John 19:1-6
Jesus’ Suffering
In the last few weeks, we have looked a:
1. Jesus’ arrest
2. Jesus’ trial
3. Jesus’ interrogation
Tonight, let’s get some look at Jesus’ physical suffering. We are
but moral men and, as such, very limited. We cannot even comprehend
what we know happened to Jesus might have felt like, much less can
we comprehend the things we cannot see. While humans tortured Jesus’
body, it stands to reason that Satan tormented in mind and emotions
and \\#Isa 53:10\\ seems to say that God tormented His soul.
John does not give us all the details of Jesus’ suffering. Some of
the things he skilled were the details of mocking, the details of
Jesus journey through the streets, Simeon completing the journey to
the cross, and the vinegar offered to Jesus at the beginning of the
crucifixion. We will have to look at the other gospel accounts for
a more complete picture.
I. \\#John 19:1\\ The scourging
A. No details of the scouring are given in the gospels. The
event is only mentioned as a statement of fact.
Matthew 27:26 Then released he Barabbas unto
them: and when he had scourged Jesus, he
delivered him to be crucified.
Mark 15:15 And so Pilate, willing to content
the people, released Barabbas unto them, and
delivered Jesus, when he had scourged him, to be crucified.
B. Luke doesn’t even use the word except in quoting Jesus.
Jesus prophesied His scourging.
Luke 18:31 Then he took unto him the twelve,
and said unto them, Behold, we go up to
Jerusalem, and all things that are written by
the prophets concerning the Son of man shall
be accomplished.
32 For he shall be delivered unto the Gentiles,
and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated,
and spitted on:
33 And they shall scourge him, and put him to
death: and the third day he shall rise again.
C. Strangely, that means everything we know about scourging,
we learn from history.
1. Scouring in well documented in history.
a. Something of the practice can be learned by how the
word is used today.
(1) Although I know of no country that condones this
torture today, the word is still used to
describe a potentially deadly situation.
(2) The scourge of AIDS, chicken pox, pneumonia
b. The practice was carried out in antiquity by taking
the condemned prisoner and stretching him, with his
back bare, over a rail or barrel or probably more
commonly, by hanging him by his arms so that his back
was extended.
c. Then a leather hand whip, with multiple thongs, was
used to beat the victim.
d. Pieces of stone, metal, or bones would be sown into
the thongs to inflict more damage to the flesh.
e. As I understand it, the technique was supposed to be
such that the thongs would go around the victim,
digging deep into the tight flesh. Then, once the
objects were seated into the skin, the whip would be
pulled back, ripping the flesh and carrying strips
with it.
f. In essence, the victim was being skinned alive.
g. This is what the prophetic Psalm 22 indicated:
Psalm 22:17 I may tell all my bones: they look
and stare upon me.
2. Harper’s Bible Dictionary describes two different degrees
of scourging.
a. One was used to teach criminals a lesson or to
extract information.
(1) This lighter form of punishment was not meant to
kill.
(2) This might have been the kind of scourging that
Paul doubtless received when he recounted the
eight different times he was beaten in his
ministry.
2Cor 11:24 Of the Jews five times received I
forty stripes save one.
25 Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I
stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night
and a day I have been in the deep;
b. Then there is the one which preceded a crucifixion.
(1) It was not intended to kill either. In fact, I
have heard that if a prisoner died while being
scourged, Roman law required the one doing the
scouring to take the prisoner’s place.
(2) However, it was not just a beating used to teach
a lesson.
(3) It’s purpose was to get one as close to death as
possible without killing him.
(4) In truth, even without the crucifixion which
followed, it would be a challenge for the human
body to recover from such a severe beating.
3. It has been suggested by some who have studied Luke and
John’s accounts that Jesus may have been given the
lighter scourging.
a. According to Luke, something along those lines is what
Pilate suggested to the Jewish leaders that he do.
Luke 23:13 And Pilate, when he had called
together the chief priests and the rulers and
the people, 14 Said unto them, Ye have brought
this man unto me, as one that perverteth the
people: and, behold, I, having examined him
before you, have found no fault in this man
touching those things whereof ye accuse him:
15 No, nor yet Herod: for I sent you to him;
and, lo, nothing worthy of death is done unto
him.
16 I will therefore chastise him, and release
him.
b. We noted that in John’s account that Pilate was not
scourging Jesus to prepare Him for the crucifixion
but elicited sympathy for Jesus’ release.
