34. Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast lots. 35. And the people stood, and beheld and the rulers mocked him with them, saying, He saved others: let him save himself, if he be that Christ, the chosen of God. 36. The soldiers also mocked him, and came and offered him vinegar, 37. And said, If thou be the King of the Jews, save thyself. 38. And a superscription was also written over him, in Greek letters, and in Latin, and in Hebrew, THIS IS THAT KING OF THE JEWS. JOHN, CHAP. XIX. 18. Where they crucified him, and two other with him, on either side one, and Jesus in the midst. 19. And Pilate wrote also a title, and put it on the cross, and it was written, JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS. 20. This title then read many of the Jews was crucified was near to the city for the place where Jesus and it was written in He 21. Then said the high priest of the Jews to Pilate, Write not the King of the Jews, but that he said, I am King of the Jews. 22. Pilate answered, What I have written, I have written.' IN these days past, beloved in the Lord Jesus, we have brought this history of the passion of Jesus Christ to the very act itself, to the crucifying of him upon the cross. The last day we spake something of his crucifying, and last, we spake of the hour of the day in the which he was crucified. Mark names it to have been about the third hour of the day, which, according to our reckoning, and our fashion of dividing of the day, fell about the twelfth hour of the day, which manifests a very hasty dispatch, and a short space betwixt the doom and the execution. Yea, all this matter was very hastily dispatched, for he was taken in the night, in the In the Latin Commentary, Mark xv. 25, is considered by itself, then Luke xxiii. 34, and then Matth. xxvii. 35-44, Mark xv. 26-32, Luke xxiii. 34-(latter part)-43, John xix. 18-24, are taken up together. which he got no rest, but was hurried first to Annas, and from him to Caiaphas' hall, and then before Pilate the Roman judge, and there before him condemned; so that he is taken in the night, and the next day before twelve o'clock he is crucified. In the night he is taken and brought before the judge; the accusation passeth, the doom is given, and he is crucified on the morrow following before twelve of the clock. Now, to pass by the malice of the Jews, and their earnestness to have the Lord put to death, we shall mark, that all this judgment we may see the swiftness of the wrath of the Father which pursued the Son, because he bare the sins of the world. It lets us see plainly, that the judgment that shall be in the latter day, to the which this is proportionate, (it is a type of the latter judgment,) that judgment also, I say, shall pass over swiftly, and the reprobate in that judgment, when the Lord is once entered into judgment, shall not get leave nor leisure to draw their breath till they be cast into hell. And after that the terrible Judge shall once enter into accompt with them, and give out that sentence, "Depart from me, ye cursed of my Father, with the devil and his angels," immediately those damned souls shall be hurled to hell. If the wrath was so swift upon the Son of God himself, what shall be the swiftness of the wrath upon the reprobate in that great day? Then come to the text which we have read, and to go forwards to speak of the things and circumstances that fell out in the time that the Lord did hang quick nailed upon the cross, for, as I have already declared, he hung the space of three hours quick, nailed upon the cross, ere he gave up the ghost. The first thing we have to speak of is concerning the two thieves that were crucified with him, the one at the one hand, and the other at the other hand. Next, we shall speak of that prayer that Jesus conceived whilst he was hanging on the cross before his enemies. And, thirdly, we shall speak of that title and inscription that Pilate commanded to be fixed on the cross, to wit, "Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews," and this contained the crime and 1 Matth. xxv. 41. cause of his suffering. Last, we shall speak of the dividing of his garments, and how they cast lots on his coat. All these heads are plain, and they offer plain doctrine. Then, to come to the first, it is said, that "they crucified with him two thieves," two vagabonds, two throat-cutters," and they crucified the one of them at his right hand, and the other at his left hand;" and he hung on the cross in the midst between them both. They crucify not the Lord Jesus himself alone, but betwixt two thieves, and not at the side, but one of them at each side, and him in the midst, giving out thereby to be understood by all the world who looked on him-and there was a huge multitude of Jews, Romans, and Gentiles, looking on-that of all malefactors he was the greatest. Brethren, I see this through all the history of the passion of Jesus Christ, ever his dolor increases, till it come to the end and to the height. And I see this, that as his pain grows continually, so shame is heaped on his head continually; and whilst he is hanging on the cross, at the same time the greatest shame is heaped on his head, for he hangs the tree betwixt the evil-doers, as prince of all evil-doers in the world-to let you see, that as the pain of the reprobate shall be extreme, so the