of
the whole Universe, the unredeemed crushing the Redeemer, the sinners mocking
the Sinless - a terrible scene.
The soldiers pulled all Jesus' clothes off, and one of them found a
scarlet (brilliant red inclining to orange) robe and wrapped it round the
bleeding his body. (The royal clothes) Another man twisted some thorns together
and pushed them down on to Jesus' head, impaling the cruel crown by its own
spikes. (The crown)
A small stick was also found and shoved into Jesus' right hand.
(The sceptre)
Having dressed Jesus in the mocking parody of a king, the soldiers
kneeled before him, and shouted "Hail! King of the Jews!"
(The worship)
(So there he stood, the King of kings, bent with the pain, suffering from
tiredness, weak with hunger, worn down by emotional distress and hurting with a
burning sense of injustice. At any moment he could have released some power and
healed himself, or struck the soldiers down, but he held it back, and bore the
worst, because down through the centuries he could see the glorious kingdom
established, and the joy which would eventually come to him and to us and his
children.)
How the Romans hated the Jews! They took some of their spite out on
Jesus, by spitting at him, and hitting him on the head with the stick, but Jesus
took it all without a complaint, (Heb.12:3) and eventually the soldiers tired of
their malicious behaviour. They threw his clothes to him and waited for him to
get dressed, then they shoved him into line and marched him out of the
Praetorium. It was time to get the
crucifixion under way.
27:32-44
The crucifixion
The soldiers forced Jesus to carry the large, heavy wooden stake for some
of the distance, but on the way to Golgotha they found a man called Simon (the
father of Alexander and Rufus - Mark 15:21) who happened to be coming in from
the country from his home town Cyrene - (Luke 23:26), him they compelled or
forced to carry the stake for Jesus.
Eventually Jesus arrived at Golgotha. (An Aramaic word, meaning
"skull". It was an elevation (not a "green hill" as some
people fancy), which we today might call a 'shoulder'. The Latin word is
'calvaria'. When the Greek word 'kranion' is changed to English, it comes out as
'calvary'. The area may have got it names from either the shape of the hill, or
the fact that it was here that many executions took place.)
The soldiers offered Jesus a drink consisting of sour wine (vinegar)
mixed with gall - a very bitter tasting drink, but an opiate whose effect could
help dull the pain. When Jesus tasted the drink he refused to swallow any of it.
(There were several ocassions on which Jesus was offered a drink. He was
offered vinegar with gall, plain vinegar, wine with myrrh and so on. In each
case, Jesus refused comfort or drug to ease the pain.)
Then the soldiers crucified Jesus.
(Crucifixion. This form of punishment was in use in Egypt long before
Rome ever used it - Gen.40:19. It
was also used by the Carthaginians, the Persians (Est.7:10), the Assyrians,
Scythians, Indians, Germans, and from the earlist times the Greeks and Romans.
After the conquest of Tyre, Alexander the Great ordered the crucifixion of 2000
Tyrians to be crucified as punishment for the city's resistance. Crucifixian was
abolished by Constantine the Roman emperor, probably because he came to
reverence the cross.
Crucifixion was usually preceded by scourging with thongs, to which were
sometimes added nails, pieces of bone, etc. Sometimes the pain was so extreme
the victim died just from the scourging. In the case of jesus, the scourging was
neither legal, or part of an examination by torture (Acts 22:24). Perhaps Piltae
was trying to draw some pity from the Jews, in order to avoid the sentence of
crucifixion?
The criminal normally carried his own cross (staurus = wooden stake). The
place of execution was outside the city (1Kings 21:13, Acts 7:58, Heb.13:12).
When the victim arrived at the place of crucifixion, he was stripped of all his
clothes, which the soldiers could keep if they so desired - Matt.27:35. The
cross was then erected, and the criminal drawn up to it by ropes, and then
fasten by nails. Sometimes the criminal was fastened to the cross first, and
then raised on it into position. The limbs of the victims were usually about 3
feet (1 metre) above the ground.
The victim, already suffering from the scourging, and the pain of the
nails or ropes, was now left to die from exhaustion. Sometimes this would take
days - some records have victims surviving nine days. Because of this
possibility, soldiers were kept posted, to make sure the victim stayed put. The
Jews preferredto have the legs fractured in order to hasten death.
