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5. Extra credit: In 52:13 - 53:12 what is the meaning and significance of the Servant's death? What in the passage indicates His resurrection to life? We learn that God chose to save the world through the death and sacrifice of the Suffering Servant. This passage predicts that the Servant would die in the place of guilty sinners, in order to satisfy God’s judgment on sin. This Servant took on Himself all the sins of the nation, and the whole world, and carried them on Himself. He Himself had no sin; it was for our sins that He was nailed to the cross. "He himself bore our sins" in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed" (1 Pet 2:24). When Jesus was crucified, Israel thought His hardships were deserved for His supposedly having blasphemed God. Actually, He was bearing the judgment that their sin required. “See, My Servant will act wisely; He will be raised and lifted up and highly exalted” (Isa 52:13). The Servant will act wisely, doing what His Heavenly Father wants Him to do. And His lifted up refers to His resurrection and Him being exalted at God’s right hand. The exaltation refers to His resurrection, ascension, and glorification at the Father’s right hand (Act 2:33; Heb 1:3).

4. Extra credit: Examine Isaiah 52:13 - 53:12. How could you relate the Suffering Servant (52:13; 53:11) to the Messiah? How could the Jewish rabbis miss this? Most of this rich passage is about the suffering and rejection of the Suffering Servant, but the main point is that His suffering will lead to exaltation and glory. Of course, referring to the Messiah, our Lord Jesus Christ, who came to save sinners, and He did this by paying the penalty for our sins by dying on the cross as God’s Sacrificial Lamb. The Suffering Servant, as the term used in Isaiah 52:13, is the Messiah, our Lord Jesus. He would be highly exalted because of His sacrifice, described further in Isaiah chapter 53. His suffering is important, but His glory, which will be revealed, is equally important for it will show that the Servant did the will of God voluntarily. The Jewish rabbis never expected the Messiah to be shown by His humility, suffering, and mercy. He was to be the strong conqueror who was to overthrow the evil Roman Empire. They saw Jesus on the cross as being punished by God for His own sins, never ever believing that it was for their/our transgressions, and for their/our iniquities. The truth is that they/we were the ones who went astray and who walked in self-will, and Jehovah placed their/our iniquity on Him, the sinless Substitute. Today some rabbis believe that the Suffering Servant refers to Israel, to Isaiah himself, or even to Moses or some other prophet.

3. Why does Jesus rebuke them? Is His rebuke fair or warranted? Why or why not? (Luke 24:25-26) Jesus lovingly rebukes them for not realising that what happened is exactly the pathway the prophets of the OT had foretold for the Messiah. First, He must suffer, then He would be glorified. When Jesus told them how foolish they were, it was not an expression of contempt; I think He only meant that they were thoughtless in not considering properly the evidence of the prophets that the Messiah must die and rise again. The two disciples must have believed many things which the prophets had spoken, but they did not believe all. They believed the predictions of Messiah’s glory, but not of Messiah’s sufferings. This was the same trouble with the Jewish religious leaders of the day, who on the whole in reading the Old Testament, they saw only the glory and victory of the Messiah, not the fact that the path to these blessings was one of suffering. But there was no excuse for this, as they had not only the OT, but they also had the Lord Jesus Christ in their midst, who was constantly teaching them the Scriptures. I feel His rebuke was fair and warranted for not seeing what He had Himself so clearly predicted, and what had been foretold by the prophets.

2. Why don't they seem to believe the women's report of Jesus' resurrection? (Luke 24:22-24) Cleopas and his fellow disciple had left Jerusalem hopeless and downcast, not believing the women’s report, “because their words seemed to them like nonsense” (24:11b), neither could they explain it! The women who had been to the tomb and heard the angels’ words said that Jesus’ body was missing and that the angels had said Jesus is alive. But even with this news, these two disciples still failed to understand that this pointed to the great news that Jesus had been resurrected from the dead! When Peter and John verified the women's testimony that the tomb was empty (24:12), this was still not enough for them to understand, possibly because Peter and John had not reported actually seeing Jesus alive. So, there was still gloom, as noted by these disciples who had all this information, but had left the city still believing that all their hopes in Jesus had been dashed. They had hoped that Jesus was the One who would redeem Israel, but now all hope is gone.

