THE KING ON THE CROSS – John 19:17-30

Posted by Pastor Greg Allen on June 11, 2014 under PM Bible Study |

PM Home Bible Study Group; June 11, 2014

John 19:17-30

Theme: John tells us how the crucifixion of our Lord fulfilled the promises of God.

(Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are taken from The Holy Bible, New King James Version; copyright 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc.)

Over the past while, we have studied what the apostle John has told us concerning the trial of our Lord. We read of His interrogation before the high priest (who judged Him guilty of blasphemy and worthy of death); His interview with Pilate (who determined Him to be innocent of any capital crime yet would not defend Him); and finally, His presentation to His own people (who shouted that He should be crucified and asked for a robber to be released in His place). In the closing words of this series of trials, John 19:16 says, “Then he [that is Pilate] delivered Him to them [that is to the Jews] to be crucified. So they took Jesus and led Him away.”

John now tells us the story of our Lord’s crucifixion. The beginning scene in this section is that of our Lord carrying His crossbar up the hill to Golgotha; and the closing scene is of Him bowing His head and giving up His spirit. And in all of it, we see the perfect plan and purpose of God being fulfilled—the details of which were promised to us in the Old Testament Scriptures. As Jesus Himself told His disciples, “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and all things what are written by the prophets concerning the Son of Man will be accomplished” (Luke 18:31). In this passage, we see how much this was so.

I. BETWEEN TWO THIEVES (vv. 17-18).

A. First, we’re told, “And He, bearing His cross, went out to a place called the Place of a Skull, which is called in Hebrew, Golgotha, where they crucified Him, and two others with Him, one on either side, and Jesus in the center (vv. 17-18). In Latin, the place is called Calvary—from ‘calvaria’ (the Latin for ‘skull’). What our Lord carried was most likely the crossbar (the patibulum), and not the whole Roman gibbet. And notice how sparse an account it is that is given to us of the crucifixion itself. We aren’t given the gruesome details; and that may be because we’re not meant to dwell to much on them. It is enough for us to know that He was crucified.

B. What do we know about the two who were crucified with Him? John tells us little; but the other Gospel writers tell us much. Matthew tells us that they were “two robbers” (Matthew 27:38)—using the same word that was used to describe Barabbas in John 18:40. Mark tells us that “Even those who were crucified with Him reviled Him” (Mark 15:32). But what Luke tells us is most fascinating of all:

Then one of the criminals who were hanged blasphemed Him, saying, “If You are the Christ, save Yourself and us.” But the other, answering, rebuked him, saying, “Do you not even fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation? And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this Man has done nothing wrong.” Then he said to Jesus, “Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.” And Jesus said to him, “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise” (Luke 23:39-43).

Mark 15:27-28 tells us plainly that Jesus’ place between two robbers was so that the promise of Scripture—found in Isaiah 53:12—would be fulfilled:

Therefore I will divide Him a portion with the great,
And He shall divide the spoil with the strong,
Because He poured out His soul unto death,
And He was numbered with the transgressors,
And He bore the sin of many,
And made intercession for the transgressors (Isaiah 53:12).

Jesus was between two thieves in order that—as the sinless Son of God—He might be “numbered with the transgressors”. That includes us! He identified Himself with sinners like us so that He might pay the debt of sin on our behalf.

II. AS THE PROMISED KING OF THE JEWS (vv. 19-22).

A. As we read on we find that Pilate’s involvement in the story is not over: “Now Pilate wrote a title and put it on the cross. And the writing was: JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS” (vv 19-20). The Jews—perhaps as Pilate intended—were offended by these words: “Then many of the Jews read this title, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was written in Hebrew, Greek, and Latin” (v. 20). This, no doubt, was so that it could be plainly read by all people. Whether Pilate intended it or not, the Jews were definitely offended. “Therefore the chief priests of the Jews said to Pilate, “Do not write, ‘The King of the Jews,’ but, ‘He said, “I am the King of the Jews.”’ Pilate answered, ‘What I have written, I have written’” (vv. 21-22). Pilate’s decision was final. This cynical Roman governor may have meant it for an insult to the Jews; but clearly the providence of God meant it for a declaration of truth to all mankind.

