Mark
15:20-47
Lesson 98
15:20-47
Lesson 98
Mark 15:20-47
Jesus Christ dies 20 And when they had mocked him, they took off the purple from him, and put his own clothes on him, and led him out to crucify him. 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. 22 And they bring him unto the place Golgotha, which is, being interpreted, The place of a skull. 23 And they gave him to drink wine mingled with myrrh: but he received it not. 24 And when they had crucified him, they parted his garments, casting lots upon them, what every man should take. 25 And it was the third hour, and they crucified him. 26 And the superscription of his accusation was written over, THE KING OF THE JEWS. 27 And with him they crucify two thieves; the one on his right hand, and the other on his left. Many ancient Greek manuscripts don't include verse 15:28. 28 And the scripture was fulfilled, which saith, And he was numbered with the transgressors. 29 And they that passed by railed on him, wagging their heads, and saying, Ah, thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days, 30 Save thyself, and come down from the cross. 31 Likewise also the chief priests mocking said among themselves with the scribes, He saved others; himself he cannot save. 32 Let Christ the King of Israel descend now from the cross, that we may see and believe. And they that were crucified with him reviled him. 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. 38 And the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom. 39 And when the centurion, which stood over against him, saw that he so cried out, and gave up the ghost, he said, Truly this man was the Son of God. 40 There were also women looking on afar off: among whom was Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the less and of Joses, and Salome; 41 (Who also, when he was in Galilee, followed him, and ministered unto him;) and many other women which came up with him unto Jerusalem 42 And now when the even was come, because it was the preparation, that is, the day before the sabbath, 43 Joseph of Arimathaea, an honourable counsellor, which also waited for the kingdom of God, came, and went in boldly unto Pilate, and craved the body of Jesus. 44 And Pilate marvelled if he were already dead: and calling unto him the centurion, he asked him whether he had been any while dead. 45 And when he knew it of the centurion, he gave the body to Joseph. 46 And he bought fine linen, and took him down, and wrapped him in the linen, and laid him in a sepulchre which was hewn out of a rock, and rolled a stone unto the door of the sepulchre. 47 And Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses beheld where he was laid. |
Margin notes:
"Simon a Cyrenian." (15:21) - Simon was from Cyrene, a city in North Africa founded by Greeks in 630 BC. Cyrene boasted a large Jewish population and was the capital of Cyrenaica (present- day Libya). A Hellenistic Jew, Simon was either visiting the Holy City during the Passover holiday or had moved to Jerusalem and was part of the synagogue of the Cyrenians mentioned in Acts 6:9. His son Rufus became a prominent member of the early Christian church (Romans 16:13). "Golgotha." (15:22) - Aramaic for "the place of the skull" (Matthew 27:33; Mark 15:22; John 19:17), also called Calvary (Luke 23:33). Golgotha was a small hill, located northwest of Jerusalem just outside the gates of the city (Hebrews 13:12), where criminals were executed. It was commonplace to hold crucifixions on hilltops so people could easily see the execution and be warned. The main road into Jerusalem ran past Golgotha giving travelers a good view of Jesus' crucifixion (Mark 15:29). There was also a garden nearby and a fresh grave where Jesus was buried (John 19:41). "Wine mingled with myrrh." (15:23) - A narcotic drink to help lessen pain. Choosing to endure the full pain of His execution, Jesus refused to drink it. "They parted his garments, casting lots upon them." (15:24) - Roman soldiers routinely divided up the property of the crucified. This was prophesized in Psalm 22:18 centuries earlier. "It was the third hour." (15:25) - "It was 9 AM." "They crucified him." (15:25) - Hundreds of years before the Jews knew about crucifixion, Psalm 22:16 prophesized how the Messiah would die. "The superscription of his accusation." (15:26) - The condemned had their crime written on the cross