PART XII

CHRIST'S CROWNING SACRIFICE

Friday and Saturday, April 7-8, A.D. 30

158 Jesus is Betrayed, Arrested and Forsaken

The Garden of Gethsemane, Friday, April 7, just after Thursday midnight

Matt 26:47-56, Mark 14:43-52, Luke 22:47-53, John 18:2-12a

2 Now Judas, who betrayed him, knew the place, because Jesus had often met there with his disciples. 3 So Judas (Lk47b) one of the Twelve, (Lk3b) came to the grove, leading (Mt47b) a large crowd (Jn3b) of soldiers and some soldiers and some officials (Mk43b) sent from the chief priests, the teachers of the law, and the (Jn3c) Pharisees. They were carrying torches, lanterns and weapons. (Mk44) Now the betrayers had arranged a signal with them: "The one I kiss is the man; arrest him and lead him away under gaurd." 45 Going at once to Jesus, Judas said, "Greetings, Rabbi!" and kissed him. 4 Jesus, knowing all that was going to happen to him, went out and asked them, "Who is it you want?"

5 "Jesus of Nazareth," they replied.

"I am he," Jesus said. 6 When Jesus said, "I am he," they drew back and fell to the ground.

7 Again he asked them, "Who is it you want?"

And they said, "Jesus of Nazareth."

8 "I told you that I am he," Jesus answered. "If you are looking for me, then let these men go." 9 This happened so that the words he had spoken would be fulfilled: "I have not lost one of those you gave me." (Jn5b) (And Judas the traitor was standing there with them.)

(Lk48c) Jesus asked him, "Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss? (Mt50b) Friend, do what you came for."

Then the men stepped forward, seized Jesus and arrested him. (Lk49) When Jesus' followers saw what was going to happen, they said, "Lord, should we strike them with our swords?" 50 And Simon Peter, who had a sword, drew it and struck the high priest's servants, cutting off his right ear. (The servant's name was Malchus.) 11 Jesus commanded Peter, (Lk51b) "No more of this!" And he touched the man's ear and healed him.

52 "Put your sword back in its place," Jesus said to him, "For all who draw the sword will die by the sword. 53 Do you think I cannot call on my Father, and he will at once put it at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels? 54 But how then would the scriptures be fulfilled that say it must happen in this way? Shall I not drink the cup my Father has given me?"

(Lk52) Then Jesus said to the chief priests, the officers of the temple guard, and the elders, who had come for him, "am I leading a rebellion, that you have come with swords (Mk48b) and clubs to capture me? 49 Every day I was with you, teaching in the temple courts, and you did not (Lk22) lay a hand on me. But this is your hour - when darkness reigns."

(Mt56) This has all taken place that the writings of the prophets might be fulfilled."

(Jn12) Then the detachment of soldiers with its commander and the Jewish officials arrested Jesus. (Mt56b) Then all the disciples deserted him and fled.

51 A young man, wearing nothing but a linen garment, was following Jesus. When they seized him, 52 he fled naked, leaving his garment behind.

159 Jesus is First Examined by Annas, The Former High Priest

Jerusalem, Friday, April 7, probably before 1 a.m.

Luke 22:54a, John18:12b-14,19-23

54 Then seizing hem, they led him away and took him into the house of the high priest. (Jn12b) They bound him 13 and brought him first Annas, who was the father-in-law of Caiaphas, the high priest that year. 14 Caiaphas was the one who advised the Judeans that it would be good if one man died for the people. 19 Meanwhile, the high priest questioned Jesus about this disciples and his teaching.

20 "I have spoken openly to the world," Jesus replied. "I always taught in synagogues or at the temple, where all the Judeans come together. I said nothing in secret. 21 Why question me? Ask those who heard me. Surely they know what I said."

22 When Jesus said this, one of the officials nearby struck him in the face. "Is that any way to answer the high priest?" he demanded.

23 "If something is wrong," Jesus replied, "testify as to what is wrong. But if I spoke the truth, why did you strike me?"

160 Peter and Another Disciple (Probably John) Gain Admission to the Courtyard of the High Priest's Residence

Jerusalem, Friday, April 7, probably about 1 a.m.