1. How would you describe the spiritual and emotional temperature of Cleopas and his fellow disciple before Jesus teaches them? (Luke 24:13-24) Cleopas and his fellow disciple were travelling from Jerusalem to Emmaus, returning from the Passover celebrations. They were downcast, walking slowly, and sadly discussing the death and burial of Jesus. They looked sad, for the happenings of the last few days had filled their hearts and minds with sorrow and a feeling of disappointment. They could not understand why their Lord had allowed Himself to be arrested and put to death. After a while a stranger, Jesus unbeknown to them, joined them asking them what they were discussing, not because He lacked knowledge, but because He would have an opportunity to explain what they needed to know. When the two men heard this question, they stood still, surprised by the question. Cleopas was surprised that this stranger had managed to remain completely uninformed about matters that were on everybody's lips. Of course, they were hoping for a Messiah who would break the rule that the evil Romans had over them. What type of Messiah was Jesus who managed to allow Himself to be caught by the Jewish authorities, handed over to the Romans, and be crucified? Their hopes had been devastated. Their sadness was rooted in misunderstanding; misunderstanding led to disappointment; disappointment led to doubt; doubt led to discouragement.

Q21 Q21. (Ephesians 2:8-9) What exactly is faith? Can we take credit for having it? Can we be condemned for lacking it? Define "faith" in terms a 10-year-old could understand. Faith is trusting in our Lord Jesus Christ for forgiveness of our sins, as well for spending eternal life with Him. We were spiritually dead as we studied earlier, and when dead we are utterly hopeless and helpless to come to Jesus in our own strength; we need God to awaken the fact that we are sinners desperately in need of a Saviour (John 6:44). Once we have come to this realisation we have the choice of accepting Jesus or refusing Him. It is only now by making the right choice that we can take some credit for having faith in accepting Christ. We come to Jesus and tell Him that we no longer depend on ourselves or our own good works any longer, and that we can never make ourselves righteous before God. It is an attitude of the heart that depends not at all on our own merit but entirely on God’s free gift of grace. Yes, we will be condemned for rejecting our Lord’s offer of salvation. By not putting our trust in Jesus, we are being foolish and deserve to be condemned. Explaining faith to a youngster, “You can always trust Jesus for everything you do. Trust Him to answer your prayers, and to help you when in trouble. This trust is called faith.”

Q20. (Ephesians 2:10) According to Ephesians 2:10, what were we created to do? Why? (Matthew 5:16) What is the difference between these works and the works Paul discredits in verse 9? We were created to glorify our Father in heaven. Being created “in Christ Jesus”, means that apart from Him we are nothing and can accomplish nothing. As a new creation, the old things have passed away (2 Cor 5:17), and we now have a renewed mind, a grateful heart, and a surrendered will. We have been made alive together with Christ to do good works. Having the gifts and graces of the Holy Spirit, we are able to bear fruits, such as “love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, meekness, and self-control” (Gal 5:22-23), which all help us in doing good works. The reason we do good works is to let our light shine, so that people will then see them, and so bring glory to our heavenly Father (Matt 5:16). The good works we are expected to do are those that God has prepared us beforehand to do. It is our responsibility to find His will for us and to then obey it. The difference between these works is that we are not saved by these works, we are saved through faith alone, and this to prevent us from boasting. Remembering that we were not saved by good works; we were saved for good works. And that we do not work in order to be saved; we work because we are saved. If we could be saved by works then the death of Christ was unnecessary (Gal 2:21). Jesus died because there was no other way for us to be saved.

Q19. (Ephesians 2:8-9) "Saved" has become Christian jargon. How can you "translate" this word into modern speech so people can understand what it really means and why they need it? In explaining the word saved, to unbelievers, we have to explain what they are being saved from. Each one of us is dead in sins, separated from God, and enslaved to this world. We are completely consumed with our desires. We must know that Jesus came to earth, that we might have life and have it more abundantly. We must also recognise that God is the source of real life, and not to know Him is to be dead. So, we must be saved or rescued from death, spiritual death, and from alienation from God. We must also understand the dire situation in which we are in, we need to be rescued not only from our sins and spiritual death, from our rebellion against God, from our slavery to this world and to the temptations of the devil, but most importantly of all from the wrath of God. The only way we can be rescued is by the grace of God. It is not something we can attain by doing, but only by believing. We cannot do anything to earn or deserve this grace; we just reach out our hand and trust Jesus, the Son of God, to give us something that we don’t deserve. We repent of our sins and turn to Jesus. It is a free gift from God. It has nothing to do with any good deeds we might have done; we cannot earn this grace. We not only need to know what we are to be rescued from and how we are to be rescued, we also need to know for what we are to be rescued. We are to be rescued wholly and only by the grace of God through the work of Christ, so that we will be obedient Christians delighting in the Law of God, loving to do good works. That is to love God with all your heart, to love neighbour, to care for one another, to show the love of Christ in every facet of our lives, to show real gospel humility and to ultimately spend eternity with God in heaven.

