And saying, If thou be the king of the Jews, save thyself.
At Calvary the soldiers offered Jesus sour wine and jeered that if he were the King of the Jews he should rescue himself. Priests, rulers and scribes cast off the dignity of their sacred offices to join the soldiers, a dying thief, and the cruel among the crowd in united mockery of the dying Son of God. The taunt took his remaining on the cross as weakness and as proof against his kingship, along with the cries that he who saved others could not save himself, that as King of Israel he should come down to be believed, that God should deliver one who trusted in God and claimed to be the Son of God, and that the one who would destroy and rebuild the temple should come down. In repeating the very words foretold for that hour, those who claimed to expound prophecy fulfilled prophecy in blindness without perceiving it. His refusal to escape the indignity was his suffering outside Jerusalem as humanity's substitute bearing the curse of the law, enduring agony and shame to ransom the lost world and become a propitiation for sin.
Mockery at Calvary
On the cross the soldiers offered Jesus vinegar and taunted Him to save Himself if He was the King of the Jews. Priests, rulers and scribes forgot the dignity of their sacred offices to join the rabble in mocking and jeering the dying Son of God. It was a united abuse by the dignitaries of the temple, the hardened soldiers, the thief upon the cross, and the base and cruel among the multitude. The vile thief took up the same abuse with the rest.
The taunt treated His refusal or inability to come down from the cross as weakness and as proof against His kingship. His refusal to escape was counted as inability, and His remaining on the cross was held to disprove His claim to be King. The same abuse included the added taunts that He who saved others could not save Himself, that as King of Israel He should come down from the cross to earn belief, that since He trusted in God and claimed to be the Son of God God should deliver Him, and that as the one who would destroy and rebuild the temple in three days He should come down.
The verse belongs to the crucifixion at Calvary. It belongs after Jesus was led from the judgment-hall to Calvary to be crucified, when news of His condemnation spread through Jerusalem and people of all classes and ranks flocked toward the place of crucifixion, with priests and rulers and disciples and believers from the city and the surrounding region joining the throng that followed the Saviour. The mockery came amid deep humiliation in which His own nation clamored for His blood. Herod and his soldiers crowned Him with thorns, clothed Him in a purple robe, bowed before Him in mock homage, struck Him with the reed placed in His hand, and scourged Him as the worst of criminals, while the murderous Barabbas was chosen in His place and He was lifted up to die as a malefactor instead of taking David's throne as the disciples had hoped. The account records the taunt without explaining its meaning.
Prophecy and Redemption
Those who professed to expound prophecy were in blindness repeating the very words inspiration had foretold would be uttered on that occasion, thus fulfilling prophecy without perceiving it. Priests, rulers and scribes forgot the dignity of their sacred offices to join the rabble in mocking and jeering the dying Son of God, in a united abuse taken up together by the dignitaries of the temple, the hardened soldiers, the thief upon the cross, and the base and cruel among the multitude. The same abuse included the added taunts that he who saved others could not save himself, that as King of Israel he should come down from the cross to earn belief, that since he trusted in God and claimed to be the Son of God God should deliver him, and that as the one who would destroy and rebuild the temple in three days he should come down. The crucifixion at Calvary was Christ suffering outside Jerusalem as humanity's substitute and bearing the curse of the law. Suffering the indignity rather than escaping it was part of the agony and shame he endured to ransom the lost world and become a propitiation for sin, when he was mocked and challenged to prove that he is the Savior by saving himself.
Even in humiliation and apparent defeat he asserted his right and power to forgive sins, though the soldiers offered him vinegar and challenged him to save himself if he was the King of the Jews, treating his refusal to escape the cross as weakness. The two thieves beside him represent two classes of people: those who look to and believe in the crucified Christ live forever, while those who refuse to believe die without hope. His suffering in mockery, the crown of thorns, and agony on the cross shows the cost he bore for others and puts in perspective the self-denial asked of his followers, when his tormentors derided him as King of the Jews and challenged him to save himself.
Seeing him in whom their hopes of eternal life were centered in the hands of wicked men dashed the disciples' hope of his earthly reign, trying their faith and causing hope and courage to fail, giving them cause to mourn and fast. This came in the depths of humiliation approaching the cross, when his own nation clamored for his blood, Herod and his soldiers put the crown of thorns on his sacred brow, he was clad in the purple robe with persecutors bowing before him and striking him with the reed placed in his hand, he was scourged as the worst of criminals, the murderous Barabbas was chosen in place of him, and he was lifted up to die as a malefactor instead of taking his place on David's throne as the disciples had hoped.
