Bible Strands
Matthew 27:65
“You have a guard,” Pilate said. “Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how.”
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Pilate speaks to the chief priests and Pharisees at the moment they request the tomb be secured until the third day. He delegates the task to them after noting they already possess a guard.
The words — ἔχετε (echete) means "you have," and ὑπάγετε (hupagete) commands "do go." These verbs frame Pilate’s directive to secure the tomb using their own resources.
The thread — The text connects to the immediate fulfillment in Matthew 27:66 where the guard seals the stone, and later to Matthew 28:11 when the guards report the events to the chief priests. It also echoes the theme in Psalms 76:10 that human actions ultimately serve divine purposes.
Why it lands — The verse requires the reader to observe how human efforts to control outcomes are delegated to those who oppose divine action. It demands recognition that securing a tomb cannot prevent the event it seeks to stop.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
Pilate said unto them, Ye have a watch: go your way, make it as sure as ye can.
Cross-references
- Matthew 27:66 So they went and secured the tomb by sealing the stone and posting the guard.
- Matthew 28:11 While the women were on their way, some of the guards went into the city and reported to the chief priests all that had happened.
- Psalms 76:10 Even the wrath of man shall praise You; with the survivors of wrath You will clothe Yourself.
- Proverbs 21:30 There is no wisdom, no understanding, no counsel that can prevail against the LORD.