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Chapter 11.
Then Jesus, crying out with a loud voice, Father,
into Thy hands I shall commit my spirit, breathed His last.1911
And immediately one could see the
rocks rent: for there was an earthquake over all the earth; and
from the earthquake being violent and great, the rocks also were
rent. And the tombs of the dead were opened, and the curtain of
the temple was rent, and there was darkness from the sixth hour till
the ninth. And from all these things that had happened the Jews
were afraid, and said: Certainly this was a just man. And
Longinus, the centurion who stood by, said: Truly this was a son
of God. Others coming and seeing Him, beat their breasts from fear, and
again turned back.1912
And the centurion having perceived all these so
great miracles, went away and reported them to Pilate. And when
he heard, he wondered and was astonished, and from his fear and grief
would neither eat nor drink that day. And he sent notice, and all
the Sanhedrin came to him as soon as the darkness was past; and he said
to the people: You know how the sun has been darkened; you know
how the curtain has been rent. Certainly I did well in being by
no means willing to put to death the good man. And the
malefactors said to Pilate: This darkness is an eclipse of the
sun, such as has happened also at other times. Then they say to
him: We hold the feast of unleavened bread to-morrow; and we
entreat thee, since the crucified are still breathing, that their bones
be broken, and that they be brought down. Pilate said: It
shall be so. He therefore sent soldiers, and they found the two
robbers yet breathing, and they broke their legs; but finding Jesus
dead, they did not touch Him at all, except that a soldier speared Him
in the right side, and immediately there came forth blood and
water.1913
And as the day of the preparation1914
was drawing towards evening, Joseph, a man
well-born and rich, a God-fearing Jew, finding Nicodemus, whose
sentiments his foregoing speech had shown, says to him: I know
that thou didst love Jesus when living, and didst gladly hear his
words, and I saw thee fighting with the Jews on his account. If,
then, it seem good to thee, let us go to Pilate, and beg the body of
Jesus for burial, because it is a great sin for him to lie
unburied. I am afraid, said Nicodemus, lest Pilate should be
enraged, and some evil should befall me. But if thou wilt go
alone, and beg the dead, and take him, then will I also go with thee,
and help thee to do everything necessary for the burial.
Nicodemus having thus spoken, Joseph directed his eyes to heaven, and
prayed that he might not fail in his request; and he went away to
Pilate, and having saluted him, sat down. Then he says to
him: I entreat thee, my lord, not to be angry with me, if I shall
ask anything contrary to what seems good to your highness. And he
said: And what is it that thou askest? Joseph says:
Jesus, the good man whom through hatred the Jews have taken away to
crucify, him I entreat that thou give me for burial. Pilate
says: And what has happened, that we should deliver to be
honoured again the dead body of him against whom evidence of sorcery
was brought by his nation, and who was in suspicion of taking the
kingdom of Cæsar, and so was given up by us to death? And
Joseph, weeping and in great grief, fell at the feet of Pilate,
saying: My lord, let no hatred fall upon a dead man; for all the
evil that a man has done should perish with him in his death. And
I know your highness, how eager thou wast that Jesus should not be
crucified, and how much thou saidst to the Jews on his behalf, now in
entreaty and again in anger, and at last how thou didst wash thy hands,
and declare that thou wouldst by no means take part with those who
wished him to be put to death; for all which reasons I entreat
thee not to refuse my request. Pilate, therefore, seeing Joseph
thus lying, and supplicating, and weeping, raised him up, and
said: Go, I grant thee this dead man; take him, and do whatever
thou wilt.
And then Joseph, having thanked Pilate, and kissed
his hands and his garments, went forth, rejoicing indeed in heart as
having obtained his desire, but carrying tears in his eyes. Thus
also, though grieved, he was glad. Accordingly he goes away to
Nicodemus, and discloses to him all that had happened. Then,
having bought myrrh and aloes a hundred pounds, and a new
tomb,1915
they, along with the mother of God and Mary
Magdalene and Salome, along with John, and the rest of the women, did
what was customary for the body with white linen, and placed it in the
tomb.1916
And the mother of God said, weeping: How am
I not to lament thee, my son? How should I not tear my face with
my nails? This is that, my son, which Symeon the elder foretold
to me when I brought thee, an infant of forty days old, into the
temple. This is the sword which now goes through my
soul.1917
Who shall put a stop to my tears,
my sweetest son? No one at all except thyself alone, if, as thou
saidst, thou shalt rise again in three days.
Mary Magdalene said, weeping: Hear, O peoples,
tribes, and tongues, and learn to what death the lawless Jews have
delivered him who did them ten thousand good deeds. Hear, and be
astonished. Who will let these things be heard by all the
world? I shall go alone to Rome, to the Cæsar. I shall
show him what evil Pilate hath done in obeying the lawless Jews.
Likewise also, Joseph lamented, saying: Ah, me! sweetest Jesus,
most excellent of men, if indeed it be proper to call thee man, who
hast wrought such miracles as no man has ever done. How shall I
enshroud thee? How shall I entomb thee? There should now
have been here those whom thou fedst with a few loaves; for thus should
I not have seemed to fail in what is due.
Then Joseph, along with Nicodemus, went home; and likewise also the mother of
God, with the women, John1918
| 1918 It is to be
observed that John’s Gospel is much more frequently quoted in
this book than any of the others. | also being
present with them.
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