Matt 26:58, Mark 14:54, Luke 22:54b-55, John 18:15-18

15 Simon Peter and another disciple were following Jesus. 54b Peter followed at a distance. (Jn15b) Because this disciple was known to the high priest, he went with Jesus into the high priest's courtyard, 16 but had to wait outside at the door. The other disciple, who was known to the high priest, cam back and spoke to the girl on duty there and brought Peter in.

17 "Surely you are not another of this man's disciples?" the girl at the door asked Peter.

He replied, "I am not."

18 It was cold, and the servants and officials (LK55b) had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and had sat down (Jn18c) to keep warm. Peter also (Lk55d) sat down with the guards (Mt17c) to see the outcome (Mk54c) and warmed himself at the fire.

161 Jesus is Informally Tried and Condemned by the Sanhedrin

The High Priest's Council Chamber, Jerusalem

Friday, April 7, about 2-3 a.m.

Matt 26:57,59-68, Mark 14:53, 55-65, Luke 22:63-65, John 18:24

24 Then Annas sent him, still bound to (Mt57b) Caiaphas, the high priest, where (Mk53b) all the chief priests, (Mt57b) teachers of the law and the elders had assembled. 59 The chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were looking for false evidence against Jesus so that they could put him to death. 60 But they did (Mk55b) not find any. 56 Many testified falsely against him, but their statements did not agree.

(Mt60b) Finally two came forward 61 and (Mk56b) gave this false testimony against him: 58 "We heard him say, 'I will destroy this manmade (Mt61b) temple of God and (Mk56c) in three days will build another, not made by man.'"

59 Yet even then their testimony did not agree. 60 Yet even then their testimony did not agree. 60 Then the high priest stood up before them and asked Jesus, "Are you not going to answer? What is this testimony that these men are bringing against you?" 61 But Jesus remained silent and gave no answer.

Again the high priest asked him, "Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed One? I charge you under the oath of the living God: tell us if you are the Son of the God."

64 "Yes, it is as you say, (Mk62) I am," said Jesus, "And (Mt64b) I say to all of you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven."

65 Then the high priest tore his clothes and said, "He has spoken blasphemy! Why do we need any more witnesses? Look, now you have heard the blasphemy. (Mk64c) What do you think?"

They all condemned him as worthy of death. 63 The men who were guarding Jesus began mocking and beating him. 65 Then some began to (Mt67b) spit in his face (Mk65b) they blindfolded him, (Mt 67b) and struck him with their fists. Others slapped him 68 and said, "Prophecy to us, Christ. Who hit you?"

65 And they said many other insulting things to him.

162 Peter's Triple Denial of Christ

Courtyard of the high priest's residence, Jerusalem.

A. The First Denial

Friday, April 7, about 3-4:30 a.m.

Matt26:69-71a, Mark`14:66-68, Luke 22:56-57

66 While Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the servant girls of the high priest came by. 67 When she saw Peter warming himself, she looked closely at him (Jn56b) seated there in the firelight. (Mk67c) "You also were with that Nazarene, Jesus of Galilee," she said.

70 He denied it before them all. (Lk57b) "Woman I don't know him, (Mk68b) I don't know or understand (Mt70b) what you're talking about," he said. 71 Then he went out into the entryway.

B. The Second Denial

Matt 26:71b-72, Mark 14:69-70a, Luke 22:58, John 18:25

58 A little latter (Mk69) when the servant girl saw him there, she said again (Mt71c) to the people there, "This fellow was with Jesus of Nazareth."

25 As Simon Peter stood warming himself, he was asked, "Surely you are not another of his disciples?"

(Mt 72) He denied it again, with an oath: "I don't know the man!"

C. The Third Denial

Matt 26:73-75, Mark 14:70b-72, Luke 22:59-62, John 18:26-27

59 About an hour later another standing near went up to Peter and said, "Surely you are one of them, for you are a Galilean, your accent gives you away."

Peter replied, "Man, I don't know what you're talking about!"

26 One of the high priest's servants, a relative of the man whose ear Peter had cut off, challenged him, "Didn't I see you with him in the olive grove?"

(Mt74) When he began to call down curses on himself, and he swore to them, (Mk71b) "I don't know this man you're talking about." (Lk60b) Just as he was speaking, at the moment a rooster began to crow. (Lk61) The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him: "Before the rooster crows today, (Mk61b) you will disown me three times." And he broke down and (Lk62b) went outside and wept bitterly.

