Jesus had alreay been condemned by the Jewish leaders in an informal and illegal trial. The soldiers abused Jesus slapping and punching him, all while mocking him. Judas is nowhere to be found. The disciples are scattered; Peter has denied Christ 3 times. How does Matthew write this account of the specifics of this trial? Probably from the first hand account of those in the Sanhedrin; those among the Priests and elders that later came to Christ. I think its interesting to consider that a young man named Saul, who would later be the apostle Paul, may be among these Jewish leaders, although probably not in a position of leadership himself.
Matthew 27:1-2
This trial in the morning is the official trial, essentially repeating what was already decided illegally and informally during the night. While the trial may have looked official they were biased and came together in their plotting against Jesus; trying to put Him to death.
Pilate was the Prefect of this area as appointed by the Roman Emperor in 26A.D. This man had no sympathies for the Jews and he did not care or respect their beliefs and their practice of faith or the way of life. He was a reckless and ruthless ruler. He didn't understand the Jews and they didn't like him. He was known to have played mind games with them. Rome. The Jews were a bunch of fanatics as far as he was concerned. He came to understand the stiff-necked nature of the Jews though. For they threatened to report Pilate to Rome; this established a balance between the Jewish leaders and Roman leader.
An Alexandrian scholor named Philo wrote:
The Jews had threatened to report Pilate to the emperor for his misdeeds. This threat 'exasperated Pilate to the greatest possible degree, as he feared lest they might go on an embassy to the emperor, and might impeach him with respect to other particulars of his government-his corruption, his acts of insolence, his rapine, his habit of insulting people, his cruelty, his continual murders of people untried and uncondemned, and his never-ending gratuitous and most grievous inhumanity.'[1]
Pilate was in fact reported to Rome for the ruthless slaughter of a group of people in Samaria. As the result of this he was deposed in AD 36 and sent to Rome. The emporer died while hw as on the way to Rome. He either stood before Caligula or there was no hearing on the charges. Either way, one legend says that Pilate committed suicide as the result of guilt and shame for crucifying Jesus. The Coptic Christians actually believe Pilate and his wife became believers and they hold both up as saints.
The Jews thought they held enough influence over Pilate that they could get him to do their dirty work. But the first they needed was a better change to bring; Pialte didn't care about blasphemy. So they came up with some new charges. Luke 23:2 tells us they charged Jesus with being a revolutionary; with inciting the people not to pay their taxes; and with claiming to be a king.
Matthew 27:3-10
Judas sufaces again briefly, having been gone from the scene since the betrayal. In some fashion he saw the condemnation of Jesus. He is remorseful, even acknowledging his sin. Why does he just now recognize this is sin and feel this way? We don't know for sure but sin of all kinds can be most enticing and seem like a great idea before we partake. Then, after we fall, the brief satisfaction or joy is gone and before us is the gritty truch of what was done and the real cost of it all. Judas took the money back in an attempt to soothe his concience. The money was no longer important to him. This is saying much for a man known for his greed.
The priest recognized this money for what it was and refused to take it back even as Judas threw it into the temple. In a profound act of hypocrisy, the priests saw it as illegal to receive blood money (Deut 23:18); but looked past their laws as they paid it out. We all have a knack for being selective in our obedience. The Jews took the money and purchased the potters field. This was a useless piece of ground full of broken pottery. Since it was the resonsibility of the temple to bury foreigners who had passed there, they bought the land as a graveyard.
Even taking back the money didn't make everything all right again. Judas ended up hanging himself. Later we find out that Judas's body was one of the first to fall in this potter's field (Acts 1:18-19). It is presumed Judas's body was left hanging util it broke free and fell headlong into this field. There is some possibility that his dead body was thrown there but it is unlikely any Jew would defile themself during the feast.
See Zechariah 11:12-13; Jeremiah 17:2-3; Jeremiah 18:1-4; Jeremiah 19:1-11; and Jeremiah 32:6-15.
