Empty tomb evidence — women as primary witnesses

In first-century Palestine, a woman's testimony was considered worth half that of a man. If the Gospel writers were inventing the story, they would have chosen the most credible witnesses (male apostles) for such a pivotal claim. Instead, all four Gospels preserve women — particularly Mary Magdalene — as the primary witnesses to the empty tomb. The best explanation is that women really were the chief witnesses, and the Gospel authors faithfully recorded this historically embarrassing fact. The criterion of embarrassment supports this.