Was Christ Buried in the Garden Tomb?
Traditionally, the Tomb of Christ is in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem’s Old City. But located just outside the Old City walls is an alternate site, an ancient burial tomb set in a beautiful garden. The biblical description of Christ’s Tomb has led Protestants to favor the Garden Tomb as the true site of Christ’s burial and resurrection.
“Now in the place where he was crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a new sepulcher, wherein was never man yet laid.” John 19:41
The Garden Tomb vs. the Church of the Holy Sepulcher
Archaeological evidence shows that it is unlikely Jesus was buried at the Garden Tomb. But there are many similarities to the biblical description of Christ’s tomb.
- Jesus was crucified on Golgotha, which is Aramaic for “skull” and the Garden Tomb lies at the foot of a skull-shaped escarpment.
- John the Evangelist wrote that Jesus was buried in a garden, near Golgotha.
- The Garden Tomb dates back to the 8th-7th century BC, which makes it too old to be Christ’s burial site. Matthew 27:57-60 and John 19:41, tell us that Christ was buried in a new tomb belonging to Joseph of Arimathea.
- The Garden Tomb has a groove in the ground where a stone may have been rolled in front of the cave to seal the tomb. But archaeologists found the groove to be a trough dating back to the Crusader Period (12th-13th-century AD).
Include the Garden Tomb in Your Israel Tour!
The garden’s tranquil atmosphere and the tomb’s ancient appearance provide the perfect setting for contemplative prayer. The Garden Tomb is often overlooked when touring Israel. But for Christians, and particularly Anglicans and Protestants the Garden Tomb offers a place for spiritual contemplation and prayer.