shame and confusion that they shall suffer in hell shall pass all measure. In this circumstance, as in all the rest, I look not so much to the Jews and to their malice, as I look to his Father in heaven, to his wrath, and to his justice; it is he who is the chief worker of all these things. All these men, Pilate, Herod, the men of war, and the high priests, they are like as many burrios to that judge. upon The Lord hangs on the cross in extreme pain of body and soul; and as he hangs in extreme pain, so there is extreme shame joined with it. Now, if the shame and pain was extreme, it must follow, that he bare an extreme burden of sin; these go together in God's justice, extreme burden of sin, extreme pain, and extreme shame, for the justice of God requires that extreme sin be punished by extreme pain and shame. It is true, the martyrs suffered greater shame and pain than ever murderer did or malefactor, yet it follows not, that their sin was greater than the sin of them who suffer not so great pain. Why? The martyrs suffered not for sin, non eo nomine. Never a martyr suffered for sin, but for the testimony of the same Lord Jesus Christ who suffered for their sin; and, therefore, in their suffering, they had an exceeding great joy, assuring them, that they had a remission of their sins in the blood of the Lamb Jesus Christ. But Jesus Christ suffered for sin eo nomine;2 it is one thing to a sinner to suffer, and it is another thing to suf fer for sin. No, if the Lord make thee to suffer for the least sin, if it were but for an evil thought, thou shalt feel how terrible a Judge he is. The Lord suffers, and is shamed for sin; the Lord Jesus suffered extreme shame and pain; therefore the consequent follows, he bare an extreme burden of sin. When I look to this utter shame, as I call to mind all the sins that Jesus suffered for, so chiefly I look to that high pride of Adam, and of us all in Adam, whereby we aspire to be like to that high and glorious Majesty; that pride, whereby we would have spoiled that great God of that honour and glory which was due to him; therefore, in this utter shame, the Father of heaven meets, renders, and requites, that high pride of Adam; and for that, he heaps shame on the head of his Son. As thou aspirest to dishonour him by pride, so he meets thy pride in his dear Son. If thou be not found in Jesus in that great day, the prouder thou be in the world, the greater shall be thy shame, besides that unspeakable torment of soul and body. Now, will ye see in this extreme pain and shame that the Lord suffers, how the wonder of our salvation is wrought? It is so far from that, that it is wrought with a glorious pomp ;-(the Jews would have had this work wrought gloriously, and would have had the Saviour a glorious king, and therefore they stumbled at this, at the ignominious cross of Jesus ;)-ye see, by the plain contrary, that there cannot be a greater pain nor shame. We are not bought by glory nor pomp; we are redeemed from death and shame by death 1 Not on that account; i. e. The sufferings of the martyrs were not occasioned by their misdeeds as sinners. 2 On that account; ie. Christ suffered as a sinner. and shame; such a redemption' cannot stand with his justice; his justice requires blood, Heb. ix. 22, "No remission of sins without blood." Then, every one of us who would attain to salvation, we must not look to heaven first to get it in Jesus glorified, but we must look to Hierusalem and to Golgotha first, to see him there hanging and crucified. Spare not to kiss him on the cross, and to bathe thyself in his blood; and if thou takest offence at his cross, thou shalt never see him in glory, but to thy shame. No, by the contrary, take on persecution with him, that in that great day thou may be glorified with him. To go forward, Luke, in his 23 chapter, verse 34, marks a circumstance which is not marked by the rest, to wit, that Jesus prayed to his Father for his persecutors. This prayer, apparently, hath been either at this time when they were striking the nails through him, or else very soon thereafter; howsoever, he is hanging on the cross at that time. The words are, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." 1 Pet., chap. ii. verse 23, says of him, "When he was reviled, he reviled not again." He rendered none evil words again; when he suffered, he threatened not again, but committed it unto him who judges righteously. When they were nailing him on the cross, and scorning him on it, he showed not an angry countenance; he committed the vengeance to God. In these words he would let you see a marvellous meekness and patience in Jesus Christ; and, therefore, by the prophets he was compared to a lamb. No, never a lamb suffered with such mildness as Jesus did. But now, in this history, he goes somewhat further. He lets us see that the Lord Jesus not only recompensed evil with evil,3 but he rewarded good for evil; and whilst they torment him, he conceives a fervent prayer for them. And this lets us see not only a wonderful patience, but also a great love and pity he bare to his enemies. It is a wonderful thing to see any in torment to be patient towards the tormentor, but it is greater in the tor 1 i. e. As the first, by glory and pomp. 2 i e. Luke goes somewhat further than Peter. 3 An evident mistake for, "not only did not recompense." |