Page 101 - Biblical Theology Textbook - masters

could not move the stone, as it would take at least two to three men to roll it into place.

Generally speaking, the rolling stone was set inside a groove in front of the entrance and secured from
falling over by a stone wall that stood in front of tomb opening (the rolling stone was sandwiched
between the tomb entrance and stone wall as the pictures above illustrates). Often, the groove was not
level, but slightly sloped. To close the tomb, the stone would be rolled down the groove at a decline and
come to rest in front of the entrance. To open the tomb, the stone would have to be rolled up the
groove at an incline, requiring more manpower to move it. Certainly, a couple of women could not
move the stone.

2. The Roman Seal was place over the tomb. The seal was a sign of authentication that the tomb was
occupied, and the power and authority of Rome stood behind the seal. Anyone found breaking the
Roman seal would suffer the punishment of an unpleasant and immediate death. The Roman seal was a
soft, moldable substance, probably clay, and was imprinted with the Roman imperial seal and attached
to the stone with a rope. Should the stone be moved, the rope would break the seal.

3. The Roman Guard. This was either the Roman guards or the Jewish temple guards. The context of
Matthew 27 favors the Roman guard. This guard was composed of a sixteen-man unit that was
governed by very strict rules. Each member was responsible for six square feet. The guard members
could not sit down or lean against anything while on duty. If a guard member fell asleep, he was beaten
and burned with his own clothes. But he was not the only one executed; the entire sixteen-man guard
unit was executed if only one of the members fell asleep while on duty.

These precautions made the religious rulers feel secure that the excitement around Jesus would soon go
away. Jesus lay dead in the tomb, and His frightened disciples had scattered and gone into hiding. They
thought that they had won.

How Long was Jesus in the tomb?

Jesus told the Pharisees who were seeking a sign from Him that the only sign would be: “For as Jonah
was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and
three nights in the heart of the earth”. The Jews held that a day begins at dusk (around 6:00 PM) and
lasts 24 hours because God first created night, then day. So, the Jewish day goes from nightfall to
nightfall.

Mark 15:42 states that Jesus was on the cross the day before the Sabbath and was taken down from the
cross quickly and buried before the Sabbath started at around 6:00 PM that evening. The Sabbath was
on Saturday, so that meant Jesus was crucified on Friday, right?

Think about it! If Jesus was crucified on Friday afternoon just before the beginning of Sabbath, He
would have been buried late Friday afternoon. He would have then spent the night and day in the tomb
on Saturday (Sabbath) which is one night and day. Then He arose on Sunday before dawn, which would
be night, day two. If Jesus was crucified on Friday, how could He fulfill the prophecy that He told the
Pharisees of being in the heart of the earth for three days and three nights?

100