seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
John 19:38 Later, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. Now Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jewish leaders. With Pilate’s permission, he came and took the body away. 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 in the garden a new tomb, in which no one had ever been laid. 42 Because it was the Jewish day of Preparation and since the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.
I really wanted to just post more of the story. One paragraph seems so little. But then I had an urge to look up what the commentaries and footnotes would teach me.
Some say Jesus just got up and rolled the rock away. First of all, the footnotes say the two men put 75 pounds of herbs mixed with aloes and linen on the body. So that burial cloth would be heavy. It was not just laid on top of Him like a blanket.... it was wrapped around Him. He was dressed like a mummy. He would have had to unwind it all. Want to check it out.... try finding 15 five-pound bags of sugar.... put them all in something you might heft... and try giving it a hoist. Can you imagine having to deal with 75 pounds of wrapping after being beaten nearly to death, and hanging for hours in a position that makes taking a breath a painful venture, then getting a sword jammed in your rib? Can you imagine hefting one five-pound bag of sugar after all that beating, hanging and stabbing? On top of that... after you have hefted that 75-pound mass from around your body, now go roll a stone, the size of a man, away from the hole.
According to Matthew's gospel [you know the tax collector], there was a guard assigned to watch the grave. The Roman Government understood what a "special" corpse they were dealing with. The leader of a Resistance who brought Lazarus back from the dead was quite a trophy. They put a guard on the grave. After all, it was a "Special" Sabbath, and someone might want to make it "appear" more than just "Special" by making the body disappear.
Some say the disciples stole the body. If there is no body, the leader of the Resistance, who brought Lazarus [stinky in the grave] back to life, could still be leading [even if it wasn't true]. The grave chosen was for one man, Joseph of Arimathea. He was rich so the grave would be a single person hole, carved into solid rock so predators couldn't dig in and eat the body. There was no way for disciples to hide in the hole during the burial. There was no way for disciples to dig in from the outside.
Some say Joseph of Arimathea, a member of the Sanhedrin, had the body disposed of. But Joseph was not alone. Nicodemus, the rich guy who wanted to go with Jesus, but couldn't give up the responsibility of his massive wealth, was part of the burial. He helped Joseph bind the body. He was there when the guard rolled the rock over the mouth of the hole in the rock where Jesus was bound in a 75-pound cocoon. So, Joseph didn't take it. Oh and Joseph is the one who went to Pilate and signed for the body. If Pilate went after someone when this Resistance Leader went missing, it would be Joseph, a renowned member of the Sanhedrin. Joseph wouldn't have done that... would he... with Nicodemus there as a witness... would he?
Nope.... Jesus was left in a hollowed-out rock, wrapped in a 75-pound-herb-infused cocoon, with a massive stone blocking the only exit after almost 24 hours of torture. On top of that, the massive stone was sealed to the entrance and a small detachment of Roman soldiers were assigned to guard the exit [according to Matthew's gospel]. He would have had to get out of the massive cocoon, and move the stone, without alerting the guard. Jesus was a mind bender, this is true. He could make the guard look away, just as He did when His own family wanted to throw Him off the cliff, saying He was deranged. But it would cost the soldier's life. The soldier in charge of the stone... would be put to death for letting Jesus lose. Not likely, right?
Jesus was wrapped in a linen cocoon, inside a solid rock cocoon, and the only exit was guarded by a professional soldier with orders not to let Him out.
Houdini never had a trick this good.
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