Matthew 27:11-14
When we consider Pilates reputation we wonder what he was thinking when this beaten and bloody man stood before him with these acusations. Pilate was under pressure from Rome to keep the peace, he didn't want a rebellion. The Jewish leaders were threatening to make waves in Rome; they were the key to peace. Jesus was clearly not a king as far as Pilate could see. His question was probably sarcastic as Jesus was bloodied, beaten and bound. Pilate must have been a little shocked when Jesus said He was in fact the King of Jews.
The Jewish leaders brought their accusations to Pialte and Jesus remained silent. The governor had no doubt had many criminals stand before him. But probably none stood so silent; assuredly none stood so innocent. This silence amazed the governor, possibly leaving an impression that later made a believer out of him.
In John and Luke we put together the trials and the passing of Jesus to Herod. Because Jesus was a Galilean, Pilate thought he would pass Jesus to Herod who was the govenor of that area. Herod must have been in Jerusalem during the Passover so Pilate attempts to pawn Jesus off on him. Herod wasn't any more of a Jew or friend of the Jews; he was immoral and cunning like a fox. John the Baptist criticized him because he had married his brother's wife. Herod wanted to see Jesus do a trick for him. Jesus remained silent; Herod's soldiers mocked him, dressed him up in a robe and sent him back to Pilate. Pileate must have been amused at this. Luke said it was because of this that Herod & Pilate became friends. They both went on to a dismal future.
Matthew 27:15-18
Pilate again thought this was a way out of putting to death this innocent man. Pilate was accustomed to releasing a man in honor of their feast. It was his way of winning some popularity points among the Jews. Surely they would choose to release Jesus rather than Barabbas. After all, Jesus had been mocked and beaten and humiliated.
To set the scene, there they were Jesus and Barabbas before Pilate and this crowd. The choice was placed before the crowd. The real choice was between a sinfallen man, a murderer and a zealot, a criminal who deserved death and Jesus, against whom no legitimate charge would stand. Barabbas means "son of a father'. The choice was between the son of a father and the Son of THE Father.
Matthew 27:19-26
The crowd chose the son of another father, Barabbas. They cried out to crucify Jesus and let Barabbas go free. Crucifixion was a Roman punishment and something the Jews found offensive. How strange for them to cry this out, nearly demanding it.
Pilates wife, in verse 19, declares him innocent based on her dreams. Verse 25 is an incredible declaration; we should all remember we are the ones that put Christ on the cross. Barabbas was guilty and knew it. The one who took his place was innocent. Jesus ended up taking on Barabbas's punishment.
Imagine for a moment Barabbas. This man had been on death row awaiting his execution. When the soliders removed him from his cell that morning he surely thought this was the day he would meet his maker - and he did, just not how he thought. He stood near Jesus and found out that he would go free and Jesus would be crucified in his place. Barabbas truly knew what it was like for Christ to die on the cross in his place. What happened to Barabbas? We don't know. We'll have to look for him in heaven; and hopefully he will be there having repented and trusted in the one who died for him. If so, he will be more than happy to share his story with us.
Jesus was led away and scourged. This is a beating with a whip laced with sharp objects. When completed, a person's back looked more like raw meat; bones were exposed flesh peeled away. Many men died during this scourging and never made it to the cross. This act of scourging was preliminary to every crucifixion as a way of weakening the body almost to the point of death. If one confessed their crimes the scourging would be reduced in intensity or the number of lashes. With nothing to confess, Jesus remained silent and took the full force and intensity of punishment.
After the scourging Jesus was turned over to be crucified. He would have been assigned to a small contingent of soldiers whose job was to parade Jesus before the city as an example and then nail him to a cross.
Pilate stood before the crowd and washed his hands before them in a display that was meant to clear him from any wrong doing. He declared Jesus 'just' It was like him saying, 'I tried to rule justly but was unable, the blood of Jesus isn't on his hands'. Of course, Pilate couldn't be absolved from wrongdoing simply by washing his hands. He was the authority and therefore had responsibility for maintaining the integrity of the judgment seat. But Pilate was never known for such things.
