Matthew 28:2

‘And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled away the stone, and sat on it.

They were probably somewhat apprehensive. There had been a great earthquake, following closely on the earthquake that had caused such damage on the day of crucifixion (Palestine was a land of earthquakes. Josephus and others refer to a number of earthquakes connected with Jerusalem, compare Amos 1:1; Zechariah 14:4), so that they may well have wondered what they were going to find. But nothing had prepared them for what they did find. For they discovered that the earthquake had opened up the tomb, and that an angel of the Lord had descended from Heaven and was seated on the stone. There had been ‘an angel of the Lord' connected with His birth in Matthew 1:20. Now we find one connected with His ‘rebirth'. His resurrection. In both cases this angel explains what God is doing. He has sent Jesus to save us from our sins, He has vindicated Him by raising Him from the dead.

The rolling away of the stone was like the rising of the curtain in a theatre. It was in order to reveal the scene that lay behind it.