way to the tomb, not to embalm Jesus’s body but to mitigate the stench of decomposition. Out of love and devotion they wanted to ensure his body received an honorable burial. Why would they anoint Jesus’s corpse after the burial by Joseph and Nicodemus? The answer may be nothing more than their love for Jesus and a desire to assuage their grief. The fact that they intended to anoint his body reveals they had no expectation that Jesus would be alive. 3 Matthew recounts