📖 Biblical Definition
The tomb is a sepulcher hewn in rock or built of stone for the dead — and in Scripture it serves both as evidence of sin’s curse and as the stage of the Resurrection. Christ’s denunciation of the Pharisees turned on the metaphor: "Ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness" (Matthew 23:27) — whitened tombs hid decay under their paint. Joseph of Arimathea’s new tomb hewn in rock (Matthew 27:60) held the Lord of Glory three days and could not keep Him: "He is not here: for he is risen, as he said" (Matthew 28:6). The tomb is the great mocked enemy — defeated, opened, emptied, awaiting the final resurrection of every believer.
📜 Webster 1828 Definition
TOMB, n. toom.
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1. A grave; a pit in which the dead body of a human being is deposited. 2. A house or vault, formed wholly or partly in the earth, with walls and a roof, for the reception of the dead. 3. A monument erected to preserve the memory of the dead.
📖 Key Scripture
Matthew 23:27 — "Ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones."
Matthew 27:60 — "Joseph... laid it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn out in the rock."
John 20:6 — "Then cometh Simon Peter... and went into the sepulchre."
Mark 16:6 — "He is risen; he is not here: behold the place where they laid him."
⚠️ Modern Corruption
Modern religion paints the tomb and forgets to open it.
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Jesus called the religious leaders of His day whited sepulchres — beautiful on the outside, dead bones within. The insult lands harder today. Polished buildings, polished brands, polished sermons covering hollow doctrine and unregenerate pulpits. The whitewash is thicker than ever; the corruption is identical.
But Easter is not a metaphor. A real stone rolled back from a real tomb, and a real Lord walked out in a resurrected body. Every sermon that dilutes that fact to feeling, symbol, or psychology has simply returned to the whitewash. Empty tomb or nothing — there is no third option.
🔗 Greek & Hebrew Roots
Hebrew qeber (H6913); Greek mnemeion (G3419), taphos (G5028).
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H6913 — qeber — grave, tomb, sepulcher
G3419 — mnemeion — memorial; tomb; the empty sepulcher of Christ
G5028 — taphos — burial place; tomb; Matt 23:27, 27:61
Usage
"The tomb is the only religious building Christianity needs empty."
"A whited sepulcher is still a sepulcher — paint does not raise the dead."
"He walked out of Joseph's tomb and has been emptying tombs ever since."