(1) The scourging took place in \\#John 19:1\\.
(2) \\#John 19:12\\ Pilate is still working to have
Jesus released.
c. I reject that idea for seeral reasons.
(1) The Jewish leaders rejected that idea as soon as
Pilate suggested. If Pilate wanted to release
Jesus, he knew he would have to do more than the
light beating.
(2) There is another reason I will share in a moment.
II. \\#John 19:2-3\\ Along with the scourging, there was also beating
and mockery.
A. The Roman cross was not just a means of executing criminals.
1. It was a way to put fear into the hearts of Rome’s
subjects.
2. As such, I imagine what the soldiers did to Jesus was not
unusual, although the mockery itself was geared to His
specific charge.
3. Matthew gives us the details.
Matthew 27:27 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.
B. The Bible describes several acts of cruelty from the hands of
the soldiers.
1. \\#28\\ They undressed Jesus and hung a robe, like a
king’s robe, upon Him.
2. \\#29\\ They made a crown out thorns which they embedded
into His head.
a. I have read that the thorns likely used in this crown
were not like our rose thorns.
b. Typical size of the thorns would have been a couple of
inches long to more than four inches long.
http://www.travelpod.com/travel-photo/travelintommy/2/1212462840/
thorn-tree—-very-long-thorns.jpg/tpod.html
3. Of course, the robe, the crown, and the reed (thick flower
stem) were all to mock the fact that Jesus was supposed
to be some kind of king over the Jews.
a. All the while, the soldiers bowed and cried out,
"Hail, King of the Jews!"
b. \\#Matt 27:30\\ Says they took the reed and beat Jesus
on the head.
c. You can imagine the pain of having those thorns
pushed deeper into the skull.
d. The goal was more to humiliate the victim.
4. \\#John 19:3\\ says they smote Jesus with their hands.
a. Dr. J. Vernon McGee says the soldiers likely played a
cruel Roman game with Jesus called "hot-hand."
b. "All the soldiers would show the prisoner their fists.
Then they would blindfold the prisoner, and all but
one would hit him as hard as they could. Then they
would remove the blindfold, and if the prisoner was
still conscious, he was to guess which soldier did
not hit him. Obviously, the prisoner could never
guess the right one. They would continue this until
they had beaten the prisoner to a pulp."
Thru the Bible (Vol 35), The Gospel of Matthew, Matt 14-28.
c. All of this was intended to beat the victim to a
bloody pulp, which agrees with the Old Testament:
Isaiah 53:4 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and
carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him
stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he
was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement
of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes
we are healed.
d. I do not know for certain why the soldiers used on
Jesus such excessive brutality.
(1) Perhaps it was because of His unusual strength,
His refusal to play games with them, or the
fact that I do not believe He ever begged for
mercy.
(2) But before the soldiers finished, they had done
worse to Jesus than any other human being!
Isaiah 52:14 As many were astonied at thee; his
visage was so marred more than any man, and his
form more than the sons of men:
(3) All of this was done by John 19:5, when Pilate
presented Jesus to the mob with the words,
"Behold the man."
5. \\#30\\ As a last insult, the Bible tells us that they
also spit on Jesus.
III. The journey to Golgotha took place through the streets of
Jerusalem.
A. There are two major possible sites, both would have required
Jesus to walk through Jerusalem. The Holy Sepulchre is about
1/3 of mile from the Hall of Judgment and Gordon’s Tomb is
about 1/2 a mile.
B. Two texts \\#John 19:16-17, Mark 15:21\\ indicate that Jesus
first bore at least the crossbeam of His own cross.
1. There are several different types of crosses which might
have been used during this time period.
2. I have read many who believe the main beam of the cross
was probably planted firmly in place and left there for
future victims.
3. Those who hold to this theory, believe that Jesus would
have only carried the crossbeam of the cross.
4. Estimates are that while the entire cross would have
weighted as much as 300 pounds, the crossbeam would have
weighted only between 75-125 pounds, making it more
likely that a scourged man could carry it.
http://wapedia.mobi/en/crucifixion#2.
C. We do know that Jesus walked through a very public area
because of Luke’s comments:
Luke 23:27 And there followed him a great company
of people, and of women, which also bewailed and
lamented him.
28 But Jesus turning unto them said, Daughters of
Jerusalem, weep not for me, but weep for
yourselves, and for your children.
29 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.
