Matthew 27:1
Matthew 27:1. The Second and formal Meeting of the Sanhedrin St Mark 15:1; St Luke 22:66-71; not mentioned by St John... [ Continue Reading ]
Matthew 27:1. The Second and formal Meeting of the Sanhedrin St Mark 15:1; St Luke 22:66-71; not mentioned by St John... [ Continue Reading ]
The Delivery to Pontius Pilate St Mark 15:1; St Luke 23:1; St John 18:28; "then led they Jesus from Caiaphas unto the hall of Judgment (or _Prætorium_), and it was early." _Pontius Pilate the governor_ Pontius Pilate was the governor, or more accurately, the Procurator of Judæa, which after the ban... [ Continue Reading ]
The remorse of Judas. He returns the silver Shekels. The use made of them. Peculiar to St Matthew 3. _when he saw that he was condemned_ It has been argued from these words that Judas had not expected this result of his treachery. He had hoped that Jesus would by a mighty manifestation of His divin... [ Continue Reading ]
_I have sinned in that I have betrayed_ Rather, I SINNED IN BETRAYING. _the innocent blood_ "the" should be omitted. _see thou (to that)_ Lit., THOU SHALT SEE, it shall be thy concern. "Impii in facto consortes, post factum deserunt." (Bengel.)... [ Continue Reading ]
_in the temple_ Properly, "in the holy place," which only the priests could enter. _went and hanged himself_ A different account of the end of Judas is given Acts 1:18; either by St Peter, or by St Luke in a parenthetical insertion. It is there stated (1) that Judas, not the Priests, bought the fie... [ Continue Reading ]
_into the treasury_ "Into the Corban" in the original. For the prohibition cp. Deuteronomy 23:18.... [ Continue Reading ]
_the potter's field_ Tradition places _Aceldama_in the valley of Hinnom, south of Jerusalem. _strangers_ i. e. Jews of the dispersion, Hellenists and proselytes.... [ Continue Reading ]
_that which was spoken by Jeremie the prophet_ The citation is from Zechariah 11:13, but neither the Hebrew nor the LXX. version is followed exactly. The Hebrew literally translated is: "And Jehovah said to me, -Cast it unto the potter," a goodly price that I was prized at by them. And I took the th... [ Continue Reading ]
_the governor_ The Evangelist uses a general word instead of the more exact term "Procurator." _Art thou the King of the Jews?_ The answer of Jesus to this question, and His explanation to Pilate of the Kingdom of God are given at length, John 18:33-37; observe especially that the servants of the k... [ Continue Reading ]
The Trial before Pontius Pilate St Mark 15:2-15; St Luke 23:2-7; Luke 23:13-24; St John 18:29 to John 19:16 St Luke states the threefold charge most clearly: "We found this [fellow] (1) perverting the nation; (2) and forbidding to give tribute to Cæsar; (3) saying that he himself is Christ a King.... [ Continue Reading ]
_the governor was wont to release unto the people a prisoner_ The origin of this custom is quite unknown; St Mark says, "as he had ever done unto them," as if the custom originated with Pilate; St Luke has, "of necessity he must release;" St John, "Ye have a custom." No trace of this custom is foun... [ Continue Reading ]
_Barabbas_ = "Son of a father," or perhaps, "Son of a Rabbi." The reading, "Jesus Barabbas" (Matthew 27:17), which appears in some copies, is rightly rejected by the best editors. As Alford remarks, Matthew 27:20 is fatal to the insertion. St Mark and St Luke add that Barabbas had committed murder i... [ Continue Reading ]
_Therefore when they were gathered together_ In accordance, probably, with the custom named, Matthew 27:15, an appeal was made to the _people_, not to the Sanhedrin. Pilate was sitting on the tribunal to ascertain the popular decision; at this point he was interrupted by his wife's messengers, and w... [ Continue Reading ]
_the judgment seat_ = "the tribunal," generally a raised platform in the Basilica or court where the judges sat; here a portable tribunal, from which the sentence was pronounced; it was placed on a tesselated pavement called Gabbatha (John 19:13). _his wife_ Claudia Procula or Procla: traditions st... [ Continue Reading ]