above their head so everyone could see. "And the scripture was fulfilled." (15:28) - The Scripture referred to is Isaiah 53:12. "They that passed by railed on him....." (15:29) - Jesus was mocked, just as prophesied centuries earlier in Psalm 22:7. "Thou that destroyest the temple..." (15:29) - Jesus did not say He would destroy the Temple. He predicted the Temple (His body) would be destroyed and resurrected in three days (John 2:19). "They that were crucified with him reviled him." (15:32) - Fortunately, one thief repented, asked Jesus to remember him in heaven and was quickly forgiven (Luke 23:39-43). "The sixth hour." (15:33) - "Twelve noon." "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" (15:34) - As written in Psalm 22:1. "One ran and filled a spunge full of vinegar." (15:36) - As prophesied in Psalm 69:21. Vinegar was a cheap sour wine (Numbers 6:3) popular with Roman soldiers. "And the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom." (15:38) - The Temple had two main areas; the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place (reserved for God). Only the high priest could enter the Most Holy Place once a year with a blood sacrifice to ask God to forgive the people for their sins. The two areas were separated by a large blue, purple, and scarlet veil (Exodus 26:31). At the moment of Jesus' death, the veil was torn in two to show that mankind was no longer separated from God and could approach Him without a sacrifice or intermediaries (Hebrews 10:19-20). See Hebrews 9 for more information. "Over against him." (15:39) - Means "across from him." "There were also women looking on afar off." (15:40) - "There were also women watching from a distance." "Mary Magdalene." (15:40) - From the village of Magdala, she is one of seven Mary's mentioned in the New Testament. After Jesus freed her from seven demons (Mark 16:9; Luke 8:2), Mary became a devoted follower and traveled with Jesus and His group right up to and including the final trip to Jerusalem and crucifixion (Matthew 27:55; Mark 15:40; John 19:25). When others fled, Mary bravely stood vigil beside the cross until Jesus died (Luke 23:46-49). Mary was still on Calvary when Jesus was taken off the cross and buried (Matthew 27:61; Mark 15:47; Luke 23:55). Three days later, with Salome and Mary (the mother of James), she went to anoint Jesus' body and found the grave empty. Mary Magdalene was among the first to hear that Jesus had been resurrected from the dead (Matthew 28:1-8; Mark 16:1-8) and the first to see Him after He had arisen (Mark 16:9; John 20:10-16). "Mary the mother of James the less and of Joses." (15:40) - "Mary, the mother of James the younger and Joses." "Salome." (15:40) - Zebedee's wife, the mother of the disciples James and John (Mark 10:35), and Jesus' aunt (she was the Virgin Mary's sister). Salome was a devoted follower of Christ. While most of the disciples fled when Jesus was crucified, Salome not only went to Calvary to witness the crucifixion but stayed until the agonizing end (Matthew 27:54-56; Mark 15:40; John 19:25). Three days later, she went to Jesus' tomb with Mary Magdalene to anoint His body with spices but found it empty (Mark 16:1-8). And ministered unto him." (15:41) - "And looked after Him." "When the even was come." (15:42) - "When evening had come." "The day before the sabbath." (15:42) - The Sabbath ran from sundown on Friday to sundown Saturday. "Joseph of Arimathaea." (15:43) - A wealthy (Matthew 27:57) member of the influential Jewish high council, the Sanhedrin (Mark 15:43) and a secret follower of Jesus Christ (John 19:38). Joseph kept his faith secret out of fear of the Pharisees' (John 12:42) and was absent the night the Sanhedrin falsely convicted the Messiah of blasphemy (Luke 23:50-51). In accordance with Jewish custom (Deuteronomy 21:22-23), Joseph "begged" Pilate for Jesus' crucified body, removed Him from the cross, prepared Him for burial, and supplied the tomb for Jesus to be buried in (Matthew 27:57-60; Mark 15:43-46; Luke 23:50-53; John 19:38-42). Joseph appears in all four Gospels. "Craved the body." (15:43) - "Asked for the body." "Pilate marvelled if he were already dead." (15:44) - "Pilate was surprised Jesus was already dead." "Laid him in a sepulchre." (15:46) - "Laid Him in a tomb." Joseph was helped by Nicodemus, another member of the Sanhedrin (John 19:39-40). |