6 h 4 abr 33 ano - Tomb Secured

Descrição:

Herod the Great and Jesus Chronological, Historical and Archaeological Evidence
Gérard GERTOUX

To avoid the flaunting of their dissensions openly and thus indirectly encouraging Jesus' followers, the Sanhedrin requested Pilate to guard the tomb by invoking as official reason "the need to deter Jesus' supporters to recover the body in order to achieve fraudulently the prophecy about his resurrection" and thus prevent any sedition. In fact, by the presence of Roman soldiers, the Sanhedrin wanted to make believe that Jesus was a criminal according to Roman law. Next day [Saturday], that is, when Preparation Day [Friday] was over, the chief priests and the Pharisees went in a body to Pilate and said to him: Your Excellency, we recall that this impostor said, while he was still alive, "After 3 days I shall rise again". Therefore give the order to have the sepulchre kept secure until the 3rd day [Sunday], for fear his disciples come and steal him away and tell the people: He has risen from the dead. This last piece of fraud would be worse than what went before. Pilate said to them: You may have your guard; go and make all as secure as you know how. So they went and made the sepulchre secure, putting seals on the stone and mounting a guard (Mt 27:62-66). The first "deception" was referring to the usurped title, according to Roman law, of "King of the Jews" (but also to having said "Messiah, Son of God" to the Sanhedrin). Pilate's response shows that he did not want to run a police operation in favour of the Jews, however the Sanhedrin had to remind him that it could not make Jewish policemen work on the Sabbath, forcing Pilate to delegate some of his soldiers (a squad) for such a custody, as can be verified later in the narrative: After the Sabbath, and towards dawn on the 1st day of the week [Sunday], Mary of Magdala and the other Mary went to visit the sepulchre. And suddenly there was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord, descending from heaven, came and rolled away the stone and sat on it. His face was like lightning, his robe white as snow. The guards were so shaken by fear of him that they were like dead men. But the angel spoke; and he said to the women: There is no need for you to be afraid. I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here, for he has risen, as he said he would. Come and see the place where he lay, then go quickly and tell his disciples: He has risen from the
dead and now he is going ahead of you to Galilee; that is where you will see him. Look! I have told you. Filled with awe and great joy the women came quickly away from the tomb and ran to tell his disciples. And suddenly, coming to meet them, was Jesus. Greetings, he said. And the women came up to him and, clasping his feet, they did him homage. Then Jesus said to them: Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers that they must leave for Galilee; there they will see me. Now while they were on their way, some of the guards went off into the city to tell the chief priests all that had happened. These held a meeting with the elders and, after some discussion, handed a considerable sum of money to the soldiers with these instructions: This is what you must say, "His disciples came during the night and stole him away while we were asleep". And should the governor [Pilate] come to hear of this, we undertake to put things right with him ourselves and to see that you do not get into trouble. So they took the money and carried out their instructions, and to this day that is the story among the Jews (Mt 28:1-15). The women came to the tomb bringing the spices needed for burial, because they did not know that Jesus was buried according to the standards and even in a royal manner according to the quantities used. The guards were indeed Roman soldiers because they were accountable to the governor after informing the high priests. If they had been Jewish soldiers (Lk 3:14) they would not have had to account to the governor367. For having lost their prisoner, they risked the death penalty (Ac 16:27; Jewish War V:482). The proposal of the Sanhedrin must have reassured them, especially since it was supported by a large sum of money. Pilate's clemency would be assured because the sponsor of the mission was the Sanhedrin itself and Roman governors could negotiate this kind of negligence, as Tacitus reports: The sentinels sought to excuse their own scandalous neglect by the disgraceful conduct of the general, alleging that they had been ordered to be silent, that they might not disturb his rest, and that, from omitting the watchwords and the usual challenges, they had themselves fallen asleep (The Histories V:22).

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