_ask Barabbas, and destroy Jesus_ St Peter brings out the full meaning of this choice: "ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you; and killed the Prince of life" (Acts 3:14-15). They saved the murderer, and slew the Saviour.... [ Continue Reading ]
_Whether of the twain will ye that I release unto you?_ Once more the question is put to the people (see Matthew 27:17). His wife's message had made Pilate anxious to acquit Jesus. But the very form of the question implied condemnation. Jesus was classed with Barabbas in the category of condemned pr... [ Continue Reading ]
_all say unto him, Let him be crucified_ There is no further question even of a show of legality or justice: the traditional clemency is quite forgotten; the fanatical crowd, pressing round the doors of the Prætorium, which they cannot enter, join with excited gesticulation in one loud and furious c... [ Continue Reading ]
_When Pilate saw that he could prevail nothing_ St Luke relates a further attempt on Pilate's part to release Jesus, "I will chastise Him and let Him go" (Luke 23:22). Will not the cruel torture of a Roman scourging melt their hearts? St John, at still greater length, narrates the struggle in Pilat... [ Continue Reading ]
_His blood be on us, and on our children_ Also peculiar to Matthew. St Peter finds as the sole excuse for his fellow countrymen, "I wot that through ignorance ye did it, as did also your rulers" (Acts 3:17). The prayer of Jesus on the cross for His murderers was meant for these as well as for the Ro... [ Continue Reading ]
_when he had scourged Jesus_ Scourging usually preceded crucifixion. It was in itself a cruel and barbarous torture, under which the victim often perished.... [ Continue Reading ]
_the common hall_ i. e. "the Prætorium" (Mark), which meant originally (1) the general's tent; (2) it was then used for the residence of the governor or prince, cp. Acts 23:35; (3) then for an official Roman villa or country house; (4) barracks especially for the Prætorian guard; (5) the Prætorian g... [ Continue Reading ]
Jesus is mocked by the Roman Soldiers St Luke, who records the mockery of Herod's soldiers, perhaps as St Paul's companion in the Prætorium at Rome makes no mention of this stain on the Roman soldiery.... [ Continue Reading ]
_a scarlet robe_ A soldier's scarf, Lat. _chlamys_: it was generally worn by superior officers, but its use was not confined to them. This may have been a worn-out scarf belonging to Pilate; it is different from "the gorgeous robe" (Luke 23:11), which Herod's soldiers put on Jesus. Scarlet was the p... [ Continue Reading ]
_a crown of thorns_ It cannot be ascertained what especial kind of thorn was used. The soldiers, as Bp Ellicott remarks, would take what first came to hand, utterly careless whether it was likely to inflict pain or no. _King of the Jews_ Cp. ch. Matthew 2:2, and Matthew 27:37.... [ Continue Reading ]
Jesus is led to Crucifixion Mark 15:20-21; Luke 23:26-32; John 19:16-17 St Luke has several particulars of what happened on the way to Golgotha, omitted in the other Gospels. The great company of people and of women who followed Him; the touching address of Jesus to the women; the last warning of... [ Continue Reading ]
_a man of Cyrene, Simon by name_ (1) "coming out of the country" (Mark and Luke), (2) the father of Alexander and Rufus (Mark). (1) This has been thought to imply that Simon was returning from work, and hence that it cannot have been the actual day of the Feast. Simon was probably coming into the c... [ Continue Reading ]
_a place called Golgotha_ The site of Golgotha is unknown; it was outside the walls, but "nigh to the city" (John 19:20), probably near the public road where people passed by (Matthew 27:39), it contained a garden (John 19:41). The name, which = "place of a skull," is generally thought to be derived... [ Continue Reading ]
The Crucifixion and Death of Jesus Mark 15:22-37; Luke 23:33-46; John 19:18-30. St Mark's account differs little from St Matthew's. St Luke names the mockery of the soldiers and the words of the robbers to one another and to Jesus. Three of the sayings on the cross are related by St Luke only: "Fa... [ Continue Reading ]
