“Now there was a man named Joseph, from the Jewish town of Arimathea. He was a member of the council, a good and righteous man […] Then he took [Jesus’ body] down and wrapped it in a linen shroud and laid him in a tomb cut in stone, where no one had ever yet been laid” (Luke 23:50; 23:53)
Jesus died as a criminal, and therefore His body would be thrown away like trash. But His followers couldn’t bear that. They gathered all their courage and asked the governor Pilate for permission to bury Jesus’ body. They then did so with dignity and love. The regulations surrounding the approaching Sabbath (the day of rest) forced them to perform the burial quickly, but they planned to return later with spices and perfumes to further care for the body.
At first glance, this seems like a worthy ending to a horrific story. The hero of the story has died and is now given the respect He is due.
And yet, something is missing. Let’s look again at Jesus’ predictions from Luke 18: “[The Son of Man] will be delivered over to the Gentiles and will be mocked and shamefully treated and spit upon. And after flogging him, they will kill him, and on the third day he will rise”. All of these prophecies had come true. But the disciples seemed to have forgotten the last one. They bid sad farewell to Jesus. But the story was not over yet!
For Jesus did not stay in the tomb. He rose again!
Image by the James Tissot Collection (Brooklyn Museum), available on Free Bible Images