After the stone was put in front of the sepulchre, the Pharisees, knowing that Jesus had said He would rise again after three days, asked Pilate to place Roman guards around the tomb so that the disciples of Jesus couldn’t steal away the body of Jesus by night and then tell others that He was risen (Matthew 27:63-64). While the guards were stationed at the tomb, an angel from God came down and the guards were so terrified they shook. The angel then removed the stone from the opening (Matthew 28:2-4).

Next, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to the sepulchre to see Jesus. There were angels at the tomb who said, “He is not here: for he is risen, as he said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay” (Matthew 28:6). The women and the disciples of Jesus were confused and didn’t know what to think. They knew Jesus was gone, but they weren’t sure what had happened to Him. They knew He had talked about rising again the third day, but they didn’t know what that meant. Nobody in the history of the world had been resurrected. Many of His disciples felt troubled and didn’t know which way to turn. Their Lord and Master, who had guided them in all things in the past, was now gone and they didn’t know where He was.