11 While they were going, behold, some of the guard went into the city and told the chief priests all that had taken place. 12 And when they had assembled with the elders and taken counsel, they gave a sufficient sum of money to the soldiers 13 and said, “Tell people, ‘His disciples came by night and stole him away while we were asleep.’ 14 And if this comes to the governor’s ears, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” 15 So they took the money and did as they were directed. And this story has been spread among the Jews to this day.” (Matthew 28:11–15 (ESV)
All four Gospels parallel each other concerning the events on Resurrection Sunday. The Holy Spirit specifically inspired one of two of the writers to provide particular information not found in the other Gospels. While each writer provides selective, insightful information, they do not contradict each other in telling the wonderful news that Jesus Christ is alive. Such is the case with today’s text from Matthew.
The phrase “while they were going” refers to the women who came to the empty tomb. Upon seeing the angel, hearing the announcement of Jesus’ resurrection, and then encountering the risen Lord, they obeyed the angel’s command to “go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me” (Matt. 28:1-10).
At the same time, some of the guards the religious leaders stationed at the same tomb (Matt. 27:62-66), went to the chief priests: Annas and Caiaphas. They told them what occurred. The guards had no reason to lie and faced the real possibility of incurring the fury of, and execution by, the religious leaders for failing to protect the tomb.
However, instead of punishing the soldiers for the tomb’s breach on their watch, the chief priests and the Sanhedrin counseled together and decided to bribe the guards by having them say Jesus’ disciples stole the body. This supposedly occurred because the guards were asleep.
The religious leaders further reasoned this explanation would satisfy Pontius Pilate and keep the soldiers from facing the governor’s wrath. The guardsmen accepted the bribe and spread the perpetrated lie.
“Although the Jewish religious leaders did not believe Jesus’ predictions that He would rise on the third day, they now treat them more seriously to cover up what has happened,” explains Dr. R. C. Sproul.
“Soldiers posted to guard the tomb against Jesus’ disciples become ‘like dead men’ in their terror when the angel of the Lord descends to remove the stone from the empty tomb of the risen, living Lord Jesus (Matt. 28:3). The glorious, stunning appearance of the angel of the Lord (28:3-4) appears to have had no effect on those committed to unbelief. For a price, and the promise of immunity from punishment for sleeping on their watch, the soldiers readily perjure themselves. That the story of the disciples’ stealing Jesus’ body was still circulated in the days of Justin Martyr (160 A.D.) suggests the Jewish leaders’ desperation to explain the indisputable fact of Jesus’ empty tomb.”
“We do not read that the Sanhedrin rejected the soldiers’ report in utter disbelief. Neither is it correct, however, to say that the Sanhedrin believed it. One fact is certain: this body did not want to have the people believe what the soldiers had just now reported. It was afraid that any such news would readily be linked with the idea of a resurrection from the grave, and that this belief, in turn, would cause the people to lose confidence in their leaders, who had been chiefly responsible for the murder of Jesus,” states Dr. William Hendriksen.
“So the Sanhedrin pass a resolution containing three items, namely, to give the soldiers: a. a large sum of money; b. a story to spread; and c. assurance of freedom from punishment. As to a. the sum had to be large, for the admission that they, the men on guard duty, had been sleeping instead of watching, would not reflect honor on themselves. As to b. the story “his disciples … stole him” would explain why the tomb was empty, and would hopefully counteract belief in a resurrection. And as to c. what had happened at Calvary—see Matt. 27:23–26; cf. John 19:12, 13—had strengthened the Sanhedrin’s conviction that Pilate could be bent according to its will. “We will persuade—or satisfy—him,” says the council.”
“As to the Sanhedrin, it may seem strange that a body of such dignitaries and clothed with such high authority would actually resort to this crookedness. But is it so strange that men who had committed murder now also resort to lying in order to cover up what they had done,” concludes Dr. Hendriksen.
1 Corinthians 2:14 (ESV) says, “The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.” As it was with the unconverted in today’s text, so it remains today.
May the Lord’s truth and grace be found here.
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