THE BIBLE
Can we trust a book written 2000 years ago?

EYEWITNESS
Did the writers of the New Testament get their picture of Jesus right?

GOD - MAN
Is Jesus really God?

RESURRECTION
Did Jesus really rise from the dead?

RELIGIONS
With so many religions, why Christianity?

SUFFERING
If there is a God, why is there so much suffering?

TRINITY
Understanding the Trinity.

SCIENCE
The complementary nature of Science & Christianity.

FORGIVENESS
What it is and why it matters?

GUIDANCE
How does God guide?

REPENTANCE
What it is and why you can't get to heaven without it.

BORN AGAIN
What does it mean to be converted and born again?

SAVING FAITH
The kind of faith that will get you to heaven

ASSURANCE
Can I know for sure that I am going to heaven?

TRUTH
What is truth and does it matter?

MORALITY
Does it matter how we live? A Christian view of morality.

THE CHURCH
God's vision for his family, the Church. A call to the churches of the new millennium.

PURPOSE
How can I find a great purpose for living?

IDENTITY
Who am I; Finding my true identity as a human being and as a child of God.

SELF-ESTEEM
How can I feel good about my self? The Christian basis for proper sel-esteem.

LIFE AFTER DEATHChristianity's Hope & Challenge.

THE CROSS
Why did Jesus Die? What the Bible says about the Cross.

The cross in the Gospels

Emphasis on the passion and cross in the Gospels

In most biographies, the death of the person concerned is a mere incident at the close of the book. In Hay’s life of Abraham Lincoln there are 5,000 pages, but only 25 are devoted to the dramatic account of his assassination and death. There is certainly much of dramatic interest in the passion and death of Jesus, but when we look at the space given to these events in the Gospel writings, what do we find?

All the Gospels declare that Jesus was crucified during the Jewish feast of Passover. John adds the information that Jesus had experienced at least two previous Passovers (John 2:13; 6:4). This, together with other clues, indicates that his public ministry lasted something like two to three years. Matthew’s Gospel has 28 chapters. In Matthew 21 Jesus rides into Jerusalem on the Sunday before he is crucified. That means that a quarter of Matthew’s Gospel deals with the final six days of his life. An additional chapter deals with his resurrection. Mark has 16 chapters. In Mark 11 Jesus rides into Jerusalem. That means that about one-third of Mark’s Gospel deals with that same period.

Luke’s Gospel is a little different. Luke has 24 chapters. He gives two chapters to Jesus’ conception, birth and childhood, followed by one on the ministry of John the Baptist. Then he gives six chapters to Jesus’ public ministry, chiefly in Galilee. At the end of chapter 9 Jesus begins his last journey up to Jerusalem. This means that of the 24 chapters, 15 deal with the final few months of his time on earth, six of these dealing with the final few days and the resurrection.

John’s Gospel is the most significant of all in this regard. John has 21 chapters. Half-way through the Gospel, in chapter 12, Jesus arrives in Bethany for that final week. By chapter 13 we have already got to his final meal with his disciples, the night before his crucifixion. Chapters 13 to 18 tell us about the events of that fateful night. Chapter 19 deals with the conclusion of his trial and crucifixion, and chapters 20 and 21 tell of his resurrection. This means that almost half of the Gospel is about the last 24 hours of his life, together with his resurrection.

In addition to the space the Gospels give to this segment of Jesus’ life on earth, they describe his sufferings and death with a detail that has no parallel in their account of other events of his life and ministry.

Whatever we make of this, it clearly demonstrates that the events surrounding the cross were of the utmost importance to those who recorded these events. The German scholar, M. Kahler, rightly described these writing as “Passion Gospels with extended introductions”.

Hints and clear references to the cross before its occurrence

There are a good number of hints and also clear statements in the four Gospels, before the event happened, to the effect that Jesus’ public ministry would end at the cross. Probably the most helpful thing I can do here is to list them in the chronological order in which they occurred, as well as that can be determined. I shall add a few of my own comments. Something like thirty of these statements come from the lips of Jesus himself. You will note that when Jesus is talking about himself, he commonly calls himself “the Son of Man”. It is generally understood, I believe rightly so, that Jesus is identifying himself with a figure so named who appears in the book of Daniel. “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all nations and peoples of every language worshipped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed” (Daniel 7:13, 14). It is debated as to whether some in the Judaism of Jesus’ day interpreted this “son of man” as referring to a coming messianic individual, but Jesus clearly related this passage to himself when challenged by the high priest to tell them if he was indeed the Messiah (Matthew 26:64; Mark 14:62)

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It is very significant that the first clue as to the chief purpose of his sending Jesus into this world is given to us before his birth by God himself in his appearance to Joseph in a dream. “You are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21). “Saving us from our sins” is always associated in the New Testament with what he achieved by his death.

When the angels appeared to the shepherds to announce the birth of Jesus, they described two “signs” by which they would recognise him: he would be “wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger” (Luke 2:12). Why were these two signs chosen? Could it be because the cloths would be similar to those wrapped around a body for burial? And if Jesus is indeed the “Lamb of God”, sacrificed for us, then where better place to find him than in an animal’s feed box! The lambs these shepherds were caring for would have been destined for sacrifice in the temple, as were all those for several miles around Jerusalem. This was a despised profession, but it was to them that the announcement was first made.

Thirty-three days after Jesus’ birth, his parents took him to the temple in Jerusalem to perform the prescribed purification ceremony (Leviticus 12). The aged Simeon recognised him as the promised Messiah and gave Mary a hint of what was to come in his words, “a sword will pierce your own soul too “ (Luke 2:35).

Maybe we have a symbolic hint of what was to come in the offering of myrrh by the wise men when they visit Jesus before his flight to Egypt. The only other places it is mentioned in the New Testament are when it was offered to him before his crucifixion to deaden the pain (which he refused—Mark 15:23), and its use by Joseph and Nicodemus to anoint his body (John 19:39).

Jesus began his public ministry with his baptism by John in the River Jordan. On this occasion God spoke from heaven with the words, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:17; Mark 1:11; Luke 3:22). The first phrase in this sentence echoes the words in Psalm 2:7, “You are my Son”, which was widely recognised as a Messianic Psalm, looking forward to the coming king. The words, “my Son, whom I love” echo the phrase from Isaiah 42:1, “my chosen one in whom I delight”. This is one of the Suffering Servant passages in Isaiah that I have described above, and if Jesus had not been clear in his own mind up to this point that his destiny would be that of this “servant of the Lord”, he certainly would have been from then on. Maybe this is one of the ways in which we can interpret the significance of the temptations he faced in the wilderness immediately following his baptism, as he was severely pressed to take any other way for achieving his purpose than the cross (Matthew 4:1-11). Denney comments on these words spoken by God at his baptism:

There could be no truer index to His life than a combination of Psalm 2:7 with Isaiah 42:1ff—the Son of God as King, and the Servant of the Lord: and this combination…dates from the high hour in which Jesus entered on His public work and is not an afterbirth of disappointing experiences.

It was right at the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry that John the Baptist pointed him out as “the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world” (John 1:29).

Jesus chose to identify himself with the person described in Isaiah 61 when announcing the nature of his mission at the beginning of his public ministry. “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor” (Luke 4:16-21—see Isaiah 61:1, 2). Though this is not one of the “Suffering Servant” passages we have described above, it comes in the same section of the prophet Isaiah. I think it is extremely unlikely that after 30 years of studying the Scriptures and preparing for his ministry, Jesus was fully aware that Isaiah 61 referred to his ministry, as this incident reveals, without being aware that Isaiah 53 did also. In claiming to be the fulfilment of Isaiah 61, he was daring to claim to be the fulfilment of all Messianic prophecy.

In one of his disputes with Jewish leaders concerning his actions in the temple, Jesus declared, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days”. John adds the comment, “The temple he had spoken of was his body” (John 2:19-21). This saying was quoted in evidence against him at his trial (Matthew 26:61).

In his conversation with Nicodemus, Jesus said, “Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him. For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that everyone who believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:14-16). It is possible that the second of these sentences is the comment of John rather than the words of Jesus.

John also records two other incidents later in Jesus’ ministry in which he spoke of being “lifted up”, both in disputes with Jewish leaders. These are obvious references to his coming crucifixion, which was then not far off. “When you have lifted up the Son of man, you will know who I am. You will also know that I don’t do anything on my own. I say only what my Father taught me…I always do what pleases him” (8:28, 29). “I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself” (12:32). It is possible that the idea of being lifted up also includes the thought of his exultation in glory. However, where it is spoken of as the action of the Jews (8:28) and compared to the elevation of the brazen serpent on a pole, as in 3:15, the allusion to the cross is unmistakable. There is an exact parallel in Ezra 6:11, where King Cyrus of Persia declares that anyone who alters his edict is to be “lifted up” and impaled on a beam from his house. Alan E. Lewis has a significant point to make on this “lifting up” in his book Between Cross and Resurrection:

Long before his death, the Johannine Christ had spoken, with the most powerful of double meanings, of a “lifting up” in which his physically painful and degrading suspension from a gallows would constitute exaltation and acclamation, the vanquishing of darkness and the manifestation of light. As John Marsh [in Saint John] points out, “It cannot be too strongly emphasised that for John the cross is the instrument and point of victory, not the point of defeat which has to be reversed on Easter morning. Here, as the Lord dies, he conquers.”

