Suddenly, Nicodemus also stood by the cross. He was the second member to vote against the Council decision. He had earlier tried to nullify the secret judgment passed by the Council against Jesus, and demanded a fairer sitting to verify the facts (7:51). This witness to Jesus arrived, bringing 32 kilograms of precious ointment, as well as grave clothes to wrap round the torn body, and to help Joseph bring down the corpse and bury it after anointing, a procedure followed by the nobility. It was necessary to speed up the burial process, to complete it before the sixth hour of Friday evening, that is when the Sabbath begins, and when all work is banned. Only a short time was left to them.
The Father of our Lord Jesus led these two men to honor his dead Son, that the promise of Isaiah 53:9 might be fulfilled, that he would be buried with the rich and the noble in a decent grave. To carve out such graves from rock was an expensive matter. So there was no better way to honor Jesus than for Joseph to offer him his own tomb near the site of the crucifixion outside the city walls. There they laid the body of Jesus on a slab of rock without a coffin, wrapped in grave clothes, drenched with ointment and perfume brought by Nicodemus.
Truly, Jesus died; his earthly life ended while a young man of thirty three. He was born to die. No greater love is found than for one to lay down his life for his loved ones.