Wednesday in the Word...John 19:38-42...the tomb scene

This is the tomb of the unknown soldier.  I have been so thankful to witness a couple of times the changing of the guard.  This tomb stands as a monument for all those who served our country but came back unknown or never came back.  This tomb is very different than the tomb we will read about today in our Scripture passage. We will finish out John chapter 19 with a tomb that had many witnesses of who was laid there.  Jesus was placed there on purpose and according to prophecy given hundreds of years before.  Every detail has been orchestrated by God.  The tomb of the unknown is guarded to this day but the tomb of Jesus was only guarded for a short amount of time.  Praise the Lord!

Today's Wednesday in the Word covers John chapter 19 and verses 38 through 42 which read,

v.38 - After these things Joseph of Arimathea, being a disciple of Jesus, but a secret one for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus; and Pilate granted permission.  So he came and took away His body.

Jesus has given up His Spirit on the cross.  His side has been pierced and the soldiers have taken down His body.  Someone comes onto this scene that we have not seen before, Joseph of Arimathea.  Mark's account tells us he was a member of the Sanhedrin, the religious ruling council in Jerusalem, so he had position.  Matthew's account tells us he was rich, so he had resources.  Luke's account tells us he was looking for the kingdom of God, so he was righteous in his understanding of the message of the Bible.  John tells us he was a secret disciple of Jesus.  We have a rich Sanhedrin member who accepted the plan of God and was learning from Jesus.  

He was a secret disciple because the fear of the people was to be banned from the synagogue.  To be banned from the synagogue meant that you would be ostracized by all aspects of society.  John 12:42 and 43 describe Joseph of Arimathea as it says,

Nevertheless many even of the rulers believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they were not confessing Him, for fear that they would be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the approval of men rather than the approval of God.

We see a stepping out of this Joseph from the shadows and he secures the body from Pilate.  He is a part of the prophecy given in Isaiah 53:9 which reads,

His grave was assigned with wicked men,

yet He was with a rich man in His death,

because He had done no violence,

nor was there any deceit in His mouth.

Jesus was crucified with two criminals and would have been buried with them but a rich man emerges, Joseph of Arimathea, who secures His body by obtaining permission from the one who said He was not guilty numerous times, Pilate.  Another prophecy fulfilled by Jesus even after His death about the movements of His earthly body. 

v.39, 40 - Nicodemus, who had first come to Him by night, also came, bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about a hundred pounds of weight.  So they took the body of Jesus and bound it in linen wrappings with the spices, as is the burial custom of the Jews.

Here is someone we know.  John introduced us to Nicodemus back in chapter 3.  Jesus tells him that he must be born again or born anew of the spirit.  Nicodemus teams up with Joseph of Arimathea and gives Jesus' body what was the custom of those who were loved deeply.  The Jewish people did not embalm the body like the Egyptians but rather brought spices to suppress the odor of decay while final mournings took place.  However he got this mixture there, a hundred pounds is heavy to lug around.  The latest craze of essential oils was in full swing by the Jewish people during the time of Jesus.  Jesus' body was wrapped tightly with these infused linen strips that were soaking up the spice aromas.  I also like the picture here of two guys, tied together by Jesus, joining up to accomplish something.

v.41, 42 - Now in the place where He was crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been laid.  Therefore because of the Jewish day of preparation, since the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.

This puts Jesus in the tomb prior to 6 p.m. or sundown of that day.  All work was completed prior to the Sabbath day's rest.  Other gospel accounts tell us that the women at the cross also witnessed these actions and where Jesus' body was placed.  It is new tomb in which no one had yet been laid and I couldn't help but think of Jesus riding a donkey, a foal of a donkey, on which no one had ever ridden.  Something new was being used which would show Jesus' power again in 3 days.  Jesus' body was the only body in this tomb.  I can imagine that this site would have been well known in Jesus' day by the disciples that would come afterwards.  You have these two witnesses, the women witnesses, the disciples who came to the tomb as witnesses, and even "the enemy" of religious leaders and Roman authorities as witnesses to the place where Jesus' body was laid.  The site would not be a question to anyone in that day with that many witnesses.  What will come into question is what happens next.

Adam