30 Then shall they begin to say to the mountains,
Fall on us; and to the hills, Cover us.
31 For if they do these things in a green tree,
what shall be done in the dry?
1. It is obvious that Jesus is quite alert and lucid at this
point.
2. He was giving prophecy of what would happen to the Jews
in the future.
D. It was while walking through those streets Jesus fell beneath
the load of the cross.
Mark 15:21 And they compel one Simon a Cyrenian,
who passed by, coming out of the country, the
father of Alexander and Rufus, to bear his cross.
IV. Once at Golgotha, the victims are crucified quickly.
A. Matthew told us of one thing done before the nails are driven
into the victims’ bodies.
Matthew 27:33 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.
1. This vinegar was mixed with gall to form an anesthetic.
a. The vinegar was a wine mixed with water and eggs
called posca.
b. The gall is thought to have been a herb used to
deaden the senses.
c. This, Jesus refused to take.
http://www.keyway.ca/htm2001/20011228.htm
2. Before you get the notion that the Romans were getting
soft, I am certain they gave this for their benefit and
not the victims.
a. This probably made it a bit easier to get the victim
nailed in place.
b. It also allowed the victim to endure more pain and
prolong the crucifixion process.
B. This potion is not to be confused with the potion offered to
Jesus toward the end of the crucifixion.
John 19:28 After this, Jesus knowing that all
things were now accomplished, that the scripture
might be fulfilled, saith, I thirst.
29 Now there was set a vessel full of vinegar:
and they filled a spunge with vinegar, and put
it upon hyssop, and put it to his mouth.
30 When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar,
he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head,
and gave up the ghost.
a. This was just cheap wine (posca) often drank among
soldiers.
b. Alcohol without the herbs would actually have
stimulated the body and heightened His senses.
c. It appears to have been used in Jesus’ crucifixion as
a smelling sauce might be today.
C. The crucifixion
1. Was the victim nailed or tied to the cross?
a. We know that Jesus was nailed to the cross because it
was prophesied.
Psalms 22:16 For dogs have compassed me: the
assembly of the wicked have inclosed me: they
pierced my hands and my feet.
Joh 20:25 The other disciples therefore said
unto him, We have seen the Lord. But he said
unto them, Except I shall see in his hands the
print of the nails, and put my finger into the
print of the nails, and thrust my hand into
his side, I will not believe.
b. However, I read that some victims were simply tied to
the cross.
http://www.bible.ca/d-history-archeology-crucifixion-cross.htm
2. Only one victim of crucifixion has ever been found in
Israel. The tomb was discovered in 1968 and the victim
was estimated to have died in the first century.
a. We know this victim was nailed to his cross, in part
because the nail head had bent over, making it too
difficult to remove the nail. Hence, he had been
buried with the nail still impaling him. (That was
rare because iron was expensive, making retrieval of
the nails a common practice.)
b. The point of the nail had olive wood fragments in it,
indicating the victim was nailed to a Olive tree.
Since Olive trees don’t grow very tall, it is
assumed that he was crucified at eye level.
c. From that victim’s heel, it would seem that the feet
were nailed to the cross from the side not from the
front.
d. In addition, acacia wood was found between the head
of the nail and the bone, indicting a piece of wood
was placed over the foot to keep the nail head from
being pulled through the flesh.
e. The nail used in that case was a little over 4 inches
long, suggesting that each foot had been nailed
separately.
http://wapedia.mobi/en/Crucifixion#2
http://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-topics/crucifixion
/a-tomb-in-jerusalem-reveals-the-history-of-crucifixion-and-roman
-crucifixion-methods/
f. However, I have seen what is supposed to be genuine
Roman nail replicas where the nails were spikes
approximately 8 inches long. These nails could have
been used to nail both feet at the same time.
http://www.booksofthebible.com/p3247.html
3. Apparently, nails were not always driven in the same place
along the hands or arms.
a. This man was likely nailed to the cross in the
forearm. A scratch along the radius bone and the
intact wrists lead to that conclusion.
http://wapedia.mobi/en/Crucifixion#2.
b. The Bible never tells us exactly what part of Jesus’
body was nailed to the cross. It is believed that
Renascence artists gained their insight from
John 20:25, 27.
John 20:25 The other disciples therefore said
unto him, We have seen the Lord. But he said unto
them, Except I shall see in his hands the print
of the nails, and put my finger into the print of
the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I
will not believe.