It is significant that the Greek of 8:28 is simply “you will know that I am”, with the “I” emphasised (ego eimi). This appears to be an allusion to the name of God that he gives to Moses in Exodus 3:14. It is the cross that reveals, as nothing else does, who he really is. I will explore this further in Part 2 under the heading “The cross and the Trinity”.

When Jesus said that when lifted up, " I...will draw all people to myself " (12:32), I believe he did not mean all people without exception, for there are many who refuse to be drawn to him. He meant rather all people without distinction, whether it be of class, race, colour, gender or anything else.

Matthew specifically quotes from Isaiah 53, which we have described above in connection with the cross, when referring to the foretelling of Jesus’ healing ministry. “This was to fulfil what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah; ‘He took up our infirmities and bore our diseases’” (Matthew 8:17—see Isaiah 53:4).

When questioned about why his disciples did not fast as John the Baptist’s did, Jesus replied, “How can the guests of the bridegroom mourn while he is with them? The time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast” (Matthew 9:15; Mark 2:19, 20; Luke 5:34, 35).

In describing Jesus’ humility and avoidance of unnecessary publicity, Matthew quotes from another of Isaiah’s “Suffering Servant” passages, “Here is my servant whom I have chosen, the one I love, in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him…He will not quarrel or cry out; no one will hear his voice in the streets. A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out, till he leads justice to victory” (Matthew 12:18-21—see Isaiah 42:1-4).

In a dispute with the Pharisees and teachers of the law, Jesus foretold, “As Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth” (Matthew 12:40).

John describes a lengthy discussion that Jesus had with Jewish leaders in which he claimed to be the “bread of life” who could satisfy our deepest needs, give eternal life to people and raise them up on the last day (6:25-59). In metaphorical images he spoke of the need to personally make our own the benefits of his death. “This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world. …Very truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day. For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in them” (6:51-56). He precludes all possibility of religious materialism in the understanding of these words by going on to declare: “The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words that I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit and life” (v. 63).

In his role as the Good Shepherd of his people, Jesus indicated that he would give his life for them. This would be a purely voluntary offering. “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. …I know my sheep and my sheep know me…and I lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. …There shall be one flock and one shepherd. The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father” (John 10:11-18). Denney comments:

Christ’s death is not an incident of his life, it is the aim of his life. The laying down of his life is not an accident in his career, but his vocation; in it the divine purpose of his life is revealed.

The references to his “other sheep” and the “one flock” indicate that he saw his cross having an effect far wider than just the Jewish nation and that he would unite in one family those who would “follow him”.

Jesus did not talk clearly to his disciples about his coming cross until they had come to the point where they were prepared to publicly acknowledge to him that they truly believed he was the promised Messiah. This happened at Caesarea Philippi in northern Galilee, before his final journey to Jerusalem, where he put them on the spot and asked them directly who they thought he was. After Peter’s acknowledgement that “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:16) the record informs us that “From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life” (v. 21—see also Mark 8:31; Luke 9:22). Notice here the little word "must" (Greek dei). There is an inevitability or compulsion about it. He used this word also in his declaration that he “must be lifted up” if those who believe are to receive eternal life (John 3:14). It is a continuing theme in Luke’s Gospel (13:33; 17:25; 22:37; 24:7, 44). In the total context of his teaching it is plain that the necessity evident in the word “must” did not arise from the fact of outward circumstances, nor that the forces arrayed against him were so strong that his death at their hands was inevitable, but it was the “must” of inner compulsion. His suffering and death were necessary if he was to fulfil the mission his Father had given him. As Denney comments:

When he unfolds Messiahship it contains death. This was the first and last thing he taught about it, the first and last thing He wished His disciples to learn.

Jesus added on this occasion that they, too, must be prepared to “take up their cross and follow [him]” (v. 24—also Mark 8:34; Luke 9:23). This was a challenge he repeated later, on their way to Jerusalem, as a condition of discipleship (Luke 14:27). This statement would have been meaningless unless he had been thinking in terms of crucifixion as the means by which he would die. In those days one took up a cross for one reason only, to die on it. That Jesus was speaking metaphorically, in terms of death to selfish desires rather than necessarily physical death (though it may mean that for some), is plain by that fact that in Luke’s account the expression “daily” is added. “Those who would be my disciples must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me” (Luke 9:23).

A week after this, the event known as “the transfiguration” occurred, when Peter, James and John saw him in glowing garments speaking with Moses and Elijah. Luke gives us an insight into what they were talking about. “They spoke about his departure, which he was about to bring to fulfilment at Jerusalem” (Luke 9:31). No doubt this dramatic event was to prepare both Jesus and his inner circle for what lay ahead. At this point, however, the disciples did not have a clue as to what he was talking about. Crucifixion figured nowhere in their conception of the mission of the promised Messiah.

As they came down the mountain where the transfiguration occurred, Jesus told them, “Don’t tell anyone what you have seen, until the Son of Man has been raised from the dead” (Matthew 17:9). They then asked him a question about a prophecy concerning Elijah, which Jesus answered by declaring that it had been fulfilled in the ministry of John the Baptist. He then said, “In the same way the Son of Man is going to suffer at their hands” (v. 12—see also Mark 9:12).

Shortly after this, “When they came together in Galilee, he said to them, ‘The Son of Man is going to be delivered over to human hands. He will be killed, and on the third day he will be raised to life.’ And the disciples were filled with grief” (Matthew 17:22, 23; Mark 9:30, 31). Luke adds, “But they did not understand what this meant. It was hidden from them, so that they did not grasp it, and they were afraid to ask him about it” (Luke 9:45—cf. Mark 9:32).

Matthew records a discussion between Peter and Jesus that may well contain an oblique reference to the cross. Peter asks him " Lord, how many times shall I forgive someone who sins against me? Up to seven times? " Jesus replies, " I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times (or possibly 'seventy times seven')". Tom Wright, in Evil and the Justice of God, has an interesting comment on this statement:

Notice the symbolic depth of what Jesus is asking for. 'Shall I forgive my brother seven times?' asks Peter. 'No,' says Jesus, 'not seven times, but seventy times seven.' For any first-century Jew who knew the scriptures, the echo would be clear. Daniel in chapter 9, asks the angel how long the exile in Babylon will go on for. Will it not be seventy years, as Jeremiah had foretold (9:2)? No, says the angel; not seventy years, but seventy times seven (9:24). This is how long it will take--note this--'to finish the transgression, to put an end to sin, and to atone for iniquity; to bring in everlasting righteousness'. The exile in Babylon was the result of Israel's sin; God has dealt not only with the exiled state of his people but with the root causes in their own wickedness. What Jesus is saying is that the new age is here, the age of forgiveness, and that his people are to embody it.

A further link with the cross in Daniel 9 occurs in verse 26 where we read, " the Anointed One will be put to death ".

Though not related directly to the cross, it is worth noting Wright's further comment on "seventy times seven":

Behind this, again, lies the Jubilee commandment in Leviticus: when seven is multiplied by seven, debts must be forgiven. It is not clear just how thoroughly this was kept at any period in ancient Israel, but it forms a clear, and to us deeply counter-cultural boundary-marker within the divinely ordered social and economic life of God's people. It is one of those commands which the church has cheerfully ignored for long years and is only now rediscovering, in the light of the massive economic inequity in today's world.

Luke tells us that “As the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem” (9:51). Mark writes, “They were on their way up to Jerusalem, with Jesus leading the way, and the disciples were astonished, while those who followed were afraid. Again he took the Twelve aside and told them what was going to happen to him. ‘We are going up to Jerusalem,’ he said, ‘and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death and will hand him over to the Gentiles, who will mock him and spit on him, flog him and kill him. Three days later he will rise’” (Mark 10:32-34—see Matthew 20:17-19; Luke 18:31-33). On this occasion, Luke tells us again that “The disciples did not understand any of this. Its meaning was hidden from them, and they did not know what he was talking about” (v. 34). It is interesting that, though he had explained this so many times, the angels who appeared at his tomb after his resurrection still had to remind them of it. “Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee: ‘The Son of Man must be delivered over to the hands of sinners, be crucified and on the third day be raised again’” (Luke 24:6-8). Not till then did the pieces start to fall into place.

Luke records the following statement on his way to Jerusalem: “I have a baptism to undergo, and what constraint I am under until it is completed” (Luke 12:50). He used the same metaphor when James and John came to him requesting places of honour in his kingdom, asking them, “Can you drink the cup I drink and be baptised with the baptism I am baptised with?” (Mark 10:38—see Matthew 20:22). Denney points out that “cup” and “baptism” are religious terms:

The cup is put into his hand by the Father, and if the baptism is a flood of suffering in which He is overwhelmed, it has also, through the very name which he uses to describe it, the character of a religious act.

