John 19: 17-42
Key Scripture
So they took Jesus away. 17Carrying the cross by himself, he went to the place called Place of the Skull (in Hebrew, Golgotha). 18There they nailed him to the cross. Two others were crucified with him, one on either side, with Jesus between them. 19And Pilate posted a sign on the cross that read, “Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.” 20The place where Jesus was crucified was near the city, and the sign was written in Hebrew, Latin, and Greek, so that many people could read it.
21 Then the leading priests objected and said to Pilate, “Change it from ‘The King of the Jews’ to ‘He said, I am King of the Jews.’”
22 Pilate replied, “No, what I have written, I have written.”
23 When the soldiers had crucified Jesus, they divided his clothes among the four of them. They also took his robe, but it was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom. 24So they said, “Rather than tearing it apart, let’s throw dice for it.” This fulfilled the Scripture that says, “They divided my garments among themselves and threw dice for my clothing.” So that is what they did.
25 Standing near the cross were Jesus’ mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary (the wife of Clopas), and Mary Magdalene. 26When Jesus saw his mother standing there beside the disciple he loved, he said to her, “Dear woman, here is your son.” 27And he said to this disciple, “Here is your mother.” And from then on this disciple took her into his home.
28 Jesus knew that his mission was now finished, and to fulfill Scripture he said, “I am thirsty.” 29A jar of sour wine was sitting there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put it on a hyssop branch, and held it up to his lips. 30When Jesus had tasted it, he said, “It is finished!” Then he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.
31 It was the day of preparation, and the Jewish leaders didn’t want the bodies hanging there the next day, which was the Sabbath (and a very special Sabbath, because it was Passover week). So they asked Pilate to hasten their deaths by ordering that their legs be broken. Then their bodies could be taken down. 32So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the two men crucified with Jesus. 33But when they came to Jesus, they saw that he was already dead, so they didn’t break his legs. 34One of the soldiers, however, pierced his side with a spear, and immediately blood and water flowed out. 35(This report is from an eyewitness giving an accurate account. He speaks the truth so that you also may continue to believe.) 36These things happened in fulfillment of the Scriptures that say, “Not one of his bones will be broken,” 37and “They will look on the one they pierced.”
38 Afterward Joseph of Arimathea, who had been a secret disciple of Jesus (because he feared the Jewish leaders), asked Pilate for permission to take down Jesus’ body. When Pilate gave permission, Joseph came and took the body away. 39With him came Nicodemus, the man who had come to Jesus at night. He brought about seventy-five pounds of perfumed ointment made from myrrh and aloes. 40Following Jewish burial custom, they wrapped Jesus’ body with the spices in long sheets of linen cloth. 41The place of crucifixion was near a garden, where there was a new tomb, never used before. 42And so, because it was the day of preparation for the Jewish Passover and since the tomb was close at hand, they laid Jesus there.
A few soldiers being callous and greedy were unknowingly fulfilling Psalm 22:
Psalm 22:18 They divide my garments among themselves and throw dice for my clothing.
What seemed like meaningless cruelty was actually another confirmation that every detail of Jesus’ suffering was unfolding exactly as God had foretold - even in the smallest, most ordinary human actions.
The sour wine was a cheap, common soldiers’ drink, the kind used to keep them alert during long watches. In giving it to Jesus, they were unknowingly fulfilling Psalm 69:
Psalm 69:21b…they offer me sour wine for my thirst.
Even in His final breath, Jesus was fully aware of God’s plan - He knew what had to be finished, and He finished it.
By Nicodemus taking Jesus off the cross he had made himself ritually unclean:
Numbers 19:11 All those who touch a dead human body will be ceremonially unclean for seven days.
John was an eyewitness of all of this.
John 19:35 (This report is from an eyewitness giving an accurate account. He speaks the truth so that you also may continue to believe.
Isaiah 53: Prophecy Fulfilled in the Life of Jesus
Isaiah 53:4 Yet it was our weaknesses he carried;
it was our sorrows that weighed him down.
And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God,
a punishment for his own sins!
5 But he was pierced for our rebellion,
crushed for our sins.
He was beaten so we could be whole.
He was whipped so we could be healed.
6 All of us, like sheep, have strayed away.
We have left God’s paths to follow our own.
Yet the Lord laid on him
the sins of us all.
7 He was oppressed and treated harshly,
yet he never said a word.
He was led like a lamb to the slaughter.
And as a sheep is silent before the shearers,
he did not open his mouth.
8 Unjustly condemned, he was led away.
No one cared that he died without descendants,
that his life was cut short in midstream.
But he was struck down for the rebellion of my people.
