One event, four witnesses
The Burial
Joseph of Arimathaea takes the body of Jesus and lays it in a new tomb before the sabbath. All four Gospels record the burial; John adds Nicodemus and the spices, and Matthew alone tells of the guard set at the tomb.
“When the even was come, there came a rich man of Arimathaea, named Joseph, who also himself was Jesus’ disciple:”Matthew 27:57
“And now when the even was come, because it was the preparation, that is, the day before the sabbath,”Mark 15:42
“And, behold, there was a man named Joseph, a counsellor; and he was a good man, and a just:”Luke 23:50
“And after this Joseph of Arimathaea, being a disciple of Jesus, but secretly for fear of the Jews, besought Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus: and Pilate gave him leave. He came therefore, and took the body of Jesus.”John 19:38
The event
The event. As evening comes on the day of preparation, before the sabbath, Joseph of Arimathaea, a rich man, an honorable counsellor who himself waited for the kingdom of God and was a disciple, though secretly for fear of the Jews, goes boldly to Pilate and asks for the body of Jesus. Pilate, having confirmed that Jesus is dead, grants it. Joseph takes the body down, and in John he is joined by Nicodemus, the same who had come to Jesus by night, bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about a hundred pound weight. They wind the body in clean linen cloths with the spices, as the manner of the Jews is to bury, and lay it in Joseph's own new tomb, hewn out of rock, in a garden near the place of crucifixion, wherein no man had yet been laid. A great stone is rolled to the door. The women who came with Him from Galilee, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary among them, watch where He is laid and behold the sepulchre and how His body is placed, then return to prepare spices and ointments, resting on the sabbath according to the commandment. Matthew adds that the next day the chief priests and Pharisees, remembering Jesus' word about rising, obtain from Pilate a guard and seal the stone.
Read side by side: what is the same, what differs
Read side by side: what is the same, what differs. All four agree that Joseph of Arimathaea asked Pilate for the body, that it was wrapped in linen and laid in a new rock-hewn tomb, that a stone was set at the door, and that women witnessed the burial. The differences are of added detail, each Gospel contributing its own. Mark notes Pilate's surprise that Jesus was already dead and his summons of the centurion to confirm it. Luke and the others note that it was the preparation day and the sabbath drew on, and that the women marked the place to return with spices. John alone brings in Nicodemus and the large weight of myrrh and aloes, and describes the burial as being according to Jewish custom in a garden tomb. Matthew alone records what follows the next day: the chief priests' request for a guard, Pilate's grant, and the sealing of the stone, a detail that matters for his account of the resurrection, since it removes any charge that the body was merely stolen. These do not conflict; they are complementary, each writer preserving what he knew. Together they establish beyond doubt that Jesus truly died and was truly buried in a known tomb, watched by named witnesses, so that the empty tomb to come cannot be dismissed as confusion over where He lay.
What it shows of Christ
What it shows of Christ. The burial confirms that Jesus truly died; He was not merely faint but dead, wrapped and entombed as the dead are, His body handled and spiced by careful hands. In this quiet scene grace still shines: Joseph, a secret disciple, and Nicodemus, who once came by night, now step openly into the light to honor the crucified Lord, their fear overcome by love, so that the cross draws timid hearts into the open. The new tomb, where no one had been laid, fits the dignity of the One who would rise, and the naming of the women who watched establishes the witnesses to His resting place. Matthew's sealed and guarded tomb, meant to prevent any deception, becomes instead an unwitting testimony to the reality of what happened, for the guarded stone could not hold Him. The burial fulfills the prophecy that He would be with the rich in His death, and it sets the stage: the Lord of life lies in a borrowed grave, and the sabbath passes before the dawn of the first day.
Questions people ask
What does John add to the burial that the others do not?
John alone records that Nicodemus, who had earlier come to Jesus by night, joined Joseph of Arimathaea, bringing about a hundred pound weight of myrrh and aloes, and that they wound the body in linen with the spices according to Jewish burial custom in a garden tomb. This shows two once-timid followers openly honoring the crucified Lord.
Why does Matthew alone mention the guard at the tomb?
Matthew records that the chief priests, remembering Jesus' prediction that He would rise, asked Pilate for a guard and sealed the stone, fearing His disciples might steal the body. This detail matters for Matthew's account of the resurrection, since a sealed and guarded tomb rules out the charge that the body was simply taken. The other Gospels, with different emphases, do not include it.