In the discussion with the disciples that followed, pointing out that true greatness comes by service, he declared, “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45—see Matthew 20:28). He does not say that he can bear to die because by doing so many would be set free. He says that this is the very purpose of his coming. What the Psalmist declared that no human can do for another (Psalm 49:7-9), but that only God could do (v. 15), Jesus said he had come to do.

On the journey to Jerusalem, indicating his determination not to be put off, Jesus said, “I must press on today and tomorrow and the next day—for surely no prophet can die outside Jerusalem!” (Luke 13:33).

Further on, when talking about his future coming again, he said, “The Son of Man in his day will be like the lightning, which flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other. But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation” (Luke 17:24, 25).

In the Parable of the Vineyard, which Jesus told when the chief priests and elders came to question him in the temple courts, the owner of the vineyard sends his son to collect the fruit. The tenants “said to each other, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him and take his inheritance.’ So they took him and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him." Jesus is obviously talking about their attitude to him, which the priests and elders recognise, and Jesus immediately follows it by quoting from Psalm 118:22, “Have you never read in the Scriptures: ‘The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; the Lord has done this, and it is marvellous in our eyes” (Matthew 21:33-46; Mark 12:1-12; Luke 20:9-19).

Six days before the Passover at the home of her brother Lazarus, Mary anointed Jesus with expensive perfume. When criticised, Jesus defended her action and declared, “Leave her alone! It was intended that she should save this perfume for the day of my burial” (John 12:7—see Matthew 26:12; Mark 14:8).

In reply to a request from some Greeks who wished to see Jesus, he said, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.” That he was speaking about his death is plain, as he went on to say, “Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds…Now my soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father save me from this hour?’ No, it was this very reason I came to this hour”[20] (John 12:23-27).

[20] For other references to this "time" or "hour", see John 7:6, 30; 8:20; 13:1; 16:32; 17:1; Matthew 26:45.

We may well ask what it means for Jesus to be “glorified”? (See also John 13:31, 32; 17:1). No doubt he had partly in mind his resurrection and ascension to the place of honour at his Father’s right hand. But there appears to be some emphasis in the statement above on his being glorified by his death. The best definition of “glory” I have come across is that it is the outward, visible manifestation of an inward character. Nowhere are the character of Jesus, his devotion to his Father and his sinless, loving nature more visible than during his trial and crucifixion. It is against the backdrop of all the evil he endured, human and satanic, that his inward goodness shines brightest. If you squeeze an orange and there is no badness in it, only pure juice will come out. In spite of the suffering Jesus endured, only goodness came out because that was all there was within. Consider the fact that, of the seven sentences Jesus spoke while enduring the incredible pain of the crucifixion (after having endured an extremely painful scourging), the first three were the expression of his concern for others—his concern for his enemies (Luke 23:34), his concern for his mother (John 19:26, 27) and his concern for his fellow-sufferer (Luke 23:39-43). His glory is revealed in his death, and all that it entails, more than in all his miracles.

Writing of the refusal of many to believe in Jesus, in spite of the many clear signs he had given them, John quotes from Isaiah 53, the chapter which we have seen focuses on his suffering for the sins of others. “Lord, who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?” (John 12:38—see Isaiah 53:1).

As the deadline approached, Jesus said to his disciples, “As you know, the Passover is two days away—and the Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified” (Matthew 26:2).

The Last Supper

The last meal that Jesus shared with his disciples is full of references to what was to come. Consider the following:

“Jesus knew that the hour had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father” (John 13:1).

“I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfilment in the kingdom of God” (Luke 22:15, 16).

“I am not referring to all of you; I know those I have chosen. But this is to fulfil the scripture: ‘He who shares my bread has lifted up his heel against me’ [Psalm 41:9]. I am telling you now before it happens, so that when it does happen you will believe that I am who I am”…After he had said this, Jesus was troubled in spirit and testified, “Very truly I tell you, one of you is going to betray me” (John 13:18-21). Matthew adds, “The Son of Man will go just as it is written about him. But woe to that man who betrays the Son of Man! It would be better for him if he had not been born” (26:24—also Mark 14:18-21; Luke 22:21, 22).

“Jesus told them, ‘This very night you will all fall away on account of me, for it is written: “I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered,” [Zechariah 13:7]. But after I have risen, I will go ahead of you into Galilee.’ Peter replied, ‘Even if all fall away on account of you, I never will.’ ‘Truly I tell you,’ Jesus answered, ‘this very night, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times’” (Matthew 26:31-35—also Mark 14:27-30; Luke 22:31-34; John 13:37, 38).

“While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, ‘Take and eat; this is my body.’ Then he took the cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, saying, ‘Drink from it, all of you. This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins’” (Matthew 26:26-28—also Mark 14:22-24). Luke adds the command of Jesus, “Do this in remembrance of me” (Luke 22:17-20). Paul repeats this command in his recounting of the Last Supper in 1 Corinthians 11 and adds the comment that “whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes” (vv. 23-26). After he comes, we will have no need of this reminder of his death, as in heaven his risen body always bears the marks of his suffering in his hands, side and feet (Luke 24:39; John 20:27).

It is noteworthy that Jesus commanded us to keep only two ceremonies: baptism, which symbolises our identification with Christ in his death and burial (Romans 6:3, 4) and the cleansing from sin that is available to us through the gospel (Acts 22:16), and the Lord’s Supper, which focuses on his body given and blood shed, the means of that forgiveness.

Before leaving the Upper Room for the Mount of Olives, Jesus quoted another prophecy, again from that significant chapter, Isaiah 53 (v. 12), “It is written: ‘And he was numbered with the transgressors’; and I tell you that this must be fulfilled in me. Yes, what is written about me is reaching its fulfilment.” (Luke 22:37).

For a summary of the significance of all the Jesus was doing at this last meal with his disciples, in the context of his total mission, I could not do better than quote from Tom Wright's book Simply Christian :

He spoke of the Passover bread as his own body that would be given on behalf of his friends, as he went out to take on himself the weight of evil so that they would not have to do so. He spoke of the Passover cup as his own blood. Like the sacrificial blood in the temple, it would be poured out to establish the covenant--only, this time, the new covenant spoken of by the prophet Jeremiah. The time had now come when, at last, God would rescue his people, and the whole world, not from mere political enemies, but from evil itself, from the sin which had enslaved them. His death would do what the Temple, with its sacrificial system, had pointed towards but had never actually accomplished. In meeting the fate which was rushing towards him, he would be the place where heaven and earth met, as he hung suspended between the two. He would be the place where God's future arrived in the present, with the kingdom of God celebrating its triumph over the kingdoms of the world by refusing to join in their spiral of violence. He would love his enemies. He would turn the other cheek. He would go the second mile. He would act out, finally, his own interpretation of the ancient prophecies which spoke, to him, of a suffering Messiah.

Gethsemane

Leslie Newbiggin, in Sin and Salvation, contrasted the ease of creation with the cost of redemption:

The Son of God, the Word of God made flesh, kneels in the Garden of Gethsemane. He wrestles in prayer. His sweat falls like great drops of blood. He cries out in agony: “Not my will, but thine be done.” That is what it cost God to deal with man’s sin. To create the heavens and the earth costs Him no labour, no anguish; to take away the sin of the world cost Him His own life-blood.

It was because he knew that what he was to face in bearing the sins of the world involved much more than physical pain, that Jesus suffered such agony in the Garden. Martin Luther commented on Jesus in Gethsemane, “Never man feared death like this man.” Jesus prayed, “My Father, if it be possible, may this cup be taken from me” (Matthew 26:39; Mark 14:36; Luke 22:42). What was the “cup” he was referring to? It was the “cup of…wrath” (Isaiah 51:17; cf. Jeremiah 25:15; Psalm 75:8). As there was no other way to gain our salvation, he drank it down to the dregs.

John Stott aptly says:

What Jesus shrank from was not death as an experience of pain, but death as the penalty for sin; not physical death at the hands of the Romans, but spiritual death at the hands of his Father; not the nails which would tear his flesh, but the sins which he would bear upon his soul. It wasn’t the moment when all his disciples would forsake him, but a far worse experience of being forsaken which would force from his lips that awful cry, “My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?” Jesus knew that he was to endure the wrath or judgement of God—the God-forsakenness which we deserve because of our sin and guilt. No wonder he cried out to be spared from it! It is a prayer we can never echo. Suffering and pain we have to bear, but not the anguish of sin-bearing. Only Jesus, the spotless God-man, could do that.

Someone has written:

Death and the curse were in that cup,
O Christ, ‘twas full for Thee;
But Thou hast drained the last dark drop,
‘Tis empty now for me.
That bitter cup, love drank it up,
Now blessing’s draught for me.

