Counted Among Thieves
Jesus is Delivered to Be Crucified
Pilate gave Jesus over to the Chief Priests1 to be crucified, and the soldiers took Him and led Him away - Him carrying His own cross. He went out to the area called "the Place of a Skull" (which is called "Golgotha"2 in Hebrew), and they crucified Him there with two other men, one on either side, and Jesus in the middle (J 19:16-18).
2 However, as they were going, leading Him out to the Place of a Skull, they found and laid hold of a man named Simon, a Cyrenian, who just happened to be passing by at the time, coming up from the country. He was the father of Alexander and Rufus.3 The soldiers had urged him to carry the cross for Jesus, and so they placed the cross on him and had him carry it behind Him (M 27:32, K 15:21, L 23:26).
3 Now a very large number of the people had followed Jesus, along with some women who grieved and moaned for Him (L 23:27).
4 Jesus turned to the women and said, "Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for Me. Weep for yourselves and for your children! Because, look, the days are going to come when they will say, 'Blessed are the barren, the wombs that have never given birth, and the breasts that have never nursed!' For, at that time they will begin to say to the mountains, 'Fall on us!' and to the hills, 'Cover us!' And if they go ahead and do these things while the wood is still green, what will be done when it is dry?" (L 23:28-31).
The Crucifixion
5 There were also two other criminals being led out to be put to death with Him, and when they had all gotten to the place called Golgotha (meaning Place of a Skull), they gave Jesus sour wine mingled with myrrh4 to drink (a drink commonly used at the time as a pain-killer). But once He had tasted it and found out what it was,5 He would not drink it (M 27:33-3413:10, K 15:22-23, L 23:32-33a).
6 And so it was, they crucified Him there with the two criminals, one on the right and the other on the left and with this they fulfilled the Scripture that says,
Along with the transgressors."
(Isaiah 53:12)
7 Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not realize what they are doing" (L 23:34a).
8 Now Pilate had written an inscription of the accusation against Him, as a title, and put it on the cross over His head. He wrote:
(13:13M 27:3713:5, K 15:26, L 23:38b, J 19:19)
9 The place Jesus was crucified was near the city so many of the Jews had read this title, being that it was written in Hebrew, Greek, and Latin. But the chief priests of the Jews went to Pilate and said, "Do not write, 'The King of the Jews.' But write, 'He said, "I am the King of the Jews'" (L 23:38a, J 19:20-21).
10 "What I have written, I have written," Pilate answered (J 19:22).
11 And so it was, after the soldiers had nailed Him to the cross, they took and divided His garments into four parts,7 each soldier taking a part. There was also a tunic (His main piece of clothing) but it was without a seam, woven from top to bottom, all in one piece. This being so, they said to each other, "Do not tear it! Let's flip a coin8 to see who gets it." And this was so that the Scripture would be fulfilled that says:
(13:4M 27:35a, K 15:24b, L 23:34b, J 19:23-24a but not b or c).
(M 27:35b, J 19:24b but not a or c).13 This is what the soldiers had done (J 19:24c).
14 Now it was nine in the morning9 when they crucified Him, and so they sat down there and watched over Him (M 27:3613:7, K 15:25).
15 Also standing by the cross were His mother and her sister,10 as well as Miriam, the wife of Clopas,11 and Miriam Magdalene. When Jesus saw His mother and the disciple whom He loved standing there, He said to His mother: "Woman, look, here is your son!" Then He said to the disciple: "Behold, your mother!" And so from then on, that disciple took her to live in his own house (J 19:25-27).
16 Now the people just stood there looking at Him, while even the rulers who were with them sneered, saying, "He saved others! Let Him save Himself if He is the Messiah, the chosen One of God" (L 23:35).
17 Even the soldiers mocked Him, coming and offering Him sour wine, and saying, "If You are the King of the Jews, save Yourself" (L 23:36-37).
18 Those who were passing by slandered Him,12 shaking their heads, saying, "Yeah right, You who were going to destroy the House of God and rebuild it in three days. If that's true, save Yourself! If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross" (13:5M 27:39-40, K 15:29-30).
19 In the same way, the chief priests, the scribes, and elders also mocked Him among themselves, saying, "He saved others. Can't He save Himself? If He is the King of Israel, let Him, the Messiah, the King of Israel, now come down from the cross so that we can see it. Then we will believe Him. He trusted in God; so then, now let God deliver Him. That is if He wants Him, since He has said, 'I am the Son of God (See Psalms 22:7-8)'"13 14 (M 27:41-43, K 15:31-32a).
20 Even the robbers, the ones who were crucified with Him, threw insults at Him, saying the same thing (M 27:44, K 15:32b).
21 More specifically,15 one of the criminals who was also hanging on a cross, slandered Him, saying, "Are You not the Messiah? If so, save Yourself and us" (L 23:39).
22 In reply, the other one rebuked him, saying, "Do you not even fear God, seeing that you are under the same sentence.16 We are certainly being sentenced justly, since we are receiving what we deserve, sentenced according to what we have done. But this Man has done nothing wrong." Then he said to Jesus, "Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom" (L 23:40-42).
23 Jesus told him, "I assure you, you will be with Me today in Paradise"17 (L 23:43).
24 Now it was only between 11 and 12 PM,18 but the sun had already become dark, making it dark over the whole earth19 until three in the afternoon. Then at about 3 P.M.,20 Jesus yelled out, "Eli, Eli,21 lama sabachthani?" (Psalm 22:1) Which is translated from Hebrew22 as, "My God, My God, why have You deserted Me?" (See John 16:32) (M 27:45-46, K 15:33-34, L 23:44-45a).
25 Then when some of those who were standing there heard this, they said, "Look, He's calling for Elijah!"23 (M 27:47, K 15:35).