In most cases, the body was left on the stake until it had either rotted
away, or was eaten by birds, or was destroyed by the weather. Usually it was
forbidden to have the body removed, but because the Jews had certain national
preferences, an exception was made for them to have certain bodies placed in
tombs or sepulchres. (Deut.21:22,23, Matt.27:58) )
The soldiers crucified Jesus, then they started to gamble for his
clothes.
"lots"
= Greek = kleros = denotes an object used in casting or drawing lots. These
consisted of small tablets of wood or stone. Sometimes these pieces were
inscribed with the names of persons. They were put into a container, or
"lap" - Prov.16:33, shaken, and then cast. He whose lot fell out first
was the winner. (Jesus had no loin cloth on, as is so often depicted in
paintings. He was utterly humilated - degraded as far as it was possible to go.
Nakedness, except to the truly innocent, is forbidden by God.)
As the soldiers gambled, the prediction came true, which was made by king
David long ago, when he said "The enemies of God shared the Messiah's
clothing, and drew lots for each garment" - Psalm 22:18. (After so many
years, all Jesus had left to give was his clothes, and even these were taken
from him.)
Having done their duty, the soldiers took up their routine positions, and
kept watch over the crucified. (These soldiers represent the world of
small-minded people, who have no sense of history, who see no significance in
tremendously important events, who dwell on the mundane and miss the
stupendous.)
Meanwhile, Pontius Pilate, in a form of protest against the injustice
against what he saw as an innocent man, decided to write an inscription, to be
placed at the top of the cross on which Jesus was hung. His decision sparked
some fierce arguments as the Jewish leaders resented any implied honouring of
Jesus. (When all
four accounts are compared, it can be seen that at first Pilate made an
indictment, followed by a sign being put on the cross at his order, followed by
another sign being substituted as a result of the anger of the religious
leaders, followed by a third sign which was put there just before the darkness
of the sixth hour. This is why the different accounts have different words, and
list the words in a different order of languages. So spiteful were the Jewish
leaders, they could not even tolerate the implied respect which a Roman showed
to Jesus.)
The sign read : "THIS IS JESUS
THE KING OF THE JEWS" - in Hebrew, Greek and Latin.
As soon as this was finished, two robbers (thieves) were brought up the
hill and crucified near to Jesus - one each side of him. (This fulfilled another
prediction about the Messiah. About 700 years ago, Isaiah (53:9,12) said that
the Messiah would be included amongst the bad people as if he was bad too.)
While Jesus hung on the cross, people were coming and going, passing by
close to him. Some of these people, taking advantage of his inability to strike
back, said nasty things to him. Others called him names. One or two mocked him,
and threw his claims back in his face.
"You said you were going to pull the Temple down, and then build it
again in three days! If you're that strong, why don't you jump down from the
cross? You sure don't look like the Son of God to me!"
The chief priests and elders also came walking out from the city, and up
to the place where Jesus was hanging. They snorted, and scoffed.
"Where's all this divine power you were talking about? You bragged
about being able to save other people, but you can't even save yourself!"
"You reckon you're the King of Israel do you? Prove it! Show us how
powerful you are by getting down off that cross. We might believe you if you do
that!"
"You said God was your Father! You'd think He would look after you!
Why hasn't He come to help you? Strange way for a Father to behave?"
"God's Son! Ha! You're worse than illegitimate!"
Even the robbers chimed in with their insults, copying the Jewish
leaders.
27:48-56
Jesus dies
But as Jesus hung there, a strange, supernatural darkness crept over the
land. It was dark as far as you could see - from horizon to horizon. This eerie
shadow, in which the birds fell silent and the whole world seemed to be passing
into night, lasted from about the sixth hour (noon) until the ninth hour (3p.m.)
