Matthew 27:62-66
Intro Questions
Women Mourn at
the Guarded Tomb
Matthew 27:61–66; Mark 15:47; Luke
23:55–56
Mk 15:47aNow Mary
Magdalene and Mary†
the mother of Joses Lk 23:55–56[and] the women who had come with Him from Galilee followed along and
observed the tomb and how His body was placed. 56Then they returned
and prepared spices and perfumes. And they rested on the Sabbath according to
the commandment.
Mt 27:62–64The next day, which followed the
Preparation Day, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered before Pilate 63and
said, “Sir, we remember that while this deceiver was still alive, He said,
‘After three days I will rise again.’ 64Therefore give orders that
the tomb be made secure until the third day. Otherwise, His disciples may come,
steal Him, and tell the people, ‘He has been raised from the dead.’ Then the
last deception will be worse than the first.”
65“You have a guard of soldiers,” Pilate told them. “Go and make it as secure as you know how.” 66Then they went and made the tomb secure by sealing the stone and setting the guard.[1]
[1]
Knight, G. W. (2001). A simplified harmony of the Gospels (pp.
240–241). Holman Bible Publishers.
The next day—at the close of the first day of the Passover ceremonies—the chief priests and Pharisees went to Pilate, and told him, "Sir, that liar once said, 'After three days I will come back to life again.' So we request an order from you sealing the tomb until the third day, to prevent his disciples from coming and stealing his body and then telling everyone he came back to life! If that happens, we'll be worse off than we were at first."
"Use your own Temple police," Pilate told them. "They can guard it safely enough."
So they sealed the stone and posted guards to protect it from intrusion.
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Nothing Can Stop It
The religious leaders took Jesus' resurrection claims more seriously than the disciples did. The disciples didn't remember Jesus' teaching about his resurrection (Matthew 20:17-19), but the religious leaders did. Because of his claims, they were almost as afraid of Jesus after his death as when he was alive. They tried to take every precaution that his body would remain in the tomb. The tomb was sealed by stringing a cord across the stone that had been rolled over the entrance. The cord was sealed at each end with clay. But the religious leaders took a further precaution, asking that guards be placed at the tomb's entrance. With such precautions, the only way the tomb could be empty would be for Jesus to rise from the dead. The Pharisees failed to understand that no rock, seal, guard, or army could prevent the Son of God from rising again. Because Jesus came back to life, we know that nothing that happens to us can prevent us from rising again and enjoying eternity with our Lord.
The tomb where Jesus was laid was probably a man-made cave cut out of one of the many limestone hills in the area. These caves were often large enough to walk into.
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