Mark 15:42 - Meaning and Application

We are here at the funeral of our Lord Jesus, a solemn and sad funeral. May we, by God’s grace, share in the likeness of his death. Notice first how Christ’s body was requested. Like the bodies of criminals, it was under the control of the government. Those who hurried him to the cross meant for him to be buried with the wicked, but God intended that he would be with the rich (Isaiah 53:9), and so it happened.

We are told when his body was requested, so it could be buried, and why the burial had to happen quickly. Evening had come, and it was the Preparation Day, that is, the day before the Sabbath (Mark 15:42). The Jews were stricter about the Sabbath than about any other feast. So even though this was already a feast day, they treated it with extra care because it was the eve of the Sabbath, when they prepared their homes and meals for the joy of the Sabbath itself. The day before the Sabbath should still be a day of preparation for the Sabbath, not mainly for our homes and tables, but for our hearts. We should, as much as possible, set aside worldly cares and get our hearts ready for God’s service and joy.

Such work should be done, and such blessings are to be gained on the Sabbath, that it is wise to prepare for it the day before. In fact, the whole week should be divided between making good use of the previous Sabbath and getting ready for the next one. We are also told who asked for the body and cared for its burial, Joseph of Arimathea, called here a respected counselor (Mark 15:43). He was a man of rank and public trust, likely a member of the Jewish high council, the Sanhedrin, or the high priest’s council. He was a counselor who carried himself in a way fitting his office. True honor belongs to those in authority who do their duty and live in a way that matches their position.

But there is a still brighter description of him. He was waiting for the kingdom of God, meaning the kingdom of grace on earth, the kingdom of glory in heaven, and the kingdom of the Messiah. Those who wait for God’s kingdom, and hope to share its blessings, must show it by standing up for Christ’s cause, even when it seems defeated and pushed down. Even among the respected leaders, there was at least one who waited for God’s kingdom, and his faith would condemn the unbelief of the rest. God raised him up for this needed task when none of Christ’s disciples had the means, influence, or courage to do it.

Joseph went boldly to Pilate. He knew this would offend the chief priests, who had already heaped shame on Jesus, but he took courage and acted. Perhaps he was at first a little afraid, but he gathered himself and chose to honor the remains of the Lord Jesus, whatever the cost. Pilate was surprised to hear that Jesus was dead, especially that he was already dead. He may have expected Jesus to save himself and come down from the cross. It was remarkable that one who seemed so strong should die so quickly. Every part of Christ’s death was wondrous, for from beginning to end his name was called Wonderful.

Pilate may have doubted whether Jesus was really dead, fearing someone might take down a living body, which would go against the sentence. So he called the centurion, his own officer, and asked whether Jesus had been dead for some time (Mark 15:44). He wanted to know whether enough time had passed without any sign of life, breath, or movement to be sure the death was real. The centurion could confirm it, since he had carefully noted how Jesus gave up his spirit (Mark 15:39). God had a special purpose in this. Pilate examined the matter so closely that no one could later claim Jesus had been buried alive and then merely recovered, which would weaken the truth of the resurrection. The matter was settled so fully that this objection never really arose. Sometimes the truth of Christ is confirmed even by its enemies.

Second, we see how Christ’s body was buried. Pilate gave Joseph permission to take down the body and do what he wished with it. It is surprising the chief priests were not quicker than Pilate, and that they had not first asked for the body themselves so they could shame it publicly. But God restrained the rest of their anger and gave this priceless gift to Joseph, who knew its value. The priests were so influenced that they did not stop him. As the saying goes, they cared only that Jesus not rise again, if only he would not be revived.

Joseph bought fine linen to wrap the body, though old linen might have seemed enough in such a case. When we honor Christ, we should be generous and give him the best we can, not merely what is easiest to get. He took down the body, torn and beaten as it was, and wrapped it in the linen as something of great worth. Our Lord Jesus has given himself to us sacramentally in the Lord’s Supper, and we should receive that ordinance in a way that shows our love for him, who loved us and died for us.

Joseph laid the body in his own tomb, in a private place. In the story of the kings of Judah, it was often a shameful thing when wicked kings were not buried in the tombs of the kings. Our Lord Jesus, though he did no evil but much good, and though the throne of his father David was given to him, was buried in the graves of ordinary people. His rest was glorious, but not in this world, rather in the next. The tomb belonged to Joseph. Abraham, even when he had no other property in Canaan, still had a burial place, but Christ had not even that much. The tomb was cut out of rock, because Christ died to make the grave a shelter and refuge for believers. Since it was hewn from rock, it was a strong refuge. “Oh that you would hide me in the grave!” Christ himself is a hiding place for his people, like the shade of a great rock.

Joseph rolled a stone against the entrance of the tomb, as the Jews did when they buried the dead. When Daniel was put into the lions’ den, a stone was placed over the opening to keep him inside, just as here a stone was placed at the entrance of Christ’s tomb. But neither stone could keep the angels away from the prisoners.

Some of the good women were there at the burial and saw where he was laid, so they could return after the Sabbath and anoint the body. They could not do it then because there was not time. When Moses, the mediator and lawgiver of the Jewish church, was buried, care was taken that no one should know where his grave was (Deuteronomy 34:6). That was because the people’s respect for Moses as a man was meant to end with him.

But when our great Mediator and Lawgiver was buried, special notice was taken of his tomb, because he was to rise again. The care taken of his body also points to the care he himself will take of his body, the church. Even when the church seems dead, like a valley full of dry bones, it will be kept safe for a resurrection. The same is true of the bodies of the saints, because God has made a covenant with their dust that he will not forget.

Thinking about Christ’s burial should lead us to think about our own burial too. It should help us become familiar with the grave and make that bed easier to face, since we must soon make it in the darkness. Often thinking about death would not only lessen our fear of it, but also stir us to prepare. The graves are always ready for us, so we should be ready for the graves (Job 17:1).