The seal is placed on the sepulchre

St Matthew Chapter XXVII : Verses 62-66

Contents

• Matt. xxvii. 62-66.  Douay-Rheims text & Latin text (Vulgate).
• Notes on the text.

Matt. xxvii. 62-66

 Guards at the tomb. J-J Tissot. Brooklyn Museum.

62 And the next day, which followed the day of preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees came together to Pilate,

Altera autem die, quæ est post Parasceven, convenerunt principes sacerdotum et pharisæi ad Pilatum,

63 Saying: Sir, we have remembered, that that seducer said, while he was yet alive: After three days I will rise again.

dicentes : Domine, recordati sumus, quia seductor ille dixit adhuc vivens : Post tres dies resurgam.

64 Command therefore the sepulchre to be guarded until the third day: lest perhaps his disciples come and steal him away, and say to the people: He is risen from the dead; and the last error shall be worse than the first.

Jube ergo custodiri sepulchrum usque in diem tertium : ne forte veniant discipuli ejus, et furentur eum, et dicant plebi : Surrexit a mortuis : et erit novissimus error pejor priore.

65 Pilate saith to them: You have a guard; go, guard it as you know.

Ait illis Pilatus : Habetis custodiam, ite, custodite sicut scitis.

66 And they departing, made the sepulchre sure, sealing the stone, and setting guards.

Illi autem abeuntes, munierunt sepulchrum, signantes lapidem, cum custodibus.

Notes

    62. the next day, etc., — i.e. on the Sabbath-day. The Jews, who professed such great veneration for the Sabbath, did not scruple to have the tomb sealed on that day. It is possible, however, that they may have deferred this work till after sunset, since they knew that Jesus had predicted that He would rise on the third day. The very precautions which were taken by our Lord’s enemies but served to confirm the truth that He rose from the dead.

    63. Sir, we have remembered. These men took the words of Christ in their literal and natural sense, which the disciples seemed powerless to grasp, but often “ hatred is more keen-sighted than love.” The prodigies connected with the death of Christ must have deepened their fears, lest the prediction concerning Christ’s Resurrection should be verified.

    that seducer. They still revile their Victim, although they have compassed His death.

    while he was yet alive. They bear formal witness to His death.

    After three days. Not necessarily three completed days. A period embracing one whole day and part of two others is, in Scriptural language, spoken of as “three days.”

    64. Command therefore, etc. As Jesus had been delivered up to the State, the Sanhedrin had no power to guard the tomb by means of the Temple guards, nor could they seal the stone.

    lest perhaps his disciples, etc. It is not probable the Jewish rulers feared any interference on the part of the disciples, who had made no effort to save the life of their Master. Knowing that Lazarus had been raised from the dead, they wished to prevent such an event in the case of Christ, or at least to discredit it, should it come to pass.

the last error shall he worse than the first. The first “ error,” in their opinion, was the teaching of Christ and His claiming to be the Messias, and they argued that if a riimonr of His having risen again were to obtain currency, it would confirm men in their belief in His claims.

    65. You have a guard. Pilate evidently referred to a detachment of Roman soldiers, since we know that the sepulchre was guarded by them (see xxviii. 11-15).

    These men had doubtless assisted in arresting Jesus, and Pilate still left them at the disposal of the chief priests. It was, however, customary to place a Roman band on guard in the courts of the Temple or in the porches during the solemnities of the Paschal season (see Jos., Antiq., xx. 5. 3, 8. 11, et passim) and Pilate may have alluded to some of these men.

    guard it. Lit. “make fast” (ἀσφαλισθῆναι).

    66. make the sepulchre sure, sealing the stone. 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. 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.

Totus tuus ego sum

Et omnia mea tua sunt;

Tecum semper tutus sum:

Ad Jesum per Mariam.