Mark 15:44

And the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom. For the exposition, see the notes at ; and at John 19:31....

42-47 We are here attending the burial of our Lord Jesus. Oh that we may by grace be planted in the likeness of it! Joseph of Arimathea was one who waited for the kingdom of God. Those who hope for a share in its privileges, must own Christ's cause, when it seems to be crushed. This man God raised up for his service. There was a special providence, that Pilate should be so strict in his inquiry, that there might be no pretence to say Jesus was alive. Pilate gave Joseph leave to take down the body, and do what he pleased with it. Some of the women beheld where Jesus was laid, that they might come after the sabbath to anoint the dead body, because they had not time to do it before. Special notice was taken of Christ's sepulchre, because he was to rise again. And he will not forsake those who trust in him, and call upon him. Death, deprived of its sting, will soon end the believer's sorrows...

AND PILATE MARVELED IF - Wondered if he was dead, or wondered that he was so soon dead. It was not common for persons crucified to expire under two or three days, sometimes not until the sixth or seventh. Joseph had asked for the “body,” implying that he was dead. That he was, had been ascertained by the soldiers. See John 19:33....

EXPOSITION MARK 15:1 AND STRAIGHTWAY IN THE MORNING THE CHIEF PRIESTS WITH THE ELDERS AND SCRIBES, AND THE WHOLE COUNCIL, HELD A CONSULTATION, AND BOUND JESUS, AND CARRIED HIM AWAY, AND DELIVERED HIM UP TO PILATE. _Straightway in the morning _(εὐθέως πρωΐ́)_. _The proceedings recorded in the last chapter terminated probably between five and six; the cock-crowing helps to fix the time. Now came the more formal trial. The whole Sanhedrim united in consultation. All the proceedings hitherto had been irregular and illegal. Now, for form's sake, they tried him afresh. But there was another law which was also violated. It was now Friday. In capital cases, sentence of condemnation might not legally be pronounced on the day of the trial. Yet our Lord was tried, condemned, and crucified on the same day. They "hound him," that he mi

AND PILATE MARVELLED IF HE WERE ALREADY DEAD,.... For death, by crucifixion, was a slow lingering death; persons that were in their full strength hung a great while before they expired; and the two thieves, which were crucified with Christ, were not dead when he was: AND CALLING UNTO HIM THE CENTURION; who was set to watch him: HE ASKED HIM, WHETHER HE HAD BEEN ANY WHILE DEAD; he inquired of him, whether he was dead, and how long he had been dead....

Concerning the death of our Lord Jesus Christ, we shall read in three portions of the New Testament. First, in the Gospel according to Mark, the fifteenth chapter, beginning at the thirty-fourth verse. Mark 15:34. _And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?_ It is, «My El, my strong God, my mighty One, why hast thou forsaken me?» the bitterest words that were ever uttered by mortal lips, and expressing the quintessence of agony. Alas! that my Saviour should ever have had to say as much as this when he hung upon the cross, suffering and dying for me. Mark 15:35. _And some of them that stood by, when they heard it, said, Behold, he calleth Elias._...

MARK 15:44 eiv pa,lai {B} Although the reading pa,lai may perhaps have arisen through a desire to avoid the repetition of h;dh in the sentence, it is more probable that copyists, feeling that pa,lai was somehow inappropriate in the context, sought to ameliorate the passage by replacing it with h;dh. Several manuscripts that read h;dh (including D W Q) also alter avpe,qanen to the perfect tense....

CHAPTER 15 _ 1. Before Pilate. (Mark 15:1 .Matthew 27:1; Luke 23:1; John 18:28 .)_ 2. Barabbas released and the Servant condemned. (Mark 15:6 .Matthew 27:15; Luke 23:16; John 18:39) 3. Crowned with thorns and mocked. ...

THE BURIAL OF JESUS. Deuteronomy 21:23 enjoined the burial of dead criminals before nightfall (_cf._ Josephus, _Wars,_ IV, v.2). The day of the Crucifixion being the preparation for the Sabbath, _i.e._ Friday, the carrying out of the law was doubly desirable. It required courage to approach Pilate, but Joseph of Arimathæ a enjoyed sufficient distinction to venture. Pilate granted him the corpse (the brutal technical word is used). Joseph hastily placed the body in a rock-tomb, the characteristic mode of burial at that time and place. The stone which covered the entrance to the tomb was a protection against wild beasts and thieves (Menzies). The women marked the spot and prepared to render the last offices of love....

THE SILENCE OF JESUS (Mark 15:1-5)...