Just before the darkness began to dissipate, Jesus cried out : "Eli
Eli, lama sabachthani!" which means "My God, my God, why have you
forsaken me!" The answer to this question is simple : God had forsaken
Jesus, and left him to die, because Jesus was a sacrifice for sin. God, at any
split second, could have saved His Son, but that was not the plan. Jesus HAD to
be forsaken, in order to bear sin. (In the original Aramaic, which is a form of
Hebrew, Jesus said "Eli Eli lama shebakthani" . He was quoting from
Psalm 22:1, which the chief priests would have been very familiar with. They
knew it as a reference to the Messiah, and when they heard it coming from the
lips of Jesus, they may have made the connection. When one reads the entire
Psalm, one can see how Jesus is depicted clearly as suffering, dying, and
returning to life. In the Psalm the Messiah passes from desperate isolation to
glorious victory.
(On the cross, Jesus spoke seven times.1. Luke 23:34, 2. Luke 23:43, 3.
John 19:26,27, 4. Matt.27:46, 5. John 19:28, 6. John 19:30 and 7. Luke 23:46.)
The bystanders heard Jesus cry out, but they deliberately misunderstood
his speech. (Jesus' tongue was probably swollen, but the people were not
interested in helping him anyway, even if he had been speaking clearly to them.
They simply used his words as yet another opportunity to mock him).
"He is calling for Elijah the prophet to come and help him!"
they laughed.
Someone ran to get Jesus a drink. They soaked a sponge in some vinegar,
then they raised the sponge on a long stick, until it reached Jesus' mouth, but
Jesus ignored it.
"Hang on" someone jeered, "Lets wait a while, and maybe
Elijah will turn up!"
For a while longer Jesus remained inert, then he heaved himself up in the
metal pin which fastened his feet to the post, and gave his last cry (Luke
23:46) (It was a loud cry of strength, not weakness. Jesus gave his life - he
breathed out his breath and refused to breath it in again - he was not killed.
No mere mortal could ever kill the Son of God. It was a cry of victory because
the whole plan of God was finished. Sin had been paid for, the second Adam had
remained absolutely pure through every trial, the whole Law had been kept, every
sign foretold of the Messiah had been fulfilled. Nothing remained to be
accomplished. Now Jesus surrendered himself to death and passed out of
existence.)
(What happened on the cross is far beyond anything the human mind can
comprehend, except in a small way. Most of the event is surrounded by mystery,
but what we can understand is sufficient to release God's grace, and bring us
from the death-sentence of sin into God's glorious kingdom.)
At the moment that Jesus died, something amazing happened in the Temple
in Jerusalem. The huge curtain, which separated the Holy Place from the Holy of
Holies -Ex.26:31-33, 36:35,36 - tore from the top to the bottom. (It was also
called the "veil" - a heavy woven curtain, which would have taken
great force to tear. In Heb.10:19,20 the writer explains that the curtain
represented the body of Jesus. When Jesus died, he opened the way for all who
would believe to go into the presence of God, whereas before this, only the High
Priest could enter that place, and that only once a year.)
At the same time as the Temple curtain tore itself from top to bottom,
there was also an earthquake, and with the earthquake came a strange,
supernatural splitting of great rocks . . . and when the centurion and the other
soldiers who were there to guard Jesus saw these events, they were awestruck and
frightened. They had already heard the Messianic claims made by Jesus, and heard
about his miracles, and they had seen the strange darkness which hung over the
world for three hours, so they were already 'spooked'. Uncomfortable and uneasy,
they gasped : "He really was the Son of God!"
Also, it is worth noting that more strange things happened after Jesus
came back to life. As soon as he was alive, other tombs opened, and believers
who had died were suddenly seen walking around, bright and healthy! They walked
from the cemeteries where they had been buried, back into the city of Jerusalem
and showed themselves to various people privately, as a testimony and witness to
them that Jesus was truly the Son of God. (Like Lazarus, and other people whom
Jesus brought back to life, these people had a second span of mortal life before
they died again. Perhaps this resurrection of people is referred to in Rom.1:3
where the resurrection of Jesus is spoken of, but the general resurrection of
these "saints" might also be included? See also John 5:25)
A crowd of women stood at a distance, watching the crucifixion scene.
These were the women who had faithfully supported and helped Jesus through his
ministry from the time he started working in Galilee. Unlike the men, they had
not run away when Jesus was arrested, and now they waited faithfully, keeping a
safe distance but still vigilant.
