Mark 15:1-47

Early in the morning the chief priests, with the elders and scribes and the whole Council (Sanhedrin, Jewish High Court), immediately consulted together; and they bound Jesus, they took Him away [violently] and handed Him over to Pilate. [Is 53:8] Pilate questioned Him, “Are You the King of the Jews?” And He replied to him, “It is as you say.” [Matt 27:11-14; Luke 23:2, 3; John 18:29-37] The chief priests began accusing Him of many things. Then Pilate again asked Him, “Have You no answer [to give]? See how many charges they are bringing against You!” But Jesus gave no further answer; so Pilate was perplexed. [Is 53:7] Now at the [Passover] feast Pilate used to set free for them any one prisoner whom they requested. [Matt 27:15-26; Luke 23:18-25; John 18:39-19:16] The man called Barabbas was imprisoned with the insurrectionists (revolutionaries) who had committed murder in the civil rebellion. The crowd came up and began asking Pilate to do as he usually did for them. Pilate answered them, saying, “Do you want me to set free for you the King of the Jews?” For he was aware that the chief priests had turned Jesus over to him because of envy and resentment. But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to get him to release Barabbas for them instead. Again Pilate answered, “Then what shall I do with Him whom you call the King of the Jews?” They screamed back, “Crucify Him!” But Pilate asked them, “Why, what has He done that is evil?” But they screamed all the more, “Crucify Him!” So Pilate, wishing to satisfy the crowd, set Barabbas free for them; and after having Jesus scourged, he handed Him over [to his soldiers] to be crucified. [Is 53:5] The soldiers led Him away into the palace (that is, the Praetorium), and they called together the entire [Roman] battalion [of 600 soldiers]. [Matt 27:27-31] They dressed Him up in [a ranking Roman officer’s robe of] purple, and after twisting [together] a crown of thorns, they placed it on Him; and they began saluting and mocking Him: “Hail, King of the Jews!” They kept beating Him on the head with a reed and spitting on Him, and kneeling and bowing in [mock] homage to Him. [Is 50:6] After they had mocked Him, they took off the purple robe and put His own clothes on Him. And they led Him out [of the city] to crucify Him. They forced into service a passer-by coming in from the countryside, Simon of Cyrene (the father of Alexander and Rufus), to carry His cross. [Matt 27:32; Luke 23:26] Then they brought Him to the place [called] Golgotha, which is translated, Place of a Skull. [Matt 27:33-44; Luke 23:33-43; John 19:17-24] They tried to give Him wine mixed with myrrh [to dull the pain], but He would not take it. And they crucified Him, and divided up His clothes among themselves, casting lots for them to see who should take what. [Ps 22:18] It was the third hour (9:00 a.m.) when they crucified Him. [Ps 22:14-16] The inscription of the accusation against Him had been written [above Him]: “THE KING OF THE JEWS.” They crucified two robbers with Him, one on His right and one on His left. [And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “He was counted with the transgressors.”] [Is 53:12] Those who were passing by were insulting Him with abusive and insolent language, wagging their heads [as a sign of contempt], and saying, “Ha! You who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in [only] three days, [John 2:19] save Yourself by coming down from the cross!” In the same way the chief priests also, along with the scribes, were ridiculing and mocking Him among themselves and saying, “He saved others [from death]; He cannot save Himself! [Ps 22:7, 8] Let the Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed), the King of Israel, now come down from the cross, so that we may see and believe and trust [in Him]!” Those who were crucified with Him were also insulting Him. When the sixth hour (noon) came, darkness covered the whole land until the ninth hour (3:00 p.m.). [Matt 27:45-56; Luke 23:44-49] And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, “ELOI, ELOI, LAMA SABACHTHANI?”—which is translated, “MY GOD, MY GOD, WHY HAVE YOU FORSAKEN ME?” [Ps 22:1] Some of the bystanders heard Him and said, “Look! He is calling for Elijah!” Someone ran and filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on a reed and gave Him a drink, saying, “Let us see whether Elijah is coming to take Him down.” [Ps 69:21; Matt 27:48, 50; Luke 23:36; John 19:29, 30] But Jesus uttered a loud cry, and breathed out His last [voluntarily, sovereignly dismissing and releasing His spirit from His body in submission to His Father’s plan]. And the veil [of the Holy of Holies] of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. When the centurion, who was standing opposite Him, saw the way He breathed His last [being fully in control], he said, “Truly this man was the Son of God!” Now some women also were watching from a distance, among whom were Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the Less and of Joses, and Salome. [John 19:25] When Jesus was in Galilee, they used to accompany him and minister to Him; and there were also many other women who came up with Him to Jerusalem. When evening had already come, because it was the preparation day, that is, the day before the Sabbath, [Deut 21:22, 23; Matt 27:57-61; Luke 23:50-56; John 19:38-42] Joseph of Arimathea came, a prominent and respected member of the Council (Sanhedrin, Jewish High Court), who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God—and he courageously dared to go in before Pilate, and asked for the body of Jesus. Pilate wondered if He was dead by this time [only six hours after being crucified], and he summoned the centurion and asked him whether He was already dead. And when he learned from the centurion [that Jesus was in fact dead], he gave the body to Joseph [by granting him permission to remove it]. So Joseph purchased a [fine] linen cloth [for wrapping the body], and after taking Jesus down [from the cross], he wrapped Him in the linen cloth and placed Him in a tomb which had been cut out of rock. Then he rolled a [large, wheel-shaped] stone against the entrance of the tomb. [Is 53:9] Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses were [carefully] watching to see where He was laid.