Stott, in The Cross of Christ, comments again:

B. B. Warfield wrote a careful study entitled ‘On the Emotional Life of Our Lord’, in the course of which he referred to the terms employed by the synoptic evangelists in relation to Gethsemane. Luke’s word agônia he defines as ‘consternation, appalled reluctance’. Matthew and Mark share two expressions. The primary idea of ‘troubled’ (adêmoneô), he suggests, is ‘loathing aversion, perhaps not unmixed with despondency’, while Jesus’ self-description as ‘overwhelmed with sorrow’ (perilypos) ‘expresses a sorrow, or perhaps we would better say, a mental pain, a distress, which hems him in on every side, from which there is therefore no escape.’ Mark uses another word of his own, ‘deeply distressed’ (ekthambeomai), which has been rendered ‘horror-struck’; it is ‘a term’, Warfield adds, ‘which more narrowly defines the distress as consternation—if not exactly dread, yet alarmed dismay’.[21] Put together, these expressive words indicate that Jesus was feeling an acute emotional pain causing profuse sweat, as he looked with apprehension and almost terror at this future ordeal.

[21] These particular Greek words occur in Matthew 26:37; Mark 14:33 and Luke 22:44. B. B. Warfield's essay was published in Person and Work.

The place was appropriately named Gethsemane. The Hebrew word Geth (gath) means “press”, and semane (shemen) means “oil” or “richness”. This was where olives were crushed until the rich juices flowed out. Maybe Isaiah’s expression “he took our pain and bore our suffering” (53:4) includes the idea that he experienced that whole range of human emotions, not only those that bring joy, but here particularly, the very worst that we could feel. Maybe also, it is not too far-fetched to include that thought in the truth Paul is seeking to convey in Ephesians when he says: “What does ‘he ascended’ mean except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions? He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.” (4:9, 10). It certainly means that, though he is God, he fully understands every experience I might have to cope with, even death itself.

Though, as we have so far seen, Jesus was aware, at least from his baptism, of the suffering that lay ahead, it was in Gethsemane that the full horror of what it meant to bear the sins of the world was impressed upon him. It was also in Gethsemane that the die was cast and he deliberately committed himself to his Father’s will. Tom Wright, in his commentary on Mark’s Gospel, Mark for Everyone, puts it like this:

Gethsemane invites us to consider…what it meant for Jesus to be, in a unique sense, God’s Son. The very moment of greatest intimacy—the desperate prayer to “Abba, Father”—is also the moment where…he is set on the course for the moment of God-forsakenness on the cross.

Perhaps this is also the moment when his fully human nature is most truly revealed. Though he was fully God, the Second Person of the Divine Trinity,[22] in taking human nature he chose to live his life on earth as all the rest of us are supposed to live, in obedience to our loving heavenly Father. This is the point at which that obedience was put to the utmost test. The writer of Hebrews put it like this: “Son though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him…”(5:8, 9). He was perfect in his obedience and therefore perfect in his humanity, something that can be said of none other. The writer of Hebrews also declares that “he offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission” (5:7). I have often wondered what is meant by “he was heard”, as he obviously wasn’t saved from death. I assume it means that he was heard in the sense that he was given strength to go through with it. When it appears that our prayers are not answered in the way we would wish, it is often because God has something greater in mind for the long term. Our task is to submit and trust.

[22] I explore this theme in the booklet Understanding the Trinity.

When Jesus was arrested, Peter sought to defend him and cut off the ear of the high priest’s servant. Indicating his commitment to his Father’s will, as expressed in the prophetic Scriptures, Jesus responded, “Put your sword back in its place, for all who draw the sword will die by the sword. Do you think I cannot call on my Father, and he will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels? But how then would the Scriptures be fulfilled that say it must happen in this way?” (Matthew 26:52-54). I understand that there were twelve legions of Roman soldiers in Palestine at that time, hence the allusion. God’s resources are always greater than those of humans!

To the men who had come to arrest him, Jesus said, “Am I leading a rebellion, that you have come out with swords and clubs to capture me? Every day I sat in the temple courts teaching, and you did not arrest me. But this has all taken place that the writings of the prophets might be fulfilled” (Matthew 26:55, 56—also Mark 14:48, 49).

One thing seems very clear from all the above references. These numerous hints and clear references to the coming cross scattered throughout the teaching of Jesus indicate that he fully understood the implications of the Old Testament Scriptures which he regarded as referring to himself. If he did not really say these things but instead they were merely words put in his mouth at a later date by New Testament writers after the events they foreshadowed, then we have been left with a complete misrepresentation of Jesus’ own understanding of the Old Testament writings—who he was, and why he had come into this world. Indeed, such a viewpoint leaves us with a distorted view of the gospel message we are to proclaim.

Ben Meyer, in The Aims of Jesus, asks and answers an important question:

What, in the end, made Jesus operate in this way, what energised his incorporating death into his mission, his facing it and going to meet it?

The range of abstractly possible answers is enormous. ...But...it is above all in the tradition generated by Jesus that we discover what made him operate in the way he did, what made him epitomise his life in the single act of going to his death: He ‘loved me and handed himself over for me’... ‘having loved his own who were in the world he loved them to the end’...If authenticity lies in the coherence between word (Mark 12:28-34 parr.) and deed (Galatians 2:20; Ephesians 5:2; John 13:1; Revelation 1:5), our question has found an answer.

The trial

A careful analysis of the events of the trial indicates the following order of events:

Appearance before Annas: This is only mentioned by John (18:12-24) who was probably the “other disciple, who was known to the high priest” (v. 16) and who accompanied Peter into the courtyard. Annas had been deposed from the priesthood in A.D. 15 but five of his sons had been high priests, and now Caiaphas, his son-in-law, held that position. He still had much influence and still, apparently, maintained the title “high priest” (v. 19). During his questioning, Jesus was struck in the face by one of the officials (v. 22). John tells us that he was “bound” (v. 12) when taken to Annas and still bound when sent on to Caiaphas (v. 24).

Appearance before Caiaphas: Caiaphas was high priest from A.D. 18 to 36, which included the period of persecutions described in the early chapters of Acts. This part of the trial took place in Caiaphas’s house (Luke 22:54) where the “teachers of the law and the elders” and the “chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin” (the Jewish spiritual and civil governing body) were gathered (Matthew 26:57, 59; Mark 14:53, 55).

False charges were made. When questioned about these charges, Jesus remained silent (Matthew 26:59-63; Mark 14:55-61).

He was put under oath by Caiaphas to declare whether he was the “Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jesus affirmed this, identifying himself with the “Son of Man” of Daniel 7:13 (Matthew 26:63-66; Mark 14:61-64). Luigi Santucchi, the Italian novelist, has a perceptive comment on this religious leader’s response to Jesus:

We can minister to God and serve him in our own way but we have a horror of meeting him. If he comes too near we have only one way of defending ourselves from him, Caiaphas' way—by killing him, killing him even in the name of God, shouting at him that it's blasphemy to appear alive in our midst.

Their decision that he was worthy of death was followed by physical abuse, insults and mocking (Matthew 26:67; Mark 14:65).

Peter’s denials are recorded by all four Gospels (Matthew 26:69-75; Mark 14:66-72; Luke 22:54-62; John 18:15-18, 25, 27).

The Sanhedrin formally sentenced him to death (Matthew 27:1; Mark 15:1; Luke 22:66-71). According to Matthew, this was “early in the morning”; Mark, “very early in the morning”; Luke, “at daybreak”. It seems from Luke’s account that Jesus was again asked if he was the Christ. Again he affirmed this.

Under Roman occupation, any capital sentence passed by the Sanhedrin had to be ratified by the Roman governor, so it was necessary to get Pilate’s approval before it could be executed.

First appearance before Pilate: The “whole assembly” (Luke 23:1) led Jesus to Pilate, but, to avoid ceremonial uncleanness before eating the Passover, they did not enter his palace (John 18:28).

Pilate first attempted to avoid a decision by putting it back on the Jewish leaders (John 18:29-32). They pointed out that they had “no right to execute anyone”.

Jesus was accused of “subverting our nation. He opposes payment of taxes to Caesar and claims to be Christ, a king” (Luke 23:2).

Jesus was asked by Pilate if he was the King of the Jews. He affirmed this. (Matthew 27:11; Mark 15:2; Luke 23:3). John records the response of Jesus that his kingdom was not of this world and that he came to bear witness to the truth. Pilate asked, “What is truth?” (John 18:33-38).

Pilate protested that he could find no charge against him (Luke 23:4).

Further accusations were made by the chief priests and elders. Jesus gave no answer to the charges, which amazed Pilate (Matthew 27:12-14; Mark 15:3-5).

Pilate made a second attempt to avoid a decision by sending him to Herod when he learnt that Jesus was from Galilee, Herod’s jurisdiction (Luke 23:6, 7).

Appearance before Herod: This is described only by Luke (23:8-12). This was Herod Antipas, the ablest of Herod the Great’s sons. Herod at one time had a conscience, and though he had imprisoned John the Baptist because of John’s criticism of him for marrying his brother’s wife, Herodias, he “protected him, knowing him to be a righteous and a holy man” and he “liked to listen to him” (Mark 6:20). However, Herod’s moment of decision came when asked by the daughter of Herodias for “the head of John the Baptist on a platter” (Mark 6:25). Because of his fear of what others might think if he failed to keep his oath, he stifled his conscience and beheaded John. It is significant that when faced with Jesus himself, Jesus has nothing to say to him (Luke 23:9).

