Matthew 27:27–56
Then the governor’s soldiers took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the whole company of soldiers around him. 28 They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, 29 and then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on his head. They put a staff in his right hand. Then they knelt in front of him and mocked him. “Hail, king of the Jews!” they said. 30 They spit on him, and took the staff and struck him on the head again and again. 31 After they had mocked him, they took off the robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him away to crucify him.
The Crucifixion of Jesus
32 As they were going out, they met a man from Cyrene, named Simon, and they forced him to carry the cross. 33 They came to a place called Golgotha (which means “the place of the skull”). 34 There they offered Jesus wine to drink, mixed with gall; but after tasting it, he refused to drink it. 35 When they had crucified him, they divided up his clothes by casting lots. 36 And sitting down, they kept watch over him there. 37 Above his head they placed the written charge against him: this is jesus, the king of the jews.
38 Two rebels were crucified with him, one on his right and one on his left. 39 Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads 40 and saying, “You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself! Come down from the cross, if you are the Son of God!” 41 In the same way the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders mocked him. 42 “He saved others,” they said, “but he can’t save himself! He’s the king of Israel! Let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him. 43 He trusts in God. Let God rescue him now if he wants him, for he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’” 44 In the same way the rebels who were crucified with him also heaped insults on him.
The Death of Jesus
45 From noon until three in the afternoon darkness came over all the land. 46 About three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eli, Eli,[a] lema sabachthani?” (which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”).[b]
47 When some of those standing there heard this, they said, “He’s calling Elijah.”
48 Immediately one of them ran and got a sponge. He filled it with wine vinegar, put it on a staff, and offered it to Jesus to drink. 49 The rest said, “Now leave him alone. Let’s see if Elijah comes to save him.”
50 And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.
51 At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook, the rocks split 52 and the tombs broke open. The bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. 53 They came out of the tombs after Jesus’ resurrection and[c] went into the holy city and appeared to many people.
54 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!”
55 Many women were there, watching from a distance. They had followed Jesus from Galilee to care for his needs. 56 Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joseph,[d] and the mother of Zebedee’s sons.
Matthew emphasized the way that people laughed at Jesus. They insulted him. There were Gentile (non-Jewish) soldiers. There were Jews who stood and watched. There were the Jewish religious leaders. Also there were even criminals. They all refused to accept Jesus.
People thought that Jesus had no worth. They refused to accept him. They laughed about two things. First, they laughed about the things that he had said about himself (verse 43). Next, they laughed about his actions. The things that he had said about himself were wonderful. The people reminded him about them. He had said that he was king of the Jews (verses 29, 37). He had said that he would build the new Temple (verse 40). He had said that he was the Son of God (verse 43). But his great acts should have been proof enough. They should have caused people to examine the facts. However, people did not do it then. They do not do it now.
One phrase shows Jesus’ real worth. It is ‘the Son of God’ (verse 54). The soldier may not have understood its full meaning. But Matthew and the other New Testament writers want us to know it. Jesus had all God’s nature. Jesus was really God who became a man. He was ‘Immanuel, God is with us’. (Read Matthew 1:23 and Isaiah 7:14.)
So, nothing else is like our Christian faith. God showed himself to all people. When people looked at God’s Son, they saw God. In this passage, Matthew teaches 4 great truths about Jesus’ work.
► Jesus wanted to save other people. So he refused to save himself (verse 42). There was a great truth in what the religious leaders said. Jesus chose not to save himself.
► Jesus suffered because of sin (verses 45–46). These two verses emphasize that Jesus took the punishment for our sin. In the Bible, darkness is often the sign of punishment for sin. So, darkness in that country as Jesus died was a sign. It showed the fact that Jesus was taking our sin upon himself. We deserve God’s punishment because of our sin. At the cross, Jesus suffered that punishment for us. (Read 2 Corinthians 5:21.)
But verse 46 teaches another truth. God had to turn away from his Son, Jesus. This broke the unity of God. We cannot understand this mystery. But we can understand the lesson that it teaches. It teaches that sin is a very serious matter. Also it teaches about God’s great love for sinners. It hurt the Father and the Son so much. But they did it for us. Now, we can be free from the punishment for sin.
► Jesus brought two great benefits to all who follow him (verse 51). First, we can know that God forgives us. Then we can come close to God. The curtain in the Temple was a sign. It showed that sin had separated people from God. The High Priest could go behind that curtain only once a year. But first he had to offer a sacrifice for sin. (Compare Leviticus chapter 16 with Hebrews chapter 9 and 10:19–22.) Jesus was the final sacrifice for sin. Now we can come to God freely.
► Jesus ended the terrible results of sin (verses 52, 53). This wonderful event reminds us about something important. It is that if people sin, God must punish them. And they will die. (Read Romans 6:23.) Jesus died and came back to life. This means that we need not die. It is true that our bodies still die. But what happened to Jesus is God’s promise to us. We will come back to life again. (Read 1 Corinthians 15:1–23 and 1 Thessalonians 4:13–18.) There will be a new heaven and a new earth too. (Read Revelation 21:1–5.)
Questions
1. Imagine that you are the soldier. You are watching Jesus who is on the cross. What do you see? What do you think about Jesus? Some speakers talk in detail about the awful physical pain of the cross. Do you think that this is right?
2. People have used art to show the death of Jesus. They have done this in each century. Do these pictures help us to understand why Jesus died? In what ways are they helpful or unhelpful?
3. What are the most important things that are true in the Christian message? If someone asked you this question, what would you say? Say it briefly. Say it in words that non-Christians would understand.