B. And note what the declaration was! “The King of The Jews”. It wasn’t simply an accusation that He claimed to be this, but rather was an affirmation by Pilate that He was this! There—on a Roman cross—hung the promised King of the Jews; suffering for iniquities. And this is as the Scriptures promised. Long before—nearly ten centuries before in fact—God made the promise to King David:

“When your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be his Father, and he shall be My son. If he commits iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men and with the blows of the sons of men. But My mercy shall not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I removed from before you. And your house and your kingdom shall be established forever before you. Your throne shall be established forever” (2 Samuel 7:12-16).

Jesus Himself committed no sin. But He bore the sins of many. And just as the Scriptures promised that the King of the Jews—the Son of David—would be chastened with the blows of men, so Jesus suffered the blows of sinful men. And as David himself rejoiced to declare, God would not allow his holy Offspring to undergo decay (Psalm 16:9-11; see also Acts 2:22-35). Jesus truly was the crucified King of the Jews.

III. WHILE THEY DIVIDED HIS GARMENTS (vv. 23-24).

A. John goes on to tell us, “Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took His garments and made four parts, to each soldier a part, and also the tunic. Now the tunic was without seam, woven from the top in one piece. They said therefore among themselves, ‘Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be . . .’” (vv. 23-24a). It was typical for the soldiers—as part of their pay—to take possession of the garments of the criminals they crucified. But it must be that the outer tunic of our Lord was considered valuable. It was a fine, one-piece garment; and so, rather than tear it among themselves, they cast lots for it. What a gruesome scene that must have been—greedy soldiers casting lots for a man’s clothing as he was stretched out dying in agony above their heads! But as John goes on to tell us, even this was “that the Scripture might be fulfilled which says: ‘They divided My garments among them, and for My clothing they cast lots.’ Therefore the soldiers did these things” (v. 24b). The soldiers may have thought they were casting lots because they wanted the garment; but they were actually fulfilling Scripture.

B. The casting of lots for our Lord’s garments was promised long beforehand in the words of King David in his remarkable song, Psalm 22. That amazing psalm describes—in shocking detail—the crucifixion of our Lord at a time when crucifixions were unheard of. In that psalm, it says;

For dogs have surrounded Me;
The congregation of the wicked has enclosed Me.
They pierced My hands and My feet;
I can count all My bones.
They look and stare at Me.
They divide My garments among them,
And for My clothing they cast lots (Psalm 22:16-18).

The shame an indignity our Lord experienced, while hanging naked on a cross in agony as cruel soldiers laughed and cast lots for His clothing, is difficult to imagine or express. And yet, even this was promised in Scripture. Our Lord suffered such terrible shame for us; and all so that we would not have to suffer shame before His Father.

IV. WITH CONSTANT CARE FOR HIS OWN (vv. 25-27).

A. Even in the horrors of the cross, there was manifest tenderness and love. John tells us, “Now there stood by the cross of Jesus His mother, and His mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene” (v. 25). These were not all that were there apparently, because we’re told that John himself was also present. But there have been a variety of interpretations of how many women this is describing—and who they might be. One interpretation has it that there were four women; seeing Jesus’ “mother’s sister” as a different woman from “Mary the wife of Clopas”. Some have seen five women; seeing “Mary” as distinct from “the wife of Clopas.” And some have seen three women; seeing “His mother’s sister” as the same woman as “Mary the wife of Clopas. The “wife” may be the man named Cleopas who was one of the two who saw the resurrected Lord on the road to Emmaus (Luke 24:18); and some have even speculated that the other person was “the wife of Clopas” herself! But no doubt, they were all drawn to the Lord Jesus in His moment of greatest suffering. What a horrible scene it must have been for these women to behold! And John—who we can presume to be the oft-unnamed “disciple whom Jesus loved”—went on to write; “When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing by, He said to His mother, ‘Woman, behold your son!’ Then He said to the disciple, ‘Behold your mother!’ And from that hour that disciple took her to his own home” (vv. 26-27). Perhaps our Lord—even in His greatest moments of suffering—knew that His precious mother not only needed someone to provide care for her in His absence, but also a son for her to love. He brought the two together before the cross.

