_And the chief priests took the silver pieces_ They refused to receive them from Judas, for fear, perhaps, of taking thereby the whole guilt of the murder of Christ upon themselves, which they wished Judas to bear with them; but the money being thrown down in some place belonging to the temple, in t... [ Continue Reading ]
_Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy_ The words here quoted are not in any copy of Jeremiah extant. But they bear a strong resemblance to the words of Zechariah 11:12. One MS., not of great account, has Ζεχαριου, _of Zechariah._ Another adds no name to the word _prophet_, and there is... [ Continue Reading ]
_And Jesus stood before the governor_ As a prisoner before the judge. “Little did the governor imagine,” says Bishop Porteus, “who it was that then stood before him. Little did he suspect that he himself must one day stand before the tribunal of that very person whom he was then about to judge as a... [ Continue Reading ]
_When he was accused of the chief priests, &c., he answered nothing_ In consequence of the conversation that took place between Jesus and Pilate, referred to in the preceding note, Pilate was inclined to acquit Jesus, declaring he _found in him no fault at all;_ but the priests were not disconcerted... [ Continue Reading ]
_Now at that feast_, &c. It had become a custom with the Roman governors, at the feast of the passover, to gratify the people with the pardon and release of any one prisoner they pleased. There was no law to oblige them to do this, nor is it certain when or how this custom arose. But as acts of grac... [ Continue Reading ]
_When he was set down_, &c. While Pilate was labouring to effect his purpose, he was confirmed in his unwillingness to condemn Jesus, by a message sent from his wife by way of caution; which message was probably delivered to him publicly, in the hearing of all present, for it was intended to be a wa... [ Continue Reading ]
_The governor said, Whether of the twain will ye that I release unto you?_ He still hoped to gain his point, and have Jesus released: but, to his great surprise, _they said, Barabbas_ As if his crimes were less than those of Jesus, and therefore he less deserved to die; or, as if his merits were gre... [ Continue Reading ]
_The governor said, Why? what evil hath he done?_ A proper question to be asked before we censure any in common discourse, much more for a judge to ask, before he pass a sentence of death. It is much for the honour of the Lord Jesus, that, though he _suffered as an evil doer_, yet neither his judge... [ Continue Reading ]
_When Pilate saw that he could prevail nothing_ That he could not convince them what an unjust, unreasonable thing it was for him to condemn a man whom he believed to be innocent, and whom they could not prove to be guilty; and that instead of doing any good by his opposition to their will, _a tumul... [ Continue Reading ]
_And when he had scourged Jesus_, &c. This was an ignominious and cruel punishment, usually, but most unreasonably inflicted by the Romans on such as were condemned to be crucified; as if the exquisite tortures of crucifixion were not a punishment sufficient of any crime, real or pretended, without... [ Continue Reading ]
_Then the soldiers took Jesus_ The soldiers, having received orders to crucify Jesus, carried him into the common hall, or prætorium, in Pilate's palace, after they had scourged him. Here they added the shame of disgrace to the bitterness of his punishment; for, sore as he was, by reason of the stri... [ Continue Reading ]
_After they had mocked him, they took the robe off from him_ But it is not said they took the crown of thorns off his head, which served to gratify both their malice and contempt; probably he died wearing it, that the title, which was written over him, might be the better understood. _And led him aw... [ Continue Reading ]
_And when they were come unto a place called Golgotha_ A Syriac word which signifies a _scull_, or _head._ In Latin it is called _Calvary._ The place was so named, either because malefactors used to be executed there, or because the charnel-house or common repository for bones and sculls might have... [ Continue Reading ]
_And they crucified him_ The person crucified was nailed to the cross as it lay on the ground, through each hand, extended to the utmost stretch, and through both the feet together. Then the cross was raised up, and the foot of it thrust with a violent shock into a hole in the ground prepared for it... [ Continue Reading ]
_And set over his head his accusation_ That is, a superscription, containing the substance of his pretended crime, written in capital letters, and in these remarkable words, THIS IS JESUS, (John adds, OF NAZARETH,) THE KING OF THE JEWS. The two other evangelists do not express the title so fully. Se... [ Continue Reading ]
_They that passed by reviled him_, &c. As it was a great aggravation of our Lord's sufferings that he was crucified along with two thieves, and in the middle of them, as though he had been the chief malefactor of the three, so it was a further aggravation thereof that he was reviled, mocked, and der... [ Continue Reading ]
_Now from the sixth hour until the ninth hour_ From mid-day till three in the afternoon with us, (see note on Matthew 20:1,) _there was darkness over all the land_ Or, _over all the earth_, as the original expression, επι πασαν την γην, is more literally rendered in the Vulgate, and understood by ma... [ Continue Reading ]
_About the ninth hour_ Just before he expired; _Jesus cried with a loud voice_ Our Lord's great agony probably continued these three whole hours, at the conclusion of which he thus cried out, while he suffered from God himself, and probably also from the powers of darkness, what was unutterable; _El... [ Continue Reading ]
_Some said, This man calleth for Elias_ These must have been some of the strangers, of whom there was always a great concourse at the passover, who did not understand the dialect then spoken in Jerusalem. _And one of them ran_, &c. Jesus knowing that he had now accomplished every thing required by G... [ Continue Reading ]
_And Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice_ According to John 19:30, when Jesus had received the vinegar, he said, _It is finished_, meaning that the predictions of the prophets, respecting his sufferings and ministry on earth, were all fulfilled, and that the redemption of the world was... [ Continue Reading ]
_And behold_ Immediately upon his death, while the sun was still darkened; _the veil of the temple_ The inner veil which divided the _holy_ from the _most holy place;_ though made of the richest and strongest tapestry; _was rent in two from the top to the bottom:_ so while the priest was ministering... [ Continue Reading ]
_And the graves were opened_ Some of the tombs were shattered and laid open by the earthquake, and doubtless continued open all the sabbath, since the law would not allow of any attempt to close them on that day: but the dead bodies which were in them did not come to life till Christ's resurrection... [ Continue Reading ]
_When the centurion_ The officer who commanded the guard, called _centurio_, from _centum_, a hundred, because he had the command of a hundred men; _and those that were with him_ The soldiers that attended him; _watching Jesus_ And standing over against him; _saw the earthquake, and the things that... [ Continue Reading ]
_And many women were there, beholding afar off_ Viewing these things with weeping eyes and sympathizing hearts: _which followed Jesus from Galilee_ To Jerusalem, eighty or a hundred miles, out of the great love they had to him, and to his heavenly doctrine; _ministering unto him_ Liberally assisting... [ Continue Reading ]
_Now the next day;_ the day _that followed the day of the preparation_ That is, after the sun was set, for the Jewish day began then. The day of preparation was the day before the sabbath, whereon they were to prepare for the celebration of it. The next day, then, (namely, Saturday,) was the sabbath... [ Continue Reading ]