Q18. (Ephesians 2:8-9) Why is it so hard for us to understand grace? What commonly held life principle does it demolish? Translate the word "grace" into language a 10-year-old child would understand. Because of our self-centredness and selfishness, we always want to be in control. It’s all about me, me, and me. We belong to this world and cannot perceive getting a free gift without working for it – earning it. If we are given a “free” gift, we always think there is a hidden agenda behind the gift – nothing is for nothing. It is only when we come to the realisation of the true meaning of grace that we surrender all to our Lord and Saviour Jesus. Our response should be one of gratitude once we realise our salvation and even our faith are free gifts from our heavenly Father. It has nothing to do with who we are or what we have done. It cannot be earned. If this was so, then salvation is no longer by grace (Rom 11:6). Also, it would give us a reason to boast (Rom 3:27). What will happen, we will want to serve our Lord Jesus, by showing love, and kindness to others out of our thankfulness for what He has done for us. To the young child: “Always remember Jesus loves you so much, that He wants to give you gifts, and these gifts are called grace.”

Q17 Q17. (Ephesians 2:6) What does it mean that we are seated with Christ in "the heavenly realms"? What does this say about God's grace? What does this say about our spiritual authority? How should this knowledge affect our prayers and our boldness? Wow! Besides being made alive, we have been raised up with Christ. Christ who dwells in us has given us a new, powerful, and unique life and position. And because of this we have a new set of values, “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your heart on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things” (Col 3:1-2). But God has also seated us with Christ in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus. Think of this, we are no longer of this world, our citizenship is in heaven, “But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Saviour from there, the Lord Jesus Christ... (Phil 3:20). All the above is given us by God’s grace. What a wonderful God we serve!! Jesus Christ is seated on the throne and has dominion over all things. We are united with Christ and being co-heirs with Jesus involves us in the heavenly realms. For the time being our involvement is by prayers and petitions; this we can do with a renewed boldness.

Q16. (Ephesians 2:4-5) In verses 4 and 5, which words describe God's motivation and character? Which verbs describe what has happened to us in Christ? We were dead in our sins, we were rebels against Him, we were enslaved by Satan, the world and our sinful natures. “But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom 5:8). God’s motivation is His great love for us, as well as His mercy and His grace. We were under God’s wrath, and only His love could triumph over wrath. We were dead, and so helpless to save ourselves, that only His mercy could reach the helpless. We deserved nothing but judgment, and only His grace could rescue us. Because He had great love for us, and He was rich in mercy toward us, He provided a way, through His own unmerited favour, for us to return to Him. Being spiritually dead, in rebellion against Him, and in bondage to sin we definitely did not deserve His grace, and since the wages of sin is death (Rom 6:23), His mercy prevented us getting what we deserve – death. It has been said that grace involves God giving believers what they do not deserve, and mercy means that God does not give what is deserved. Although we were dead in our transgressions, God made us alive together with Christ. That is saved by grace giving us new spiritual life. Unlimited mercy, grace, and love describe His character.

Q15. (Ephesians 2:1-3) Few people would knowingly follow Satan. How can people unwittingly follow Satan? In what sense are we responsible for unwitting rebellion against God? How can God, in all fairness, blame us? Satan, the ruler of the kingdom of darkness, holds unbelievers unwittingly captive to the world and to the flesh. The world by its prevailing secular culture that is so anti-Christian, that permeates, and dominates unbelievers, holding them captive to their false thinking. The flesh by their own fallen self-centred nature. By their twisted passions, twisted desires of the body and mind. Their sinful nature, selfishness, and pride made sure of that. Satan dominates by controlling and directing their existence in rebellion against God. So, it was with all of us before we became believers, when we were spiritually dead, we also unwittingly followed Satan. Each one of us is responsible for the sins we commit and God will hold us accountable, there is no excuse. If we violate His moral law, either in act, thought or nature, we sin and are responsible.