Three of these women were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and
Joses, and Salome, the wife of Zebedee and the mother of his sons.
27:57-61
Jesus is buried
In the evening, a wealthy man from Arimathea, whose name was Joseph, went
to Pontius Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Joseph was a follower of
Jesus, and also a member of the Sanhedrin, but he had refused to have anything
to do with the Sanhedrin's decision to hand Jesus over to the Romans - Luke
23:51. He, and Nicodemus, who had
come privately to Jesus to ask some questions, were in fact, both secret
disciples - John 19:39. These two men worked together to bury Jesus.
When Joseph went to Pilate it was a brave and somewhat risky thing to do
- Mark 15:43, but he risked it because he wanted to show respect to Jesus. (It
must have given Pilate quite a surprise to see a member of the Sanhedrin
suddenly coming along, asking for the body of the man the Sanhedrin had just
condemned, and for Joseph this was the end of his life - socially, economically
and religiously, because the Sanhedrin would not tolerate a Christian in its
ranks!
Pilate granted Joseph permission (being assured that Jesus was in fact
dead - Mark 15:44), so Joseph and Nicodemus took the body of Jesus down from the
cross and wrapped it in clean linen cloth. (They wrapped the body with several
strips of cloth, which Joseph purchased, along with a large amount of myrrh and
aloes. Myrrh is a gum resin. It acts as a perfume. Aloes are a type of tree. The
wood can be broken down to release the resin and oil. It is fragrant and
aromatic. It is interesting to see how Nicodemus who came to Jesus at night, is
now coming to him in the day. Joseph used his wealth to care for Jesus - the
Jewish leaders used their wealth to kill him. )
(Also, when one looks at the 'Shroud of Turin' it bears no semblance
whatsoever to the Bible account, since the several cloths were wound around the
body of Jesus, whereas the 'Shroud' goes in one strip from head to toe and
back.)
The body of Jesus was laid in Joseph's brand new, 'undefiled' tomb, which
was carved out of solid rock. A stone was rolled across the door - this stone
was extremely heavy, but it rolled, like a millstone along a groove at the base
of the door, and sealed the entrance effectively.
Hundreds of years before Jesus was placed in this tomb, the prophet
Isaiah predicted (53:9) that the enemies of the Messiah would : "Assign his
grave with the wicked, but he would in fact be buried with the rich."
The Jewish leaders (probably) intended to throw the body of Jesus down
the valley of Hinnom - where the dump-fires burned, and the rats and foxes
prowled, but God overruled their plans and had Jesus buried in a wealthy man's
tomb.
Having finished the quick embalming of the body, and rolled the stone
across the door, Joseph and Nicodemus left the cemetery, but Mary Magdalene and
the other Mary (mother of James and Joses) stayed close by, sitting together for
company, and keeping watch.
27:62-66
Pilate sets a guard over the tomb
On the day after Preparation Day, on which day Jesus was crucified, the
chief priests and Pharisees came to see Pilate again. This time they were
uneasy, because they had remembered something Jesus had said.
"Sir" they said to Pilate, "When that 'deceiver' was alive
(they couldn't even bring themselves to say his name), he said "After three
days I will come back to life."
"We ask therefore, that you give us the authority to set a guard at
the door of the tomb, to prevent any of 'that deceiver's' followers from
stealing his body at night, and then claiming that he is alive. He has deceived
us enough with all his false claims and tricks -and we don't want him to add
another fraudulent claim to the list."
Pilate saw the wisdom of this request. He too wanted to avoid further
trouble over this man Jesus, so he said "I grant to you a guard (4
soldiers, see Acts 12:4) Make the tomb as secure as you know how."
(The more secure the enemies of Jesus made the tomb, the more convincing
was the conclusion that Jesus had risen from the dead! In much the same way, the
more vehemently the Jewish leaders reacted to the claims of Jesus, the more
credible the claims appeared - a mere mad-man would have been laughed out of
court, but the Jewish leaders took Jesus very seriously, and thus sealed their
own judgement.)
The guard was stationed outside the tomb, and the stone was sealed
(Dan.6:17) so any attempt to move it would be noticed immediately.