John 19:38-42

Jesus’ Burial

19:38 After this, Joseph of Arimathea, a disciple of Jesus (but secretly, because he feared the Jewish leaders ¹ ), ²  asked Pilate if he could remove the body of Jesus. Pilate ³  gave him permission, so he went and took the body away. ⁴  19:39 Nicodemus, the man who had previously come to Jesus ⁵  at night, ⁶  accompanied Joseph, ⁷  carrying a mixture of myrrh and aloes ⁸  weighing about seventy-five pounds. ⁹  19:40 Then they took Jesus’ body and wrapped it, with the aromatic spices, ¹⁰  in strips of linen cloth ¹¹  according to Jewish burial customs. ¹²  19:41 Now at the place where Jesus ¹³  was crucified ¹⁴  there was a garden, ¹⁵  and in the garden ¹⁶  was a new tomb where no one had yet been buried. ¹⁷  19:42 And so, because it was the Jewish day of preparation ¹⁸  and the tomb was nearby, ¹⁹  they placed Jesus’ body there.

Matthew 26:12

26:12 When ²⁰  she poured this oil on my body, she did it to prepare me for burial.

Matthew 27:57-60

Jesus’ Burial

27:57 Now ²¹  when it was evening, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who was also a disciple of Jesus. ²²  27:58 He went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. ²³  Then Pilate ordered that it be given to him. 27:59 Joseph ²⁴  took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, ²⁵  27:60 and placed it ²⁶  in his own new tomb that he had cut in the rock. ²⁷  Then he rolled a great stone across the entrance ²⁸  of the tomb and went away.

Mark 15:42-47

Jesus’ Burial

15:42 Now ²⁹  when evening had already come, since it was the day of preparation (that is, the day before the Sabbath), ³⁰  15:43 Joseph of Arimathea, a highly regarded member of the council, ³¹  who was himself looking forward to ³²  the kingdom of God, ³³  went boldly to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. ³⁴  15:44 Pilate was surprised that he was already dead. He ³⁵  called the centurion and asked him if he had been dead for some time. 15:45 When Pilate ³⁶  was informed by the centurion, ³⁷  he gave the body to Joseph. 15:46 After Joseph ³⁸  bought a linen cloth ³⁹  and took down the body, he wrapped it in the linen and placed it in a tomb cut out of the rock. ⁴⁰  Then ⁴¹  he rolled a stone across the entrance ⁴²  of the tomb. 15:47 Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses saw where the body ⁴³  was placed.

Luke 23:50

Jesus’ Burial

23:50 Now ⁴⁴  there was a man named Joseph who was a member of the council, ⁴⁵  a good and righteous man.

[19:38]  ¹ tn Or “the Jewish authorities”; Grk “the Jews.” Here the phrase refers to the Jewish leaders, especially the Pharisees (see John 12:42). See also the note on the phrase “Jewish leaders” in v. 7.

[19:38]  ² sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.

[19:38]  ³ tn Grk “And Pilate.” The conjunction καί (kai, “and”) has not been translated here in keeping with the tendency of contemporary English style to use shorter sentences.

[19:38]  ⁴ tn Grk “took away his body.”

[19:39]  ⁵ tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[19:39]  ⁶ sn See John 3:1-21.

[19:39]  ⁷ tn Grk “came”; the words “accompanied Joseph” are not in the Greek text but are supplied for clarity.

[19:39]  ⁸ sn Aloes refers to an aromatic resin from a plant similar to a lily, used for embalming a corpse.

[19:39]  ⁹ sn The Roman pound (λίτρα, litra) weighed twelve ounces or 325 grams. Thus 100 Roman pounds would be about 32.5 kilograms or 75 pounds.

[19:40]  ¹⁰ tn On this term see BDAG 140-41 s.v. ἄρωμα. The Jews did not practice embalming, so these materials were used to cover the stench of decay and slow decomposition.

[19:40]  ¹¹ tn The Fourth Gospel uses ὀθονίοις (oqonioi") to describe the wrappings, and this has caused a good deal of debate, since it appears to contradict the synoptic accounts which mention a σινδών (sindwn), a large single piece of linen cloth. If one understands ὀθονίοις to refer to smaller strips of cloth, like bandages, there would be a difference, but diminutive forms have often lost their diminutive force in Koine Greek (BDF §111.3), so there may not be any difference.

[19:40]  ¹² tn Grk “cloth as is the custom of the Jews to prepare for burial.”

[19:41]  ¹³ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[19:41]  ¹⁴ sn See the note on Crucify in 19:6.

[19:41]  ¹⁵ tn Or “an orchard.”

[19:41]  ¹⁶ tn Or “orchard.”

[19:41]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “been placed.”

[19:42]  ¹⁸ sn The day of preparation was the day before the Sabbath when everything had to be prepared for it, as no work could be done on the Sabbath.

[19:42]  ¹⁹ sn The tomb was nearby. The Passover and the Sabbath would begin at 6 p.m., so those who had come to prepare and bury the body could not afford to waste time.

[26:12]  ²⁰ tn Grk “For when.” Here γάρ (gar) has not been translated.

[27:57]  ²¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic.

[27:57]  ²² sn Though some dispute that Joseph of Arimathea was a disciple of Jesus, his actions regarding Jesus’ burial suggest otherwise.

[27:58]  ²³ 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.

[27:59]  ²⁴ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated.

[27:59]  ²⁵ tn The term σινδών (sindwn) can refer to a linen cloth used either for clothing or for burial.

[27:60]  ²⁶ 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.

[27:60]  ²⁷ tn That is, cut or carved into an outcropping of natural rock, resulting in a cave-like structure (see L&N 19.25).

[27:60]  ²⁸ tn Or “to the door,” “against the door.”

[15:42]  ²⁹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic and introduction of a new character.

[15:42]  ³⁰ sn The day of preparation was the day before the Sabbath when everything had to be prepared for it, as no work could be done on the Sabbath.

[15:43]  ³¹ tn Grk “a councillor” (as a member of the Sanhedrin, see L&N 11.85). This indicates that some individuals among the leaders did respond to Jesus.

[15:43]  ³² tn Or “waiting for.”

[15:43]  ³³ sn Though some dispute that Joseph of Arimathea was a disciple of Jesus, this remark that he was looking forward to the kingdom of God and his actions regarding Jesus’ burial suggest otherwise.

[15:43]  ³⁴ 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. Luke 23:51). He did this because he sought to give Jesus an honorable burial.

[15:44]  ³⁵ tn Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

[15:45]  ³⁶ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Pilate) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[15:45]  ³⁷ sn See the note on the word centurion in 15:39.

[15:46]  ³⁸ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Joseph of Arimathea) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[15:46]  ³⁹ tn The term σινδών (sindwn) can refer to a linen cloth used either for clothing or for burial.

[15:46]  ⁴⁰ tn That is, cut or carved into an outcropping of natural rock, resulting in a cave-like structure (see L&N 19.25).

[15:46]  ⁴¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[15:46]  ⁴² tn Or “to the door,” “against the door.”

[15:47]  ⁴³ tn Grk “it”; the referent (Jesus’ body) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[23:50]  ⁴⁴ tn Grk “And behold.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the transition to a new topic. The Greek word ἰδού (idou) at the beginning of this statement has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1).

[23:50]  ⁴⁵ tn Grk “a councillor” (as a member of the Sanhedrin, see L&N 11.85). This indicates that some individuals among the leaders did respond to Jesus.