9 He had done no wrong and had never deceived anyone.
But he was buried like a criminal; he was put in a rich man’s grave.
Isaiah 53:5a But he was PIERCED for our rebellion... FULFILLED: John 19:34a One of the soldiers, however, PIERCED his side with a spear… (On the cross)
Isaiah 53:5b ....CRUSHED for our sins. FULFILLED: Matt 26:38a He told them, “My soul is CRUSHED with grief to the point of death…” (praying in Gethsemane)
Isaiah 53:5c...He was BEATEN so we could be whole... FULFILLED: Luke 22:63 The guards in charge of Jesus began mocking and BEATING him. (When he was first arrested)
Isaiah 53:5d…He was WHIPPED so we could be healed. FULFILLED: Mark 15:15 So to pacify the crowd, Pilate released Barabbas to them. He ordered Jesus FLOGGED with a lead-tipped whip, then turned him over to the Roman soldiers to be crucified. (Physical torture before being nailed to the cross)
Isaiah 53:7a He was oppressed and treated harshly... FULFILLED: Matthew 26:67 Then they began to spit in Jesus’ face and beat him with their fists. And some slapped him, 68 jeering, “Prophesy to us, you Messiah! Who hit you that time?” (After the religious leaders judged him guilty)
Isaiah 53:7b... yet he never said a word... FULFILLED: Matthew 26:62 Then the high priest stood up and said to Jesus, “Well, aren’t you going to answer these charges? What do you have to say for yourself?” 63a But Jesus remained silent. (As the religious leaders made all kinds of accusations)
Isaiah 53:7c...He was led like a lamb to the slaughter. . FULFILLED: John 19:14 It was now about noon on the day of preparation for the Passover. And Pilate said to the people, “Look, here is your king!”
Isaiah 53:7d...And as a sheep is silent before the shearers, he did not open his mouth FULFILLED: Matthew 26:12-14 But when the leading priests and the elders made their accusations against him, Jesus remained silent. 13 “Don’t you hear all these charges they are bringing against you?” Pilate demanded. 14 But Jesus made no response to any of the charges, much to the governor’s surprise.(As the religious leaders are trying to convince the Romans to crucify Jesus)
Isaiah 53:8a Unjustly condemned, he was led away. FULFILLED IN THE LIFE OF JESUS
Isaiah 53:9b...But he was buried like a criminal... FULFILLED: Philippians 2:7b...When he appeared in human form, 8 he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross.
Isaiah 53:9c...he was put in a rich man’s grave. FULFILLED: Matthew 27:57 As evening approached, Joseph, a rich man from Arimathea who had become a follower of Jesus, 58 went to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body. And Pilate issued an order to release it to him. 59 Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a long sheet of clean linen cloth. 60 He placed it in his own new tomb, which had been carved out of the rock. Then he rolled a great stone across the entrance and left. (Immediately after Jesus had died on the cross)
Why Did Jesus Have To Die?
Forgiveness always costs someone something.
Hebrews 9:22 In fact, according to the law of Moses, nearly everything was purified with blood. For without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness.
Ephesians 1:7 He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins.
Colossians 1:19 For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ, 20 and through him God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ’s blood on the cross.
Jesus the only way.
It's not Heaven or Hell - but rather Jesus; yes or no?
The death of Jesus is such a monumental event for humanity that believers are instructed to pause and reflect and contemplate this moment. Not only to remember to commemorate through communion…
Luke 22:19 He took some bread and gave thanks to God for it. Then he broke it in pieces and gave it to the disciples, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”
20 After supper he took another cup of wine and said, “This cup is the new covenant between God and his people—an agreement confirmed with my blood, which is poured out as a sacrifice for you.
New Covenant
Jeremiah 31:31 “The day is coming,” says the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and Judah. 32 This covenant will not be like the one I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand and brought them out of the land of Egypt. They broke that covenant, though I loved them as a husband loves his wife,” says the Lord.
33 “But this is the new covenant I will make with the people of Israel after those days,” says the Lord. “I will put my instructions deep within them, and I will write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. 34 And they will not need to teach their neighbors, nor will they need to teach their relatives, saying, ‘You should know the Lord.’ For everyone, from the least to the greatest, will know me already,” says the Lord. “And I will forgive their wickedness, and I will never again remember their sins.”
The New Covenant is the turning point of all human history - the moment when God’s plan of redemption, prophesied for centuries, became reality through Jesus Christ.
“Heaven isn’t a reward for the good; it’s the home of the forgiven”.
The New Covenant means your debt is canceled, your record is clean, and your future is secure. You are fully known and fully loved. The cross was not the end of hope - it’s the beginning of a new creation, where grace wins and joy becomes our response to everything Jesus finished.