The Resurrection – Matthew 27:57 – 28:10

The Story in a Nutshell

The story continues…

Evening was approaching, and a rich man named Joseph who was a follower of Jesus wanted to bury him.  So, he went to Pilate and got permission to receive the body.  He wrapped the body in linen cloth, placed it in his own tomb which he had carved out of rock, and rolled a large stone across the entrance.  Mary Magdalene and the other Mary, the mother of James and Joseph, who witnessed the crucifixion also witnessed the burial.

The next day the leading priests and Pharisees went to see Pilate.  They were concerned.  They recalled that Jesus had said after three days that we would be raised from the dead.  They didn’t think that would happen, but they did think that the disciples might steal the body from the tomb and then tell everyone that he rose from the dead.  So, they asked Pilate to seal the tomb until after the third day.  Pilate told them to take some guards, seal the tomb as best they could, and station the guards around the tomb to protect it.  And that they did.

Early Sunday morning, the third day, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to the tomb.  Suddenly, there was a great earthquake and an angel of the Lord appeared.  He rolled away the stone from the tomb and sat upon it.  His face was as bright as lightning and his clothing as white as now.  The guards were so frightened when they saw him that they fainted.

The angel spoke to Mary Magdalene and the other Mary.  “Don’t be afraid.  Jesus isn’t here.  He has been raised from the dead just as he said he would.  Look inside the tomb and see.  Go quickly now and tell the disciples.  Jesus is going ahead of you to Galilee.  You will see him there.”

The women took off to find the disciples; they were both frightened and filled with joy.  And then it happened.  Jesus met them on the road and said, “Greetings!”   The two women ran to him, grabbed his feet, and worshipped him.  Then Jesus said, “Do not be afraid.  Tell the disciple to go to Galilee and I will meet them there.”

To be continued…

What did you learn from the story?

If you want to gain a full understanding of the complete story, and for help in answering some of the questions below, you may want to have the following items as additional resources:  a Bible, a dictionary, and a Bible commentary on the Book of Matthew (optional).

1. Who was the man named Joseph at the beginning of the story?
2. What did Joseph want to do?
3. How did he get the body of Jesus?
4. What did he do after he got Jesus’ body?
5. What concerned the Pharisee’s and leading priests the next morning?
6. What did they want Pilate to do?
7. What actually happened?
8. What happened early Sunday morning when Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to the tomb?
9. What did the angel of the Lord look like?
10. What did the soldiers guarding the tomb think when they saw the angel of the Lord?
11. What happened to the soldiers when they saw the angel of the Lord?
12. What did the angel of the Lord say to Mary Magdalene and the other Mary?
13. What were Mary Magdalene and the other Mary thinking and feeling about all that was happening?
14. What happened to Mary Magdalene and the other Mary as they hurried away to tell the disciples?
15. What did Jesus say to the two women?
16. What did you learn about God, Jesus, and people from the story?

Have questions about God, Jesus, and the Bible? An excellent source for answers to your questions is gotquestions.org. Check it out. gotquestions.org.

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