The dead stay dead: Caiaphas seals the tomb

It was once rumoured by an anonymous troublemaker that I was being paid too generously for the work I do as high priest. Let me tell you, no amount of money could recompense a man fully for the pressures that come with this post.

The moment Jesus had breathed his last you would have thought we were home and dry. Oh no. These matters are never over until you can be certain there are no loose ends, no chance whatsoever that the problem will not return in some form that’s uglier than the last.

Once the body had been certified dead, I assumed the Romans would deal with it in some way. That was why I’d agreed with Pilate we needed this all over by sunset. Well, it was indeed dealt with in one sense. A member of my council, of all people, requested the body for a proper burial and Pilate acceded to the request. I had no idea that such a quiet mouse of a man like Joseph of Arimathea had enough nerve in him. I’d never been entirely sure of his loyalty to me.

In theory, I should have been pleased – we knew where the body of this troublesome preacher had been put. The worrying question was whether it would stay there. It wasn’t a problem I relished in the middle of our festival but it needed to be faced.

After a brief discussion with council members, it was decided that action must be taken. I told those with me how the Jewish law would be interpreted by us on this occasion.

Should the question ever arise, I explained, executing our necessary priestly duties cannot conceivably be described as Sabbath-breaking.

Then we sent a message to Pilate and eventually gained an audience with him. I think it’s fair to say that he was not pleased to see us.

‘Your Excellency,’ I began. ‘We recall that, while he was still alive, the imposter who claimed to be our king alleged that he would rise again on the third day from death.

If the disciples come and steal the body, they will start to claim that he has actually
been raised from the tomb. The last lie will most certainly be worse than the first one.’ You could see in Pilate’s eyes how disinterested he was in the proper concerns of keeping our people safe from false teaching. However, you could usually rely on him to take any route for a quiet life.

‘Take a guard,’ he said, without even looking up. Then he turned to me, ‘It is your task to make the tomb as secure as you can.’

I got the message. He’d lend me the soldiers but the responsibility for the security was on our shoulders. That was fine by me. Once the tomb was sealed, we’d comfortably be able to deal with any hot-headed disciples. All that really mattered was that the dead stayed dead.

Where to find this story in your Bible?

Matthew 27:62–66

Easter Inside Out is available here

David Kitchen is an award-winning writer, broadcaster, teacher and storyteller who has been making the Bible come alive for longer than he cares to remember. In Bible in Ten he combines his down-to-earth writing skills with almost 50 years’ experience in church leadership and worship. His hobbies include music, poetry and playing crawling-up-stairs games with his grandson.