Jesus was vehemently accused by the “chief priests and the teachers of the law”(v. 10).

Herod and his soldiers ridiculed and mocked him, and “Dressing him in an elegant robe, they sent him back to Pilate. That day Herod and Pilate become friends—before this they were enemies” (v. 11, 12). It was claimed that Herod’s enmity against Pilate stemmed from the fact that previously Pilate had slain some of Herod’s subjects. This could explain why Pilate had been careful to get Jesus tried before him.

Second appearance before Pilate: Pilate protested Jesus’ innocence for the second time (Luke 23:14, 15).

Pilate’s third attempt to avoid a decision was to offer to “punish him and then release him” in the hope that this would satisfy them (Luke 23:17).

Pilate’s fourth attempt to avoid a decision was to offer to release a prisoner, as was apparently the custom during the Passover festival, no doubt hoping they would choose Jesus (Matthew 27:15-26; Mark 15:6-15; Luke 23:18-25; John 18:39, 40). The crowd chose Barabbas, “thrown in prison for insurrection and murder” (Luke 23:25). During this exchange Pilate said for the third time that there were no grounds for the death penalty and again offered to punish and then release him (Luke 23:22). Also during this exchange , Pilate’s wife sent him this message, “Don’t have anything to do with that innocent man, for I have suffered a great deal today in a dream because of him” (Matthew 27:19).

Pilate’s fifth attempt to avoid responsibility was to wash his hands in front of the crowd, declaring: “I am innocent of this man’s blood… It is your responsibility!” (Matthew 27:24). The crowd said, “His blood is on us and on our children!” (v. 25).

Pilate ordered Jesus to be flogged (Matthew 27:26; Mark 15:15; John 19:1). A Roman flogging was a brutal affair and not limited to the Jewish limit of 40 lashes (Deuteronomy 25:3). The scourges were armed with lumps of lead or bone which tore the flesh, and victims could sometimes die as a result of the flogging.

After the flogging, the governor’s soldiers took him into the Praetorium and gathered the “whole company of soldiers” around him. They “stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him”(Matthew 27:27, 28), probably a soldier’s cloak, and wove a crown of thorns to place on his head. I comment on the symbolic significance of the crown of thorns under the heading "Thorns—symbol of the curse" in the chapter on the Old Testament. Mark and John call the cloak a “purple robe”, the colour of royalty. “They put a staff in his right hand as a sceptre. Then they knelt in front of him and mocked him. ‘Hail, King of the Jews!’ they said. They spat on him, and took the staff and struck him on the head again and again” (Matthew 27:27-30—see Mark 15:16-19; John 19:2, 3).

Third appearance before Pilate: John describes another appearance before Pilate after the flogging (19:4-16). For the fifth time he protested Jesus’ innocence and had Jesus brought out wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. He declared, “Here is the man!” (v. 4, 5). Obviously he was hoping they would feel sorry for him and agree to his releasing Jesus. This was his sixth attempt to avoid sentencing Jesus to death. On the continuing demand for his crucifixion, Pilate declared for the sixth time that he found no basis for a charge against him (v. 6).

Tom Wright, in The Resurrection of the Son of God, has an interesting comment on this declaration of Pilate. John, in starting his Gospel with the words “In the beginning was the Word”, with its obviously link to Genesis 1:1, underlines the point that his book is about the new creation in Jesus. On the sixth day of the original creation humans were created in the divine image. On the sixth day of the last week of Jesus life Pilate declares, “Here is the man”. The seventh day, the day the Creator rested from his work, is the day Jesus rests in the tomb. The first day of the next week is the beginning of the new creation with Jesus’ resurrection.

When the Jewish leaders accused Jesus of the charge of blasphemy in claiming to be the Son of God, Pilate “was even more afraid” and took Jesus back inside the palace to question him further (v. 7, 8). On being asked where he came from, Jesus gave no answer (v. 9). When Pilate expressed annoyance at his refusal to answer and told Jesus that he had power to free or crucify him, Jesus declared, “You would have no power over me if it were not given to you from above. Therefore the one who handed me over to you is guilty of a greater sin” (v. 10, 11).

Pilate then went out to the crowd and continued his attempt to set Jesus free. When the Jewish leaders kept shouting for his death sentence and told Pilate that he was no friend of Caesar’s if he released one who claimed to be a king, eventually Pilate brought Jesus out and sat in the “judge’s seat” (v. 13), indicating that he was about to make a decision. The Jews had already complained to the emperor about Pilate’s behaviour, so no doubt he would have been sensitive to this threat.

Pilate said, “Here is your king” (v. 14), a statement perhaps made in mockery. On continued demands for Jesus’ crucifixion, he asked, “Shall I crucify your king?” The chief priests revealed their hypocrisy by declaring, “We have no king but Caesar” (v.15). Finally, Pilate hands Jesus over to them to be crucified (v. 16).

John tells us these final events happened “about the sixth hour” (19:14—literal translation). Westcott gave good reasons for supposing that John, instead of reckoning hours from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., as was the Jewish custom, reckoned them from midnight to noon, and noon to midnight—a practice which we know from the Martyrdom of Polycarp was in use in Asia Minor at the time that document was written, and which is still followed in the West today. This means it was about 6 a.m. when Pilate passed sentence on Jesus. This fits in very well with Mark, who, following the Jewish method of reckoning hours, states that it was “the third hour” (Mark 15:25—literal translation), i.e. 9 a.m., when the crucifixion began.

Alan E. Lewis has an interesting comment to make on the character of the persons involved in these events, particularly from Mark’s perspective:

It has been noticed that Mark’s Gospel, in particular, takes pains to implicate all the actors equally—save the principal—in the moral failure of this day. Treacherous Judas; weak disciples, first asleep and then in flight; desperate priests and abusive guards; cowardly Peter and calculating Pilate; violent soldiers and jeering passersby: truly a “solidarity in sin unites all those involved…[as] Mark brings the crucified Messiah face to face with the barriers of human guilt.” [M. Hengel, The Atonement]. Though each claims innocence, actually all the representatives of humanity are integrated by the passion narrative into collective accountability for the death of Jesus (cf. Romans 3:23; 11:32). “No one wishes to be responsible. That is why they are all guilty.” [Von Balthasar, Mysterium Paschale].

As regards the legality of the trial, M. Dupin pointed out in a tract on the trial of Jesus that in the following particulars the Jewish law was disregarded: he was arrested in the night, bound as a malefactor, beaten before his arraignment and struck in open court during the trial; he was tried on a feast day and before sunrise; he was compelled to incriminate himself, and this under oath or solemn judicial adjuration; and he was sentenced on the same day as his conviction.

The crucifixion

As with the trial of Jesus, I will list the events of the crucifixion in their chronological order, comparing the four accounts that we possess.

The first three Gospels simply state that the soldiers “led him away” to crucify him (Matthew 27:31; Mark 15:20; Luke 23:26), but John adds that he went “carrying his own cross” (John 19:17), though historians tell us that this may have only been the cross-bar. The first three Gospels also tell us that on the way the soldiers compelled Simon of Cyrene (a province of North Africa), who “was passing by on his way from the country” (Mark 15:21—Matthew 27:32; Luke 23:26) to carry the cross. This implies that Jesus, in his weakened state, was unable to carry it all the way. Mark tells us also that Simon was “the father of Alexander and Rufus”. The fact that Mark mentions them by name indicates that they must have been known to the Christian community when Mark was writing. This implies that their father probably became a disciple of Jesus as a result of this encounter with him. He may well have stayed to see the end and would certainly have told his sons of this experience.

Luke tells us that “a large crowd was following Jesus, and in the crowd a lot of women were crying and weeping for him.” Jesus turned and said to them: “Women of Jerusalem, don’t cry for me! Cry for yourselves and for your children. Someday people will say, ‘Women who never had children are really fortunate!’” (23:27-31). He then quoted from the prophet Hosea: “At that time everyone will say to the mountains, ‘Fall on us!’ They will say to the hills, ‘Hide us!’” (v. 30—see Hosea 10:8). Jesus could no doubt foresee the horrible suffering the Jews would experience nearly forty years later when the Roman armies destroyed Jerusalem after a war in which, according to the historian Josephus, something like a million Jews perished.

Jesus’ first word on his way to crucifixion was to women, as was his first word after his resurrection (Matthew 28:8-10; John 20:15-17). “Don’t cry for me!” This is the only divine prohibition in the crucifixion story. Jesus is not looking for a superficial emotional response towards his physical sufferings but something much deeper. He desires us to understand something of why he suffered. He wants a repentance, a turning, a longing for moral change, an obedience. Should we fail to respond to his cross appropriately, then he has a word of warning, “Cry for yourselves…”

The place of execution is called “Golgotha” (Matthew 27:33; Mark 15:22; Luke 23:33; John 19:17), an Aramaic name meaning “the place of the skull”. Maybe this received its name from a skull-shaped hill nearby.

Jesus was offered wine mixed with “gall” (Matthew 27:34) or “myrrh” (Mark 15:23). According to tradition, this was prepared by compassionate women to dull the pain. Jesus, after tasting, refused it. In making his greatest sacrifice he wished to be as mentally alert as possible.

