32 As they went out, they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name. They compelled this man to carry his cross. 33 And when they came to a place called Golgotha (which means Place of a Skull), 34 they offered him wine to drink, mixed with gall, but when he tasted it, he would not drink it. 35 And when they had crucified him, they divided his garments among them by casting lots. 36 Then they sat down and kept watch over him there. 37 And over his head they put the charge against him, which read, “This is Jesus, the King of the Jews.” 38 Then two robbers were crucified with him, one on the right and one on the left. 39 And those who passed by derided him, wagging their heads 40 and saying, “You who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself! If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross.” 41 So also the chief priests, with the scribes and elders, mocked him, saying, 42 “He saved others; he cannot save himself. He is 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 deliver him now, if he desires him. For he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’” 44 And the robbers who were crucified with him also reviled him in the same way.
Section Overview
The crucifixion is the best-attested event of ancient history. Josephus, a Jewish historian (AD 37–100), wrote of how Pilate condemned Jesus to the cross (Antiquities 18.63–64). Tacitus, a Roman historian (AD 56–117), recorded, “Christ, during the reign of Tiberius, had been executed by the procurator Pontius Pilate.”479 The Babylonian Talmud (6th century AD) cites an older record that notes how Jesus “was hanged on the eve of the Passover” because he “practiced sorcery and enticed Israel to apostasy.”480 Perhaps most strikingly, a minor Stoic philosopher named Mara Bar Serapion refers to Jesus tangentially in a letter to his son. Probably writing around AD 100, he argues that misfortune overtakes those who persecute wise men: “What did it avail the Jews to kill their wise king, since their kingdom was taken away from them from that time on? . . . Socrates is not dead, thanks to Plato. Nor is the wise king [Jesus] because of the new law which he has given.”481 Christian sources count too, since the leaders of a movement would hardly fabricate a story that its founder was executed in the most painful and humiliating way.
The pain of crucifixion was indeed terrifying, and the shame mortifying. But Matthew invites his community to dwell on the words Jesus speaks from the cross, not his physical torments. Indeed, Matthew’s account of Jesus’ death (Matt. 27:35–50) says almost nothing about the physical element of the crucifixion, which takes up just three words in Greek: “after crucifying him” (staurōsantes de auton; v. 35). In Matthew’s narrative, physical abuse of Jesus’ body dominates the stretch between Pilate’s judgment and the crucifixion (vv. 26–34). But verbal abuse, directed at Jesus’ spirit, dominates the hours on the cross (vv. 35–44).
In chapters 4–26, Jesus is the prime mover in a world of constant activity: teaching, healing, debating. In chapter 27, however, Jesus is passive. He is silent while scourged, stripped, mocked, crowned, and struck. When he finally speaks, he addresses God, not his tormentors. This ignites a flurry of human activity (vv. 47–49), and then he dies, setting off cosmic activity (vv. 50–53).
Section Outline
IX. Death, and Resurrection (26:1–28:20) . . .
M. The Crucifixion and Mockery of Jesus (27:32–44)
Weakened by the abuse he has suffered, Jesus cannot drag his cross to Golgotha, so soldiers press Simon of Cyrene into the task (27:32–33). While the soldiers watch Jesus, awaiting his death, a series of acts hint at the meaning of the crucifixion: soldiers cast lots for his clothes (vv. 35–36), a charge is placed over his head that reads, “This is Jesus, the King of the Jews” (v. 37), two rebels are crucified beside him (v. 38), and several witnesses mock him. On each occasion, those who mistreat Jesus also misrepresent his words or deeds. Yet they say enough to testify inadvertently to his true person and work.
Response
The crucifixion, when joined to Jesus’ death and resurrection, reveals the centrality of the cross as the time and place at which Jesus atones for sin. From a biblical perspective, “the curse on Jesus at the cross fulfills all OT sacrifices; it is a curse that removes the curse from believers—the fusion of divine, royal prerogative and Suffering Servant, the heart of the gospel, the inauguration of a new humanity, the supreme model for Christian ethics, the ratification of the new covenant, and the power of God.”485 The silence of Jesus on the cross also presents his moral excellence: his self-control, his endurance, his submission to the Father, his willingness to suffer for his flock.
There are smaller lessons as well. Jesus’ silence proves that it is not always essential to defend ourselves from false accusations. Jesus is “entrusting himself to him who judges justly” (1 Pet. 2:23), and his followers can too.
Believers know that Jesus bears the guilt of their sin. Matthew 27 shows that he also bears their shame. David said: “All who see me mock me” (Ps. 22:7). Isaiah prophesied of God’s servant that he “was despised and rejected by men” (Isa. 53:3). Jesus endures the mockery with perfect patience, so that he suffers for sin and its consequences, including shame. Many find mockery almost intolerable. Indeed, Scripture says a “good name” is a good thing (Prov. 22:1). But disciples know to put limited stock in popular opinion. We remember that those who hope in God will not “be put to shame” (Ps. 25:3; Rom. 9:33; 10:11). Jesus bears both our guilt and our shame, and because we identify with him, his glory is also ours.486 During the injustices of life, it is good to rest in the Lord in this way.