If the events below had actually happened, something of this magnitude would have been the greatest period in the history of the world. However, in all of recorded history, there is not one mention of these events.
The Events
Matthew, and only Matthew, not Mark, Luke, John, James, Peter or even Paul--tells us that a profound event occurred after Jesus gave up the ghost and rose to heaven. Let's read about it from the King James Version of the New Testament 1 (Matthew 27.45-53).
"Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land unto the ninth hour. And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? Some of them that stood there, when they heard that, said, This man calleth for Elias. And straightway one of them ran, and took a spunge, and filled it with vinegar, and put it on a reed, and gave him to drink. The rest said, Let be, let us see whether Elias will come to save him. Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost."
"And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent; And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many."
The Perspective
The Jewish historian Flavius Josephus, writing during the second half of the first century CE, produced two major works, History of the Jewish War and Antiquities of the Jews, had not one word to say about this most extraordinary occurrence.
Fifty days after the alleged event, Peter was giving a speech recorded in Acts 2, but said nothing about the saints rising from the dead, from their graves.
Paul, who spoke at great length (1 Corinthians 15) to convince his listeners that Jesus' resurrection had occurred, had nothing to say about the dead rising and walking into the city. Surely his listeners would have quite readily accepted the resurrection of Jesus if the resurrection of saints "appear[ing] to many" had actually happened.
The Questions
The appearance of these bodies "unto many" would have been the sensation of a lifetime for the residents of Jerusalem. Any honest seeker of truth must ask himself, "If this remarkable event actually happened, why did only Matthew report it?" After all the gospel of Mark was written before any other work in the New Testament. Did Mark simply forget to include the greatest supernatural event in the history of mankind when he wrote his gospel?
About twenty percent of the gospels is repetition, so it is not as if New Testament writers did not like to repeat what others had written. Repetition of the most mundane events occurs everywhere. Why didn't Mark, Luke, John, James, Peter or Paul write about the dead bodies of the dead saints rising from their graves, marching through Jerusalem and appearing unto many?
Why does Matthew not think that we should know the names of the saints, which rose from their graves? Why does he not tell us with whom the bodies of the saints met; or what they saidÂ?assuming they said anything; where they went after going into the city or to whom they appeared? Did the bodies of the saints dutifully return to their graves after a polite visit, or did they remain for years among the residents of Jerusalem? Were the familiesÂ?husbands, wives and childrenÂ?of the dead who "came out of the graves" overjoyed at having their loved ones return home.