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How Empty Was the Tomb?

Publication ,  Journal Article
Goodacre, M
Published in: Journal for the Study of the New Testament
September 1, 2021

Although the term ‘empty tomb’ is endemic in contemporary literature, it is never used in the earliest Christian materials. The term makes little sense in the light of first-century Jerusalem tombs, which always housed multiple people. One absent body would not leave the tomb empty. The gospel narratives presuppose a large, elite tomb, with multiple loculi, and a heavy rolling stone to allow repeated access for multiple burials. The gospels therefore give precise directions about where Jesus’ body lay in this large tomb. Apologetic anxiety leads to the characterization of the tomb as ‘new’ (Matthew and John), ‘in which no one had been laid’ (Luke and John), but it is possible that the appearance of Mark’s young man ‘on the right’ is significant. The anachronistic question ‘Was the tomb empty?’ should be replaced by the accurate question, ‘How empty was the tomb?’

Duke Scholars

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Published In

Journal for the Study of the New Testament

DOI

EISSN

1745-5294

ISSN

0142-064X

Publication Date

September 1, 2021

Volume

44

Issue

1

Start / End Page

134 / 148

Related Subject Headings

  • 5005 Theology
  • 5004 Religious studies
  • 2204 Religion and Religious Studies
  • 2103 Historical Studies
 

Citation

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Goodacre, M. (2021). How Empty Was the Tomb? Journal for the Study of the New Testament, 44(1), 134–148. https://doi.org/10.1177/0142064X211023714
Goodacre, M. “How Empty Was the Tomb?Journal for the Study of the New Testament 44, no. 1 (September 1, 2021): 134–48. https://doi.org/10.1177/0142064X211023714.
Goodacre M. How Empty Was the Tomb? Journal for the Study of the New Testament. 2021 Sep 1;44(1):134–48.
Goodacre, M. “How Empty Was the Tomb?Journal for the Study of the New Testament, vol. 44, no. 1, Sept. 2021, pp. 134–48. Scopus, doi:10.1177/0142064X211023714.
Goodacre M. How Empty Was the Tomb? Journal for the Study of the New Testament. 2021 Sep 1;44(1):134–148.
Journal cover image

Published In

Journal for the Study of the New Testament

DOI

EISSN

1745-5294

ISSN

0142-064X

Publication Date

September 1, 2021

Volume

44

Issue

1

Start / End Page

134 / 148

Related Subject Headings

  • 5005 Theology
  • 5004 Religious studies
  • 2204 Religion and Religious Studies
  • 2103 Historical Studies