The Jews announced that the blood of Jesus should be on them and on their children. In the sense of placing this burden of murder on their children, this is awful responsibility to put on the them. They so believed they were justified in what they were doing. They were renouncing Jesus; saying He wasn't their messiah. This is in agreement with John 19:15 in which the Jews renounce their Messiah, their king and the Son of God.
In reality, there could be nothing better than to be washed in the cleansing blood of Jesus Christ. They really had no concept of what they said, but it has great meaning now as a blessing on them and their children. Yes, Lord, let the blood of Jesus be on us and on our children.
Matthew 27:27-29
The Praetorium was a word that originally meant where the magistrate or commander laid his head. It would have been used to designate the tent where the commander was staying. Pilate's permanent residence was in Caesarea; so the Praetorium here may have been in the Antonia Fortress or Herod's palace. It's unclear which is the case and scholars have good arguments for both.
Jesus was turned over to this garrison of soldiers. They surrounded Him, stripped Him of His outer garment and put a robe on Him in mockery. This is a royal robe, referred to as purple in a couple of the other gospels, but both meaning the same. To further mock and humiliate Him they twisted a crown of thorns and placed it on his head and gave Him a reed as the scepter of a king.
Thorns are the picture of sin. At the fall of man in the garden, God set Adam out of the garden of God to work a land that would yield thorns and thistles. This was the affect of sin. One of these soldiers saw a branch of thorns and thought it a great idea and great fun to twist this into a crown for this King. This crown is symbolic of the sins of man being placed on Jesus.
Matthew 27:30-31
When the fun of this mockery became old to them, these men turned to cruelty. They spat on Jesus, to disgrace Him. They took the sceptor from his hand struck him in the head. When they had had their fun, they put his cloths back on Him and led Him away to be crucified.
Matthew 27:32
Cyrene was an ancient city in North Africa and had an important Jewish population. The Cyrenian Jews show up in a few places in the bible. They stood among the group that testified against Stephen in Acts 6:9. Some Cyrenians show up in Acts 11 as those bringing the gospel message to Antioch. We know that Simon had a son named Rufus and there is a Rufus that was active in the early church. Also, in Acts 13 we see Lucius from Cyrene in the church.
Simon was a devout Jews who made the 800-mile trip to Jerusalem for Passover. He was among the crowd nearby. When a Roman soldier compelled you to do carry his burden, that's what you did. This was a legal act; a Roman soldier could compell you to carry a burden for him for a certain distance.
As they came out of the Praetorium they marched Jesus toward Golgotha. This way that they traveled became known as the via delarosa; the way of sorrows. Although, we don't know for sure where Golgotha is located nor the exact route they took. Normally four Roman soldiers would have taken the condemned to be crucified. One soldier led the way, one was on each side of the condemned and one behind. A sign was made stating the charges against the man for all to see as he was marched to his death. This method was a message to anyone who would see that justice would be done and not to break the laws of Rome. Jesus would have likely been carrying a crossbeam, which was then carried by Simon. The upright of the cross was a permanent fixture and the crossbeam was attached with the condemned. This is what Jesus meant when he said:
There he is scourged, mocked, beaten, bloodied, carrying the cross; yet walking innocent, taking your place. Like this cross belonged to Barrabas that day; this cross also belongs to you and I. If you desire to follow Jesus you must deny yourself, acknowledge the charges of sin you bear, take up your cross and go to Calvary with Jesus. This is an acknowledgement that Jesus walked down the road that day innocent but he walked in your place; the sin he bore on the cross was my sin.
There, on Calvary, the old man will be crucified with Christ. All sin would be paid in full. This ugly, bloody, hideous and offensive crucifixion would become the thing that would cleanse us from our sins, wash us white as snow. The peanalty of sin is death. This is the death we deserve, but Jesus died it for us that we might live. To follow Him to Calvary is to follow Him to death, leading to life eternal. Likewise, avoiding Calvary and turning away from the death of Christ, the blood and crucifixion is to turn away from life eternal.
