Matthew 27:57-66

⁵⁷ When it was evening, a rich man from Arimathea came, named Joseph, who also was a disciple of Jesus.

⁵⁸ He went to Pilate and requested the body of Jesus. Then Pilate ordered it to be given to him.

⁵⁹ And Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen shroud

⁶⁰ and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had cut in the rock. And he rolled a great stone to the entrance of the tomb and went away.

⁶¹ Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were there, sitting outside the tomb.

⁶² The next day, that is, after the day of Preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees assembled in front of Pilate

⁶³ and said, “Sir, we remember how that impostor said, while he was still alive, ‘After three days I will rise.’

⁶⁴ So, order the tomb to be made secure until the third day, so that his disciples do not go and steal him away and tell the people, ‘He has risen from the dead,’ and the last hoax will be worse than the first.”

⁶⁵ Pilate said to them, “You have a guard of soldiers. Go, make it as secure as you can.” ⁶⁶ So they went and made the tomb secure by sealing the stone and setting a guard.

the oldest alternative

Bloomberg calls the allegation that the disciples stole Jesus’ body “the oldest alternative to faith in the risen Christ.”[1]

We are asked to believe that the disciples—who ran for their lives when Jesus was arrested—suddenly transformed into fearless masterminds capable of stealing a guarded corpse. According to this theory, these terrified men somehow overpowered Roman soldiers, broke the seal of a tomb, carried off Jesus’ body, hid it so perfectly that it was never discovered, and then spent the rest of their lives boldly preaching a message they knew was a lie.

And for what? Not for wealth. Not for power. Not for comfort. Most of them were hunted, imprisoned, tortured, or executed. Yet they never recanted. Not one of them broke under pressure and said, “We made it all up.” That is not how conspiracies work. That is not how frightened men behave. And that is not how people act when they know their message is false.

The simplest explanation is the one the disciples themselves gave: Jesus rose from the dead. They did not risk their lives for a memory. They did not preach a metaphor. They proclaimed a living Lord whom they had seen, touched, and eaten with after His resurrection. Their courage was not born of imagination—it was born of encounter.

And that is why their testimony still stands. The Christ they served is alive. The Christ we serve is alive. And the Christ who rose is the Christ who will return.

LORD, we put our faith in You, the risen Christ. You are alive, reigning, and coming again. Strengthen our confidence in Your resurrection and anchor our hope in Your promised return.

[1] Craig Bloomberg, New American Commentary, vol. 22. (Kindle location 10840).