Question:  Dear Greg ,

            Why did the women go back to anoint Jesus’ body after he was already buried?  Wouldn’t Jesus’ body already be wrapped in the cast-like combination of the spices and burial cloth?  How would they anoint his body?

            Thanks for your ministry!

            Joe

Answer:  Dear Joe,

            The women returned because bodies decomposed quickly in the Jerusalem climate—there were no mortuaries with air conditioning, modern chemical embalming fluids, etc.  It was a common custom for a newly buried body, in a tomb, to be anointed in the first few days after burial.  Further, on the part of these women, it was no doubt an act of honor, if not worship.  Anointing of the body in such circumstances probably involved oils that were poured over the head of the corpse.

            In Christ,

            Greg Albrecht