Nisan 15 - Thursday night/Friday morning & afternoon - A timeline of events:
Night - Jesus prays in the garden. Can you image knowing exactly what is about to happen to you? The pain you will endure in the next 12 hours? The death you will experience? I can't. Jesus was fully God, but He was also fully man. His body and mind were full of anticipation. Yet, His prayer isn't "Please stop this." It is, "Your will be done." Wow, that is resolve! That is determination. That is love. Luke, the doctor, tells us that Jesus prayed so hard and was under such emotional upheaval that He sweat blood. This is an actual documented medical condition known as Hematidrosis caused by extreme anguish. The strain caused one's capillary blood vessels to dilate and burst. Sadly, during this time, the disciples still don't get it, so they take a nap. If they had listened to Jesus and spent time in prayer, they may have been more prepared for what was about to happen.
Jesus is arrested, betrayed by a kiss from Judas. The kiss was a traditional greeting. The disciples freak out a little. Peter actually cuts off the high priest's servant's ear. But Jesus puts a stop to the aggression and heals the man. John tells us his name, Malchus. The disciples all flee. Mark tells us one disciple, many think it was Mark himself, lost his linen cloth in his haste to get away,leaving him naked. Now that's panic.
Jesus is taken to Annas, the former high priest who still wielded power, and Caiaphas, his son, who had assumed the role as current high priest. The council heard the testimony of witnesses, but they couldn't agree. According to Jewish law, the testimony of witnesses was required. However, none of the witnesses could agree, so their testimony could not be used. Then the council began asking questions. Jesus stated, "I AM." This is the name of God. So, Jesus claimed to be God (which He was.) The council considered this blasphemy and condemned Him to die. However, only the Roman government could put someone to death, so Jesus was taken to Pilate, the Roman governor. While they waited, they beat and mocked Jesus. Riot mentality is starting to take over.
Before they leave Peter fulfilled Jesus' words by denying that he was a disciple of Jesus three times. After his third denial, the rooster crowed, Peter remembered Jesus' words, and everything hit home.
Now morning has arrived. It is still Nisan 15. Jesus is taken to Pilate. Pilate listens to the council, asks Jesus a few questions, and determines that there is no reason to put Jesus to death. The council don't like this and demand His death. So, Pilate passes Him off to Herod. Herod was excited to see Jesus. He had heard of Jesus' miracles and wanted to see one for himself. But, Jesus didn't perform for Herod, so Herod sent Him back to Pilate. It is interesting that neither Pilate nor Herod found Jesus guilty of any crime.
Pilate now finds himself between a rock and a hard place. He is impressed by Jesus' character and finds no guilt in Him. Plus Pilate's wife has had a troubling dream about Jesus and tells her husband not to kill Him. On the other side, the Jewish council has whipped the people into a frenzy. They are calling for Jesus to be crucified. Pilate tries one more thing. He offers a choice - Barabas, a robber and murderer, or Jesus. The people cry out to release Barabas and crucify Jesus. So, Pilate, seeing the people are about to riot, washes his hands of it. He gives the people what they want, but he tells them this is their decision. The people take responsibility. They say, "His blood be on us and our children." Whoa - they just symbolically covered themselves with the blood of Jesus. Just like they put the blood of the Passover lamb over their doorposts, symbolically covering their heads. This covering is their salvation, yet they don't realize it.
Jesus is lead away to be scourged. The Roman soldiers then further beat Him, mock Him and crown Him with thorns before leading Him to be crucified. This scourging would have left gaping wounds on His body. In many cases the scourging could be fatal due to the physical trauma of the beating and the amount of blood loss. Remember, Jesus' capillaries are already fragile due to the hematidrosis He experienced while praying. He has now been beaten at least twice and scourged. Then, He is required to carry His cross from inside the city walls to Golgotha. The cross beam would have weighted between 30-40 pounds. Not very light. Scholars believe Golgotha was between .5 and 1 mile away. Imagine being up all night, beaten, scourged, and then told to carry a 30 lb. beam on your skinless back. Obviously Jesus was unable to do so. Simon of Cyrene was forced to carry the cross beam for Him. Once they arrive, Jesus was nailed to the cross and hoisted into the air. A sign was placed on the cross reading, "King of the Jews." The soldiers threw lots (a dice game) for His clothing, the chief priests and Jews mocked Him along with one of the other men hanging on a cross beside Him. However, there were others there who wept and mourned His death. Even on the cross, Jesus offered comfort to those mourning Him, prayed for those mocking Him, and offered salvation to the criminal who believed in Him. The gospels tell us that Jesus hung on the cross for six hours. From the hour three to hour six, darkness filled the land. Jesus then says, "My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?" This is a quote from Psalm 22:1. The verse ends with a cry of victory. He then says, "It is finished" and dies. When He died, the curtain in the temple that separates man from the Holy presence of God is torn from top to bottom symbolizing the removal of the separation between God and man. There was an earthquake, tombs were opened, and saints were resurrected. The centurion in charge was so moved he proclaimed Jesus as the Son of God.
Because it was the preparation day of the High Sabbath - the Sabbath was held every Friday at sundown until Saturday at sundown - the bodies needed to come down before sundown. Preparation day was the day everything was prepared or made ready for the Sabbath since people were not to work on the Sabbath. The soldiers were told to break the legs of the men on the cross. Breaking their legs would speed up their death since death by crucifixion was a death of suffocation. The weight on the body prevented the lungs from filling with air unless the person hanging was able to push himself up to breath. Eventually, the person would become so exhausted he could no longer push himself up and he would die of suffocation. By breaking the legs, the person could no longer push himself up, thus causing thim to suffocate faster. However, Jesus was already dead. So, they pierced His side to ensure His death. The mixture of blood and water indicated that Jesus was already dead. This also fulfilled Scripture that none of Jesus' bones would be broken. (Exodus 12:46, Numbers 9:12, Psalm 34:20, Zechariah 12:10). Joseph of Arimathea, a wealthy member of the Jewish ruling council who was also a disciple, asked for Jesus' body and placed it in his tomb. Nicodemus, another religious leader, assisted in the burial process. The process was rushed because of the coming Sabbath, so the women prepared additional mixtures for the burial process in preparation of the end of Sabbath when they could go back and properly prepare Jesus' body for burial.
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