Q14. (Ephesians 2:1-3) In what sense are our non-believing friends, neighbours, and relatives "dead"? What's the difference between us and them? If we really believed that they were "dead" and subject to God's "wrath," what would we do? All unbelievers are dead, that is spiritually dead as a result of their trespasses and sins. They are not sick, they are all dead and the only difference between one sinner and another is the state of decay, for one cannot be more dead than another. Dead is dead. The difference between us and them is the fact that they are unable to respond to spiritual things. The natural man does not, cannot understand the things of God, to them it is all foolishness (1 Col 1:18). It is only as a result of God’s love, His mercy, His grace, and the redeeming work of our Lord Jesus Christ that we have been made alive. We heard the gospel, accepted it by faith, and the miracle of regeneration took place. They on the other hand, have no vital contact with God and live as if He did not exist; their only future will be to face judgment and the wrath of God. “The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men” (Rom 1:18a). They need to be introduced to the gospel and the saving grace of our Heavenly Father. They need to urgently repent and put their faith in the Saviour, our Lord Jesus Christ, and to start building up a relationship with Him, so as to get to know Him personally. For the wages of sin is death (Rom 6:23).

8. Does the validity of the Christian faith rely upon resurrection as an historical fact rather than a religious myth? Yes or no? Support your answer. The resurrection of Christ is a historical fact. There is abundant testimony to the resurrection of Christ in the Gospels (Matt 28:1-20; Mark 16:1-8; Luke 24:1-53; John 20:1-21:25). The book of Acts tells us about the resurrected Christ who is alive and reigning in heaven. The Epistles write about Jesus as a living, reigning Saviour who is now the exalted head of the church, who is to be trusted, worshiped, and adored, and who will someday return in power and great glory to reign as King over the earth. The book of Revelation repeatedly shows the risen Christ reigning in heaven and predicts His return to conquer His enemies and reign in glory. In fact, the whole NT bears witness to the resurrection of Christ. The evidences that Christ was risen are many and are very strong and convincing. The empty tomb - the only explanation for the missing body is the resurrection; the undisturbed grave clothes – thieves would not have had enough time to remove the clothes, and for friends it would have been disrespectful; the unnecessary guarding of the tomb – the enemies of Christ would not want to steal the body; the lies spoken by the guards – that they were asked to lie indicated that the Jewish leaders believed the resurrection had occurred and tried to cover it up; the unbelief by Christ’s disciples – they did not believe in the resurrection and were very slow to finally believe; the undeniable appearances of Christ – He appeared to over 500 people, and at least eleven times to His followers between the resurrection and the ascension. In these appearances He ate with His followers and showed them His wounds in His body; giving indisputable evidence of His resurrection. All these appearances cannot be explained as imaginations or illusions. I have read it said, “The evidence for the Resurrection of Jesus Christ is so overwhelming that it compels acceptance by proof which leaves absolutely no room for doubt.” He has risen!

7. How do Peter's observations of Jesus' graveclothes (Luke 24:12) bear on the rumour that His body had been stolen? (Matthew 28:13-15) When Peter went to the tomb he confirmed that the tomb was empty, and he saw the linen cloths lying there by themselves. These were the cloths that had been tightly wound around our Lord’s body. Matthew tells us (Matt 28:11-13) that as soon as the religious leaders were told that the tomb was empty, they quickly thought out a strategy to bribe the soldiers, who were to tell that the disciples stole the body of Jesus while they slept. All that had to be done was to produce the body and the Christian movement was dead and buried. The fact that the grave-clothes were left behind shows that the body was not stolen; thieves would not take time, or even have the time, to remove the coverings. Jesus’ body had passed through the grave clothes and left them lying there intact. There were other lies which stated that the women went to the wrong tomb – we know this to be a lie since the women had watched Joseph bury our Lord in the tomb Joseph owned. That would have meant the angels had been mistaken about the right tomb, having said “He is not here. He is risen” (24:6). Others have suggested that Jesus did not die, but swooned away, and that He was resuscitated somehow in this damp tomb. Forgetting that no man on the inside of that tomb could ever roll back the heavy stone which came down an incline and fitted into a groove. People will make all sorts of excuses not to believe in the resurrection. This is because they do not want to turn away from their sin. If Jesus is risen, then He is the rightful Lord of all, and I must turn from my sin and live under His lordship.

