After he was captured by the Romans and interrogated, Jesus was blind folded, beaten, whipped, and spit upon, and a crown of thorns was pressed onto his head. Then he was forced to carry his cross to Calvary, but he was so weakened by that time that he could do it only part way. Roman soldiers commandeered someone from the crowd to carry it for him.
Finally, he was taken to the place of crucifixion where he was stripped naked and then, totally bloody, he was nailed to the cross. While Romans normally allowed the victim to suffer for days, they decided to force their deaths that day because of the upcoming Jewish holiday. To accomplish this task, they would break the lower leg bones of the victims so they could no long push up for breath; they would then soon suffocate. When they came to Jesus, they saw that he was apparently dead. So, to make sure, the soldiers thrust a spear into his side just below the ribs. Blood and water flowed out, indicating that he was indeed dead.
A rich man named Joseph of Arimathea, who was a member of the Jewish Sanhedrin but a secret follower of Jesus, asked Pilot for the body. He and Nicodemus, another Pharisee and also a secret follower of Jesus, prepared Jesus’ body for burial and placed him in Joseph’s tomb.
Unbeknownst to Joseph and Nicodemus, their choice to put Jesus in Joseph’s tomb fulfilled Isaiah’s prophecy spoken hundreds of years before Jesus’ death: “He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth” (Isaiah 53:9, (emphasis added). This is one of the many prophecies that have confirmed Jesus’ identity as the Messiah and Son of God.
Three days after his crucifixion, Jesus was raised from the dead, conquering death itself.
We say all of this because some doubters believe that Jesus simply “swooned” and could revive inside the tomb, roll the large stone away from the opening and get out. But Roman soldiers know a dead man when they see one. Also, any man who was near death before he was nailed to the cross could not have survived and escaped.
Others suggest that the disciples of Christ stole the body. But the Jewish leaders expected that possibility and asked Pilot to post guards at the tomb, which he did. But when an angel came and rolled the stone away, the guards fell to the ground. They reported what happened to the Jews who said they would cover for them. As noted previously, the ultimate proof that God the Creator was acting through all of this was when Jesus was raised from the dead. God created life on earth, He could take life and also resurrect it, in this case bringing the hope of salvation to all mankind.