Jesus’ burial
A rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, asked Pilate for Jesus’ body. Joseph wrapped the body in a linen cloth with spices and placed it in his own new tomb which was carved out of rock.
A large stone was rolled into place to seal the tomb and a guard was posted at the entrance.
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The chief priests and the Pharisees remembered that Jesus had predicted that he would rise from the dead after three days.
They didn’t want the disciples to steal the body and spread rumours that Jesus had risen, so they pleaded with Pilate to secure the tomb. Pilate gave them one of his guards and they put a seal on the stone.
Burial customs
Most people in Jesus’ day buried their dead in graves dug into the ground, similar to today.
Rock-cut tombs were cut out of bedrock and only the rich could afford them. They consisted of one or more burial chambers cut out of the bedrock surrounding Jerusalem. Each tomb belonged to a family and was used over several generations.
There were niches cut into the walls called loculi into which the bodies were placed. Eventually the bones were placed in small boxes, ossuaries, to free up the loculi for new bodies.
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Joseph of Arimathea was a wealthy follower of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jews. He wanted to obey the Jewish law which did not allow burials on the Sabbath.
The law also stated that bodies must be buried within 24 hours of death. So he offered his own family tomb which had not been used yet.
Mary Magdalene and the other Mary watched while Jesus was buried.
The Bible says
Matthew 27:57-66
As evening approached, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who had himself become a disciple of Jesus. Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus’ body, and Pilate ordered that it be given to him.
Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and placed it in his own new tomb that he had cut out of the rock. He rolled a big stone in front of the entrance to the tomb and went away.
Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting there opposite the tomb.
The next day, the one after Preparation Day, the chief priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate.
‘Sir,’ they said, ‘we remember that while he was still alive that deceiver said, “After three days I will rise again.”‘
‘So give the order for the tomb to be made secure until the third day. Otherwise, his 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.’
‘Take a guard,’ Pilate answered. ‘Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how.’ So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard.