Lesson
#11
The Old Testament:
See, my servant shall prosper; he
shall be exalted and lifted up, and shall be very high. Just as there were many who were astonished
at him -- so marred was his appearance, beyond human semblance, and his form beyond that of mortals -- so he
shall startle many nations; kings shall shut their mouths because of him; for that which had not been told them they
shall see, and that which they had not heard they shall contemplate.
Who has believed what we have heard? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been
revealed? For he grew up before him like a young plant, and like a root out of
dry ground; he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, nothing in
his appearance that we should desire him.
He was despised and rejected by others; a man of suffering and acquainted with
infirmity; and as one from whom others hide their faces he was despised, and we
held him of no account. Surely he has
borne our infirmities and carried our diseases; yet we accounted him stricken,
struck down by God, and afflicted. But
he was wounded for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities; upon him was
the punishment that made us whole, and by his bruises we are healed.
All we like sheep have gone astray; we have all turned to our own way, and the
LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth;
like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its
shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth. By a perversion of justice he was taken away. Who could have imagined his future?
For he was cut off from the land of the living, stricken for the transgression
of my people. They made his grave with
the wicked and his tomb with the rich, although he had done no violence, and
there was no deceit in his mouth. Yet
it was the will of the LORD to crush him with pain.
When you make his life an offering for sin, he shall see his offspring, and
shall prolong his days; through him the will of the LORD shall prosper. Out of his anguish he shall see light; he
shall find satisfaction through his knowledge.
The righteous one, my servant, shall make many righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities. Therefore I will allot him a portion with
the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he poured out
himself to death, and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin
of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.
(Isaiah 52:13-53:12)
And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for [his] only [son], and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for [his] firstborn. In that day shall there be a great mourning in Jerusalem, as the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the valley of Megiddon. And the land shall mourn, every family apart; the family of the house of David apart, and their wives apart; the family of the house of Nathan apart, and their wives apart; The family of the house of Levi apart, and their wives apart; the family of Shimei apart, and their wives apart; All the families that remain, every family apart, and their wives apart. In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness. And it shall come to pass in that day, says the LORD of hosts, [that] I will cut off the names of the idols out of the land, and they shall no more be remembered: and also I will cause the prophets and the unclean spirit to pass out of the land. And it shall come to pass, [that] when any shall yet prophesy, then his father and his mother that begat him shall say unto him, Thou shall not live; for thou speaks lies in the name of the LORD: and his father and his mother that begat him shall thrust him through when he prophesies. And it shall come to pass in that day, [that] the prophets shall be ashamed every one of his vision, when he hath prophesied; neither shall they wear a rough garment to deceive:But he shall say, I [am] no prophet, I [am] an husbandman; for man taught me to keep cattle from my youth. And [one] shall say unto him, What [are] these wounds in thine hands? Then he shall answer, [Those] with which I was wounded [in] the house of my friends. (Zech 12:10-13:6)
The
Gospel:
And the whole multitude of them arose, and led him unto Pilate. And they began to accuse him, saying, We found this [fellow] perverting the nation, and forbidding to give tribute to Caesar, saying that he himself is Christ a King. And Pilate asked him, saying, Art thou the King of the Jews? And he answered him and said, Thou say [it]. Then said Pilate to the chief priests and [to] the people, I find no fault in this man. And they were the more fierce, saying, He stirreth up the people, teaching throughout all Jewry, beginning from Galilee to this place. When Pilate heard of Galilee, he asked whether the man were a Galilaean. And as soon as he knew that he belonged unto Herod's jurisdiction, he sent him to Herod, who himself also was at Jerusalem at that time. And when Herod saw Jesus, he was exceeding glad: for he was desirous to see him of a long [season], because he had heard many things of him; and he hoped to have seen some miracle done by him. Then he questioned with him in many words; but he answered him nothing. And the chief priests and scribes stood and vehemently accused him. And Herod with his men of war set him at nought, and mocked [him], and arrayed him in a gorgeous robe, and sent him again to Pilate. And the same day Pilate and Herod were made friends together: for before they were at enmity between themselves. And Pilate, when he had called together the chief priests and the rulers and the people, Said unto them, Ye have brought this man unto me, as one that perverts the people: and, behold, I, having examined [him] before you, have found