_vinegar … mingled with gall_ "Wine mingled with myrrh" (Mark). _Vinegar_= "sour wine" (_vinaigre_), or _posca_, such as was ordinarily drunk by the Roman soldiers. The potion was a stupefying draught given to criminals to deaden the sense of pain. "Some of the wealthy ladies of Jerusalem charged th... [ Continue Reading ]
_they crucified him_ From the fact of the _titulus_or inscription being placed over the Saviour's head, it is inferred that the cross on which He suffered was such as is usually shewn in pictures, the _crux immissa_(†) or Latin cross as distinguished from the _crux commissa_(T) or the _crux decussat... [ Continue Reading ]
_they watched him there_ fearing lest a rescue should be attempted by the friends of Jesus.... [ Continue Reading ]
_and set up over his head his accusation written_ It was the Roman custom to place on the cross over the criminal's head, a _titulus_, or placard, stating the crime for which he suffered. St John records Pilate's refusal to alter the inscription, and mentions that the title was written in Hebrew and... [ Continue Reading ]
_two thieves_ Rather, ROBBERS; in all probability partners in the crime of Barabbas. The mountain robbers, or banditti, were always ready to take part in such desperate risings against the Roman power. In the eyes of the Jews they would be patriots. Josephus tells of one leader of robbers who burnt... [ Continue Reading ]
See Psalms 22:7.... [ Continue Reading ]
_Thou that destroyest the temple_ This is the mockery of the Jewish populace, who have caught up the charges brought against Jesus before the Sanhedrin. The taunts of the soldiers are named by St Luke alone: "If thou be the King of the Jews, save thyself" (Matthew 23:37).... [ Continue Reading ]
_chief priests … scribes and elders_ members of the Sanhedrin, the "rulers" of Luke 23:35.... [ Continue Reading ]
_He saved others; himself he cannot save_ These words in the original would recall the "hosannas" in the Temple which had enraged the chief priests; see note ch. Matthew 21:9. They also connect themselves with the name of Jesus ("Saviour"). _the King of Israel_ A title applied to Jesus only here an... [ Continue Reading ]
_He trusted in God_ See Psalms 22:8. The chief priests unconsciously apply to the true Messiah the very words of a Messianic psalm.... [ Continue Reading ]
_The thieves also … cast the same in his teeth_ They would naturally catch at the thought that the deliverer failed to give deliverance. St Luke alone relates that "one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on him … the other answering rebuked him." It is by no means impossible that the penite... [ Continue Reading ]
_from the sixth hour … unto the ninth hour_ From 12 to 3 o'clock in the afternoon, the hours of the Paschal sacrifice. _there was darkness over all the land_ Not the darkness of an eclipse, for it was the time of the Paschal full moon, but a miraculous darkness symbolic of that solemn hour and veil... [ Continue Reading ]
_Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?_ (Psalms 22:1). _Eli_is the Hebrew form. In Mark 15:34 the Aramaic words are preserved exactly as they were pronounced by Jesus. The repetition, "My God! My God!" gives a deeply pathetic force; cp. ch. Matthew 23:37. It is an expression of utter loneliness and desolation... [ Continue Reading ]
_This man calleth for Elias_ This was probably spoken in pure mockery, not in a real belief that Jesus expected the personal reappearance of Elijah.... [ Continue Reading ]
_took a spunge, and filled it with vinegar_ The soldiers" sour wine (_posca_), the reed, or hyssop stalk (John), and the sponge, were kept in readiness to quench the sufferers" thirst.... [ Continue Reading ]
_Let be_ We must understand this to mean either (1) leave _him_, do not assist him; or (2) leave _it_, do not give the draught to him; or (3) "Let be" in the Greek coalesces with the verb following, and = "let us see." For the construction in the original cp. Luke 6:42. In Mark the words "Let alone;... [ Continue Reading ]
