The Sepulcher Made Sure - Matthew 27:66

After Jesus was crucified and placed within a tomb, Matthew the apostle wrote, “the next day, that followed the day of the preparation, the chief priests and Pharisees came together unto Pilate, Saying, Sir, we remember that that deceiver said, while he was yet alive, After three days I will rise again. Command therefore that the sepulcher be made sure until the third day, lest his disciples come by night, and steal him away, and say unto the people, He is risen from the dead: so the last error shall be worse than the first. Pilate said unto them, You have a watch: go your way, make it as sure as you can”, and in chapter twenty-seven and verse sixty-six of his book, Matthew shared how the chief priests and Pharisees, “went, and made the sepulcher sure, sealing the stone” where we read:

So they went, and made the sepulcher sure, sealing the stone, and setting a watch.

The verse reads, “So they went, and made the sepulcher sure, ...” Matthew began words, “so they went” which means “therefore the chief priests and Pharisees left and departed”, “and made the sepulcher” or “made the tomb or grave of Jesus” “sure” which means “secure, guarded fast and firm”. Matthew shared how the “religious leaders” left Pilate and set their “secure and firm” guard over the “grave” of Jesus.

The verse continues, “... sealing the stone, and setting a watch.” Matthew added the words, “sealing the stone” or “marked or secured the stone which was rolled over Jesus sepulcher”, “and setting a watch” which means “with a use of Roman soldiers guarding the sepulcher”. Matthew shared how the “religious leaders” “put a sealed mark upon the stone” that was rolled over Jesus' sepulcher, and they had a “Roman guard” set as “a watch” over the grave.

When we consider Matthew's words in this verse, we see how the “religious leaders” attempted to do all they could to “secure and guard” Jesus' tomb. With their “seal” set upon the “stone”, which was more than likely the Sanhedrin seal or mark, and the “Roman guard” standing in front of the “sepulcher”, no one would be able to penetrate their reinforcements. However, they underestimated the power of God. God's intention was for Jesus to die, and God would “raise” Jesus from the dead. No one could stop it, and whether “seal” or “guard” was set upon Jesus' grave, those efforts were futile. Jesus died and was resurrected so mankind could be “saved from their sins” and have “everlasting life” with God. Let all who read these words know the “futility” of the efforts to suppress the works of God and submit their lives to His Son Jesus as their personal “Savior and Lord”.

Next time we begin a new chapter and see Matthew share what happened, “In the end of the sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.

Until tomorrow…there is more…

Look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms Volumes I and II" and the new novel "Elizabeth County" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore. All references are from "Strongs Concordance".