no fault in this man touching those things whereof ye accuse him: No, nor yet Herod: for I sent you to him; and, lo, nothing worthy of death is done unto him. I will therefore chastise him, and release [him]. (For of necessity he must release one unto them at the feast.) And they cried out all at once, saying, Away with this [man], and release unto us Barabbas: (Who for a certain sedition made in the city, and for murder, was cast into prison.) Pilate therefore, willing to release Jesus, spake again to them. But they cried, saying, Crucify [him], crucify him. And he said unto them the third time, Why, what evil hath he done? I have found no cause of death in him: I will therefore chastise him, and let [him] go. And they were instant with loud voices, requiring that he might be crucified. And the voices of them and of the chief priests prevailed. And Pilate gave sentence that it should be as they required. And he released unto them him that for sedition and murder was cast into prison, whom they had desired; but he delivered Jesus to their will. And as they led him away, they laid hold upon one Simon, a Cyrenian, coming out of the country, and on him they laid the cross, that he might bear [it] after Jesus. And there followed him a great company of people, and of women, which also bewailed and lamented him. But Jesus turning unto them said, Daughters of Jerusalem, weep not for me, but weep for yourselves, and for your children. For, behold, the days are coming, in the which they shall say, Blessed [are] the barren, and the wombs that never bare, and the paps which never gave suck. Then shall they begin to say to the mountains, Fall on us; and to the hills, Cover us. For if they do these things in a green tree, what shall be done in the dry? And there were also two other, malefactors, led with him to be put to death. And when they were come to the place, which is called Calvary, there they crucified him, and the malefactors, one on the right hand, and the other on the left. Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast lots. And the people stood beholding. And the rulers also with them derided [him], saying, He saved others; let him save himself, if he be Christ, the chosen of God. And the soldiers also mocked him, coming to him, and offering him vinegar, And saying, If thou be the king of the Jews, save thyself. And a superscription also was written over him in letters of Greek, and Latin, and Hebrew, THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS. And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us. But the other answering rebuked him, saying, Do not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation? And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss. And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou come into thy kingdom. And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shall thou be with me in paradise. And it was about the sixth hour, and there was a darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour. And the sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was rent in the midst. And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit: and having said thus, he gave up the ghost. Now when the centurion saw what was done, he glorified God, saying, Certainly this was a righteous man. And all the people that came together to that sight, beholding the things which were done, smote their breasts, and returned. And all his acquaintance, and the women that followed him from Galilee, stood afar off, beholding these things. (Luke 23:1-49)
Description of the Crucifixion Window
· The Top Icon consists of the familiar crown of thorns framing one of the crucifixion nails displayed as a cross. The other two nails extend upwards at 45° angles. Note the stark greenish color in the background combined with the hazy black behind the crown.
· The Main Window has the typical crucifixion scene with Jesus now stripped, for the first time, of his red robe worn in most of the other windows. What is very different about this window’s depiction of the crucifixion is its dramatic background. Notice how the darkness encroaches with the dimming sun and visible stars and moon. Also, the two others crucified with Jesus are clearly visible in the background. Additionally, the town of Jerusalem is visible showing how the Romans made a public spectacle of capital punishment. Below Jesus are John, Mary and Mary Magdalena including a Roman soldier in the middle left. At the top of the cross is the familiar INRI – Isous Nazareth Rex Idumea – Latin for Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews (Luke 23:38).
· The Bottom Icon consists of a Roman spear, a Roman scourge and three nails displaying the implements of pain and death used against Jesus. Most obvious, perhaps, is the skull illustrating the ultimate purpose of a cross.
Once while reading a children’s bible to my son Graham, we came to the crucifixion story. The illustrations were rather dramatic including the scene of the crucifixion. According to Isaiah, Just as there were many who were astonished at him -- so marred was his appearance, beyond human semblance, and his form beyond that of mortals -- so he shall startle many nations; kings shall shut their mouths because of him (52:14). Not only were kings stifled, so was Graham. The illustrator did a good job of making Jesus look like a bloody pulp.
Graham then asked what a lot of us ask – “Why did he have to die like that?” I couldn’t think of any simple answer that would explain what I knew about it, so I simply said “We were all supposed to die like that but we don’t have to now because he did it for all of us.” Graham, visibly relieved, said, “Well, I’m glad because I don’t want to die like that.”