Matthew 27:33-34
This was a drug to numb the flesh and the mind of the agony. Jesus rejected this to receive the full cup of wrath for the sins of men.
Matthew 27:35-37
The bible doesn't give us all the gory details of the crucifixion; it simply says they crucified Him. The Son of God was nailed to a tree but not because He was forced and not a victim of circumstances but He did this out of obedience. This was what Jesus came for; He did this for us. It was the love of God for you and I that Jesus was on the tree.
The soldiers had done their work. Part of the compensation for that work was they received the garments from the condemned. They cast lots and in doing so fulfilled the scriptures (Psalm 22:18). Sitting down, the soldiers kept watch over Him. This was to make sure He stayed on the cross and no one brought him down. The sign which was carried with him was then nailed to the top of the cross. John tells us this upset the Jews, but in reality this was the big offense to the Jews who said they had no king but Caesar.
The world would look on this scene and say, "Some king! What kind of king is treated this way and hanged on a cross to die?" Our natural state, because of sin, would agree. Who is this Jesus and why would we need Him? To understand, we must first grasp the bad news. The penalty of sin is death. The wrath of an Almighty, Eternal and Holy God is stored up against us in an account we can't settle. Our destiny is Eternal punishment and separation from the God who created us. Deep down inside we all come to know that on some level. When we come to the full knowledge of our sin, then we can appreciate what was done on the cross. And then we can look forward to the resurrection and eternal life.
Matthew 27:38-44
There was no lower place than nailed to a cross between two robbers. Even the criminals rejected and reviled Jesus. Jews passed by and blasphemed and mocked, as if to ask, "What kind of messiah would be found on a cross?" But on the cross was this tremendous act of love towards mankind. The rejection was complete by the very people Christ came to save. The pain and sorrow of the cross was multiplied when this cruel rejection.
The same rejection still happens today. It sounds a little different, but it still there and I think just as cruel. This amazing act of love was done for all of mankind, but many will never turn to Jesus. The rejection of who Christ is and what He's done is only overshadowed by the ignorance and apathy of the culture.
Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?' 23 And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!' (Matthew 27:22-23)
People don't know and don't care that Jesus is alive and coming back soon. Many know of Jesus and trust in a false sense of security. Ignorance is bliss for those who want to hold onto their sin - and that's our very nature.
What's a right response to this amazing act of love? We might answer this question in many ways and with many verses, but I often think of Romans 12 because it is our 'reasonable service' to offer ourselves to the one who offered Him self for us:
I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. (Romans 12:1-2)
Matthew 27:45-46
Looking at what Matthew and Luke tell us we can see Jesus was on the cross about six hours, fron 9am to 3pm. It was the last three hours that the darkness descended over the land. While this was a very real absence of light it was also a spiritual darkness that is seen symobolic in many ways. John tells us God is light and I believe this is God turning away from the sin that was hanging on the cross.
21 For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. (2 Corinthians 5:21)
I believe this darkness is the dying gasp of death and darkness as Christ prepared to defeat it. The power of sin and darkness was broken on the cross.
13 He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, 14 in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins. (Col 1:13)
Phlegon, Roman historian wrote of this darkness at the sixth hour; he said the day turned into dark night and there was an earthquake. At least two other sources confirm this darkness happened. As a side note: I wonder what Pilate is thinking as this darkness descends on the land. How about Peter and John and the others; did they link the darkness and earthquake to the crucifixion of Jesus?
It is three hours into this darkness, at about 3 in the afternoon, when Jesus cries out to God. The question is whether this is a quote of Psalm 22 or Psalm 22 was a quote from the cross. Because its God's timeless word its safe to say both are true. This is the cry of God the son is out of fellowship with the Father for the first time ever. This is also the cry of a man who is crucified and is suffering and utterly alone, in pain and despair.
This crying out left its impression on the all the gospel writers. It was a profound moment; a defining moment in all of history. It is John who tells us a little bit more. John records that Jesus said, "It is finished!" And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.
