NOTES for Mat 27:27-66
27 Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the common hall, and gathered unto him the whole band of soldiers. |
28 And they stripped him, and put on him a scarlet robe. |
29 And when they had platted a crown of thorns, they put it upon his head, and a reed in his right hand: and they bowed the knee before him, and mocked him, saying, Hail, King of the Jews! |
30 And they spit upon him, and took the reed, and smote him on the head. |
31 And after that they had mocked him, they took the robe off from him, and put his own raiment on him, and led him away to crucify him. |
32 And as they came out, they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name: him they compelled to bear his cross. |
33 And when they were come unto a place called Golgotha, that is to say, a place of a skull, |
34 They gave him vinegar to drink mingled with gall: and when he had tasted thereof, he would not drink. |
35 And they crucified him, and parted his garments, casting lots: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, They parted my garments among them, and upon my vesture did they cast lots. |
36 And sitting down they watched him there; |
37 And set up over his head his accusation written, THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS. |
38 Then were there two thieves crucified with him, one on the right hand, and another on the left. |
39 And they that passed by reviled him, wagging their heads, |
40 And saying, Thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days, save thyself. If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross. |
41 Likewise also the chief priests mocking him, with the scribes and elders, said, |
42 He saved others; himself he cannot save. If he be the King of Israel, let him now come down from the cross, and we will believe him. |
43 He trusted in God; let him deliver him now, if he will have him: for he said, I am the Son of God. |
44 The thieves also, which were crucified with him, cast the same in his teeth. |
45 Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land unto the ninth hour. |
46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? |
47 Some of them that stood there, when they heard that, said, This man calleth for Elias. |
48 And straightway one of them ran, and took a spunge, and filled it with vinegar, and put it on a reed, and gave him to drink. |
49 The rest said, Let be, let us see whether Elias will come to save him. |
50 Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost. |
51 And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent; |
52 And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, |
53 And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many. |
54 Now when the centurion, and they that were with him, watching Jesus, saw the earthquake, and those things that were done, they feared greatly, saying, Truly this was the Son of God. |
55 And many women were there beholding afar off, which followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering unto him: |
56 Among which was Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of Zebedee's children. |
57 When the even was come, there came a rich man of Arimathaea, named Joseph, who also himself was Jesus' disciple: |
58 He went to Pilate, and begged the body of Jesus. Then Pilate commanded the body to be delivered. |
59 And when Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, |
60 And laid it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn out in the rock: and he rolled a great stone to the door of the sepulchre, and departed. |
61 And there was Mary Magdalene, and the other Mary, sitting over against the sepulchre. |
62 Now the next day, that followed the day of the preparation, the chief priests and Pharisees came together unto Pilate, |
63 Saying, Sir, we remember that that deceiver said, while he was yet alive, After three days I will rise again. |
64 Command therefore that the sepulchre be made sure until the third day, lest his disciples come by night, and steal him away, and say unto the people, He is risen from the dead: so the last error shall be worse than the first. |
65 Pilate said unto them, Ye have a watch: go your way, make it as sure as ye can. |
66 So they went, and made the sepulchre sure, sealing the stone, and setting a watch. |
Hide
Each of the evangelists describes the crucifixion and death on the cross of the Savior in his own way. And while the other Gospels mention, for example, the beloved disciple standing by the cross or the repentant thief, Matthew's Gospel contains no such references. The evangelist notes only that after Jesus' death some of the Roman soldiers guarding the Crucified One were struck and frightened, recognizing that He was 'truly the Son of God' (v. 54). He does mention the women, but in his description they are all 'watching from afar' (vv. 55-56), so that there is no one at the cross who could support Him even simply by presence. Such an ending fits the evangelist's overall concept, in which the whole story of the last days and hours of the Savior's earthly ministry is a story of betrayal and apostasy. And at the moment of His death on the cross, the faithful either stand far away or, like Joseph of Arimathea, appear when everything is already over (vv. 57-61), while at the foot of the cross there remain only rejoicing evil and triumphant darkness (vv. 39-44).
Against the background of the other evangelists' accounts, such a picture might appear excessively, almost schematically, contrasted, if not for the logic of the sacred author, who views the entire earthly ministry of the Savior as a conflict between the Kingdom and the forces opposing it, forces eager to destroy the One who brought the Kingdom into the world. From this point of view, what happens at the foot of the cross, sadly, cannot be called something out of the ordinary. Here we see everything and everyone Jesus had to face throughout His earthly ministry. There are the malicious jeers of people from the street crowd who understand nothing and do not want to understand (vv. 39-40), the gloating of religious rigorists, the mockery of learned theologians (vv. 41-43), and even the derision of those who above all have no place deriding anyone - the thieves crucified beside Jesus (v. 44). One thing united all these very different people: rejection of the Kingdom. For each of them it was an obstacle in its own way, and now they have all gathered at the cross to rejoice in their victory - an imaginary victory over the One whose very life gave them no peace.
Of course, none of them guessed that this victory was imaginary. In their world - a world where there was room for everything and everyone except Christ and the Kingdom - their victory was indeed absolute. It became nothing only in another, larger, divine world; but of that world those mocking the Crucified One either knew nothing at all or had only the most approximate and vague notions. And so the Resurrection became for them a thunderbolt out of a clear sky - the same thunderbolt that the Savior's return will be for many, perhaps even for some who are used to considering themselves Christians.
Readings for 2 June 2026
After registering, you can subscribe to any Bible reading plan. Personalized settings and other services for registered users are planned, so we recommend registering now. Registration is free. | ||
