Luk 23:54-56 | TNotes | STEP | 23:54 This was done late on Friday afternoon, the day of preparation: The Greek text does not explicitly refer to Friday, but simply to the day of preparation for the Sabbath of Passover week; the Sabbath began Friday evening. • as the Sabbath was about to begin: The body had to be buried quickly, because the Jews could not work during the Sabbath, which began at sunset.

b23:55-56►

‏ Luke 23:54-56

23:54 ^a This was done late on Friday afternoon, the day of preparation: The Greek text does not explicitly refer to Friday, but simply to the day of preparation for the Sabbath of Passover week; the Sabbath began Friday evening.

• as the Sabbath was about to begin: The body had to be buried quickly, because the Jews could not work during the Sabbath, which began at sunset.
Summary for Luke 23:55-56: 23:55-56 ^b The women took special note of the tomb’s location because they would return with spices and ointments to anoint his body. The spices were to mask the stench of a rotting corpse. A body would be placed on a stone bench in the side of the tomb until the flesh decomposed. The bones would then be collected and placed in a small ossuary, or bone box, and placed on a shelf in the tomb. In this way, a tomb could be used for many family members over an extended period of time.