St Mark Chapter XV : Verses 42-47
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| Joseph of Arimathea comes to ask Pilate for the body of Jesus. J-J Tissot |
[43] Joseph of Arimathea, a noble counsellor, who was also himself looking for the kingdom of God, came and went in boldly to Pilate, and begged the body of Jesus.
[44] But Pilate wondered that he should be already dead. And sending for the centurion, he asked him if he were already dead.
[45] And when he had understood it by the centurion, he gave the body to Joseph.
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| Christ carried to the sepulchre. J-J Tissot. |
[47] And Mary Magdalen, and Mary the mother of Joseph, beheld where he was laid.
[42] Et cum jam sero esset factum ( quia erat parasceve, quod est ante sabbatum), [43] venit Joseph ab Arimathaea nobilis decurio, qui et ipse erat exspectans regnum Dei, et audacter introivit ad Pilatum, et petiit corpus Jesu. [44] Pilatus autem mirabatur si jam obiisset. Et accersito centurione, interrogavit eum si jam mortuus esset. [45] Et cum cognovisset a centurione, donavit corpus Joseph. [46] Joseph autem mercatus sindonem, et deponens eum involvit sindone, et posuit eum in monumento quod erat excisum de petra, et advolvit lapidem ad ostium monumenti. [47] Maria autem Magdalene et Maria Joseph aspiciebant ubi poneretur.
Notes
Note. — We must place here between verses 41 and 42 the piercing of our Lord’s side by a soldier and the breaking of the legs of the two thieves.
42. when evening was now come. Near sunset.
the Parasceve , that is, etc. Another example of St Mark’s custom of translating Hebrew expressions for Gentile converts.
the day before the Sabbath. The eve of the great Sabbath within the Paschal time. The Sabbath began on Good Friday at sunset.
43. Joseph. St Joseph, the lowly carpenter of Nazareth, held the infant Jesus in his arms and tended Him in infancy. Joseph of Arimathea took down His dead body from the cross and buried it.
of Arimathea : — a city of Judea (St Luke xxiii. 51). Its site is unknown. Some identify it with “ Ramathaim Sophim,” the birthplace of Samuel, a town about eighteen miles north-west of Jerusalem ; others think it refers to Rama in Benjamin. The name resembles the first-mentioned town, while “ Rama ” agrees better with St Luke’s description and also with the earliest traditions. No less than eight different localities have been suggested as the site of “ Arimathea,” hence it is variously given in different maps.
a noble counsellor . From the gospels we learn further that Joseph of Arimathea was —
(a) A rich man (St Matt, xxvii. 57).(b) A good and a just man (St Luke xxiii. 50).(c) A secret disciple of Jesus (St Matt, xxvii. 57, St John xix. 38).(d) He had not consented to their counsel and doings (St Luke xxiii. 51).(e) One who looked for the kingdom of God (St Luke xxiii. 51).
“ Noble” may mean of high birth, or a holy, upright man. “ Counsellor” signifies a member of the Sanhedrin (not necessarily a member of the “Council of Priests”). St Luke styles him a “ decurio,” which in the Roman provinces denoted a rank equal to that of a Roman senator.
came. We know not whence he came, nor if he had witnessed the death of Christ.
went in boldly. He needed boldness, since he would henceforth be suspected by the chief priests, though there was not much to fear as far as Pilate was concerned. Joseph was no longer a disciple in secret. The example of Christ’s sufferings and the injustice done to Him made the rich counsellor intrepid.
By this act of piety Joseph rendered himself unclean for seven days, and unable to take any part in the Paschal festivities, for we read in holy Scripture, He that toucheth the corpse of a man . ... is unclean seven days (Num. xix. 11). Joseph also went in boldly because the matter was urgent ; for if he did not take down the body of Christ before sunset the Jews would do so, and then Jesus would have been interred in the graves provided by the Council for criminals. The Romans left the bodies of the crucified on the cross to decay, or to be devoured by beasts and birds of prey.
begged the body of Jesus. This was the second petition which had been presented to Pilate that afternoon concerning Jesus. The first deputation was from the members of the Sanhedrin, who requested that the bodies of the crucified might not remain on the crosses after sunset, therefore Pilate sent soldiers to break the legs of the condemned. This “ crucifragium ” was a punishment in itself, and was inflicted to hasten death. Then, as a further concession to the Jewish custom, a “mercy-stroke ” was given, and this caused instant death, for the body was pierced by a lance.
44. Pilate wondered that he should be already dead. He was astonished that Jesus was already dead, since the crucified, particularly young men, sometimes lived three days on the cross. Thirty-six hours was considered a short time. St Mark alone relates —
(а) That Pilate wondered.(b) That he sent for the centurion.
45. when he had understood it. The centurion would probably have further increased Pilate’s uneasiness when he related to him how Christ had died, and what preternatural signs had accompanied His death, Pilate would have known that an earthquake had taken place, and also that the sun had been darkened for three hours, but he may not have connected these phenomena with the death of Christ.
he gave the body to Joseph. Pilate gave leave (St John), and commanded that the body should be delivered (St Matt, xxvii. 58). Joseph came therefore and took away the body of Jesus (St John xix. 38). It is possible that Pilate allowed Joseph to bury the body of Christ honourably in order to vex the Jews.
