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Where do you keep your valuables? Many people rent safe deposit boxes at a bank. The bank guards, security systems and locks make it difficult to steal items in the bank vault. Bank security reminds me of the security at the empty tomb of Jesus.
Yes, Jesus’ tomb had security. The Jewish leaders were afraid the disciples would steal his body. They knew Jesus promised to rise again. So, they asked Pilate for security measures. Matthew 27:66 says, “They went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard.” (NIV 1984)
To seal the tomb the Romans stretched a cord from the closed stone to the wall of the tomb and anchored it is place with a large amount of wax or clay. A pattern representing the Roman governor was pressed into the lumps of wax.
I know, it doesn’t sound very secure, does it? It’s certainly not the same as a vault door. But the seal prevented the guards from looting the grave or stealing the body. Breaking the seal violated Roman law. The seal provided the ability to audit the trustworthiness of the guards, as well as, defer others by declaring the tomb closed by the governor. Anyone breaking the seal faced Roman wrath. If Jesus died and no one moved his body, how do we explain the empty tomb? Well, he rose from the dead.
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Bumper music “Landing Place” performed by Mark July, used under license from Shutterstock.