Previous Chapter: But I say unto you
In the previous chapter, we saw that when God sent His only begotten Son to fulfill the prophecies in the Old Testament, the high priests and scribes in power crucified Jesus Christ, claiming that He had come to destroy the Old Testament.
But Nicodemus, who was one of the scribes in that group, believed in Jesus Christ as the Son of God, and beautifully fulfilled something spoken of in the Old Testament.
Initially, Nicodemus, knowing that everyone with him was trying to kill Jesus, came to meet Jesus one night, and Jesus Christ openly told Nicodemus about His death and that through His death salvation for humanity would come - 10.Jesus answered him, Are you the teacher of Israel and yet you do not understand these things? 11.Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know, and bear witness to what we have seen, but you do not receive our testimony. 12.If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things? 13.No one has ascended into heaven except he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. 14.And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15.that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.16.For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life - John 3:10-16
Later, when the chief priests and Pharisees tried to arrest Jesus, Nicodemus, who was afraid of the world at that time, openly spoke up for Jesus - 45.The officers then came to the chief priests and Pharisees, who said to them, “Why did you not bring him?” 46.The officers answered, “No one ever spoke like this man!” 47.The Pharisees answered them, “Have you also been deceived? 48.Have any of the authorities or the Pharisees believed in him? 49.But this crowd that does not know the law is accursed.” 50.Nicodemus, who had gone to him before, and who was one of them, said to them, 51.“Does our law judge a man without first giving him a hearing and learning what he does?” - John 7:45-51
Thus, Nicodemus, who loved Jesus Christ, one day received the news that Jesus Christ had been crucified, which caused him unbearable sorrow. It was the day of preparation for the Passover feast, and it was then that he understood the meaning of Jesus' question, "Are you the teacher of Israel and yet you do not understand these things?"
Nicodemus, knowing that the Lord would give up his life on this very night, the Preparation Day of the Passover, began walking toward Calvary with the holy anointing oil that was said to be for God - 22.Moreover the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 23.“Also take for yourself quality spices—five hundred shekels of liquid myrrh, half as much sweet-smelling cinnamon (two hundred and fifty shekels), two hundred and fifty shekels of sweet-smelling cane, 24.five hundred shekels of cassia, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, and a hin of olive oil. 25.And you shall make from these a holy anointing oil, an ointment compounded according to the art of the perfumer. It shall be a holy anointing oil. 26.With it you shall anoint the tabernacle of meeting and the ark of the Testimony; 27.the table and all its utensils, the lampstand and its utensils, and the altar of incense; 28.the altar of burnt offering with all its utensils, and the laver and its base. 29.You shall consecrate them, that they may be most holy; whatever touches them must be holy. 30.And you shall anoint Aaron and his sons, and consecrate them, that they may minister to Me as priests. 31.And you shall speak to the children of Israel, saying: This shall be a holy anointing oil to Me throughout your generations - Exodus 30:22-31
But the commandment regarding the holy anointing oil is that if someone pours it on a human body, the person who pours it will be subject to hell. That is, if Jesus were an ordinary man, Nicodemus would go to hell. That is why there was so much opposition in Nicodemus's house. His wife and children stopped him, saying that if Jesus were an ordinary man, it would end up as a curse for our family - 32.It shall not be poured on man’s flesh; nor shall you make any other like it, according to its composition. It is holy, and it shall be holy to you. 33.Whoever compounds any like it, or whoever puts any of it on an outsider, shall be cut off from his people - Exodus 30:32-33
But, nothing could shake Nicodemus' faith, and even in his old age, he went up to Mount Calvary with the anointing oil. He poured it on the body of Jesus, wrapped it in linen cloths, and laid it in a tomb - 38.After this, Joseph of Arimathea, being a disciple of Jesus, but secretly, for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus; and Pilate gave him permission. So he came and took the body of Jesus. 39.And Nicodemus, who at first came to Jesus by night, also came, bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about a hundred pounds. 40.Then they took the body of Jesus, and bound it in strips of linen with the spices, as the custom of the Jews is to bury. 41.Now in the place where He was crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been laid. 42.So there they laid Jesus, because of the Jews’ Preparation Day, for the tomb was nearby - John 19:38-42
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