27:57 Now 1 when it was evening, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who was also a disciple of Jesus. 2 27:58 He went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. 3 Then Pilate ordered that it be given to him. 27:59 Joseph 4 took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, 5 27:60 and placed it 6 in his own new tomb that he had cut in the rock. 7 Then he rolled a great stone across the entrance 8 of the tomb and went away. 27:61 (Now Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting there, opposite the tomb.)
27:62 The 9 next day (which is after the day of preparation) the chief priests and the Pharisees 10 assembled before Pilate 27:63 and said, “Sir, we remember that while that deceiver was still alive he said, ‘After three days I will rise again.’ 27:64 So give orders to secure the tomb until the third day. Otherwise his disciples may come and steal his body 11 and say to the people, ‘He has been raised from the dead,’ and the last deception will be worse than the first.” 27:65 Pilate said to them, “Take 12 a guard of soldiers. Go and make it as secure as you can.” 27:66 So 13 they went with the soldiers 14 of the guard and made the tomb secure by sealing the stone.
1 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic.
2 sn Though some dispute that Joseph of Arimathea was a disciple of Jesus, his actions regarding Jesus’ burial suggest otherwise.
3 sn Asking for the body of Jesus was indeed a bold move on the part of Joseph of Arimathea, for it clearly and openly identified him with a man who had just been condemned and executed, namely, Jesus. His faith is exemplary, especially for someone who was a member of the council that handed Jesus over for crucifixion (cf. Mark 15:43, Luke 23:51). He did this because he sought to give Jesus an honorable burial.
4 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated.
5 tn The term σινδών (sindwn) can refer to a linen cloth used either for clothing or for burial.
6 tc ‡ αὐτό (auto, “it”) is found after ἔθηκεν (eqhken, “placed”) in the majority of witnesses, including many important ones, though it seems to be motivated by a need for clarification and cannot therefore easily explain the rise of the shorter reading (which is read by א L Θ Ë13 33 892 pc). Regardless of which reading is original (though with a slight preference for the shorter reading), English style requires the pronoun. NA27 includes αὐτό here, no doubt due to the overwhelming external attestation.
7 tn That is, cut or carved into an outcropping of natural rock, resulting in a cave-like structure (see L&N 19.25).
8 tn Or “to the door,” “against the door.”
9 tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.
10 sn See the note on Pharisees in 3:7.
11 tn Grk “him.”
12 tn Grk “You have a guard.”
13 tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of Pilate’s order.
14 tn Grk “with the guard.” The words “soldiers of the” have been supplied in the translation to prevent “guard” from being misunderstood as a single individual.