Jesus was crucified (Matthew 27:35; Mark 15:24; Luke 23:33; John 19:23) and we know from the resurrection appearances that this was by nailing the hands and feet (Luke 24:40; John 20:20, 27—see Psalm 22:16). According to Mark, this happened at “the third hour” (15:25—literal translation), which by Jewish reckoning would have been nine o’clock in the morning.

The soldiers stripped Jesus and divided his garments among themselves (Matthew 27:35; Mark 15:24; Luke 23:34; John 19:23, 24). John tells us that they divided them into four shares, “one for each of them” (v. 23), indicating that four soldiers were present, and also tells us that they gambled for his tunic or undergarment which was “seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom” (v. 23). I comment on the symbolic significance of this robe under the heading "Our nakedness covered through the shedding of blood" in the chapter on the Old Testament.

“Above his head they placed the written charge against him: THIS IS JESUS, THE KING OF THE JEWS” (Matthew 27:37; Mark 15:26; Luke 23:38; John 19:19-22). John’s account informs us that this was placed there on Pilate’s orders, no doubt intended as a mockery to the Jews. John adds that the title included the words “Jesus of Nazareth” (v. 19), which would have been an added insult to strict Jews, who looked with scorn on Galileans (see John 7:52). He also tells us that it was “written in Aramaic, Latin and Greek” (v. 20). When the chief priests protested, Pilate ignored their request to change it, declaring, “What I have written, I have written” (19:22). The Jewish leaders had won their battle in persuading him to have Jesus crucified. At least he was going to have the last word!

Each gospel writer mentions that he was crucified with two others, Jesus being in the middle (Matthew 27:38; Mark 15:27; Luke 23:32, 33; John 19:18). Matthew and Mark call them “robbers”, “bandits” or “insurrectionists” (Greek—lêstai), whereas Luke calls them “criminals” or “evildoers” (kakourgoi). Apparently they were men of violence, willing to kill as well as steal.

Jesus’ first words from the cross. “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing” (Luke 23:34). It seems, from Luke’s placing of these words, that they were spoken as he was nailed to the cross and as it was placed in its socket, before the soldiers divided his clothes. We may debate as to whether this prayer was merely for the four soldiers who carried out the sentence, or whether it was also meant to include those responsible for his sentencing. One might argue that at least some of the Jewish leaders did know what they were doing, even though they were unwilling to face the truth confronting them. However, I suspect Jesus was thinking of all those responsible. Does it not indicate there is nothing you or I could say or do that would put us beyond the reach of his prayers?

Matthew and Mark give us the fullest account of the mocking Jesus endured by those who watched his crucifixion, though Luke mentions it briefly (Matthew 27:39-44; Mark 15:29-32; Luke 23:35, 36). Matthew tells us that “those who passed by hurled insults at him” and “the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders mocked him” and “the rebels who were crucified with him also heaped insults on him”. Luke adds, “The soldiers also came up and mocked him”.

The second word from the cross. All the Gospel writers mention women who were present at the crucifixion. Matthew tells us, “Many women were there, watching from a distance. They had followed Jesus from Galilee to care for his needs. Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joseph, and the mother of Zebedee’s sons [James and John]” (27:55,56). Mark adds “Salome” (15:40), who may have been the same person as “the mother of Zebedee’s sons” mentioned by Matthew, and could also have been “his mother’s sister” mentioned by John (19:25). This would make James and John first cousins of Jesus. “Mary the mother of James and Joseph” may have been the same person as “Mary the wife of Clopas” whom John mentions (19:25). The mention of Clopas is of interest here. This is a rare Semitic form of the Greek name Cleopas, so rare that we can be certain this is the Clopas who, according to Hegesippus, was the brother of Jesus’ father Joseph and the father of Simon, who succeeded his cousin James as leader of the Jerusalem church. Luke does not name the women present.

John says, “Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to her, ‘Woman, here is your son,’ and to the disciple, ‘Here is your mother.’ From that time on, this disciple took her into his home” (19:25-27). It has usually been assumed that “the disciple whom he loved” is John himself, the author of this gospel. He speaks of himself in this way in several other places (13:23; 21:20). If “from that time on” means that he took her to his home immediately, then he probably returned later, as verse 35 implies he was present at the end. However, there may be another implied meaning here. In the Greek there is no word for “home” and it is doubtful if John would have had a home in Jerusalem. It simply says “he took her to his own.” Fleming Rutledge makes an interesting point in her wonderful little book The Seven Last Words from the Cross:[23]

By rewriting the covenant in his own blood, Jesus has done something completely new. In giving his mother to the disciple, he is causing a new relationship to come into existence that did not exist before. The disciple and the woman are not individual people here. They are symbolic: they represent the way the family ties are transcended in the church by the ties of the Spirit. That is why Jesus calls his mother “woman” in the Gospel of John. He is setting aside the blood relationship in order to create a much wider family.

[23] William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2005, ©.

We find the same emphasis also in other places in the Gospels (e.g. Mark 3:32-34). That is not to say that family ties are unimportant. Jesus obviously cared for his mother. But here he is creating something greater. It is important to note that the Greek word for “woman” does not denote any disrespect.

As far as we know, John was the only male disciple present at the crucifixion. The rest had gone into hiding.

The third word from the cross. Luke tells us of the brief verbal encounter between Jesus and one of the dying thieves who had obviously had a deep change of heart since first insulting Jesus with the others. “One of the criminals hanging there also insulted Jesus by saying, ‘Aren’t you the Messiah? Save yourself and save us!’ But the other criminal told the first one off, ‘Don’t you fear God? Aren’t you getting the same punishment as this man? We got what was coming to us, but he didn’t do anything wrong.’ Then he said to Jesus, ‘Remember me when you come into power [or ‘your kingdom’]!’ Jesus replied, ‘I promise that today you will be with me in paradise’” (23:39-43). This encounter illustrates three very important truths.

First, though truth is not unimportant,[24] we are not saved by our full understanding of the truth, but by our trust in the Saviour. Whether or not this robber had heard Jesus preach before this, we do not know. However, what he had seen of Jesus had convinced him that terms such as “the Son of God”, which those around the cross were throwing at Jesus in mockery, contained something of the truth. He could not understand that this man in the centre was paying the price for the sins he had committed. Neither could he know Jesus would rise from the dead, though he intuitively grasped that Jesus had a kingdom somewhere. But here was someone he desperately needed in his moment of death, and in desperation he sought mercy and found it.

[24] See my booklet What Is Truth and Does It Matter?

Second, we are not saved by our good behaviour but by facing up to our sins and seeking forgiveness. The dying robber had no opportunity to make up for all the harm he had done, but I have no doubt that if his life had been spared, he would have clearly demonstrated by his behaviour that his repentance was genuine. I love a thought given to us by D. L. Moody. He could imagine this condemned criminal, who had wasted his life and brought misery to others, walking arm in arm with the Saviour down the streets of the eternal city. That is what Jesus came to achieve. St. John Chrysostom observed that when Christ wished to bring the bandit into paradise, he immediately spoke the word and brought him in. Christ did not need to pray to do this. God put there the flaming sword to guard paradise (Genesis 3:24). By his own authority Christ opened paradise and brought in the thief.

Third, I don’t think it was any accident that Jesus was crucified between two sinners, one who sought forgiveness and found it, and the other who, as far as we know, never did, and entered into the presence of God unforgiven. Wherever and whenever Jesus and his cross is proclaimed, it always causes this division between those who respond appropriately and those who don’t. Paul put it like this: “The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God” (1 Corinthians 1:18). Jesus put it even more starkly: “Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but division. From now on there will be five in one family divided against each other, three against two and two against three. They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law” (Luke 12:51-53).

The fourth word from the cross. “From noon until three in the afternoon [literally “From the sixth hour until the ninth hour”] darkness came over all the land” (Matthew 27:45; Mark 15:33). Luke adds, “for the sun stopped shining” (23:44, 45). I have always assumed that it was during these three hours that Jesus endured the awful consequences of bearing the sins of the human race. We cannot imagine what this involved. The darkness over the land may have been an eclipse of the sun, though I presume that would have been of much shorter duration. Whatever the cause, natural or supernatural, it pictured the darkness which covered his soul as he endured the separation from his Father that we need never endure.

“About three in the afternoon [literally “the ninth hour”] Jesus cried out in a loud voice, ‘Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?’—which means, ‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?’” (Matthew 27:46; Mark 15:34—Aramaic). This cry, a quotation from Psalm 22:1, expressed a deep reality, not just a feeling of the moment. Dietrich Bonhoeffer, in Letters and Papers from Prison, wrote:

It is infinitely easier to suffer in obedience to a human command than to accept suffering as free responsible men. It is infinitely easier to suffer with others than to suffer alone. It is infinitely easier to suffer as public heroes than to suffer in ignominy. It is infinitely easier to suffer physical death than to endure spiritual suffering. Christ suffered as a free man, alone, apart, and in ignominy, in body and in spirit and since that day many Christians have suffered with him.