At Calvary the soldiers offered Jesus sour wine and jeered that if he were the King of the Jews he should rescue himself. Priests, rulers and scribes cast off the dignity of their sacred offices to join the soldiers, a dying thief, and the cruel among the crowd in united mockery of the dying Son of God. The taunt took his remaining on the cross as weakness and as proof against his kingship, along with the cries that he who saved others could not save himself, that as King of Israel he should come down to be believed, that God should deliver one who trusted in God and claimed to be the Son of God, and that the one who would destroy and rebuild the temple should come down. In repeating the very words foretold for that hour, those who claimed to expound prophecy fulfilled prophecy in blindness without perceiving it. His refusal to escape the indignity was his suffering outside Jerusalem as humanity's substitute bearing the curse of the law, enduring agony and shame to ransom the lost world and become a propitiation for sin.
Mockery at Calvary
On the cross the soldiers offered Jesus vinegar and taunted Him to save Himself if He was the King of the Jews. Priests, rulers and scribes forgot the dignity of their sacred offices to join the rabble in mocking and jeering the dying Son of God. It was a united abuse by the dignitaries of the temple, the hardened soldiers, the thief upon the cross, and the base and cruel among the multitude. The vile thief took up the same abuse with the rest.
The taunt treated His refusal or inability to come down from the cross as weakness and as proof against His kingship. His refusal to escape was counted as inability, and His remaining on the cross was held to disprove His claim to be King. The same abuse included the added taunts that He who saved others could not save Himself, that as King of Israel He should come down from the cross to earn belief, that since He trusted in God and claimed to be the Son of God God should deliver Him, and that as the one who would destroy and rebuild the temple in three days He should come down.
The verse belongs to the crucifixion at Calvary. It belongs after Jesus was led from the judgment-hall to Calvary to be crucified, when news of His condemnation spread through Jerusalem and people of all classes and ranks flocked toward the place of crucifixion, with priests and rulers and disciples and believers from the city and the surrounding region joining the throng that followed the Saviour. The mockery came amid deep humiliation in which His own nation clamored for His blood. Herod and his soldiers crowned Him with thorns, clothed Him in a purple robe, bowed before Him in mock homage, struck Him with the reed placed in His hand, and scourged Him as the worst of criminals, while the murderous Barabbas was chosen in His place and He was lifted up to die as a malefactor instead of taking David's throne as the disciples had hoped. The account records the taunt without explaining its meaning.
Prophecy and Redemption
Those who professed to expound prophecy were in blindness repeating the very words inspiration had foretold would be uttered on that occasion, thus fulfilling prophecy without perceiving it. Priests, rulers and scribes forgot the dignity of their sacred offices to join the rabble in mocking and jeering the dying Son of God, in a united abuse taken up together by the dignitaries of the temple, the hardened soldiers, the thief upon the cross, and the base and cruel among the multitude. The same abuse included the added taunts that he who saved others could not save himself, that as King of Israel he should come down from the cross to earn belief, that since he trusted in God and claimed to be the Son of God God should deliver him, and that as the one who would destroy and rebuild the temple in three days he should come down. The crucifixion at Calvary was Christ suffering outside Jerusalem as humanity's substitute and bearing the curse of the law. Suffering the indignity rather than escaping it was part of the agony and shame he endured to ransom the lost world and become a propitiation for sin, when he was mocked and challenged to prove that he is the Savior by saving himself.
Even in humiliation and apparent defeat he asserted his right and power to forgive sins, though the soldiers offered him vinegar and challenged him to save himself if he was the King of the Jews, treating his refusal to escape the cross as weakness. The two thieves beside him represent two classes of people: those who look to and believe in the crucified Christ live forever, while those who refuse to believe die without hope. His suffering in mockery, the crown of thorns, and agony on the cross shows the cost he bore for others and puts in perspective the self-denial asked of his followers, when his tormentors derided him as King of the Jews and challenged him to save himself.
Seeing him in whom their hopes of eternal life were centered in the hands of wicked men dashed the disciples' hope of his earthly reign, trying their faith and causing hope and courage to fail, giving them cause to mourn and fast. This came in the depths of humiliation approaching the cross, when his own nation clamored for his blood, Herod and his soldiers put the crown of thorns on his sacred brow, he was clad in the purple robe with persecutors bowing before him and striking him with the reed placed in his hand, he was scourged as the worst of criminals, the murderous Barabbas was chosen in place of him, and he was lifted up to die as a malefactor instead of taking his place on David's throne as the disciples had hoped.