Paper 188 Overview: The Time of the Tomb

This paper tells about what happened between Jesus' death on Friday afternoon and his resurrection on Sunday morning. His body was placed in Joseph of Arimathea's new tomb, while Jewish leaders became worried that his disciples might steal the body. Roman and Jewish guards were placed at the sealed tomb to prevent anyone from disturbing it.

During this time, Jesus' disciples were hiding in fear, and the women were preparing spices to finish the proper burial preparations. No one truly expected Jesus to rise from the dead, even though he had promised this would happen. The paper explains that Jesus' death was not a sacrifice to pay for human sins, but rather a demonstration of his love and mercy to help humans better understand God's nature.

Jesus' body lay in Joseph's tomb for about thirty-six hours, from Friday afternoon until Sunday morning. Not much is known about what happened during this time, but we know the Roman soldiers took Jesus down from the cross about one hour after his death. The Jewish leaders wanted Jesus' body thrown into the criminal burial pits, but Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for permission to properly bury Jesus' body.

Joseph went to Pilate with money in case he needed to pay for the right to take Jesus' body, but Pilate gave permission without taking any payment. The Jewish leaders had gone to the tomb to make sure Jesus' body would be put in the criminal burial pits, but they were too late since Pilate had already given Joseph permission to take the body. A sandstorm had begun to die down when they arrived.

When Joseph and Nicodemus arrived at Golgotha, they found soldiers taking Jesus down from the cross while representatives of the Jewish council were watching. When Joseph showed Pilate's order to take Jesus' body, the Jewish leaders became angry and tried to take the body by force. The Roman captain ordered four soldiers to stand guard over Jesus' body while the rest pushed back the angry Jewish mob.

According to Jewish law, crucified people could not be buried in a Jewish cemetery. Joseph had a new family tomb carved out of rock near Golgotha, and he decided Jesus should be buried there. Joseph believed Jesus would rise from the dead, but Nicodemus was doubtful. They wrapped Jesus' body in linen with spices, following Jewish tradition, and placed it on a shelf in the tomb, rolling a large stone in front of it to seal the entrance.

Jesus' followers weren't thinking about his promise to rise from the dead on the third day, but his enemies remembered. On Friday night after the Passover meal, Jewish leaders met at the home of Caiaphas to discuss their fears about Jesus' claim that he would rise again. They appointed a committee to visit Pilate early the next day to request that Roman guards be placed at the tomb to prevent Jesus' disciples from stealing his body.

When the committee spoke to Pilate, they reminded him that Jesus had said he would rise after three days. They were afraid his disciples might steal the body and then claim he had risen from the dead. Pilate gave them ten Roman soldiers, and the Jewish leaders added ten of their own temple guards. These twenty men rolled another stone in front of the tomb and placed Pilate's seal on it, which would be broken if anyone tried to enter the tomb. The guards remained at the tomb until the resurrection occurred.

Throughout the Sabbath day, Jesus' disciples and apostles remained in hiding while all of Jerusalem discussed his death. There were about one and a half million Jews in Jerusalem for the Passover celebration, who would learn about the resurrection and spread the news when they returned home. Late Saturday night, John Mark secretly brought the eleven apostles to his father's house, where they met in the same upper room where they had shared the Last Supper with Jesus two nights before.

Mary, Jesus' mother, with Ruth and Jude, returned to Bethany on Saturday evening before sunset. David Zebedee stayed at Nicodemus' home, where he arranged for his messengers to meet early Sunday morning. The women from Galilee, who were preparing spices to finish embalming Jesus' body, stayed at Joseph of Arimathea's home. During this time, the mortal body of Jesus lay undisturbed in the tomb, but what happened to his spirit during these thirty-six hours remains largely unknown.

Jesus did not die on the cross to pay for human sins or to satisfy an angry God. His death was not a sacrifice to appease God's wrath or to provide a way for sinful humans to approach a harsh and unforgiving deity. Instead, Jesus lived and died to show the full extent of God's love for all people in all worlds, not just on earth.

Death is a normal part of mortal life, and Jesus, having lived a full human life, needed to experience death as all humans do. People should be careful not to misunderstand the meaning of Jesus' death by either accepting false traditional explanations or by missing its true significance. Jesus died for the whole universe, not just for earth, to make the path of salvation clearer for all beings. He taught that God is a loving Father, not an angry ruler demanding punishment.

Jesus' death helps us understand that salvation comes through recognizing God as our loving Father and accepting our place as his children. True believers focus not on selfish desires for personal salvation but on loving and serving others as Jesus did. The greatest value of Jesus' death was not that he died, but the loving manner in which he faced death, showing us how to live and die with dignity, purpose, and faith in God's goodness.

The cross shows how a true shepherd loves even the undeserving members of his flock. It forever establishes the family relationship between God as Father and humans as his children. Jesus' attitude toward sinners was not to condemn or excuse them, but to offer eternal and loving salvation.

Jesus' love is so powerful that it can not only forgive sins but actually destroy them along with their harmful effects. His love sets people free from the hold of sin and evil, allowing them to choose better ways of living. The real value of the cross is that it was the final and complete expression of Jesus' love and the ultimate revelation of his mercy toward all people.

The cross has inspired billions of beings on countless worlds who have been tempted to give up their spiritual journey. When they look at Jesus on the cross, they find new courage to continue their faith journey. The ultimate triumph of the cross is seen in Jesus' attitude toward those who attacked him, when he prayed: "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." This loving spirit spread throughout the universe, inspiring his followers to show the same forgiveness even to those who harmed them.