And many women who followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering to Him, were there looking on from afar

And many women who followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering to Him, were there looking on from afar, among whom were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of Zebedee's sons. 

Now when evening had come, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who himself had also become a disciple of Jesus.  This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus.  Then Pilate commanded the body to be given to him.  When Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and laid it in his new tomb which he had hewn out of the rock; and he rolled a large stone against the door of the tomb, and departed.  And Mary Magdalene was there, and the other Mary, sitting opposite the tomb.

On the next day, which followed the Day of Preparation, the chief priests and Pharisees gathered together to Pilate, saying, "Sir, we remember, while He was still alive, how that deceiver said, 'After three days I will rise.'  Therefore command that the tomb be made secure until the third day, lest His disciples come by night and steal Him away, and say to the people, 'He has risen from the dead.'  So the last deception will be worse than the first."  Pilate said to them, "You have a guard; go your way, make it as secure as you know how."  So they went and made the tomb secure, sealing the stone and setting the guard.

- Matthew 27:55–66

Yesterday we read that from the sixth hour (or noon) until the ninth hour there was darkness over all the land.  And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, "Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?" that is, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?"  Some of those who stood there, when they heard that, said, "This Man is calling for Elijah!"  Immediately one of them ran and took a sponge, filled it with sour wine and put it on a reed, and offered it to Him to drink.  The rest said, "Let Him alone; let us see if Elijah will come to save Him."  And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit.  Then, behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth quaked, and the rocks were split, and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; and coming out of the graves after His resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared to many.  So when the centurion and those with him, who were guarding Jesus, saw the earthquake and the things that had happened, they feared greatly, saying, "Truly this was the Son of God!"

And many women who followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering to Him, were there looking on from afar, among whom were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of Zebedee's sons.  My study bible notes here that most Patristic writers teach that Mary the mother of James and Joses is the Virgin Mary.  She was in fact the stepmother of James and Joses (see 13:55; compare to Mark 15:40, 47).   My study bible quotes from Theophylact, who summarizes the teaching in this way:  "James and Joses were sons of Joseph by his first wife.  And since the Theotokos [in Greek, "God-bearer," title of the Virgin Mary] was called the 'wife' of Joseph, she is rightly called the 'mother' of his children, meaning 'stepmother'."

Now when evening had come, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who himself had also become a disciple of Jesus.  This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus.  Then Pilate commanded the body to be given to him.  When Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and laid it in his new tomb which he had hewn out of the rock; and he rolled a large stone against the door of the tomb, and departed.  And Mary Magdalene was there, and the other Mary, sitting opposite the tomb.  That Joseph of Arimathea would ask for the body of Jesus is a bold public act.  He is a wealthy man, a member of the Sanhedrin.  He has everything to lose by openly asking for the body of Christ.  My study bible says that this shows that Joseph's faith has overcome any fear.  It notes also that Jesus is buried in a new tomb, so that no suspicion might later arise that another had risen instead of Christ. 

On the next day, which followed the Day of Preparation, the chief priests and Pharisees gathered together to Pilate, saying, "Sir, we remember, while He was still alive, how that deceiver said, 'After three days I will rise.'  Therefore command that the tomb be made secure until the third day, lest His disciples come by night and steal Him away, and say to the people, 'He has risen from the dead.'  So the last deception will be worse than the first."  Pilate said to them, "You have a guard; go your way, make it as secure as you know how."  So they went and made the tomb secure, sealing the stone and setting the guard.  Let us make note of how each act committed in hostility to Christ and His ministry becomes one more plank in the building of the stage for Resurrection.  In effect, the chief priests and Pharisees sealing the stone and setting the guard will only serve to more greatly affirm what is going to happen.

It is the women sitting by the tomb, and standing afar off and watching Christ being crucified, that really grab our attention, so to speak, in today's reading.  This is ironic, as the last thing these women are doing is seeking attention.  We don't hear them speak or cry out.  They don't stand close to the crucifixion of Christ so that they are noticed, or even that the text would tell us they weep and wail.  On the contrary, they seem to be standing almost silently, stoically by, accepting what has happened, bearing witness, being there.  Even when the men, Christ's disciples, have fled, these women stand there.  They are there bearing witness to Him, still supporting Him, their souls are with Him.  They will not leave Him.  So the women stand steadfast, and their silent witness to the Cross from afar, and their silent seating keeping watch opposite the tomb tell us something.  It reminds us that we who pray, who can do nothing more to change or help a situation, still remain loyal in love and in truth.  They remain close to Christ, even as His disciples are scattered (26:31).   These are the women who have supported His ministry all along (Luke 8:1-3, 23:55).  They have followed Him from Galilee, and provided for the ministry.  In John Milton's Sonnet 19, the last line is quite famous, and it reads:  "They also serve who only stand and wait."   The poem is ostensibly about his personal blindness and its effect upon his ability to work and to serve God through his work, but that last line tells us a deeper and wider truth.  These women might not have vivid stories of compelling action written about them detailing their work in the kingdom as would the apostles in their travels.  They do not have bold and astonishing testimonies such as crossing the sea in a terrifying storm, or bravely preaching in the face of enemies.  But nevertheless the Gospels testify that they remain even when the rest are nowhere to be found.  Their strength is in their steadfastness, their courage in their closeness and refusal to flee and in their willingness to remain beside the crucified Christ, to stand and wait.  They are ready and willing to do whatever needs to be done out of the love and loyalty and courage of their hearts, and so they remain as witnesses.  They will not desert Him, giving in to fear as did the disciples.  They remain and watch.  They who serve and "only stand and wait" will become the first witnesses to the greatest event of history, the pivotal news that will change everything for everybody.  In their steadfast love -- together with Joseph of Arimathea -- they remain in the place where they will become Apostles to the Apostles and bear the news of Resurrection.  It tells us what it means simply to be in the place where we are taught to be, even to stand and wait, so long as we serve -- and what an extraordinarily powerful thing that can be, if only we listen and watch in our faith.   It is very like the power of prayer, a help that is perhaps most profound in silence, but which should never be underestimated in its service and strength.