Section 167a
Certification of Jesus' death and procurement of his body
Golgotha & Jerusalem, at the Praetorium (the place of the Roman governor)
Matthew 27:57-58 | Mark 15:42-45 | Luke 23:50-52 | John 19:31-38 |
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31Since it was the day of Preparation (for that Sabbath was a high day), the Jews asked Pilate to have the men's legs broken and their bodies taken away, so that the bodies would not remain on the cross on the Sabbath. 32So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first man and of the other who had been crucified with him. 33But when they came to Jesus, they did not break his legs since they saw that he was already dead. 34Instead, one of the soldiers pierced Jesus' side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out. 35He who saw this has testified, and his testimony is true, and he knows that he speaks what is true, so that you may believe. 36For these things happened so that the Scripture would be fulfilled: “No bone of his will be broken.” [*] 37And, as another Scripture says, “They will look on him whom they have pierced.”[*] | |||
57aWhen it was evening, | 42When evening had come, since it was the day of Preparation (that is, the day before the Sabbath), | ||
57bthere came a rich man from Arimathea named Joseph, who was himself also a disciple of Jesus. 58aHe went to Pilate and asked for Jesus' body. | 43Joseph of Arimathea, a respected council member, who was himself also waiting for the kingdom of God, came and boldly went in before Pilate to ask for Jesus' body. 44Pilate was surprised that Jesus was already dead, so he called the centurion over and asked him if Jesus had been dead for some time. | 50Now there was a good and righteous man named Joseph, who was a member of the council 51but had not consented to their decision and action. He was from Arimathea, a town of the Jews, and was himself also waiting for the kingdom of God. 52He went to Pilate and asked for Jesus' body. | 38aAfter these things, Joseph of Arimathea, who was a disciple of Jesus (but secretly for fear of the Jews), asked Pilate if he could take away Jesus' body. |
58bSo Pilate commanded that the body be given to him. | 45When he found out from the centurion that it was so, he granted the body to Joseph. | 38bPilate gave him permission, so he came and took the body away. |
Notes
The Trial Before Pilate and Herod
One of the most difficult topographical problems of Jerusalem is to identify the location of the Praetorium where Jesus stood before Pilate, and where he set out carrying the cross to Golgotha. One thing is certain; it was one of three palaces used by Herod the Great - the Antonio Fortress (north of the Temple), the ancient Royal Palace of the Hasmoneans, or the new Upper Palace of Herod (next to the Jaffa Gate).
Since Crusader times it was always identified with Antonio Fortress, where the traditional 14 Stations of the Cross evolved over the years. When new archaeological evidence suggested that the pavement was from Hadrian’s time in 130 A.D., many scholars felt compelled to abandon this old, traditional location.
Many researchers moved the Praetorium to Herod’s Upper Palace as the next likely location. The problem with this location is that there has never been a Christian tradition that it was used as the place where Jesus was sentenced.
A third location is the old Hasmonean Palace. No one knew where this was located until after 1970 when archaeologists could dig in the recently recovered Jewish quarter. They found a magnificent building which is designated as the Palatial Mansion, leading many scholars to identify it as the Hasmonean Palace used by Herod, and later on by Pilate.
Herod Antipas had probably come from Tiberius for the Passover. There is no way of knowing today where he stayed in Jerusalem.
Church of the Holy Sepulcher
Although the Church of the Holy Sepulcher (“tomb”) is now within the city walls, it was outside the walls of Jesus’ day. Various places within the church contain remains from the first century, adding credibility to its identification as the location of Calvary and the empty tomb. Up the stairs you will see bedrock at a considerable height above the current floor; this is all that remains of the outcrop of rock which is the probable location of Calvary.
In A.D. 135 Hadrian built a temple to the goddess Aphrodite directly over this outcrop of rock. In A.D. 326, when the pagan temple was razed, the workmen looked for the tomb of Christ. When they believed they had found the correct one, they dug out the bedrock around the tomb so that it now resembles a small chapel.
Next to a chapel claimed by the Armenians and the Syrians you will have access to several “kokhim”, deep horizontal niches used in first century graves. This area can therefore at least be identified as a place where first century tombs were located outside the city walls—and thus a possibility for the correct location of Jesus’ tomb.
The Garden Tomb, located north of Damascus Gate, was suggested in the 19th century as an alternative site of Calvary and Jesus’ tomb. While the setting is very suggestive of what the garden would have looked like in the time of Jesus, excavations would seem to indicate that the tomb is too ancient to have been the one built by Joseph of Arimathea. The details of the chiseled walls and the bench type of arrangement suggest a date during the Old Testament. Were it not for the New Testament statement that Joseph’s tomb was new, this would have been a possibility.
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Golgotha & Jerusalem, at the Praetorium (the place of the Roman governor)
Footnotes
John 19,36
Psalms 34:20
John 19,37
Zechariah 12:10