As Fleming Rutledge suggests, this saying from the cross is the one to have if you are having only one of the various sayings. “Rightly understood…it brings the most comfort, because it plumbs the most profound depths.” It speaks to what was really happening during those dark hours.

The fifth and sixth words from the cross. John records these. “Later, knowing that everything had now been finished, and so that Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, ‘I am thirsty.’ A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus’ lips. When he had received the drink, Jesus said, ‘It is finished.’ With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit” (John 19:28-30—see also Matthew 27:48; Mark 15:36).

What Scripture Jesus had in mind is uncertain. Psalm 69:21 comes to mind, “They put gall in my food and gave me vinegar for my thirst.” However, this fits in better with the wine vinegar mixed with gall that was offered him before his crucifixion and which he refused. Perhaps we should turn to Psalm 42:2, “My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?” A third possibility, suggested by Fleming Rutledge, is that he had in mind Psalm 22:15, “My mouth is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth.” If this is the case, considering he knew “all was now completed”, and he was acting “so that the Scriptures would be fulfilled”, it is likely he is speaking, not primarily from his very real mortal weakness, but from the sovereign control of his own mission.

Preachers may well like to make the connection with two other sayings of Jesus in John’s Gospel, “those who drink the water I give them will never thirst” (4:14) and “whoever believes in me will never be thirsty” (6:35). He thirsted that we may never have to. As Rutledge puts it:

He who gives the calm of lakes and pools, the freshness of brooks and streams, the majestic depths of seas and oceans, the glory of pounding surf, the might of Niagara and the tinkling of the garden fountain, the One from whose being flows the gift of the water of eternal life—this is the One who is dying of a terrible thirst on the Cross for the love of his lost sheep.

Whatever the precise thoughts Jesus had in mind at this moment, the soldiers were moved to offer him some of the wine vinegar they kept handy for their own use. It may well be that Jesus wished to declare in a strong voice his triumphant statement that his work was now finished, and in his parched and exhausted condition it must have been hard to say anything, let alone declare it with conviction. However, having drunk the wine, and summoning what strength remained, he sent one word resounding over Calvary’s hill, so expressive of the glory and triumph of his completed mission, “It is finished” (John 19:30). No doubt this is the second cry Jesus gave “in a loud voice” that is mentioned by Matthew and Mark (Matthew 27:50; Mark 15:37). In the Greek language, in which the New Testament was written and which Jesus probably spoke, this is just one word—Tetelestai. It is not ambiguous, as is the English translation. It doesn’t mean, “It’s over; this is the end; I’m done for.” It means “It is complete; it is perfected.” What he had come into the world to achieve had now been done. The one perfect, effective sacrifice for the sins of the human race had now been offered. Twice, at the very beginning of his ministry, John the Baptist had identified the main purpose of Jesus’ life and work. “Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29, 36). Not long afterwards Jesus had told his disciples, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work” (John 4:34). Now he can declare that it was finished. The moment of his apparent defeat is the very moment of his greatest victory.

Matthew tells us that “At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook, the rocks split, and the tombs broke open. The bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. They came out of the tombs after Jesus’ resurrection and went into the holy city and appeared to many people” (27:51-53). I have explained the significance of the rent curtain under the heading “Day of Atonement—the rent curtain” in the chapter on the Old Testament. Who these “holy people” were who were raised to life, whether they were raised at the moment of Jesus’ death or later after his resurrection, when they came out of the tombs, and to whom they appeared, I would not care to speculate. One thing only is certain, that by his death Jesus conquered, disarmed and disabled death, and these people were but the first trophies of his victory. It is possible that here we get an echo of Ezekiel’s statement to Israel in exile that the Lord will “open your graves and bring you up from them; I will bring you back to the land of Israel…I will put my Spirit in you and you will live”(37:12-14). The wording in the Greek translation of this passage is close to Matthew 27:52, 53). Matthew is indicating that through the cross and resurrection of Jesus the real return from exile is now beginning.

The final word from the cross. Luke records one more word that Jesus spoke with his dying breath as he bowed his head for the last time, “‘Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.’ When he had said this he breathed his last” (23:46—see Psalm 31:5). He had said previously, “No one takes my life from me. I give it up willingly!” (John 10:18). Now that his work was done, he chose this moment to depart this life.

It is interesting that each of the Gospel writers tells us that Jesus quoted from the Psalms while on the cross. These prayers have sustained the faith of multitudes over the last two millennia when facing trials. Jesus probably knew most of them by heart. He now turns to Psalm 31:5 to reaffirm his complete trust in his Father at the moment of death. The very fact that he can still trust him as “Father” underlines for me the totally voluntary nature of a sacrifice that involved the abandonment by his Father as he bore the sins of the human race. It also underlines the understanding that must have existed between the two in deciding that such a sacrifice was worthwhile.

There is one other matter to note before moving on to his burial. Matthew, Mark and Luke each record responses to the above events of those who observed them. Matthew reports: “When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified, and exclaimed, ‘Surely he was the Son of God!’” (27:54). Mark only mentions the centurion’s response (15:39). Luke’s version is: “The centurion, seeing what had happened, praised God and said, ‘Surely this was a righteous man’” (23:47). He adds, “When all the people who had gathered to witness this sight saw what took place, they beat their breasts and went away” (v. 48).

I don’t think I could do better than finish this section with a paragraph from Tom Wright’s extremely thoughtful book, Evil & the Justice of God:[24a]

Jesus on his cross towers over the whole scene as Israel in person, as YHWH in person, as the point where the evil of the world does all that it can and where the creator of the world does all that he can. Jesus suffers the full consequences of evil, evil from the political, social, cultural, personal, moral, religious and spiritual angles all rolled into one, evil in the downward spiral hurtling towards the pit of destruction and despair. And he does so precisely as an act of redemption, of taking that downward fall and exhausting it, so that there may be new creation, new covenant, forgiveness, freedom and hope.

[24a] SPCK, 2006, ©. For further commentary on these thoughts, buy this book and read it!

The burial

Each of the Gospel writers tells us of the burial of Jesus by Joseph of Arimathea, but it is John who fills us in with some prior details. “Now it was the day of Preparation, and the next day was to be a special Sabbath. Because the Jewish leaders[25] did not want the bodies left on the crosses during the Sabbath, they asked Pilate to have the legs broken and the bodies taken down. The soldiers therefore came and broke the legs of the first man who had been crucified with Jesus, and then those of the other. But when they came to Jesus and found that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. Instead, one of the soldiers pierced Jesus’ side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water. The man who saw it has given testimony, and his testimony is true. He knows that he tells the truth, and he testifies so that you also may believe. These things happened so that the scripture would be fulfilled: ‘Not one of his bones will be broken,’ and, as another Scripture says, ‘They will look on the one they have pierced’” (19:31-37).

[25] Literally "the Jews", but when John uses the term " the Jews ", he is not referring to Jews generally, but to the Jewish leadership. This becomes obvious when observing the instances where the phrase occurs.

The breaking of the legs was apparently a common practice to hasten death. If their feet were nailed, they would be able to prop themselves up, though with much pain, to enable breathing. Once the legs were broken breathing would be difficult, if not impossible. The Scripture referred to would probably be Exodus 12:46, which states that no bones of the Passover lamb were to be broken (see subheading "Passover—safe beneath the lamb's blood" in the chapter on the Old Testament). Psalm 34:19, 20, where it is said of the righteous man that “[God] protects all their bones, not one of them will be broken”, may also be relevant. The second quotation is from the prophet Zechariah (12:10).

As regards the blood and water that flowed from the spear wound, William Stroud M.D., in his book Treatise on the Physical Cause of the Death of Christ (1884), maintained that this may be caused by a ruptured heart in which the blood flows into the pericardium where it separates into its constituent parts giving the appearance of blood and water. This view was accepted by Sir Alexander Simpson (1916), who said he had seen several such cases “in which the pericardial bag was greatly distended and the blood had separated into clot and watery serum.” It would be interesting to think Jesus died of a “broken heart” but whether the person who observed this phenomenon meant us to take any spiritual significance from what he saw is left to our imagination. Augustus Toplady, who wrote the popular hymn Rock of Ages, obviously thought so.

Rock of ages, cleft for me,
let me hide myself in thee;
let the water and the blood
from thy riven side which flowed,
be of sin the double cure,
cleanse me from its guilt and power.

Who the “man who saw it” was, we are not told. It could well have been John himself, or if he had already left to take Mary away, it may have been someone who reported it to him. There is considerable emphasis on eyewitness testimony in the New Testament, not least in this Gospel.[26]

[26] For more information on eyewitness testimony in the Gospels, see my booklet Did the Writers of the New Testament Get Their Picture of Jesus Right?

John gives us the most detailed description of the burial. “Later, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. Now Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jewish leaders. With Pilate’s permission, he came and took the body away. He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night. Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds. Taking Jesus’ body, the two of them wrapped it, with the spices, in strips of linen. This was in accordance with Jewish burial customs. At the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb, in which no one had ever been laid. Because it was the Jewish day of Preparation and since the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there” (19:38-42).

