Crucifixion and Burial

The Crucifixion

(Mt 27:31-37; Mk 15:20b-26; Lk 23:26-38; Jn 19:16-22)

Pilate’s soldiers took off the purple robe and dressed him in his own clothes, and took him away to crucify him, carrying his own cross.

²¹They conscripted Simon, a Cyrenian coming in from the country—father of Alexander and Rufus—to carry the cross in front of Jesus.

²⁷There followed him a large crowd of people, including women who were mourning and weeping for him. ²⁸Jesus turned and said, “Daughters of Jerusalem, don’t cry for me. Cry for yourselves and your children. ²⁹The time’s coming when they’ll say, ‘Blessed are the barren, the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed.’ ³⁰They’ll say to the mountains, ‘Fall on us,’ and to the hills, ‘Cover us.’ ³¹If they do this when the wood’s green, what’ll happen when it’s dry?”

²²The soldiers brought him to the place called Golgotha in Hebrew [“The Skull”], and offered him a myrrh-wine mixed; but when he tasted it, he wouldn’t drink it.

²⁷They crucified him and the two rebels, on his right and left. [[Jesus said, “Father, forgive them; they don’t know what they’re doing.]]ms ²⁵It was nine o’clock.

¹⁹Pilate wrote an inscription of his accusation, and put it on the cross above his head: “Jesus the Nazarene, King of the Jews.” ²⁰Many Jews read it, because the place where they crucified him was close to the city. Pilate wrote it in Hebrew, Latin, and Greek.

²¹The chief priests said to Pilate, “Don’t write ‘king of the Jews,’ but that he said, ‘I am king of the Jews.”

²²Pilate answered, “What I’ve written I’ve written.”

The Death of Jesus

(Mt 27:35-50; Mk 15:27-37; Lk 23:39-46; Jn 19:23-30)

²³When the soldiers had crucified Jesus, they divided his clothes into four sets, one for each soldier—except for the tunic. It was seamless, woven from the top throughout. ²⁴They said, “Let’s not tear it apart; cast lots for it”—in fulfillment of the scripture that said,

“THEY DIVIDED MY GARMENTS AMONG THEM, AND

CAST LOTS FOR MY CLOTHES” [Ps 22:18[.

So that’s what the soldiers did, and sat down to keep watch.

²⁵Beside Jesus’ cross stood his mother, the sister of his mother; Mary, wife of Clopas, and Mary the Magdalene. ²⁶When he saw his mother and the disciple he loved standing there, he said to his mother, “Your son.” ²⁷Then he said to the disciple, “Your mother.” From that time the disciple took her to his home.

The people stood watching. ²⁹The people passing by threw insults at him and shook their heads, “Ha! You that tear down the sanctuary and rebuild it in three days, ³⁰save yourself. ⁴⁰If you’re God’s Son, come down from the cross!”

⁴¹The chief priests as well as the scribes and elders were making fun of him too: ⁴²“He saved other people; he can’t save himself! He’s king of the Jews! Let him come down from the cross, and we’ll believe in him. ⁴³He has trusted in God; let him rescue him if he wants him”—because he said, “I’m God’s Son.”

⁴⁴The rebels that were crucified with him were putting him down with the same insults. ³⁶The soldiers mocked him too. They offered him sour wine, 37“If you’re the King of the Jews, save yourself.”

³⁹One of those hanged with him lashed out, “You’re the Messiah, aren’t you? Save yourself and us.” ⁴⁰The other rebuked him, “Don’t you even fear God? You’re under the same condemnation! ⁴¹We’re getting what we deserve. He hasn’t done anything wrong.”

42“Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”

43“You’ll be with me in Paradise today.”

⁴⁴At about noon, darkness came over the whole land and lasted till mid-afternoon. ⁴⁶About 3 p.m. Jesus shouted out, “ELI, ELI, LAMA SABACHTHANI [My God, my God, why have you deserted me?]?” [Ps 28:1] ⁴⁷Some of the ones standing there heard him, “He’s calling for Elijah.”

