The Faults in the Framing: The Disciples Did Not Steal the Body of Jesus (Part 2)

Many can speculate at the different theories of the empty tomb (check out #3 on that list, the Alien Theory–it’s my favorite, aside from #1 of course!). Continuing from the previous post, all the theorizing in the world means little in light of the fact they all confirm: The tomb was empty.

Empty Tomb, So What?

         It could be argued that the disciples stole the body because they needed to show an empty tomb. The disciples had every incentive to prove that Jesus was the Christ or the last three years of their lives were in vain. The disciples could have wanted more power in their community,[1] especially in face of their dead savior that they have followed. They could have wanted to start a movement called Christianity to justify their foolishness and rise to power by establishing a new religion. The disciples were not expecting their Messiah to die, much less rise from the dead. They expected an usurper of the current government, a sort of military coup.[2] How could they do that now if their Christ was dead? Why not steal the body to make others believe He has risen?

The disciples could have easily avoided being tortured, imprisoned, and killed but instead were martyred proclaiming the risen Christ.

There are several reasons why the disciples could not have stolen the body of Jesus. And even if they somehow subdued the Roman guard and moved the stone, it still would not prove Christ rose from the dead. One aspect that makes it unlikely that the disciples stole the body is the combination of the physical barrier that was placed at the entrance of the tomb where Jesus was buried and the placement of the Roman guards there to stand watch. We see the Jewish leaders are the ones that asked this of Pilate in Matthew 27:62-66 to prevent another fraud, anticipating this would happen because “that impostor” said he would rise again in three days. The stone slab placed at the mouth of the tomb was presumably difficult to move easily being cut from rock (Mark 15:46) and heavy enough to keep out animals.[3] From the Biblical accounts, we know at least two men needed to move it (we see Nicodemus accompanied Joseph to bury Jesus in John 19:39-41), unlikely an easy task to remove it stealthily and quickly in the presence of a Roman guard. It is unlikely that the likes of fishermen and tax collectors would be able to overtake the Roman guard, trained and expert killers.[4]

A second counter-argument to the disciples stealing the body of Jesus is that the disciples were willing to die (and did) proclaiming a risen Christ, and no one would be willing to die for a known lie. The gospels record their skepticism, the embarrassing evidence of fleeing the scene and doubting His resurrection until they saw Him appear bodily. Or as John Chrysostom observes, “If then at that time they did not dare so much as to stand their ground when they saw Him alive, how when He was dead could they but have feared such a number of soldiers?”[5] The disciples could have easily avoided being tortured, imprisoned, and killed but instead were martyred proclaiming the risen Christ. It is improbable that they would have had a uniform conspiracy last through the history of the church, they being the source of such deceit to the point of death. The obvious problem here is that one cannot prove a resurrection just with an empty tomb! And yet, the disciples went to their deaths, 11 of the 12 horrifically martyred, with a sincere, passionate belief that they had witnessed the risen, bodily Christ with their own eyes.

It should not be lost that because there was the rumor of theft theory, it implies there really was an empty tomb.

It should not be lost that because there was the rumor of theft theory, it implies there really was an empty tomb. The scandal spread, framing the disciples as the ones who stole the body and is recorded as a conspiracy by the Jewish leaders in scripture. Such an undertaking is proved to be an improbable feat based on the historic information about the burial site of Jesus. In addition to the sealed tomb with a rock-hewn slab and the Roman guard placed at the site of the tomb, the disciples were convinced that they saw the risen Christ to the point of torturous execution. There was no Christianity (or Christians) before the resurrection—the disciples were Jewish, as was Jesus, and it took a truly tremendous event like Christ rising from the dead to convince even the pious Paul or Christ’s brother, James, to abandon their Jewish traditions for the new Way. All the historical evidence points to the impossibility that the disciples stole the body. The tomb was empty and as Christians, we know the Truth, that Christ is risen, He is risen indeed! 

God sent His son, they called Him, Jesus;
He came to love, heal and forgive;
He lived and died to buy my pardon,
An empty grave is there to prove my Savior lives!

Because He lives, I can face tomorrow,
Because He lives, all fear is gone,
Because I know He holds the future,
And life is worth the living,
Just because He lives! [6]

References

 [1] J. Warner Wallace, Cold-Case Christianity (Colorado Springs: David C. Cook, 2013), 244.

[2] Wallace, 249.

 [3] Josh McDowell and Sean McDowell, Evidence that Demands a Verdict (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2017), 248-249.

[4] Gould, Dickinson, and Loftin, Chapter 7.

[5] McDowell and McDowell, 284.

[6] “Because He Lives,” lyrics by Glory and William J. Gaither: 1971.