163. Christ's Formal Condemnation by the Sanhedrin

Jerusalem. Friday, April 7, before 5 a.m.

1 Very early in the morning, (Lk66b) the council of the elders of the people, both the chief priests and teachers of the law, met together, (Mk1b) and the whole Sanhedrin, reached (Mt1c) the decision to put Jesus to death. 2 They bound him, (Lk66c) and Jesus was led before them. "If you are the Christ, " they said, "tell us."

Jesus answered, "If I tell you, you will not believe me, 68 and if I asked you, you would not answer. 69 But from now on, the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the almighty God."

70 They all asked, "Are you then the Son of God?"

He replied, "You are right in saying I am."

71 Then they said, "Why do we need any more testimony? We have heard it from his own lips."

1 Then the whole assembly rose and (Jn28b) led Jesus from Caiaphas to the palace of Pilate, (Jn28d) the Roman governor.

164 The Remorse and Suicide of Judas Iscariot

Jerusalem. Friday morning, April 7.

Matt 27:3-10

3 When Judas, who had betrayed him, saw that Jesus was condemned, he was seized with remorse and returned the thirty silver coins to the chief priests and the elders. 4 "I have sinned ," he said, "for I have betrayed innocent blood."

"What is that to us?" they replied, "That is your responsibility."

5 So Judas threw the money into the temple and left. Then he went away and hanged himself.

6 The chief priests picked up the coins said, "It is against the law to put this into the treasury, since it is blood money." 7 So they decided to use the money to buy the potter's field as a burial place for foreigners. 8 That is why it has been called the Field of Blood to this day. 9 Then what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled: "They took the thirty silver coins, the price set on him by the people of Israel, 10 and they used them to buy the potter's field, as the Lord commanded me."

165 Jesus Before Pilate the First Time

Jerusalem, Friday, April 7, about 5 a.m.

Matt 27:11-14, Mark 15:2-5, Luke 23:2-7, John 18:28b-38

11 Meanwhile Jesus stood before the governor, and (Jn28bc) it was early morning, and to avoid ceremonial uncleanness the they did not enter the palace; they wanted to be able to eat the Passover. 29 So Pilate came out to them and asked, "What charges are you bringing against this man?"

30 "If he were not a criminal," they replied, "we would not have handed him over to you."

we would not have handed him over to you."

2 And they began to accuse him, saying, "We have found this man subverting our nation. he opposes payment of taxes to Caesar and claims to be Christ, a king."

3 So Pilate asked Jesus, "Are you the king of the Judeans?"

(Mk2b) "Yes, it is as you say," Jesus replied.

(Mt12) When he was accused by the chief priests and the elders, he gave no answer. 13 Then Pilate asked him, (Mk3) "Aren't you going to answer? Don't you hear how many things they are accusing you of?" 14 But Jesus made no reply, not even to a single charge - to the great amazement of the governor. 31 Pilate said, "Take him yourselves and judge him by your own law."

"But we have no right to execute anyone, " the Judeans objected. 32 This happened so that the words Jesus had spoken indicating the kind of death he was going to die would be fulfilled. Pilate then went back inside the palace, summoned Jesus and asked him, "Are you the king of the Judeans?"

34 "Is that your own idea," Jesus asked, "or did others talk to you about me?"

35 "Do you think I am a Jew?" Pilate replied. "It was your people and your chief priests who handed you over to me. What is it you have done?"

36 Jesus said, "My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Judeans. But now my kingdom is from another place."

37 "You are a king, then !" said Pilate.

Jesus answered, "You are right in saying I am king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me."

38 "What is the truth?" Pilate asked. With this he went out again to the Judeans and (Lk 4b) announced to the chief priests and the crowd, "I find no basis for a charge against this man."

5 But they insisted, "He stirs up the people Judea by his teaching. he started in Galilee and has come all the way here."

6 On hearing this, Pilate asked if the man was a Galilean. 7 When he learned that Jesus was under Herod's jurisdiction, he sent him to Herod, who was also in Jerusalem at that time.

166 Jesus Before Herod Antipas

Jerusalem. Friday, April 7, before 6 a.m.

Luke 23:8-12

8 When Herod saw Jesus, he was greatly pleased , because for a long time he had been waiting to see him. From what he had heard about him, he hoped to see him from some miracle. 9 He plied him with many questions, but Jesus gave him no answer. 10 The chief priests an the teachers of the law were standing there, vehemently accusing him. 11 Then Herod and his soldiers ridiculed and mocked him. Dressing him in an elegant robe, they sent him back to Pilate. 12 That day Herod and Pilate became friends - before that they had been enemies.

