Next comes the reference to Barabbas. A Zionist guilty of murder, and the tradition of freeing a prisoner on Passover. Concerning Barabbas. He vanishes soon after this scene, which strongly suggests the Romans done away with him. History does not record the tradition of freeing a condemned man on Passover.

It is well known that Pilate was a quick thinker, and I suspect he created this tradition on the spot. What followed has been added to later and twisted beyond belief.

It’s obvious that Pilate wanted to hang on to Barabbas. He appealed to the assembly thinking they would call for Yeshua’s release. Now, there is a very strong tradition among the Hebrews that the crowd called for Yeshua’s release. It also states that the crowd was peppered with Zionist rebels. They outshouted the people and Barabbas was released. No one called for Yeshua to be crucified.
This is a slur on the Hebrews.

The part played by the Temple priests is accurate. In this case, they backed the Zionists. Many years down the line, they regretted it.

After sentence, Yeshua is whipped within the fort and handed over to the execution party. Pilate did not wash his hands. That account is in later Gospels to blacken the name of the Hebrews. There is proof of this.

The mocking scene is sadly accurate. This was normal as part of the execution process. The thorns and cloak indicate the final charge. Sedition by claiming to be the King of the Jews. The charge levelled by the High Priest.

I have studied Roman crucifixion, Hebrew tradition, and the march to the cross is accurate. However, there are mistakes. Later additions. No priests would have watched this, and the jeering crowd would have been calling for his release, as well as castigating the execution party. History records such events for other prisoners.

After nailing his wrists and feet, long nail through anklebones, the troops divide his clothes. This is accurate. Every crucifixion demanded a naked victim. Death combined with humiliation. The reference to the criminals is also accurate, though they said nothing. Every crucifixion was multiple. The criminals only moaned due to blood loss, pain and problems breathing. Try holding your arms out for a while and you will see what I mean.

We are then told of the jeers, and the presence of the chief priests and teachers of the Law. This was added later. Executions were private and heavily guarded. Only family/ friends were permitted. The account that at noon the sky went dark is accurate. A major storm struck the capital. I have seen such a storm myself during 1982. The sky went black as coal, lightning flashed and lights came on. It lasted 3 hours. At the time, I thought Judgement Day had arrived.

At 15 hours, Yeshua cries out once. The reference to Eli is accurate. He does not refer to Elijah though. He refers to an ancient priest who dropped dead at his gate. His son was called Yeshua. You can find this within the Hebrew Canon or in discussions.
No one ran up with a sponge. This event was carried out by a Roman guard. Only they had the authority. After this, Yeshua died as recorded. Cause of death is obvious. Blood loss, shock, asphyxiation and heart attack.

The reference to the tearing of the Temple curtain was added later. Had this happened, no one but the priests would have known. They would have kept this to themselves.

The reference to the Roman officer declaring Yeshua as the Son of God, was added later. As pagans, i.e., believers in many gods, he would never have said such a thing.

The family members mentioned is accurate, as indicated above.
At this point, Joseph of Arimathea is mentioned. This too is accurate. Only he could have known of the details of the trial. As mentioned above.

The Roman troops would have removed the body, not Joseph. It was not an easy task. He wrapped it in a burial shroud as recorded. This would become the Shroud of Turin. The tomb refers to the Garden tomb discovered much later quite close to Golgotha. I mentioned this in Treatise on the Shroud of Turin.

The account of the stone rolling is true, but one man could not have done it. Far too heavy. A tombstone can be seen at the Garden Tomb. Much like a miller’s grindstone in size and shape. The entire family mentioned above would have helped.

At the Sabbath end, it is recorded that 3 women returned to anoint the body. This is accurate and is part of Hebrew tradition. This was Sunday, 3 days later, and it was early in the morning. As recorded, the problem of the tombstone is discussed. It is noticeable that the Roman guards are missing. This was a later addition to the following Gospels.

On reaching the tomb, they are shocked to find that the stone had been rolled back. One can imagine it. They ran inside, stopping at the top step. The Garden Tomb has steps cut into the rock, which lead a very short way down to the stone bed.

The account of the young man is accurate. He was an angel in human form. After hearing his message, the women turned and fled. Not surprising really. As it says in the final line, they were terrified and said nothing to anyone.

The Gospel ends at this dramatic point. 16:8.

The final part follows...