Monday: Hail, King of the Jews!
Daily Lesson for Monday 16th of September 2024
Read Mark 15:15-20. What did the soldiers do to Jesus, and what is its significance?
The Romans utilized a severe form of beating to prepare prisoners for execution. The victim was stripped of his clothes, tied to a pole, and then lashed with leather whips to which pieces of bone, glass, stones, and nails were tied.
After Jesus was whipped, the soldiers tasked with His execution continued His humiliation by clothing Him in a purple robe, placing a crown of thorns on His head, and mocking Him as king of the Jews. The group of soldiers is called a battalion, in this case anywhere from 200 to 600 men.
Image © Jeff Preston at Goodsalt.com
The irony in the scene is evident to the reader because Jesus really is the King, and the mocking words of the soldiers proclaim this truth. The action of the soldiers was a parody of how soldiers hailed the Roman emperor with the words “Hail, Caesar, Emperor!” Thus, there is an implicit comparison to the emperor.
The actions of the soldiers in mocking Jesus are “striking” His head with a reed, “spitting” on Him, and “kneeling down” in mock homage. All three of these actions are expressed in Greek with the imperfect tense. In this setting, this tense has the idea of repetitive action. Thus, they kept striking Him, kept spitting on Him, and kept kneeling down in mock homage before Him. Jesus takes all of this in silence, not responding at all.
The typical pattern of Roman execution by crucifixion involved having the convicted person carry the cross naked to the place of execution. This pattern, again, was to humiliate and shame the person completely before the community.
But the Jews abhorred public nakedness. Mark 15:20 notes that they removed the purple cloak and put His own clothes back on Him. Thus, this appears to be a concession that the Romans made to the Jews at that time and place.
Think about all the irony here. Their bowing and paying “homage” to Jesus as King was all in mockery even though Jesus really was the King, not just of the Jews but of the Romans, as well.
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These men had no idea what they were doing. Why, though, will their ignorance not excuse them on Judgment Day? |
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School can be a cruel place if you are a bit different to the other kids. When I was a primary school student in New Zealand, we had a classmate who was cross-eyed. She was treated with suspicion and mocked mercilessly by the other students. If you wanted to get on well with the “in-crowd” you joined in trying to make the most apt nickname for the student or joining in the efforts to highlight the student’s disability. It was cruel and relentless, and I admit that I was not always found standing on the high moral ground.
In later life when I was a teacher myself, I tried to be aware of such behavior among students and to intervene. It was a tough task and one that I was not always successful at either. Students can be very cruel to one another.
I called such behaviour the “Chook-yard Syndrome”. We had a flock of a couple of hundred chooks (Chickens for those who need a translation). When a chook looked or behaved differently, the other chooks would attack it on mass and ultimately kill it if you didn’t intervene.
Somehow, I think that we humans often behave like animals when we are in crowds. We gang up and attack those we think are different to us.
Jesus found himself on the receiving end of the Chook-yard Syndrome during the mockery and scorn of the trial. Films and Passion plays have been made depicting these scenes and you need a strong stomach to watch them – they are not entertainment!
If we were there in the crowd on that early morning trial, how would we have behaved? It is easy for us with two thousand years or time separating us from those events to make up theological arguments for Jesus’ treatment and suffering. We condemn those who joined in and perhaps excuse them for their ignorance. But, remember this; the Chook-yard Syndrome still lurks in our humanity and every time we join in with the crowd condemnation of others, we are standing in the courtyard of Jesus' trial causing his pain and suffering. And that can happen even in a Seventh-day Adventist Church.
Jesus said:
I like your scenario. I think the Roman soldiers will be guilty on the judgement because although they were ignorant of who Jesus was still: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” That’s my two cents.
Picture the leaders of the world and the candidates running for top leadership positions - would you describe them as meek, humble, lowly, welcoming, seeking the lost and wounded to save them, forgiving, patient, gentle (Matt. 21:5), long-suffering, faithful, truthful, self-controlled, proven to have all authority over even disease and the forces of nature? Are these the characteristics touted in the political campaign ads? Ok, how about if we broaden our search to include the "kings" crowned by pop culture - wasn't Elvis Presley called "the King" - let's consider celebrities, athletes, actors, musicians, online social media influencers. Do any of them outshine Jesus? Does anyone, ever, handle being the center of attention with more grace, love and humility than Jesus?
Clearly, Jesus is a King like no other ruler/influencer/truth-bearer this planet has ever known (John 18:37). And He is not just the "King of the Jews". Those burly Roman soldiers could feel the tugs on their hearts to bow for real, and their pride led them to mock rather than sincerely bow (Rom. 1:19-22). Jesus said, "ALL authority is given to Me in heaven and on earth...so go and make disciples of ALL NATIONS" (Matt. 28:18-19). Remember, Jesus cleansed the Court of Gentiles where all the selling of animals was taking place in the Temple, and He called it a house of prayer FOR THE FOREIGNERS WHO JOINED THEMSELVES TO THE LORD...and FOR ALL PEOPLES (Is. 56:6-8). Jesus is the world's King. All are being drawn to Him. And He is right now showing patience and forgiveness in this prophetic Day of Amnesty/Day of Atonement .... this period of time to admit to crimes without punishment. This period of time to humiliate/humble ourselves before God, rather than humiliate/lower Jesus before men.
What about when Jesus returns to Earth as King Jesus? Will the kingship of Jesus look the same as it does now? Will Jesus' kingdom still be something received and seen mostly inwardly and spiritually rather than visibly and physically? Will Jesus' eyes still be quiet and peaceful welcoming to all? Will he still look like a servant?
