Burial in the Tomb
The death of Jesus occurred toward evening, about 5:00 pm, on a Friday. There was a law that funerals were not to be held during the Sabbath, and another that the final burial must not take place the day death occurred. Since the Jews observed the Sabbath on the first day of the week, Saturday, preparation for the burial had to be done quickly. (The Jewish Sabbath actually began at sundown, Friday evening.) Therefore, toward evening, the soldiers came to take the lives of those who were being crucified so that there would be time to attend to the burial before sundown. After breaking the legs of the two thieves, the shock which was sufficient to kill them, they turned to Jesus to do the same but found that He was already dead.
As soon as Christ was dead there came two people, Joseph of Armiathea, an honorable and wealthy disciple who followed Jesus secretly because he feared the Jews, and Nicodemus, one of the Jewish leaders who also believed that Jesus was a great and good man. Joseph went to Pilate and asked permission to bury the body. This permission was granted. Nicodemus brought spices, which were needed for preparation of the burial. The two men then removed the body of Jesus from the cross and took it away. They prepared it rather quickly for it was almost sundown. They then took the body to a garden outside the walls of Jerusalem. There, in a hillside of stone, Joseph had carved out a new tomb for himself, in preparation for his own death. Into this tomb the two men gently laid the body of Jesus. They rolled the heavy stone covering into place and went away.
LATE FRIDAY AFTERNOON
The Crucifixion
After the Jewish soldiers had spit upon Jesus and had crowned Him with thorns and mocked Him as King of the Jews, He was led away toward the place of execution. Already crowds of people were gathering. many of them were friends of Jesus. The Jewish leaders feared these people. Therefore, they wished to have the crucifixion accomplished at once before the friends of Jesus had time to gather in great numbers.
According to the custom of the time, a cross was made and Jesus was required to carry it. It was very heavy and He was weak from the torture and persecution of the long night. Therefore, a stranger named Simeon, was forced to help carry the cross. Christ was led from the Governor's palace to a hill called Calvary, just outside the city wall. This hill was also called Golgotha, which means the "Place of the Skull."
A company of soliders escorted Jesus to see that there should be no attempt made at escape and that none of His disciples would try to rescue Him. Priests and Pharisees also accompanied Him, mocking and shouting abuses at Him. At a distance, there followed many of His disciples, among them being a number of women. No doubt His mother, Mary, and Mary Magdalene, Martha, and her sister, Mary, were in this group.
The procession soon reached the place of execution; and there, at the top of the hill, Jesus was nailed to the cross, large spikes being driven through His hands and His feet. The cross was lifted upright and placed firmly in the ground. Two thieves were also executed that day, one on His left and one on His right.
To all the challenges, to all the criticism and abuse that were heaped upon Him while He was on the cross, Jesus answered not one word. To complete the abuse, Pilate prepared a sign and had it nailed on the cross above Jesus' head. It was written in three languages: Greek, Hebrew, and Latin, and said, "JESUS OF NAZARETH THE KING OF THE JEWS" (John 19:19). It was at this time that Jesus uttered, "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do." (Luke 23:34)
Once the leaders of the Jews grew weary of watching the death of Jesus, they went away. The scriptures then indicate that His closest friends gathered around the cross. Jesus was distressed at His mother's sorrow. At her side stood the disciple and He said, "Woman, behold thy Son!" To the disciple, He said, "Behold they mother!" (John 19:25-27)
After Jesus had been upon the cross for some time, darkness covered the land for a space of three hours. The veil of the temple was suddenly torn in two by an earthquake which shook the ground. Jesus cried out with a loud voice, "Father, into Thy hands I commend my spirit" and with those words, He died. (Luke 23:46)
FRIDAY
Christ Before Pilate
The Jewish leaders counseled among themselves to determine just how best they might present their case before Pilate. Caiaphas asked Jesus to tell him very plainly whether or not He was Christ, the Son of God. He replied yes, which was enough for the council to say that he was guilty of death. Following this initial judgement, Christ was taken before Pilate, the Roman ruler.
"And Jesus stood before the govenor: and the governor asked him, saying, 'Art thou the King of the Jews?' And Jesus said unto him, 'Thou sayest.'
And when he was accused of the chief priests and elders, he answered nothing.
Then said Pilate unto him, Hearest thou not how many things they witness against thee?
And he answered him to never a word; insomuch that the governor marvelled greatly.
Now at that feast the governor was wont to release unto the people a prisoner, whom they would.
And they had then a notable prisoner, called Barabbas.
Therefore when they were gathered together, Pilate said unto them, Whom will ye that I release unto you? Barabbas, or Jesus which is called Christ?
But the chief priests and elders persuaded the multitude that they should ask Barabbas, and destroy Jesus.
The governor answered and said unto them, Whether of the twain will ye that I release unto you? They said, Barabbas.
Pilate saith unto them, What shall I do then with Jesus which is called Christ? They all say unto him, Let him be crucified.
And the governor said, Why, what evil hath he done? But they cried out the more, saying, Let him be crucified.
When Pilate saw that he could prevail nothing, but that rather a tumult was made, he took water, and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, I am innocent of the blood of this just person: see ye to it.
Then answered all the people, and said, His blood be on us, and on our children.
Then released he Barabbas unto them: and when he had scourged Jesus, he delivered him to be crucified.
Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the common hall, and gathered unto him the whole band of soldiers.
And they stripped him, and put on him a scarlet robe.
And when they had platted a crown of thorns, they put it upon his head, and a reed in his right hand: and they bowed the knee before him, and mocked him, saying, Hail, King of the Jews!
And they spit upon him, and took the reed, and smote him on the head.
And after that they had mocked him, they took the robe off from him, and put his own raiment on him, and led him away to crucify him." (Matthew 27:12-31)
Sidenote--The Remorse of Judas
The scriptures indicate that Judas was present when Christ was brought before the High Priest, Caiaphas, and when the people declared that He was guilty of death. When Judas saw that his Master was making no attempt to escape and that His accusers were really going to put Him on trial for His life before Pilate, Judas was filled with remorse. He went before the leaders and offered them the 30 pieces of silver saying that he had sinned in betraying innocent blood.
The Jewish leaders were very scornful. They would have gladly paid a far great price for Jesus. Everything was working out as they had planned. Therefore, they said to Judas, "What is that to us? See thou to that." (Matthew 27:40) They didn't care at all what he had done or how he felt. Judas had fulfilled his part of the bargain and they had fulfilled theirs.
It is not know what caused Judas to sell his Master. Some people have thought that he did it in order to make a little money, either for himself or for the common purse of the apostles, thinking all the while that Christ would escape from His enemies like He had done on previous occasions. However, when he saw that Jesus was liable to be slain and that he, Judas, was responsible, his anguish was great than he could bear. He flung down the money and went out and hanged himself.
The officials took the money and bought a potter's field in which to bury strangers. The field became known as the Field of Blood because it was purchased with money received for the blood of Jesus. Unknowingly, Judas and the officials thus fulfilled a prophecy made long before by the Prophet Jeremiah, who said that the price of the field would be 30 pieces of silver, the value of "him that was valued, whom they of the children of Israel did value" (Matthew 27:9, Zechariah 11:13).
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