I thought later about Jesus’ statement about becoming as a child (Mark 10:14-15). My conversation with my son had revealed a powerful but simple theological truth. We don’t have to know everything about faith to tap into it. In ‘blood covenant’ talk, he bore our liabilities and we inherited his assets. He died for us and we get to go to heaven. It’s not what we do, but what he did. If we lose a grasp of this truth while exploring all of the hidden mysteries of messiah and his mission, then what have we gained?
If
we chart what Jesus went through, we would need to start in Gethsemane where
Jesus prayed so severely that his sweat was like great drops of blood (Luke 22:44).
There have been examples of others throughout history who have had similar
experiences during extreme distress or emotional battles. It should be
noted that in Jesus' case, the distress that caused the bloody sweat was in his
agreement to 'drink the cup' (verse 42). Most theologians feel this was
an agreement of Jesus to endure death on the cross and all that went with it
for the redemption of humanity. This 'cup' must have been terrifying
considering its scope and description in today's text.
After Jesus is arrested in
Gethsemane, he is taken before Caiphas where he is physically beaten by the
temple guards (Mat 26:67). Interestingly, Jesus - an innocent man - was
declared guilty for stating the truth (vs 64).
Next, he is taken to Pilate who seems to do his best to give Jesus the
benefit of the doubt - perhaps largely due to a dream his wife had about Jesus
(Mat 27:19). When Pilate found out he was a Galilean, he sent him to
Herod. Herod wanted to see a magic show and was disappointed. Thus,
he dressed Jesus in a fine robe, humiliated him and sent him back to Pilate
(Luke 23:6-12).
Pilate, due to the demands of the
people, decided to have Jesus scourged. This meant he received perhaps 39
lashings from a whip. The Jewish law said 40 lashes could kill so
mercifully, it was reduced by one (Dt 25:3). There are many versions as
to how this was done, but the general gist is that the victim was stripped and
bent over some kind of support. This whip was a leather cord embedded
with sharp objects such as glass, rock and metal. Some believe the whip
had nine or 13 cords commonly known as a cat of nine tails. If it were a
cat of 13 tails, then three lashes would yield 39 stripes. In JC
Superstar, they whip Jesus 39 times with a single cord. At any rate, the
whipping with this special whip was in such a manner that when the whip wrapped
around the back, it was pulled off to inflict as much damage as possible.
Based on the history of scourging, many didn't survive.
After enduring this, Jesus received
his robe back along with a crown of thorns (John 19). Pilate's guards now
had fun berating him as king of the Jews. In a fun feat of defiance,
Pilate presented the scourged Jesus crowned with thorns back to the Jews as
their king. This so infuriated the Jews at the scene that they started
swearing allegiance to Caesar! Well, dream or no dream, Pilate was not
going to be politically trumped so he washed his hands of the whole
thing. In JC Superstar, Pilate actually physically handles the scourged Jesus
and gets his hands bloody. Then he washes them in a glass basin to great
effect.
According to the movies, Jesus now
had to carry a cross from the local cross rental up to a hill called
Golgotha. However, on this trek, he fell and Simon of Cyrene was
compelled to carry his cross the rest of the way. According to John, he
carried his own cross (John 19:17). According to the other gospels, Simon
seemingly carried the cross the whole way (Mat 27:32). Regardless - that
Jesus could have even walked after all of this, not to mention carrying a
cross, is a testament to his physical stature.
Another interesting point is that the Romans had several other options for executing Jesus including drowning, poisoning, beheading, strangling and so forth. However, since crucifixion was chosen, it also had the effect of bringing God's curse on Jesus due to God's own written words. Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree (Dt 21:23; Gal 3:13). Like the scapegoat of old, Jesus also was forsaken by all in his death (Mat 27:46). In his death and the events leading up to it, Jesus fulfilled certain requirements that were apparently prerequisites for our redemption as listed in the Isaiah prophecy above.
The crucifixion itself is a matter of some controversy. Some of the oldest icons suggest that the nails were driven through his wrists. However, the church gradually evolved into believing that the nails were driven through the palms of the hands in a sort of fundamental explanation of Thomas' experience (John 20:25) where he sees the nail scars in Jesus' hands. Today, we have archaeology, Roman historical records and plain common sense to know that the palms of the hands could not support a crucified human without ripping out through the fingers. I also understand that the wrists were considered a part of the hands in first century anatomy. However, I have also seen some modern fundamentalists promoting a special kind of nail like a big thumb tack that would press the hand firmly against the wood.