167 Jesus before Pilate the Second Time.

Jerusalem. Friday, April 7, about 6 a.m.

Matt 27:15-31, Mark 15:6-20, Luke 23:13-25, John 18:39-19:16a

13 Pilate called together the chief priests, the rulers and the people, 14 and said to them, "You brought me this man as one and the people, 14 and said to them, "You brought me this man as one who was inciting the people to rebellion. I have examined him in your presence and have found no basis for your charges against him. 15 Neither has Herod, for he sent you back to us; as you can see, he has done nothing to deserve death. 16 Therefore, I will not punish him and then release him."

19 While Pilate was sitting on the judge's seat, his wife sent him this message: "Don't have anything to do with that innocent man, for I have suffered a great deal today in a dream because of him."

15 Now it was the governor's custom at the Feast to release a prisoner chosen by the crowd. 16 At that time they had a notorious prisoner, called Barnabbas. 19 (Barnabbas been thrown into prison for an insurrection in the city, and for murder.) (Mk 8) the crowd came up and asked Pilate to do for them what he usually did. (Mt 17b) "Which one do you want me to release to you Barnabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ? 9 Do you want me to release to you the king of the Judeans?" asked Pilate, knowing it was out of envy that the chief priests had handed Jesus over to him. 20 But the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowd to ask (Mk11b) to have Pilate release (Mt 20b) Barnabbas and to have Jesus executed.

21 "Which of the two do you want me to release to you?" asked the governor.

18 With one voice they cried out, "Away with this men! Release Barnabbas to us! 12 What shall I do, then, with the one you call the king of the Judeans?" Pilate asked them. "Crucify him!" they shouted. "Why? What crime has he committed?" asked Pilate. But they shouted all the louder, "Crucify him!"

(Lk20) Wanting to release Jesus, Pilate appealed to them again. 21 But they kept shouting, "Crucified him! Crucify him! 22 For the third time he spoke to them: "Why? What crime has this man committed? I have found in him no grounds for the death penalty. Therefore I will have him punished and then to release him."

23 But with loud shouts they insistently demanded that he be crucified, and their shouts prevailed. 24 When Pilate saw that he was getting nowhere, but that instead an uproar was starting, he (Lk24c) decided to grant their demand. 25 He (Mt24b) took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd. "I am innocent of this man's blood," he said. "It is your responsibility!" 25 All the people answered, "Let his blood be on us and on our children!"

26 Then (Mk15b) to satisfy the crowd. Pilate released Barnabbas (Lk25b) the man who had been thrown into prison for insurrection and murder, the one they asked for, and Pilate took Jesus and had him flogged. 27 Then the governor's soldiers took Jesus into the palace (that is, the Praetorium) and gathered the whole company of soldiers around him. 28 They stripped him and out a purple robe on him, then wove a crown of thorns and (Mt28b) set it on his head. they put a staff in his right an knelt in front of him. 18 And they (Jn3b) went up to him again and again, saying, "Hail, O king of the Judeans!" 19 Again and again they struck him on the head with a staff and sprit on him. (Jn3b) and they struck him in the face. 4 Once more Pilate came out and said to the Judeans, "Look, I am bringing him out to you to let you know that I find no basis for a charge against him." 5 When Jesus came out wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe, Pilate said to them, "Here's is the man!"

6 As soon as the chief priests and their officials saw him, they shouted, "Crucify! Crucify!"

But Pilate answered, "You take him and crucify him. As for me, I find no basis for a charge against him." 7 The Judeans insisted, "We have a law, and according to that law he must die, because he claimed to be the Son of God."

8 When Pilate heard this, he was even more afraid, 9 and he went back inside the palace. "Where do you come from?" he asked Jesus, but Jesus gave him no answer. 10 "Do you refuse to speak to me?" Pilate said. "Don't you realize I have the power either to free you or to crucify you?"

11 Jesus answered, "You would have no power over me if it were not given to you from above. Therefore the one who handed me over to you is guilty of a greater sin."