B. It’s very significant that our Lord’s mother was there. Back at the very beginning of the gospel story, we read of the prophecy of Simeon—the saintly old man who met Mary and Joseph in the temple at our Lord’s circumcision; where He told her, “Behold, this Child is destined for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign which will be spoken against (yes, a sword will pierce through your own soul also), that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed” (Luke 2:34-35). Surely, the sword was piercing her heart as she beheld Him dying in agony for her on the cross! That death touches all of us—but it must have touched her in a way that no other human being could have experienced. Her place was as a part of the gospel story from long ago—perhaps predicted, to some degree, in the curse in the garden; when God told the serpent,

“And I will put enmity
Between you and the woman,
And between your seed and her Seed;
He shall bruise your head,
And you shall bruise His heel” (Genesis 3:15).

Even King David seems to speak of her when he prophetically utters the words of our Lord in Psalm 22:

“But You are He who took Me out of the womb;
You made Me trust while on My mother’s breasts.
I was cast upon You from birth.
From My mother’s womb
You have been My God” (Psalm 22:9-10).

She was there with Him in His suffering; and even then, He provided care for her. What love our Lord displayed!—even on the cross!

V. IN FULFILLMENT OF EVERY DETAIL OF SCRIPTURE (vv. 28-30).

A. John closes the story with a description that shows us the degree to which our Lord went to fulfill every promise of Scripture. “After this”—that is, after appointing Mary and John to each other’s care, “Jesus, knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled, said, ‘I thirst!’” (v. 28). It may seem like a small thing for someone to say that they thirst—a perfectly understandable thing given the suffering of the cross. And yet, we’re told very specifically that Jesus did this knowing that the end was at hand; and that only one thing from the Scriptures yet remained to be fulfilled. That was why He declared His thirst. And as John goes on to tell us, “Now a vessel full of sour wine was sitting there; and they filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on hyssop, and put it to His mouth” (vv. 28-29). That was the thing that needed yet to be done. This was not done to satisfy His thirst, but to torment Him further; because sour wine would have left a horribly bitter taste in His mouth that would have made Him long even more for refreshment. And John tells us, “So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, ‘It is finished!’ And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit” (v. 30). All things were now accomplished; and He—who was in complete control of the situation all along—lowered His head and died for our sins.

B. Why was this necessary? It was necessary for two reasons. The first would be because of what is told to us in Psalm 22; “My strength is dried up like a potsherd, and My tongue clings to My jaws . . .” (Psalm 22:15). He must, according to the Scriptures, die while in horrible thirst; and unless our Lord expressed from the cross that He was thirsty, we would not have known that the promise of Psalm 22 was being fulfilled. But the second reason would be because of what was told to us in Psalm 69—another psalm of David that describes our Lord’s death; “

I looked for someone to take pity, but there was none;
And for comforters, but I found none.
They also gave me gall for my food,
And for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink (Psalm 69:20-21).

It was a cruel act. But that cruel act showed that our Lord had no comforters—only those who sought to add to His agony. Yet even this was promised in Scripture; and our Lord would not die for us—and indeed could not die for us—unless every detail of every promise of Scripture had been perfectly fulfilled.

* * * * * * * * * *

As we look at the cross, let’s certainly sorrow over our Lord’s suffering. But at the same time, let’s never forget its divinely-appointed, Scripturally promised purpose.

O sacred Head, now wounded, with grief and shame weighed down,
Now scornfully surrounded with thorns, thine only crown:
How pale thou art with anguish, with sore abuse and scorn!
How does that visage languish which once was bright as morn!
What thou, my Lord, has suffered was all for sinners’ gain;
Mine, mine was the transgression, but thine the deadly pain.
Lo, here I fall, my Savior! ‘Tis I deserve thy place;
Look on me with thy favor, vouchsafe to me thy grace.
What language shall I borrow to thank thee, dearest friend,
For this thy dying sorrow, thy pity without end?
O make me thine forever; and should I fainting be,
Lord, let me never, never outlive my love for thee.

(O Sacred Head Now Wounded; text by Paul Gerhardt and James W. Alexander)