²⁸Since he knew they’d done everything that would fulfill the scripture, Jesus said, “I’m thirsty.” ²⁹A jar was sitting there full of sour wine. ⁴⁸One of them ran and filled a sponge with it, put in on a hyssop branch, and held it up to his mouth to give him a drink. ⁴⁹The rest were saying, “Let’s see if Elijah will come to save him.” ³⁰When he’d taken it, he let out another loud cry, “It’s done! Father, I’m entrusting my spirit to you.” He dropped his head and quit breathing.

Miracles Accompanying the Death of Christ

(Mt 27:51-56; Mk 15: 38-41; Lk 23:45, 47-49)

⁵¹The sanctuary curtain tore in two from top to bottom, the ground shook, and bedrocks ruptured. (⁵²Tombs came open, and the bodies of many saints arose. ⁵³They left their graves after his resurrection, and went in the Holy City and appeared to many people.) ⁵⁴Now the centurion standing across from him and the ones on watch with him were scared to death when they saw the earthquake and the other things that were happening. ⁴⁷When the centurion saw the way Jesus quit breathing, he glorified God, “Surely this was a good man. ³⁹This man really was God’s Son.”

⁴⁸When the crowd that had gathered for this spectacle saw the things that happened, they went home beating their chests.

⁴⁹His acquaintances and 55several women were watching from a distance. They’d followed him from Galilee up to Jerusalem to wait on him. ⁵⁶Among them were Mary the Magdalene; Mary, the mother of James the Less and Joseph; the mother of the sons of Zebedee, Salome, and some others.

The Burial of Jesus

(Mt 27: 57-60; Mk 15:42-47; Lk 23:50-56; Jn 19:31-42)

³¹Because it was Preparation, the Jews asked Pilate to break their bones and take them away so the bodies wouldn’t be on the cross on the Sabbath. (That Sabbath was a high day.) ³²So the soldiers broke the bones of the other men crucified with him. ³³They saw that Jesus was already dead and didn’t break his bones. ³⁴One soldier thrust his spear into his side; blood and water drained out immediately. (35One that “looked at” it himself has submitted this report. He knows what he’s telling you is true so you can believe too.) ³⁶This reminds us of the scripture, “DON’T BREAK A BONE OF IT” [Ex 12:46; Num 9:12; Ps 24:20]. ³⁷Another scripture says, “THEY’LL LOOK AT THE ONE THEY PIERCED” [Zech 12:10].

⁵⁰A respected Sanhedrin member named Joseph, a good, upright man, ⁵¹hadn’t agreed with their plot and action. He was a rich man from Arimathea, a town of the Jews, and one who was waiting for God’s kingdom. He was a disciple of Jesus—but secretly for fear of the Jews. ⁴³He gathered up the courage to go to Pilate and ask permission to take Jesus’ body. ⁴⁴Pilate was surprised that he’d already died. He called the centurion and asked him if Jesus was dead already. ⁴⁵When he understood from him that Jesus was dead, he let Joseph have the body.

⁴⁶Joseph bought a clean linen cloth, went and took Jesus down, and took his body away. ³⁹Nicodemus—who at the first came to Jesus at night—also brought some seventy pounds of myrrh mixed with aloes. ⁴⁰They wrapped his body in the linen wrappings along with the aromatic spices, which is the Jews’ burial custom.

⁴¹A garden close to where they crucified Jesus had a new, used tomb in it. That’s where they put Jesus, because it was the Jews’ Preparation, and the Sabbath was coming on. ⁶⁰It was Joseph’s own rock-hewn tomb, where no one had yet been laid. They rolled a large stone over the entrance and left.

⁵⁵Mary the Magdalene and Mary, mother of Joses, followed along and sat across from the grave and saw how they laid the body. ⁵⁶They went back to prepare spices and ointment oils. On the Sabbath they rested according to the commandment.

The Watch at the Tomb

(Mt 27:62-66; Mk 15:47; Lk 23:55-56)

⁶²The next day, the day after Preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees got together with Pilate, ⁶³“Sir, we’ve remembered that while he was alive, the deceiver said, ‘After three days I’ll resurrect.’ ⁶⁴So command that the grave be sealed till the third day so his disciples can’t come and steal the body, and tell the people, ‘He arose from the dead.’ The last deception would be worse than the first.”

⁶⁵Pilate told them, “You have a guard. Secure it as well as you know how.” ⁶⁶They went and secured the tomb with a guard and put a seal on the stone.