6. Why did the female disciples believe in Jesus' resurrection while the male disciples didn't believe yet? (Luke 24:11) These women had been emotionally involved in all that happened these last few days. They had suffered when Jesus had been handed over to the Jewish leaders, and even more so as to His crucifixion, having been present at Calvary. One cannot imagine the trauma and shock they must have experienced seeing their beloved Jesus dying on the cross. The fact that that these women were often in the company of the disciples meant that they would also have heard Jesus predicting His death and resurrection. And now the two angels link these things together. The dramatic events that happened which to a large extent they had witnessed, and Jesus’ words and predictions. It all started coming back to them – they remembered. They had confirmation, the empty tomb and the reminder that they had received from the two angels was all they needed. But to the male disciples this all seemed like idle tales, and they did not believe what the female disciples told them. They had to go and see for themselves.

5. What do we know about these women who cared for Jesus' corpse and were the first witnesses to His resurrection? Where did they come from? Why did they love Jesus? (Hint: see Luke 8:1-3) We know that they started to follow Jesus early in His Galilean ministry. These were faithful women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases, and who out of love and gratitude were helping to support Jesus and the twelve. Those who had experienced the Saviour’s mercy had the privilege of serving Him out of love. They were delivered and healed from the afflictions that had dominated their lives, and now they wanted to serve the Lord. Here we see that when Christ powerfully breaks into a life with His good news of salvation, the captive sinner is released from bondage. The gospel always makes a demonstrable difference in the life of the person who has responded to it. These women could see that Jesus and the disciples were not getting rich off the gospel, and they saw the needs and took the initiative to give without being pressured. Luke 8:1-3 provides us with an insight into how Jesus and His disciples met their basic needs, and how the women were able to supply the daily necessities of Jesus and His disciples. Without them, humanly speaking, Jesus and the twelve would have had to spend time working to support themselves and would not have been free to preach the gospel.

4. How could Jesus have predicted His death and resurrection three times (see footnote 19 below) and it still hadn't registered with His disciples? (Luke 24:6-8) The angels reminded the women that Jesus had accurately predicted all that had happened to Him. We read earlier that Jesus had spoken to His disciples in Luke 9:22; 9:44; and 18:31-34. Initially (9:22) He told them that He must suffer, must be rejected by the religious leaders of Israel, must be killed and must be raised the third day. This was an astounding announcement and must have come as a shock to the disciples. But then He warned them not to tell this to anyone, so that this news would not hamper their ministry. So, I doubt they realised what Jesus was saying. This of course was the very opposite of the popular conception of Messiah's role. They were expecting a leader that would destroy the Roman rule over them. Our Lord again reminded them that the Son of Man must be betrayed into the hands of men, that is, to be killed (9:44). He was performing miracles and had a huge following, and to the disciples His death would have meant defeat which was unthinkable considering the Messiah had become a popular hero. Finally, for the third time Jesus predicts His death and resurrection (18:31-34). Yet again they did not understand what He was saying or perhaps did not want to understand. We often believe what we want to believe, and block out anything that does not fit into our preconceived notions. Besides they most probably still had their minds set on a Messiah who would rescue them from the yoke of Rome, and set up the His kingdom immediately.

3. In what way is the angels' declaration ironic? (Luke 24:5b) In what way is it thrilling? (Luke 24:6) It’s ironic in that the women are looking in a tomb for the living Christ, but of course He’s not there among the dead. He has risen! It’s thrilling in that through our Lord Jesus Christ’s resurrection we have been given a new birth through our faith in Him (1 Pet 1:3). Here Peter gives us the full name of the Son: Lord - the One with the exclusive right to rule in hearts and lives; Jesus - the One who saves His people from their sins; Christ - God's Anointed One who has been exalted to heaven's highest place. As sinners, we had no hope beyond the grave. There was nothing ahead for us but the certainty of judgment and fiery indignation. But in the redemptive work of Christ, God found a righteous basis upon which He can save ungodly sinners and still be just. Christ has paid the penalty of our sins. This is why Paul can say that God "made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions – it is by grace you have been saved, and raised us up with Him" (Eph 2:5-6).

2. What evidence do we have that the empty tomb isn't just a case of mistaken identity of one tomb for another? Luke writes that the women who followed Jesus remained keenly interested in what was going on, and had followed Joseph closely so that they saw exactly where the tomb was and how the body was laid (23:55). Matthew also confirms that they saw how the body of Jesus was carried into the new tomb which Joseph, who owned the garden in which it was located, had carved out in the rock. The women also observed how a big stone had been rolled in front of the entrance of the tomb (Matt 27:59-61). Again, Mark mentions that Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joseph saw where He was laid. They were watching, were observing … carefully, intently, devoutly. They had seen the stone rolled in front of the entrance, and now they see that exact stone rolled away from the tomb. So, they knew exactly where Jesus was buried and were able to go early in the morning to the exact tomb, without any hesitation or doubt.