Matthew 27:47-50
The final scoff of the people to Jesus was taunt regarding Elijah. They mistook his cry as a call to Elijah. Someone ran to get Jesus a drink of the sour wine concoction. The rest mockingly said to leave Him alone. They were essentially saying, 'Let Him suffer.' They would wait and see if Elijah came to save Him. In reality, Jesus came to save Elijah and all those old Testament saints who looked forward in faith to the coming salvation. He came for those who mocked and scoffed as well as you and I. We could be apalled at the actions of those who mocked him while he hanged there, but we must first be apalled at our own sin when we know of the resurrection.
The gospel of John says this:
30 So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, "It is finished!" (John 19:30)
This is the Greek word 'tetelestai' which means 'paid in full'. The sin debt was paid; the work on the cross was completed. Luke adds this:
46 And when Jesus had cried out with a loud voice, He said, "Father, 'into Your hands I commit My spirit.' " Having said this, He breathed His last. (Luke 23:46)
The spirit was only yielded when Christ allowed it to happen. His life wasn't taken or lost, it was given by Him. The penalty of sin is death. This is the sinless Jesus standing in our place paying for our sins. It was completed.
It was common practice to break the legs of the victim. In this way they couldn't relieve the pressure on their upper body and breath. This would hasten their death. Many times a victim could live up to 9 days on the cross. They needed Jesus to die and get him off the cross because they were preparing for Passover and the Jews couldn't handle a body or they would be unclean. But why didn't the soldier break his legs? Instead he thrust his spear in his side. See Zechariah 12:9.
Matthew 27:51-54
They veil was torn; and not just a small tear, but this was done by God from top to the bottom as only God could do. The access to the holy of holies had been opened to all by Jesus; He is the Way to the holy of holies before the Father.
We can imagine this unexplained darkness all afternoon and then the earth quaked. This was an earthquake widespread enough to be recorded by historians. We can't say for sure but it wouldn't be a stretch to think the entire earth was shaken. Rocks were split and graves were broke open.
Matthew then leaves the sequence of events to add that after the resurrection, the bodies of some saints were raised from these graves that had broken open. This is an awesome display of the power of the resurrection. Matthew is the only gospel account that speaks of this.
When this eathquake happened in conjuction with the darkness and the death of Jesus it moved the hard heart of this centurion. As a centurion, this man was the toughest of tough; a battle hardened warrior who feared nothing. This man who presided over the crucifixion, now declared that Jesus was the Son of God. His only mistake was that he said it in the past tense, when in fact Jesus IS the Son of God.
Matthew 27:55-61
These women who followed Jesus in life stood by even in death to minister to Him. They were looking on, perhaps remembering what Jesus said about resurrection; maybe wondering if it could possibly be.
Joseph of Arimathea was not just rich but obviously prominent. This prominence was likely from being a member of the Sanhedrin. This man had become of follower of Jesus at some point in time. The body could be claimed by family or someone close to the family. Joseph had access to Pilate, made this request and received permission. Pilate made all the preparations for the burial of Jesus which included cleansing and wrapping him up in this gravecloth. He was then laid in a new tomb; one hewn from stone for Joseph, thereby never used before (Jesus would only borrow it for the weekend.) The tomb was then sealed with a large stone. The two Mary's were there and saw where Jesus was buried.
Matthew 27:62-66
The chief priests and Pharisees wanted to make sure the body was taken and made to look like he was resurrected. This would have been a disaster, making the problem worse then it had been when He was alive. They needed to keep Jesus in the grave. Pilate assigned the Roman soldiers to guard this tombe. These guard's lives were on the line in guarding this. This isn't something they wouldn't take serious. In placing his seal on the tomb and these soldiers to stand guard they end up adding the veracity of the resurreciton. In doing this he removed any doubt that the body was stolen.
© 2016 Doug Ford
[1] Barclay, W. (2001). The Gospel of Matthew (Third Ed., pp. 418-419). Edinburgh: Saint Andrew Press.
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