31So the Judean bystanders, since it was Preparation Day, lest the bodies remain upon the cross on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was a solemn day), asked Pilate . . . they be taken away. From this statement, we learn that there were more people gathered at the cross than just the four women mentioned above. Because they are observant Jews, these bystanders want the body of Jesus, whom we now learn has died, to be buried before sunset. He could not be buried the next day since that day was not only the Sabbath but also Passover. The fact that Pilate would allow the release of Jesus’ body so soon seems to indicate another sort of willingness to accommodate Jewish sensitivities. John 19:39-42 39Nicodemus, who came to him first at night, came . . . , bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, weighing one hundred litras. 40So (he) took the body of Jesus and bound it with burial cloths together with the spices as is the burial custom of the Jews. 41There was a garden in the place where Jesus was crucified and in the garden was a new grave in which no one had yet been laid. 42So, because it was the Preparation Day of the Jews and the tomb was nearby, (he) placed Jesus there.