1. Why did the women go to the tomb on Sunday morning very early? Why didn't they go later in the day, do you think? (Luke 24:1) They had prepared all the ointments, spices, and fragrances needed on Friday evening before the start of the Sabbath. On Saturday the women rested, in obedience to the commandment concerning the Sabbath. Come Sunday, they are now keen to get early to the grave and anoint the body of Jesus properly. In their sorrow they had forgotten the prophesies that our Lord Jesus Himself had spoken; there was no thought of a resurrection. They were impatient to anoint the body, as soon as possible, and it was in their time of depression, discouragement, defeat, sadness, and confusion that these women rose early. This out of their love and faithfulness towards their beloved Lord. They didn’t go later in the day perhaps because they may have been worried that the body had not been properly anointed, in their haste, by Joseph and Nicodemus. There was also the concern about rolling the stone away from the entrance. How were they going to roll it away on their own?

6. Why are Jesus' followers so extravagant at His death? What does that teach us? As believers we may feel that there isn’t much we can do, out of gratitude, to thank Jesus for dying on the cross for our sins. Nothing can compare to His sacrifice. But I feel we must take advantage of the opportunities given to us by doing what we can, and not worry about the things we cannot do. Given the opportunity we should make our resources available to expand His Kingdom and to glorify our Lord. To do what we can. To witness, to be obedient. To love Him, and our fellow believers. Living the life of a true believer, living to serve Him, trying to live a life of imitating our Lord Jesus Christ, loving and forgiving others as God has loved and forgiven me.

5. What do we know about these women who followed Jesus? Why do they follow the body to the tomb? These were faithful women from Galilee who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases, and who out of gratitude were helping to support Jesus and the twelve. They were able to supply the daily necessities of Jesus and His disciples, and helping to support them out of their own means. They followed closely so that they saw exactly where the tomb was and how the body was laid. Being so close to the beginning of the Sabbath they were unable to make all the necessary preparations before the beginning of the day of rest. Then they went home and prepared spices and fragrant oils so that they could come back and embalm the body of the One they loved. In strict obedience to the commandment, they rested, and in accordance with Jewish burial customs, they were to go to the tomb the very next morning and anoint Jesus’ body.

4. Why is the timing important? Why the mention of the Sabbath? The timing is important because the Jews wanted all the bodies taken down, dead, and buried before the start of the Sabbath which would be at sunset. Jesus had been put on the cross at 9:00 a.m., and He had given up His life at 3:00 in the afternoon. Since He was in control of His own death, He had only been on the cross for six hours. All three, if not dead, taken down, and buried would have desecrated the Sabbath Passover day. To hasten death, they requested Pilate to have the legs of the three broken (John 19:31). Death would happen very rapidly, within a few minutes. The two criminals legs were broken because they were both still alive. Jesus was already dead, so His legs were not broken, instead, one of the soldiers pierced Jesus' side with a spear (John 19:34). “But He was pierced for our transgressions” (Isa 53:5a). Jesus’ burial took place between 3:00 and 6:00 p.m., that is on Friday, the day of the Preparation, before sunset, that is before the Jewish Sabbath which begins on Friday at sunset.

3. What do the Gospels tell us about the tomb and Jesus' burial? Why are these details important? Joseph of Arimathea with the help of Nicodemus removed the body of our Lord Jesus from the cross. They promptly wrapped it in linen, and laid it in a tomb that was carved out of solid rock, which had never been used before, and which belonged to Joseph. The mouth of the tomb was closed by a large stone, shaped like a millstone and standing on its edge in a channel also carved out of stone. Jesus had died in the company of criminals and normally the soldiers would throw His body into a common grave, the Valley of Hinnom, with the other two criminals (John 19:31). Centuries before, Isaiah had predicted: “He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in His death” (Isa 53:9a). This is exactly what happened, wicked men plotted to bury Him with the criminals, but God overruled, and He was with the rich at His death - in the new tomb of Joseph of Arimathea (Matt 27:57-60). Men plotted a shameful burial for Him although He had done no wrong, spoken no lie. “Though He had done no violence, nor was any deceit in His mouth” (Isa 53:9b). This shows that even in His death, even in His taking the transgressions of God’s people, the Messiah never sinned. He remained the Holy One, despite all the pain and suffering. The details are important because almost every detail concerning our Lord’s burial was a fulfillment of prophesy.