26 After this, Jesus, knowing that everything had now been accomplished to fulfill Scripture, then said, "I'm24 thirsty (See Isaiah 69:21)!" (J 19:28).
27 Now there was a jar full of sour wine25 sitting there, and one of the soldiers immediately ran and took a sponge, filled it with the sour wine, put it on to a hyssop reed, and held it up to Jesus mouth, offering it to Him for a drink. The rest of them said, "Now leave Him alone!26 Lets see if Elijah will come to save Him and take Him down" (M 27:48-49, K 15:36, J 19:29).
28 Just then Jesus yelled out-loud, again, saying, "Father, I place My Spirit into your hands (Psalms 31:5)." So having received the sour wine, He said, "It is finished!"27 And after saying this, He took His last breath, dropped His head, and gave up His spirit (M 27:50, K 15:37, L 23:46, J 19:30).
29 Then behold, the curtain of the House of God28 was torn from top to bottom into two pieces. The earth shook, the rocks split, and the graves were opened. And after His resurrection, many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised.29 And then coming out of their tombs, they went into the holy city and appeared to a lot of people (M 27:51-53, K 15:38, L 23:45b).
30 But before all that, when He gave up His Spirit,30 the Centurion and those who were there with him, guarding Him, when they saw the earthquake and the things that had happened,31 they were very frightened. And when the Centurion who was standing directly across from Him saw that He had cried out like this when He breathed His last breath, praised God, saying, "This Man really was the Son of God - a righteous man!" (M 27:54, K 15:39, L 23:47).
31 All those who were there together in the crowd when they saw what had just happened, they beat their chests and then went back to what they were doing before all this (L 23:48).
32 There were also many women there who had come up with Him to Jerusalem. They were the women who had followed Him from Galilee and who had ministered to Him when He stayed there. Some of the women who were among them were Miriam, the mother of Jacob the less, Jude, and Joseph;32 Miriam Magdalene; and Salome, the mother of Zebedee's sons (John and Jacob);33 They all stood at a distance and watched (M 27:55-56, K 15:40-41, L 23:49).
33 Then since it was the day of preparation, the day when they would gather everything they were going to need for the two days of rest - it being a high Sabbath34 - and in order that the bodies would not stay on the cross during the Sabbath, the Jews asked Pilate if their legs could be broken. They asked this so that their bodies would be taken away (J 19:31).
34 Pilate gave the orders, and so the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first, as well as the other man who had been crucified with Jesus. But when they came to Jesus35 and saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs. Instead, one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear and immediately saw blood and water come out. He had done this to verify that He was really dead (J 19:32-34).
35 Now, he who has seen all this has testified concerning it. And his testimony is true. He knows he is telling the truth, and he has told you these things so that you may believe. For these things have happened so that the Scripture would be fulfilled that says,
(Exodus 12:46, Numbers 9:12, Psalm 34:20)
And again another Scripture that says,
(J 19:37a)
(Zechariah 12:10)
Jesus is Buried
36 Then, after this, as it was becoming evening, and because it was the Day of Preparation (the day before a Sabbath), a rich man named Joseph, who was from Arimathea, a city of the Jews, came. He was an honorable member of the council, a good and just man who had not agreed with their counsel and action, and who was himself waiting to receive his part in the kingdom of God, and who had also become a disciple of Jesus; though only in secret since he was afraid of the Jews. That is until now, because now, this man took courage, went to Pilate, and asked if he could take Jesus' body away (M 27:57-58a, K 15:42-43, L 23:50-52, J 19:38a).
37 Pilate, surprised that Jesus was already dead, called the Centurion and asked him if He had been this way36 for a long time. And once he had found out from the centurion that Jesus really had died, he gave permission and commanded that Joseph would receive the body (M 27:58b, K 15:44-45, J 19:38b).
38 Joseph came, brought some good quality bleached-white linen, and went and took the body of Jesus down (See Deuteronomy 21:23) (K 15:46a, L 23:53a but not b or c).
39 Nicodemus, who had originally come to Jesus by night, also came. He came bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about a hundred pounds of it (J 19:39).
40 The two of them took Jesus' body and wrapped it in strips of fine-linen cloth, along with the spices, just as it is37 in the Jewish custom for burial preparation (M 27:59, K 15:46b but not c, L 23:53b but not a or c & 54a, J 19:40).
41 Now in the place where He was crucified, there was a garden. In the garden, there was a new tomb, a tomb in which no one had yet been laid, a tomb Joseph had chiseled out of the rock. They laid Jesus there because of the Jews' Day of Preparation and because the tomb was close by. After laying Him there, Joseph and Nicodemus38 rolled a large stone against the door of the tomb, and then left as the Sabbath was beginning to set in (M 27:60, K 15:46c, L 23:53c & 54b, J 19:41-42).
42 Now the women who had come with Jesus from Galilee, who had followed Joseph and Nicodemus to the tomb (specifically Miriam Magdalene and the other Miriam, the mother of Joses)39 sat opposite the tomb and watched as the body was laid there for burial. After that, they went back and prepared spices and fragrant oils, and then rested for the Sabbath, according to the commandment (M 27:61, K 15:47, L 23:55-56).
43 Then on the next day, the one after the Day of Preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees came to Pilate as a group and said, "Sir, we remember that while He was still alive, that deceiver said, 'After three days I will rise again.' So then, give the command for the tomb to be made secure until the third day, in case His disciples decide to come during the night and steal His body, and then tell the people He has risen from the dead. Because if that happens, the last deception will be even worse than the first" (M 27:62-64).
44 "You have a guard," Pilate said, "Go and make it as secure as you know how" (M 27:65).
45 So they went and secured the tomb, putting a seal onto the stone, as well as having the guard (M 27:66).
