The King of the Jews

 And they brought Him to the place Golgotha, which is translated, Place of a Skull.  Then they gave Him wine mingled with myrrh to drink, but He did not take it.  And when they crucified Him, they divided His garments, casting lots for them to determine what every man should take.  Now it was the third hour, and they crucified Him.  And the inscription of His accusation was written above:

THE KING OF THE JEWS

With Him they also crucified two robbers, one on His right and the other on His left.  So the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "And He was numbered with the transgressors."  And those who passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads and saying, "Aha!  You who destroy the temple and build it in three days, save Yourself, and come down from the cross!"  Likewise the chief priests also, mocking among themselves with the scribes said, "He saved others, Himself He cannot save.  Let the Christ, the King of Israel, descend now from the cross, that we may see and believe."  Even those who were crucified with Him reviled Him.

- Mark 15:22-32

In yesterday's reading, Jesus was presented before the crowds, who demanded -- as was customary -- to have one prisoner freed.  Pilate offered to release Jesus, but the crowds, stirred up by the chief priests, demanded Barabbas.  Pilate answered and said to them again, "What then do you want me to do with Him whom you call the King of the Jews?"  So they cried out again, "Crucify Him!"  Then Pilate said to them, "Why, what evil has He done?"  But they cried out all the more, "Crucify Him!"  So Pilate, wanting to gratify the crowd, released Barabbas to them; and he delivered Jesus, after he had scourged Him, to be crucified.  Then the soldiers led Him away into the hall called Praetorium, and they called together the whole garrison.  And they clothed Him with purple, and they twisted a crown of thorns, put it on His head, and began to salute Him, "Hail, King of the Jews!"  Then they struck Him on the head with a reed and spat on Him; and bowing the knee, they worshiped Him.  And when they had mocked Him, they took the purple off Him, put His own clothes on Him, and led Him out to crucify Him.  Then they compelled a certain man, Simon a Cyrenian, the father of Alexander and Rufus, as he was coming out of the country and passing by, to bear His cross.

 And they brought Him to the place Golgotha, which is translated, Place of a Skull.  Then they gave Him wine mingled with myrrh to drink, but He did not take it.  And when they crucified Him, they divided His garments, casting lots for them to determine what every man should take.  Now it was the third hour, and they crucified Him.  My study bible tells us that to divide up Jesus' garments was a right of the squad of executioners.  It's also a fulfillment of prophecy from Psalm 22:18.  It continues, "Crucifixion was a horrifying means of Roman execution reserved for rebellious slaves, violent criminals, and those charged with high treason.  Roman citizens were spared crucifixion.  The third hour is 9:00 A.M. or thereabouts.  The Evangelist John reports a time closer to noon (John 19:14).

And the inscription of His accusation was written above:  THE KING OF THE JEWS.  My study bible notes that "the inscription on the Cross was in accordance with a Roman custom of indicating the official charge against the prisoner.  Whereas the Jewish authorities condemn Jesus for blasphemy, in Roman eyes Jesus dies as a potential political agitator.  St. Paul writes, 'None of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory' (1 Cor. 2:8)."

With Him they also crucified two robbers, one on His right and the other on His left.   So the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "And He was numbered with the transgressors."  My study bible says that the ancient Jewish historian Josephus defines robbers here (Greek lestes) as insurrectionists, that is, militant nationalist Jews who fought against Romans and Jewish collaborators.  This type of "robber" (the meaning of the Greek word lestes) would be one who uses violence, and lives through pillage and plunder.

And those who passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads and saying, "Aha!  You who destroy the temple and build it in three days, save Yourself, and come down from the cross!"  Likewise the chief priests also, mocking among themselves with the scribes said, "He saved others, Himself He cannot save.  Let the Christ, the King of Israel, descend now from the cross, that we may see and believe."  Even those who were crucified with Him reviled Him.  A note here says, "This is the hour of greatest scandal, a seeming triumph for the chief priests and the scribes, but one short-lived."

What does it mean that our Lord is crucified, and humiliated and mocked on the Cross?  It means, first of all, that He is there with us through anything and all that we may go through in this life, in this world -- no matter how unjust and how gruesome.  Secondly, it gives us an indication of what evil does:  it crucifies the truth.  Ultimately, it is the truth of His Person, His real identity, that is being crucified here, that these people want to put to death and to mock.  The humiliation of a Person of great dignity, of honor and humility, is an attempt by those who would set themselves up in the place of good over all other beings.  Here, in some profound sense, it is an attempt to place themselves above God.  Not only is God in Christ, as Son, but His ministry was a testimony to God and to God's grace.  Mark's gospel tells us that Pilate understood that the Council had delivered up Jesus to be crucified out of envy.  This archetypal sin gives us a great hint about what is really going on here.  The accusers are those who wish to take His place, who cannot bear that He has the real goods, the power and grace of God, the truth that He teaches, and the immense dignity and authority of His Person.  These are the things they want for themselves, and they think they can get it through violence.  Ultimately, we see the entire irony of this "hour of darkness" in which nothing is what it seems, all places are reversed, and appearances are meant to convey an image that is full of lies.  Manipulation, violence, hypocrisy, and the essence of a lie:  all of these are elements or characteristics of evil in an archetypal sense.  The presence of envy, as a motive, seals it.  That Jesus is crucified between two robbers who use violent means to get what they want (one dictionary translates this Greek word for robber as referring to those who are marauders, openly using any and all violence to get what they want) tells us even more about this upside-down event:  that the Good is counted as transgressor, and that those who mock among the leadership do so merely as victors in a violent political struggle -- as my study bible points out, a short-lived one -- having no concern at all for the real spiritual truth of what they are doing.  The absolute injustice here is apparent.  But we can't forget about what we see played out in this scene when we see elements of it in our world.  It is an archetypal scene of evil:  where truth is the first casualty, where violence is all that matters, where truth is, in fact, the enemy.  Envy is a murderer, it wants to take by violence, by force and manipulation, what it can't have by other means.   Let us remember Jesus' scathing words about hypocrisy, those who wish to use an appearance to convey what is not true.  The hidden violence behind envy is played out and exposed in this scene to teach us the truth of what evil is and does.  Let us remember this sacrifice of our Lord who has laid His life down for His friends.