Gospel of John, Ch. 19, Pt.1

Gospel according to John, Chapter 19:  Read &/or listen from the Bible.

1/ The Soldiers Mock Jesus     – Jn.19:1-4
2/ Pilate’s Decision                       – Jn.19:5-16
3/ The King on a Cross                – Jn.19:17-24

Part 2:
4/ Behold Your Mother              – Jn.19:25-27
5/ The Death of Jesus                 – Jn.19:28-37
6/ The Burial of Jesus                 – Jn.19:38-42

1/ The Soldiers Mock Jesus     – Jn.19:1-4

Then Pilate took Jesus and flogged Him. ² The soldiers twisted a crown of thorns and put it on His head, and they put a purple robe on Him. ³ They said, “Hail, King of the Jews!” And they hit Him with their hands.

⁴ Again Pilate went out and said to them, “Look, I am bringing Him out to you, that you may know that I find no guilt in Him.”

Pilate tried to let Jesus go “For he knew that the chief priests had handed Him over out of envy. ” Mark 15:10. But decided to please the Jews by scourging Jesus. Our Lord was beaten so much that He was practically unrecognizable. In this regard, we remember what the prophet Isaiah said in 52:14: “As many were astonished at you,  his visage was so marred, more than any man” (for His appearance was so disfigured).

2/ Pilate’s Decision                       – Jn.19:5-16

5 Then Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate said to them, “Here is the Man!”

6 When the chief priests and officers saw Him, they cried out, “Crucify Him! Crucify Him!” Pilate said to them, “Take Him yourselves and crucify Him, for I find no guilt in Him.”

7 The Jews answered him, “We have a law, and by our law He ought to die, because He made Himself the Son of God!”

8 When Pilate heard these words, he was more afraid, 9 and entered the Praetorium again, and said to Jesus, “Where are You from?” But Jesus gave him no answer. 10 Pilate said to Him, “Are You not speaking to me? Do You not know that I have power to release You, and power to crucify You?”

11 Jesus answered, “You would have no power at all over Me, unless it were given to you from above. Therefore he who handed Me over to you has the greater sin.”

12 From then on, Pilate tried to release Him. But the Jews cried out, “If you release this Man, you are not Caesar’s friend. Whoever makes himself a king speaks against Caesar!”

13 When Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus out and sat down on the judgment seat at a place called The Pavement (which in Hebrew is Gabbatha).

14 It was the Day of Preparation of the Passover and about the sixth hour. He said to the Jews, “Here is your King!”

15 But they shouted, “Away with Him! Away with Him! Crucify Him!” Pilate said to them, “Shall I crucify your King?” The chief priests answered, “We have no king but Caesar!”

16 Then he handed Him over to them to be crucified. So they took Jesus and led Him away.

By the other gospel narratives we find out that Pilate’s wife sent him a message: “¹⁹ While he was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent to him, saying, “Have nothing to do with that just Man, for I have suffered many things today in a dream because of Him.” . . . 24 When Pilate saw that he could not prevail at all, but rather that a tumult was rising, he took water and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, “I am innocent of the blood of this just Person. You see to it.” 25 And all the people answered and said, “His blood be on us and on our children.” Matt. 17:19, 24-25.

The Jewish leaders were willing to accuse Pilate before Rome or Cesar of allowing subversion. And because Pilate didn’t want trouble with Caesar, he let his political position take precedence over justice.

3/ The King on a Cross                – Jn.19:17-24

17 And He, bearing His cross, went out to a place called the Place of a Skull, which is called in Hebrew, Golgotha, 18 where they crucified Him, and two others with Him, one on either side, and Jesus in the center. 19 Now Pilate wrote a title and put it on the cross. And the writing was:

JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS.

20 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.

21 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.”

22 Pilate answered, “What I have written, I have written.”

23 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. 24 They said therefore among themselves, “Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be,” 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.

There at the cross was made a transaction for the sins of the world, which is beyond our comprehension. The apostle John didn’t give us a detailed description of the crucifixion. He just mentioned the place & gave very few details. But none of the Gospel writers described the details  of the sufferings of Jesus death. They were careful not to use language or descriptions that could manipulate emotions; they simply told the story.

(Note: There is very popular movie that does that which account are not from the Bible but many of the scenes, including of the crucifixion, were taken from the visions of a mystic nun who bore the stigmata, Anne Catherine Emmerich (1), who claimed to have seen visions of pagans in the purgatory which is contrary to the Catholic faith, but also visions of the passion, death and resurrection of “Christ”.  Mel Gibson (Who belongs to the Opus Dei, as well as his director’s assistant Jan & Alberto Michelini-https://odan.org/media_passion) stated that the goal & intention for making the film: “is to shake modern audiences by brashly juxtaposing the “sacrifice of the cross with the sacrifice of the altar (Eucharist) –which is the same thing.” A sacrifice that is offered continually, this is the Catholic doctrine of Transubstantiation.   – Please check this articles for more information on ‘The Passion of the Christ’ :The Passion of the Christ, by Richard Bennett, ex-Catholic Priest).

Jesus fulfilled at least 300 prophecies during His earthly ministry, one of them was Psalm 22:12. Some others:

God would dwell in their midst

Zep 3:14-15; Zec 2:10-11; 9:9; Mal 3:1. . . . . Mat.1:23;Jn1:1,14,5:18;Col.2:9,1Tim.3:16

King of Glory

Psalm 24:10 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  1Cor 2:8; Jas 2:1;Rev.19:16

Betrayed by a close friend
Psalm 41:9 . . . . . . . . . .  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  .Matt.26:47

Sold for 30 pieces of silver
Zec.11:12-13 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Matthew 27: 9-10

Sacrificed as the Passover Lamb
Isa.53:7 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Cor. 5:7

Rock, stumbling block
Isaiah 8: 13-15 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .I Peter 2:5- 8

Forsaken by God
Psalm 22:1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Matt.27:46

They pierced Him
Zec.12: 10 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . John 19:34 -37

etc.