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There is something added to each of the four accounts. Let me give you an account that includes all that is found in all four of the accounts.
And when evening had come, sense it was the Day of Preparation, that is, the day before the Sabbath, Joseph of Arimathea, a town in Judah, who was a rich and respected member of the Council, a good and righteous man, who had not consented to the deed , who was looking for the Kingdom of God and who secretly was a disciple of Jesus, asked Pilate for permission to take down the body of Jesus. Pilate hesitated because it normally took much longer for men to die on the cross, called in his Centurion to check if Jesus was really dead. When he learned from the Centurion that this was so, he granted Joseph permission to take down the body and bury it.
Nicodemus, who had come to Jesus by night, also assisted by bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about a hundred pounds. They took the body of Jesus and anointed it with the spices and bound it with strips of linen as was the custom for burial at that time. Near the place where Jesus was crucified was a garden and in that garden was a newly hewn tomb, hewed out of solid rock and presumably, it belonged to Joseph. They took the body and laid it in the tomb and then rolled a great stone across the door of the tomb and departed. Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James the Less, sat opposite the tomb watching.
This account incorporates all the information found in the four accounts. Now, let us look at some of this information. The time. Evening on the day before the Sabbath, Friday. The Sabbath started at sundown on Friday, therefore, if Jesus died about 3:00 PM as most believe, then they had only about 3 hours to accomplish all that they had to do. In those 3 hours they had to get permission from Pilate, wait for Pilate to verify that He was dead, remove Him from the cross, prepare Him for burial and bury Him.
Joseph, from the little town of Arimathea, was led of the Spirit to do this job. We know a great deal about this Joseph. He was called an honored counselor. He was a member of the Sanhedrin. He was a person of character and distinction. More importantly, he was one who was looking for the Kingdom of God. His word was was without question, this was the kind of man God was looking for to give witness to the burial of Jesus.
Notice what Joseph was risking in doing this:
Joseph risked it all to bury Jesus. It took a great deal of courage to go and talk to Pilate. Pilate, at this time, was very displeased with the Jews. He had offered them an opportunity to release Jesus and they choose a criminal instead. He was in no mood to deal with these people.
So Pilate had had a bad day also and when Joseph showed up asking for permission to bury the body of Jesus, he was concerned to say the least. Why? Well for one reason he was surprised that one of such high station as Joseph would have made such a request. Secondly, he did not believe that Jesus was dead yet. Normally, it took days for people to die on a cross, therefore before he could even consider the request, he needed to have one of his soldiers to verify that Jesus was dead. Notice how all this was according to God's plan. The Centurion could verify that Jesus was dead before they took Him down from the cross. This would dispel the rumors that the Jews circulated after the resurrection that Jesus was not dead when they took him down from the cross and actually they did not bury Him but took Him somewhere where He miraculously recovered. But they also forgot that there were those who witnessed His burial also, they would vouch for His death and burial. All this was the working of God to make it possible for Him to be buried before sundown that Friday evening and have witnesses to it all.
Now John, and only John, records for us that Nicodemus helped Joseph in the burial of Jesus. John never missed an opportunity to tell a story of love and "second thoughts". You remember Nicodemus, he was the one who came to Jesus by night. He was the one who could not understand the "new birth". But look at him now. He to was taking a big chance in helping Joseph for he had much to loose also. It would appear that he was the one who brought the myrrh and aloes, about 100 pounds, too anoint the body of Jesus. Noticed they anointed His body and took strips of linen and wrapped it from head to foot. Then they laid it to rest in what appears to have been, the tomb of Joseph. Then they rolled a great stone across the entrance of the tomb. There was no way in and no way out. Two good women witnessed all of this and it concludes the recorded events that occurred in the life of Christ on Friday, a day of suffering.
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