27 Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy
finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy
hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not
faithless, but believing.
c. In his book, "Basic of Biblical Greek" by William D.
Mounce, he defined the Greek word used for hand as
meaning "the finger, the hand, or the arm."
d. Although I do not find other sources with a
definition so encompassing, it would give credibility
to what I have often heard which is that Jesus was
likely crucified in the wrists, as it is supposed
that if a nail were driven through the palm of a hand,
it would simply tear out while trying to bear the
weight of the victim.
http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/b-greek/2004-February/028463.html
4. In 2003, I fell, shattering my left wrist. I can only
imagine that a spike as wide as 3/8" would likewise
shatter much of the wrist area. I can testify that the
pain from that broken wrist was severe. I cannot imagine
having a nail impale both wrists and feet, then having to
put all the weight of my body on those points for hours
or even days, to hold myself up.
5. It does seem to be accepted that crosses usually had a
small seat called a "sedile" attached about half way up
on the front.
a. The sedile was just a thin board nailed long ways
across the upright stake.
b. It was not expected to be a real seat just a board the
victim could push against for a few seconds to take
the pressure off his hands and feet. The sedile was
not meant as much to give any real relief to the
victim as to prolong his death.
http://wapedia.mobi/en/Crucifixion#2.
6. The death process of crucifixion has been well document by
medical experts.
a. There were many contributing factors depending upon
how severely the victim has been scourged. Both the
loss of blood and the pain the victim experienced
could hasten death.
b. One source listed the primary cause of death in
crucifixion as follows:
Ultimately, the mechanism of death in crucifixion was suffocation. To
breathe, the victim was forced to push up on his feet to allow for
inflation of the lungs. As the body weakened and pain in the feet and
legs became unbearable, the victim was forced to trade breathing for
pain and exhaustion. Eventually, the victim would succumb in this
way, becoming utterly exhausted or lapsing into unconsciousness so
that he could no longer lift his body off the stipes and inflate his
lungs. Due to the shallow breathing, the victim’s lungs would begin
to collapse in areas, probably causing hypoxia. Due to the loss of
blood from the scourging, the victim probably formed a respiratory
acidosis, resulting in an increased strain on the heart, which beats
faster to compensate. Fluid would also build up in the lungs. Under
the stress of hypoxia and acidosis, the heart would eventually fail.
http://www.allaboutjesuschrist.org/crucifixion.htm
c. Because Jesus and the two thieves were being crucified
around Jerusalem and these were holy Jewish days, the
Romans wanted to hasten their deaths. Hence, they
broke the legs of the two thieves, making it
impossible for them to breathe and ending their
crucifixion early.
John 19:31 The Jews therefore, because it was
the preparation, that the bodies should not
remain upon the cross on the sabbath day, (for
that sabbath day was an high day,) besought
Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that
they might be taken away.
32 Then came the soldiers, and brake the legs of
the first, and of the other which was crucified
with him.
33 But when they came to Jesus, and saw that he
was dead already, they brake not his legs:
34 But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced
his side, and forthwith came there out blood and
water.
35 And he that saw it bare record, and his record
is true: and he knoweth that he saith true, that
ye might believe.
36 For these things were done, that the scripture
should be fulfilled, A bone of him shall not be
broken.
7. The Bible gives the times of the crucifixion with the
simplest understanding being it occurred from 9 AM to
3 PM.
Mark 15:25 And it was the third hour, and they
crucified him. (9 AM)
Mark 15:33 And when the sixth hour was come,
there was darkness over the whole land until
the ninth hour.
34 And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud
voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?
which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why
hast thou forsaken me?
35 And some of them that stood by, when they
heard it, said, Behold, he calleth Elias.
36 And one ran and filled a spunge full of
vinegar, and put it on a reed, and gave him
to drink, saying, Let alone; let us see whether
Elias will come to take him down.
37 And Jesus cried with a loud voice, and gave
up the ghost.
8. This is all prophesied in Psalm 22:1-21. It describes the
crucifixion from Jesus’ prospective. It was a horrid,
agonizing death.
9. Even so, you and I can only see a small portion of what
Jesus suffered for our sakes. The greater suffering was
His spiritual suffering, only indicated by one of Jesus’
last statements.
Matthew 27:46 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?
He endured your hell and mine while hanging on that cross. What’s
more, He endured hell for every human being that has or will be
born. What great love He has shown to us!
<OutlineIndex> <Close Window>