12 From the on, Pilate tried to set Jesus free, but the Jesus free, but the Judeans kept shouting, "If you let this man go, you are no friend of Caesar. anyone who claims to be a king opposes Caesar." 13 Pilate heard this, he brought Jesus out and sat down on the judge's seat at a place known as The Stone Pavement (which in Aramaic is Gabbatha). 14 It was the day of Preparation of Passover Week, about the sixth hour.

"Here is your king," Pilate said to the Judeans.

15 But they shouted, "Take him away! Take him away! Crucify him!"

"Shall I crucify your king?" Pilate asked.

"We have no king but Caesar," the chief priests answered.

Finally Pilate handed him over to them to be crucified. 20 And then they had mocked him, they took off the purple robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led (Mt31b) him away to crucify him.

168 Jesus on the Way to Calvary

Jerusalem, Friday, April 7, about 8 a.m.

Matt 27:32, mark 15:21, Luke 23:26-32, John 19:16b-17a

16b So the soldiers took charge of Jesus. 26 As they led him away, (Jn17) carrying his own cross, (Lk26b) they seized Simon from Cyrene, (Mk21b) the father of Alexander ond Rufus, who was passing on by on his way in from the country, and they (Lk26b) put the cross on him and made him carry it behind Jesus. 27 A large number of people followed him, including woman who mourned and wailed for him. 28 Jesus turned and said to them, "Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me; weep for yourselves and for your children. 29 For the time is coming when you will say, 'Blessed are the barren women, the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed!' 30 Then

31 For if men do these things when the tree is green, what will happen when it is dry?"

32 Two other men, both criminals, were also led out with him to be executed.

169 The Crucifixion of Jesus

Jerusalem, Friday, April 7, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Matt 27:33-56, Mark 15:22-41, Luke 23:33-49, John 19:17b-37

22 They brought Jesus to the place called Golgotha (which in Aramaic means the Place of the Skull). 34 There they offered him wine to drink, mixed with myrrh, but after tasting it, he refused to drink it. 24 And they crucified him, along with the criminals, two robbers - one on his right and the other on his left. 25 It was the third hour when they crucified him. 19 Pilate had a notice prepared of the charge against him and fastened above him, to the cross. It read, JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JUDEANS. 20 Many of the Judeans read this sign, for the palace where Jesus was crucified was near the city, and the sign was written in Aramaic, Latin, and Greek. 21 the chief priests of the Judeans protested to Pilate, "Do not write 'The king of the Judeans,' but that this man claimed to be king of the Judeans."

22 Pilate answered, "What I have written, I have written."

34 Jesus said, "Father, forgive them for they do not know what they are doing. 23 When the soldiers crucified Jesus, they took his clothes, divided them into four shares, one for each of them, with the undergarment remaining. This garment was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom.

24 "Let's not tear it, "they said to one another. "Let's decide by lot who will get it." This happened that the scriptures might be fulfilled which said, "they divided my garments among them and cast lots for my clothing."

So this is what the soldiers did. 36 And sitting down, they kept watch over him there. 35 The people stood watching, and the rulers who passed by hurled insults at him, asking their heads and saying, "So! You who are going to destroy the temple an build it in three days, save yourself! Come down from the cross , if you are the Son of God!"

41 In the same way the chief priests, the teachers of the law and elders mocked him among themselves. "He saved others," they said, "but he cannot save himself! 32 Let him save himself if he is the Christ of God, the Chosen One. He's the king of Israel! Let this Christ, this King of Israel, come down now from the cross, that we may see and believe in him. 43 He trusts in God. Let God rescue him now if he wants him, for he said, 'I am the Son of God.'" 36 The soldiers also came up and mocked him. they offered wine vinegar 37 and said, "If you are the king of the Judeans, save your self." One of the criminals who hung there with him also hurled insults at him: "Aren't you the Christ? Save yourself and us!" 40 But the other criminal rebuked him. "Don't you fear God," he said, "since you are under the same sentence? 41 We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man ad done nothing wrong."

