When it was evening, except for the substitution of evening for “morning,” is exactly the same construction used in 27.1. The temporal marker with which Mark (15.42) begins this section is somewhat longer. A new day begins in the evening; the day of Jesus’ suffering is now at an end.

As elsewhere, came may have to be “went,” in which case a destination may be necessary such as “went to Pilate.” Also possible is “a rich man from Arimathea named Joseph arrived at Pilate’s (house).”

Matthew identifies the person who requested Jesus’ body as a rich man, even before he mentions the place from which he comes (Arimathea) or his name (Joseph). Neither Mark nor Luke indicate that he was rich; Mark says he was “a respected member of the council” (15.43), and Luke identifies him as “a member of the council, a good and righteous man” (23.50).

Luke identifies Arimathea as a “city of the Jews,” and scholars tend to locate it in the hill country about ten miles east of Joppa, although the exact site is uncertain.

Was a disciple of Jesus is more literally “was discipled to Jesus,” a verbal construction similar to that translated “has been trained for” in 13.52. See discussion there.

Some translators restructure the verse; for example, “When it was evening, a rich man from the town of Arimathea went to Pilate. This man’s name was Joseph, and he also was a disciple of Jesus.”

Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on the Gospel of Matthew. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1988. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .