Yesterday as I tried to finish writing and get the section about the burial of Jesus’ body posted, it took much longer than I anticipated. By the time I finished it was late in the day and I was tired. Later I realized I had neglected to write up a final, key paragraph. Here it is:
Final paragraph:
The earliest gospel, Mark, states without explanation that only two of the original group of women witnessing the crucifixion saw Jesus’ body being laid in the tomb. As the gospel was likely written decades after these events, during or after a devastating war in the Jewish homeland, the two witnesses could have been dead or refugees and unable to verify what Mark alleges about the burial. Matthew followed Mark in stating that only the two Marys witness the burial. Luke asserts that all the women saw the burial. John lists only four people witnessing the crucifixion (three Marys and the beloved disciple) and does not specify who saw the burial. However, only Mary Magdalene returns to the tomb later. The record of who actually saw Joseph bury Jesus’ body in the tomb is thus problematic and open to doubt
Jesus Reconstructed 