Sometimes the governors asked for a sum of money as the price of the favour, but the original word employed denotes that Pilate gave up the sacred Body freely. A formal permission would be required.
46. buying fine linen. This is the same kind of linen as that mentioned in chap. xiv. 51, and was used as a sheet or sleeping garment. It was fine Sidonian or Indian muslin, and was torn into bands or “ swathes ” to envelop the limbs of the dead. Each limb was bound separately, and the “swathes” were sprinkled with powdered myrrh and aloes. Nicodemus, also a member of the Sanhedrin and a secret disciple, provided 100 lbs. weight of “ spices ” for embalming. A pound in Jewish measure equalled about of 1 lb. avoirdupois, therefore the 100 lbs. (Jewish measure) = about 64 lbs.
In the celebration of holy Mass, the consecrated Host is placed on a “corporal” of fine linen, and none but linen cloths are allowed to be used for the service of the altar.
laid him in a sepulchre. It was Joseph’s —
(a) own new monument (St Matt, xxvii. 60).(b) wherein never yet any man had been laid (St Luke xxiii. 53).(c) It was in his own garden close to Calvary (St John xix. 41).
Thus the Jews could not say that another had risen, and not our Lord, nor could they pretend that His resurrection was caused by His body having come in contact with the bones of some prophet. All possible human assurances were given that Christ was really dead — every precaution was taken to prevent the disciples from taking away the body, since the stone which closed the entrance or door of the sepulchre was sealed.
To seal a sepulchre, a cord was stretched across the stone that covered the entrance, and the ends were sealed on each side to the rock. It was the Jews who supervised the guarding of the sepulchre, as we see from St Matt, (xxvii. 65, 66). Pilate said to them: You have a guard ; go, guard it as you know. And they departed, made the sepulchre sure, sealing the stone, and setting guards. Soldiers kept guard over the tomb. Sixteen men were told off for this duty ; four men kept guard at a time, and they were relieved at each watch of the night, while all the sixteen were available if required.
hewed out of a rock. The ordinary kind of tomb used in Judea.
47. beheld. Regarded attentively.
Additional Notes
On the Burial of the Dead among the Jews.
The Jews were most particular about burying their dead promptly, probably because all who touched a corpse contracted legal impurity ; also as regards criminals, the law of Moses strictly enjoined their prompt burial. “ His body shall not remain upon the tree, but shall be buried the same day, for he is accursed of God that hangeth on a tree, and thou shalt not defile thy land ” ( Deut . xxi. 23). And the Rabbis taught that “ whosoever suffers a dead body to lie all night unburied, violates a negative precept.” As a general rule, the Council would not allow those, who had suffered capital punishment, to be buried in their family tombs. “ They provided two burying places, one for those who were slain by the sword and strangled, the other for those who were stoned (who also were hanged) and burnt.” If, however, the criminal came of a high family, they allowed him to be interred honourably rather than disgrace his relatives “ by the meanness of the common burial.” If a man had been buried in the common burial ground for criminals, his relatives could, after a given time, claim his bones. It was not customary to make open lamentations over those who had been executed, for the Jews judged that it was “ better for him to be neither lamented nor buried ( i.e . with due honour), for this vilifying of him, they fancied, amounted to some atonement for him.” (Lightfoot, Hor. Heb.)
On Jewish Sepulchres. These were situated in the suburbs, at a distance of not less than 50 cubits (about 28 yds.) from the city. There were various kinds of tombs :
(a) Natural caves. (b) Rock-hewn tombs.(c) Walled vaults. ( d ) Tombs scooped out in rows in rocky walls.(e) Graves dug in the earth, with a thin wall built round to prevent the earth from falling in.
The places of sepulture were greatly respected. No one might walk over a grave or touch a stone that covered the entrance. This stone was always kept whitened, in order to warn the passers-by that it covered a tomb. Evil-doers were interred apart, and suicides were not allowed full honours. All families, who had the means, possessed a private vault or sepulchre. In the Catholic Scripture Manual Atlas will be found a plan of an ordinary Jewish sepulchre. It consisted of the “ court ” and the “ cave.” The court was large enough to contain the body and the bearers. It measured about 9 feet square. The centre of the cave was about 6 feet high, 6 deep, and 4 wide. Such a cave would contain space for eight graves, each 2 x 2 x 6 feet. The body was placed in the tomb feet foremost. No coffins were used in the East. The corpse was simply embalmed and swathed. In some old sepulchres “ mortuary chests ” have been found, whence we conclude that it was customary to collect the bones some years after death, and to place them, carefully enveloped, in these chests. Thus the same sepulchre would serve for more bodies than it contained tombs. Inscriptions have been found engraved on the lids of the mortuary chests, on the interior walls of the cave, and on the stone that closed the entrance. Some sepulchres were surmounted by monuments. It is probable, however, that in the sepulchre of Joseph of Arimathea, the tombs were raised banks of rock, since we read that on the morning of the Resurrection, Mary Magdalen “ saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and one at the feet, where the body of Jesus had been laid ” (St John xx. 12).
Totus tuus ego sum
Et omnia mea tua sunt;
Tecum semper tutus sum:
Ad Jesum per Mariam.
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