23:53 never man before. The intriguing account of the burial of Jesus is given in all four gospels, and explanatory footnotes should be consulted for each. Joseph as a “counsellor” (Luke 23:50) was a member of the Sanhedrin, the group that had condemned Jesus. The fact that he had not “consented” to this deed with the others had, no doubt, alienated him from his colleagues, and this would be seriously aggravated by his provision of a proper burial for Jesus’ body. Furthermore, he had apparently purchased the plot of land for just this purpose, and then had “hewn out in the rock” (Matthew 27:60) a “new tomb,” wherein none before had been buried. Nicodemus, his colleague on the counsel, had participated with him in all these plans, which must have occupied at least many weeks before the crucifixion. See especially the notes on John 19:38-41.