Here is the apostle John's vision to answer these questions:
This week's lesson is aptly captured in the song titled 10,000 Angels by Ray Overholt
Verse 1
They bound the hands of Jesus
In the garden where He prayed
They led Him thro' the streets in shame
They spat upon the Savior
So pure and free from sin
They said crucify Him
He's to blame
Chorus
He could have called ten thousand angels
To destroy the world and set Him free
He could have called ten thousand angels
But He died alone for you and me
Verse 2
Upon His precious head
They placed a crown of thorns
They laughed and said behold the King
They struck Him and they cursed Him
And mocked His holy name
All alone He suffered ev'rything
Verse 3
When they nailed Him to the cross
His mother stood nearby
He said woman behold thy Son
He cried I thirst for water
But they gave Him none to drink
Then the sinful work of man was done
Verse 4
To the howling mob He yielded
He did not for mercy cry
The cross of shame He took alone
And when He cried it's finished
He gave Himself to die
Salvation's wondrous plan was done
Absolutely this song has thought provoking verbiages of what Jesus went thru for us. Thank you Jesus.
None will be excused when Jesus comes back. We will all have the chance to get to know Who He really is. I hope you and I do not lose the chance we are given today and do not deny that Jesus is the king of our lives!
Mark 15:16-20. What can we say about how the soldiers treated Jesus? What truth did they fail to realise about Jesus? (Luke 22:63-65)
• The soldiers mocked Jesus and clothed him in the royal colour of purple and fashioned a crown of thorns to go on his head. Think about all the irony here; their bowing and paying “homage” to Jesus as King was all in mockery, but the symbols they offered of a royal robe and crown were more true than they could ever realise. Jesus really was the King, not just of the Jews but of the Romans, as well. He's the King of the universe.
What greater meaning did a crown of thorns have on Jesus’ head as opposed to just another cruel thing they thought could do to him?
• Thorns came into the world as a curse after sin entered the world (Genesis 3:18). I’m sure the soldiers never thought about any sort of symbolism at all when they placed the crown on Jesus’ head. They thought this was only another cruel thing they could do to him in mocking him. However, just like thorns, sin hurts. The crown of thorns was a symbol for the curse of sin and this is why Jesus went to the cross to carry the curse upon His own head.
These men had no idea what they were doing. Why, though, will their ignorance not excuse them on Judgment Day?
• The trial of Jesus before Pilate proved His innocence before all men. It proved before everyone that the chief priests delivered up Jesus for envy, because he had got such a reputation among the people which overshadowed theirs, (Mark 15:10). It was easy for all those involved in the persecution and murder to see, comparing the eagerness of the prosecutors with the slenderness of the proofs, that it was not his guilt, but his goodness, not any thing mischievous or scandalous, but something meritorious and glorious, that they were provoked at. Though they had no idea what they were doing, yet they were so wicked as to be swayed by the outrage of others, to condemn him, whom they believed to be innocent.
What are your thoughts when you consider all the suffering that Jesus experienced? (See Isaiah 53:4-5)
• What these cruel soldiers intended for evil, God turned around and used it for good (Genesis 50:20). If God can do this with the crucifixion of Jesus, perhaps it is true that in our own lives the sorrows will give way to rejoicing once we see how even the evils committed against us turned out for our good (Romans 8:28).
Amen,thanks all for sharing with us this evening.
I agree with Maurice and the others who have commented. What stands out to me is Jesus demeanor through all His suffering, which He capstoned with "Father forgive them, for they no not what they do," Paul noted in Romans 5 that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us and reconciled us to Himself.Verse 10 of the same chapter notes that we are saved by His life. I understand this as salvation is a gift of Christ's life and forgiveness in us. If we lack Christ's demeanor towards those who mock or deride us or our faith, we are guilty and lacking of God's love and stand in jeopardy. I hated Christianity for all the right reasons. People, who noted Christ died on the cross for us, made no sense to me. My brother derides my faith and I don't believe my prayers are lost on him.
I was listening to the audio lesson with Percy Harrold. There comes the part in today's lesson with the q: "These men had no idea what they were doing. Why, though, will their ignorance not excuse them on Judgement Day?" So I'm thinking that surely the Holy Spirit must have told them not do that mocking/torture/horror on people, but they succumbed to pressure and disregarded the Holy Spirit. Any further thoughts welcome ...
My answer to the final question - God has given every person some knowledge of the law (See Romans 2:14,15) and so the soldiers knew that cruel behaviour such as they inflicted was wrong. I suppose there are people that are so abused that they have no idea that abuse is cruel, but for the most part, you don't need the Bible to know these things. The behaviour shows an alienation from God.
However, the centurion was the first (or second if you put the thief on the cross first) to acknowledge Jesus' divinity at the cross. He may not have been the only soldier who would do this. God is merciful to those in ignorance as we see with Paul who also did awful things in ignorance. So I won't pass judgment on these rough young men. The religious leaders were far more guilty.
Question. "These men had no idea what they were doing. Why, though, will their ignorance not excuse them on Judgement Day?"
Ans. To my mind these people who mocked Jesus were among the sinners - just like all of us, that were forgiven at the cross. "Jesus said Father forgive them for they know not what they do". We need to acknowledge Jesus's sacrifice, believe and have faith in Him that He is our Saviour. He died in our stead. He made plain and bare our ignorance and sinfulness for us to repent, forsake our old sinful self and be baptized. Otherwise, we make Jesus's sacrifice of no effect on us and we have no assurance of salvation when judgement day comes.
No matter what sin is committed, in the final days if we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior like the thief on the cross did (who was there on the cross for a good reason), but was still forgiven and promised by Jesus that he would be with him in heaven. The soldiers who did all that to Jesus still do have a chance to repent and be forgiven of there sins as well.