42 Then he said, "Jesus remember me when you come into your kingdom."

43 Jesus answered him, "I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise." 25 Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary of Magdala. 26 When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, "Dear woman, here is your son," 27 and to the disciple, "Here is our mother." From that time on, this disciple took her home. 44 It was now about the sixth hour, and darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour, 45 for the sun stopped shining. 34 And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?" which means, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" 35 When some of those standing near heard this, they said, "Listen, he's calling Elijah." 28 Later, knowing that all was now completed and so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, "I am thirsty." A jar of wine vinegar was there, so immediately one of them ran and soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus' lips, and offered it to Jesus to drink. 49 But the rest said, "Leave him alone. Let's see if Elijah comes to save him." 30 When he had received the drink, Jesus called out with a voice, "It is finished. Father, into your hands I commit my spirit." When he had said this, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit. 51 At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split. 52 The tombs broke open and the bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. 53 They came out the tombs, and after Jesus' resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many people.

54 When the centurion and those with him who were in front guarding Jesus saw earthquake and heard this cry and saw how he died, they were terrified, and praised God and said, "Surely this was a righteous man. Surely this was the Son of God!"

48 When all the people who had gathered to witness took place, they beat their breasts and went away. 49 But all those who knew him, including the women who had followed him from Galilee, stood at a distance, watching these things. Among them were Mary Magdalen, Mary the Mother of James the younger and Joses, and Salome, the mother of Zebedee's sons. 55b They had followed Jesus from Galilee to care for his needs. Many other women who had come up with him to Jerusalem were also there. (Jn31) Now it was the day

of Preparation, and the next day was to be special Sabbath. Because the Judeans did not want the bodies left on the cross during the Sabbath, they asked Pilate to have the legs broken and the bodies taken down. 32 The soldiers therefore came and broke the legs of the first man who had been crucified with Jesus, and then those of the other. 33 But when they came to Jesus and found that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. 34 Instead, one the soldiers pierced Jesus' side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water. 35 The man who saw it has given testimony, and his testimony is true. He knows that he tells the truth, and he testifies so that you also may believe. 36 These things happened so that the Scripture would be fulfilled: "Not one of his bones will be broken," 37 and, as another Scripture says, "They will look on the one they have pierced."

170 The Burial of Jesus

Jerusalem, Friday, April 7, before 6 p.m.

Matt 27:57-61, Mark 15:42-47, Luke 23:50-56a, John 19:38-42

42 It was Preparation Day (that is, the day before the Sabbath). So as evening approached, there came a rich man named Joseph, a prominent member of the Council, a good and upright man, 51 who had not consented to their decision and action. He came from the Judean town of Arimethea and he was waiting for the kingdom of God. (Jn38b) Now Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Judeans. 52 Going boldly to Pilate, he asked for Jesus' body. 44 Pilate was surprised to hear that he was already dead. Summoning the centurion, he asked him if Jesus had already died. 45 When he learned from the centurion that it was so, Pilate ordered that the body be given Joseph. 46 So Joseph bought some cloth, and took the body. 39 He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night, Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds. 40 Taking Jesus' body, the two of them wrapped it, with the spices, in strips of linen. This was in accordance with Jewish burial customs. 41 At the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a garden, and the garden a new tomb, cut in the rock, one in which no one had yet been laid. 42 Because it was the Jewish day of Preparation and the Sabbath was about to begin, and since the tomb was near by they had laid Jesus there. (Mk46b) Then Joseph rolled a big stone if front of the entrance to the tomb and went away. 47 Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses (Lk55b) who had come with Jesus from Galilee followed Joseph and sitting there across from the tomb, saw the tomb and how his body was laid in it. 56 Then they went home...

171 On the Sabbath Day, While the Sanhedrin, With Pilate's Permission, Seal Christ's Tomb and Place a Guard There, the Woman Rest.

Jerusalem, Saturday, April 8.

Matt 27:62-66, Luke 23:56c

62 The next day, the one after Preparation Day, the chief priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate. 63 "Sir," they said, "we remember that while he was still alive that deceiver said, 'After three days I will rise again.' 64 So give the order for the tomb to be made secure until the third day. Otherwise the disciples may come and steal the body and tell the people that he has been raised from the dead. This last deception will be worse than the first."

65 "Take a guard," Pilate answered. "Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how." 66 So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard. (Lk56c) But the women rested on the Sabbath in obedience to the commandment.

172 At the Close of the Sabbath, the Woman Prepare Spices to Anoint the Body of Jesus

Jerusalem, Saturday, April 8, after 6 p.m.

Mark 16:1, Luke 23:56b

1 When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome brought (Lk56b) and prepared spices and perfumes, (Mk1b) so that they might go to anoint Jesus' body.