_when he had cried again with a loud voice_ Perhaps an inarticulate cry is meant, or perhaps the sixth word from the cross, "It is finished." John 19:30. _yielded up the ghost_ St Luke preserves the exact words, "Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit" (Luke 23:46).... [ Continue Reading ]
_the vail of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom_ St Luke has "rent in the midst." The veil meant is that which separated the holy of holies from the holy place. The rending of the veil signifies that henceforth there is free access for man to God the Father through Jesus Christ.... [ Continue Reading ]
Events that followed the Crucifixion. (1) The Veil of the Temple rent; (2) the Earthquake; (3) the Saints arise; (4) the Centurion at the Cross; (5) the Watching of the Women Of these, (2) and (3) are peculiar to St Matthew. Mark 15:38-41; Luke 23:45; Luke 23:47-49, where the grief of the spectato... [ Continue Reading ]
_the centurion_ in command of the guard of four soldiers who watched the crucifixion. _Truly this was the Son of God_ "Certainly this was a righteous man" (Luke).... [ Continue Reading ]
St Mark (Mark 15:40) specifies the group as "Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the less (rather, _the little_) and of Joses, and Salome." _Mary Magdalene_ Mentioned here for the first time by St Matthew. She was probably named from Magdala (_Mejdel_), on the Lake of Gennesaret; see map,... [ Continue Reading ]
_Arimathea_ is generally identified with Ramathaim-zophim, on Mount Ephraim, the birth-place of Samuel (1 Samuel 1:1), the site of which is undetermined. Many authorities place it much nearer to Jerusalem than the position indicated in the map, p. 28. _Joseph_ From the other two Synoptic Gospels we... [ Continue Reading ]
The Entombment Mark 15:42-47; Luke 23:50-56; John 19:38-42 Matthew 27:62 are peculiar to St Matthew. St Mark notes the wonder of Pilate that Jesus was already dead, and the evidence of the centurion to the fact. St John mentions the co-operation of Nicodemus like Joseph, a member of the Sanhedrin,... [ Continue Reading ]
_Pilate commanded the body to be delivered_ after having ascertained from the centurion that Jesus was dead. Usually those who suffered crucifixion lingered for days upon the cross. By Roman law the corpse of a crucified person was not buried except by express permission of the Emperor. A concession... [ Continue Reading ]
_linen cloth Sindon_, or FINE LINEN.... [ Continue Reading ]
_laid it in his own new tomb_ "His own" peculiar to St Matthew. St John mentions that the tomb was "in a garden in the place where he was crucified" (John 19:41). It was probably hewn out of the face of the rock near the ground (John 20:11), and the body of Jesus would lie horizontally in it. _roll... [ Continue Reading ]
_the other Mary_ The mother of James the less and Joses (Mark 15:47).... [ Continue Reading ]
_the next day, that followed the day of the preparation_ It was after sunset on Nisan 14. The preparation (paraskeué) was over, the Sabbath and the Paschal feast had commenced. This explanation of the somewhat unusual phrase accords with the view already taken of the Last Supper and the Passover. W... [ Continue Reading ]
_said … After three days I will rise_ Literally in the Greek, I RISE. For this present cp. ch. Matthew 24:41; Matthew 26:2. It appears from this that the priests and Pharisees understood the true import of Christ's words, "Destroy this temple, and after three days I will raise it up," which they wi... [ Continue Reading ]
_by night_ Omitted in the best MSS. _He is risen_ Rather, HE ROSE. _error_ Better, DECEIT. The Greek word has the same root as _deceiver, Matthew 27:63_.... [ Continue Reading ]
_Ye have a watch_ The meaning is either (1) that Pilate refuses the request; "Ye have a watch of your own" (_a_) the Levitical temple guard, or (_b_) a small body of soldiers whom Pilate may have already placed at their disposal or (2) he grants it curtly and angrily, "Take a watch; begone." The la... [ Continue Reading ]