How Do You Respond to the Crucified Christ? – John 19:17-37
19 (17) So the soldiers took charge of Jesus. Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place called The Place of a Skull, in Hebrew it is called Golgotha. (18) There they crucified him along with two other men—one on either side of him with Jesus in the middle.
(19) Pilate had a notice prepared and fastened to the cross. It read, JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS. (20) Many of the Jews read this notice, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near to the city; and it was written in Hebrew, Latin, and Greek. (21) Therefore the chief priests of the Jews said to Pilate, Do not write, “The King of the Jews;” but that he said, “I am King of the Jews.” (22) Pilate answered, What I have written, I have written.
(23) When the soldiers had nailed Jesus to the cross, they took his clothes and divided them into four shares, one for each soldier. They also took his undergarment. Now this garment was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom. (24) Therefore they said to one another, Let us not tear it; rather, let us cast lots for it, to determine whose it shall be. This happened so that the Scripture might be fulfilled which says, “They parted my clothing among them, and they cast lots for my garment.” (25) Therefore the soldiers did these things.
Now Jesus’ mother and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene were standing by his cross. (26) When Jesus saw his mother, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, Woman, here is your son! (27) Then he said to the disciple, Here is your mother! From that time on, the disciple took her into his own home.
(28) After this, knowing that all things were now completed, so that the Scripture might be fulfilled, Jesus said, I am thirsty. (29) There had been set there a jar filled with wine vinegar. So they stuck a sponge full of the wine vinegar upon a hyssop stalk and lifted it to his mouth. (30) When Jesus had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished. Then he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.
(31) Now it was the day of Preparation, and the next day was to be a special Sabbath. So, because the Jews did not want the bodies to remain upon the crosses during the Sabbath, they asked Pilate to have the legs broken and the bodies taken down. (32) The soldiers therefore came and broke the legs of the first man who had been crucified with Jesus, and then the legs of the other man. (33) But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. (34) However, one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and immediately there poured out blood and water. (35) The man who saw this has given his testimony, and his testimony is true. He knows that he is speaking the truth, and he gives his testimony so that you also may believe. (36) These things happened so that the Scripture might be fulfilled, “Not one of his bones shall be broken.” (37) And again another Scripture says, “They shall look at the one whom they pierced.”
Now proceed to the next section of this study, entitled, Exploring the Passage.