From archaeological remains of crucified individuals, the nails were slightly smaller than a railroad spike. Instead of having the feet facing forward overlapping each other with the nail driven through the top of the feet, the legs and feet were turned sideways with the nail driven right through the ankle joint separating the leg bone from the foot bone.
To be sure, it would take some effort to create a worse form of death. Historical records have people living an average of two days before expiring on a cross. Elderly people would normally succumb in one day. Some healthier individuals lasted as long as nine days, often enduring birds eating their eyes. For this reason, some have speculated this is why Pilate seemed surprised that Jesus had died so soon (Mark 15:44-45). Normally, the legs of the crucified would be broken to hasten death prior to the start of the Jewish Sabbath. Since Jesus was already dead, his legs were not broken. However, just to be sure, a centurion pierced his side [presumably his heart] and out flowed 'blood and water' (John 19:34).
There is a medical explanation for this and that of a ruptured heart. This is a very painful condition that is usually instantly fatal; however, some extraordinarily healthy people have been known to survive days with this condition. What happens is that one of the heart chambers, usually the left, tries to pump blood before the valve completely opens. The result is a tear of some size allowing blood to flow into the pericardium - the fleshy sac surrounding the heart. Dr. Arthur Custance [http://www.custance.org/incarnation/7ch1.html] believes that such actually happened during Jesus’ prayer in Gethsemane. His reasoning is that for blood to separate into its watery part called serum and its deep red part called crassamentum, quite a bit of time would have had to elapse. Custance also maintains that even if this happened, Jesus did not die because of this but died with this condition. Another medical explanation of blood and water flowing out of Jesus' side is based on what the heart would have to do to sustain a human body while it maneuvered to stay alive nailed to a cross.
About The Cross & Crucifixion
The
following is one of the more popular descriptions of Jesus’ death circulating
on the web. I do not know the source of the following but it is
interesting.
A medical doctor provides a physical description:
The cross is placed on the ground and the exhausted man is quickly thrown
backwards with his shoulders against the wood. The legionnaire feels for
the depression at the front of the wrist. He drives a heavy, square
wrought iron nail through the wrist deep into the wood. Quickly, he moves
to the other side and repeats the action, being careful not to pull the arms
too tightly, but to allow some flex and movement. The cross is then lifted into
place. The left foot is pressed backward against the right foot, and with
both feet extended, toes down, a nail is driven through the arch of each,
leaving the knees flexed.
The victim is now crucified. As he slowly sags down with more weight on
the nails in the wrists, excruciating fiery pain shoots along the fingers and
up the arms to explode in the brain - the nails in the wrists are putting
pressure on the median nerves. As he pushes himself upward to avoid this
stretching torment, he places the full weight on the nail through his feet.
Again he feels the searing agony of the nail tearing through the nerves between
the bones of his feet. As the arms fatigue, cramps sweep through his
muscles, knotting them with deep relentless, throbbing pain. With these cramps comes the inability to
push himself upward to breathe. Air can be drawn into the lungs, but not
exhaled. He fights to raise himself in order to get even one small
breath. Finally, carbon dioxide builds up in the lungs and in the blood
stream, and the cramps partially subsided.
Spasmodically, he is able to push himself upward to exhale and bring in
life-giving oxygen. Hours of limitless pain, cycles of twisting, joint
wrenching cramps, intermittent partial asphyxiation, searing pain as tissue is
torn from his lacerated back as he moves up and down against rough timber.
Then another agony begins: a deep, crushing pain deep in the chest as the
pericardium slowly fills with serum and begins to compress the heart. It
is now almost over. The loss of tissue fluids has reached a critical
level-the compressed heart is struggling to pump heavy, thick, sluggish blood
into the tissues and the tortured lungs are making frantic effort to gasp in
small gulps of air. He can feel the chill of death creeping through his
tissues . . .
Finally, he can allow his body to die . .
All this the Bible records with the simple words, "and they
crucified Him," (Mark 15:24).
Summary
In loving memory of Rex Allen Womack and his parents Viola Spruill Womack, John Sharp Womack