Matthew adds that it was Joseph’s “own new tomb that he had cut out of the rock” and that he “rolled a big stone in front of the entrance” (27:60). Mark adds that Joseph was “a prominent member of the Council, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God” and that he went “boldly” to Pilate (15:43). If he had previously been a secret disciple, at least now he was prepared to nail his colours to the mast and face the consequences (as was also Nicodemus—see John 3:1-3 and 7:50-52). Luke tells us that he was “a good and upright man, who had not consented to their decision and action” (23:50). Luke also tells us that “the Sabbath was about to begin” (v. 54), which would place the burial about sundown, suggesting that the burial may have been accomplished in some haste as it would not have been appropriate to do this on the Sabbath.

Matthew, Mark and Luke tell us that the burial was observed by women. Matthew mentions “Mary Magdalene and the other Mary”, Mark “Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joseph” and Luke “The women who had come with Jesus from Galilee” (Matthew 27:61; Mark 15:47; Luke 23:55). As far as we know, John was the only male disciple who was present at the crucifixion. The others had gone into hiding “for fear of the Jewish leaders” (John 20:19). The women, however, saw it through to the end.

Matthew tells us of the request of the chief priests and Pharisees to Pilate to allow a guard to be placed on the tomb lest the disciples “come and steal the body and tell the people that he has been raised from the dead” (27:62-66). It is significant that Jesus’ claim that he would rise from the dead was known to them. Whether it was their own guard that was used or whether they were requesting extra soldiers from Pilate is unclear. Matthew 28:14 seems to indicate that it was a guard under Pilate’s control. At any rate the tomb was sealed, probably with a cord covered with clay or wax on which an official seal had been impressed, and a guard posted.

The resurrection

In the booklet Did Jesus Really Rise from the Dead? I have given the considerable historical evidence for the truth of this event and some of its implications. John, as we have seen, was present right through these events. Luke, a reliable historian, claimed to have received his accounts from “those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word” (1:2). During his two-year stay in Jerusalem (AD 57-59) he would have known at least some of those involved, including James, half-brother of Jesus, who was one of the leaders of the church in Jerusalem at that time. Paul, to whom Jesus personally appeared, would also have known many eyewitnesses of these events (see 1 Corinthians 15:1-8). He was certainly well acquainted with Peter and James and probably many others. It is not my intention to go over all this evidence again here, or to describe the resurrection appearances that we have in the Gospels, but in Part 2 of this book I will make some comments about how the resurrection affects our understanding of the cross.

Between resurrection and ascension

The cross is not specifically referred to in the brief accounts we have of the appearances of Jesus to his disciples during these forty days. However, he does take time on his first appearances to them to underline the necessity for it and how the three major groups of writings in the Old Testament all foretold it (Luke 24:25-27; 44-47). His opening words to his gathered friends on Easter evening were the repeated statement, “Peace be with you”, a peace that is now possible only through the cross (John 20:19-21). He signifies this by showing them his hands and his side (John 20:19-21—see  Ephesians 2:14-18). In the accounts of his commission to his disciples it is baptism and forgiveness of sins that are mentioned (Matthew 28:19; Luke 24:46, 47; John 20:23). Baptism, the rite by which men and women are admitted to Christian society, is inseparably associated with the forgiveness of sins. So in his final instruction as to what his coming is to mean to the world, we find him focusing on those things which, both in his earlier teaching and in the subsequent teaching of the apostles, can be defined only by relation to his death.

The cross—the focus of prophecy

There are numerous passages through the Old Testament which the Bible itself claims to be in the form of prophecy. That means they are not only words from God directed to the situations that existed in the times in which the words were written, but are also looking forward to future events. Of all the quotations that are specifically quoted in the New Testament as being of this nature, the vast majority are centred on the first coming of the Christ.[27] It is noteworthy that the majority of these prophecies focus on his death and the events immediately preceding or following it. To underline this I shall list here the references to these prophecies that are recorded in the New Testament.

[27] The word "Christ" is a Greek word christos meaning   "Anointed One". The Hebrew word "Messiah" has the same meaning.

Jesus, to the disciples when questioned about Elijah: “To be sure, Elijah does come first, and restores all things. Why then is it written that the Son of Man must suffer much and be rejected? But I tell you, Elijah has come, and they have done to him everything they wished, just as it is written about him” (Mark 9:12, 13—see Malachi 4:5).

Jesus, approaching Jerusalem: “The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45) echoes Isaiah 53:12, “He bore the sin of many”.

Matthew, describing the events of Palm Sunday: “This took place to fulfil what was spoken through the prophet: ‘Say to the Daughter of Zion, “See, your King comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a donkey”’” (Matthew 21:4, 5—see Zechariah 9:9).

Jesus, to the chief priests and elders: “Have you never read in the Scriptures: ‘The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; the Lord has done this, and it is marvellous in our eyes’” (Matthew 21:42; Mark 12:10-11; Luke 20:17—see Psalm 118:22, 23).

John, explaining the rejection of Jesus’ message by many: “This was to fulfil the word of Isaiah the prophet: ‘Lord, who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?’” (John 12:38—see Isaiah 53:1).

Jesus, when explaining at the Last Supper that one of them would betray him: “But this is to fulfil this passage of Scripture: ‘He who shared my bread has lifted up his heel against me’” (John 13:18—see Psalm 41:9).

Jesus, declaring that the disciples would desert him: “It is written: ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered’“ (Matthew 26:31—see Zechariah 13:7).

Jesus, before leaving the Upper Room: “It is written: ‘And he was numbered with the transgressors’; and I tell you that this must be fulfilled in me. Yes, what is written about me is reaching its fulfilment” (Luke 22:37— see Isaiah 53:12).

Jesus, when explaining to Peter in Gethsemane that he could call angels to his assistance: “But how then would the Scriptures be fulfilled that say it must happen in this way?” (Matthew 26:54).

Jesus, to the soldiers: “This has all taken place that the writings of the prophets might be fulfilled” (Matthew 26:56—also Mark 14:48, 49).

Matthew, telling how Judas returned the thirty pieces of silver to the high priests, who used it to buy the potter’s field: “Then what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled: ‘They took the thirty pieces of silver coins, the price set on him by the people of Israel, and they used them to buy the potter’s field, as the Lord commanded me’” (Matthew 27:9, 10—see Zechariah 11:12, 13).[28]

[28] Various explanations have been given as to why Matthew quotes the passage as coming from Jeremiah, when it is from Zechariah.

Jesus, on the cross: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46; Mark 15:34—see Psalm 22:1).

John, describing how the soldiers cast lots for his clothing: “This happened that the Scriptures might be fulfilled which said, ‘They divided my garments among them and cast lots for my clothing’” (John 19:24—see Psalm 22:18).

John, referring to the piercing of his side by the soldier with a spear: “These things happened so that the Scripture would be fulfilled: ‘Not one of his bones will be broken,’ and, as another Scripture says, ‘they will look on the one they have pierced’” (John 19:36, 37—see Exodus 12:46; Psalm 34:19, 20; Zechariah 12:10).

Jesus, to Cleopas and his partner on the day of his resurrection: “‘Did not the Messiah have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?’ And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself” (Luke 24:26, 27).

Jesus, to the disciples on the day of his resurrection: “Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. He told them, ‘This is what is written: The Messiah will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem’” (Luke 24:45-47).

Peter, to the crowds on the Day of Pentecost: “God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death…David said about him: …‘you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead, you will not let your holy one see decay’” (Acts 2:24-28—see Psalm 16:8-11).

Peter, to a gathering in the temple shortly afterwards: “This is how God fulfilled what he had foretold through all the prophets, saying that his Messiah would suffer…Indeed, beginning with Samuel, all the prophets who have spoken have foretold these days” (Acts 3:18, 24).

The early Christians in prayer: “You spoke by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of your servant, our father David: ‘…The kings of the earth rise up and the rulers band together against the Lord and against his
anointed one’“ (Acts 4:25, 26—see Psalm 2:1, 2).

Philip to the Ethiopian official: When explaining the meaning of a passage from Isaiah 53 (verses 7 and 8), which the Ethiopian had been reading, “Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus” (Acts 8:32-35).

Paul, preaching in the synagogue in Pisidian Antioch: “The people of Jerusalem and their rulers did not recognise Jesus, yet in condemning him they fulfilled the words of the prophets that are read every Sabbath…When they had carried out all that was written about him, they took him down from the cross [literally “tree”] and laid him in a tomb (Acts 13:27, 29).

Paul, teaching in the synagogue in Thessalonica: “On three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, explaining and proving that the Messiah had to suffer and rise from the dead” (Acts 17:2, 3).

Paul, telling the story of his conversion before King Agrippa, Governor Festus and high-ranking military officers and prominent men of Caesarea: “God has helped me to this very day; so I stand here and testify to small and great alike. I am saying nothing beyond what the prophets and Moses said would happen—that the Messiah would suffer and, as the first to rise from the dead, would bring the message of light to his own people and to the Gentiles” (Acts 26:22, 23).

Paul, years later: “For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures…” (1 Corinthians 15:3).

Peter, years later: “Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when they predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow” (1 Peter 1:10; 11).

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