Bible Strands
Matthew 28:13
and instructed them: “You are to say, ‘His disciples came by night and stole Him away while we were asleep.’
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The chief priests and elders instruct the Roman guards to spread a fabricated account immediately after bribing them to guard the tomb. This directive occurs in the brief window between the discovery of the empty tomb and the guards' return to report to the authorities.
The words — The imperative εἴπατε (eipate) literally means "do say," stressing the coercive nature of the command. The temporal phrase νυκτὸς (nuktos) specifies "by night," anchoring the alleged theft to a period of darkness and plausible deniability.
The thread — The pattern of officials manipulating testimony to control a narrative appears in Matthew 26:59, where false witnesses are sought, and Matthew 27:20, where the chief priests stir the crowd against Jesus.
Why it lands — The text requires the reader to recognize how institutional power attempts to manufacture an alternative to an undeniable event. The passage demands a clear-eyed assessment of how authority figures prioritize reputation over truth.
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The Greek words
King James Version
Saying, Say ye, His disciples came by night, and stole him away while we slept.
Cross-references
- Matthew 26:64 “You have said it yourself,” Jesus answered. “But I say to all of you, from now on you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of Power and coming on the clouds of heaven.”