Matthew 27

Pontius Pilate was the Roman governor of the province of Judea in what is now an area that includes Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. He ruled the region for a decade, from AD 26 to AD 36.

See Jeremiah 32:6-9 and Zechariah 11:12-13.

This is the same answer Jesus gave Judas (Matthew 26:25) and the high priest, Caiaphas (Matthew 26:64). It’s one variation on the more direct response that Mark reported: “I am” (Mark 14:62). Jesus was confirming to Pilate that he is King of the Jews. Yet Pilate somehow seemed to know that Jesus was not an insurrectionist and was not a threat to the Roman Empire.

The Greek word to describe Pilate’s reaction is sometimes translated “amazed” or “surprised.” It can also mean “admired.” Some Bible scholars say Pilate looked kindly on Jesus because Jesus remained calm and dignified in the face of withering criticism.

Some ancient manuscripts report his name as Jesus Barabbas. Bar means “son of”; Abba means “father.” Jewish leaders chose to free one man named Jesus, Son of the Father. And they condemned to death another man known as Jesus, Son of the Father.

Praetorium. This may have been at the former palace of Herod the Great, on Jerusalem’s west side. But it could also have been the Fortress Antonia, overlooking the northwest corner of the Temple courtyard.

Matthew says a “cohort” gathered to make fun of Jesus. That’s usually about 600 soldiers. Romans brought extra soldiers to Jerusalem during Passover to help discourage the crowds of pilgrims from starting a riot and launching a war of independence against Rome. Some Bible experts, however, say Matthew may have been using some exaggeration.

Cyrene was a city near the North African coast, in what is now Libya. Simon may have been a pilgrim visiting Jerusalem during the Passover. About 100,000 Jews settled there 300 years earlier. Or Simon may have been someone who moved to the Jewish homeland from Cyrene.

The Greek word describing the cross is stauros. It originally meant a stake or a pole. Later it came to include various forms of crucifixion, including a cross or anything else used to hang up people so they would die slowly, nailed or tied or both. Some were impaled on stakes, a technique especially common among Assyrians several centuries earlier, in what is now northern Iraq.

Bible experts resort to guessing about why the location was called Skull Place. Among the guesses: (1) Something about the area resembled a skull; as the place of crucifixion, there were some skulls in the area. (2) The name came from a legend that the skull of Adam was buried there. (3) A cemetery was nearby, which is where the body of Jesus was placed.

The wine was mixed with something that some translations describe as “gall.” The Greek word can refer to something that is bitter tasting or even poisonous. Some Bible experts say they wonder if Matthew was trying to make a connection to Psalm 69:21, “They seasoned my food with poison. And they tried to quench my thirst with vinegar.” That’s written in Hebrew poetry, which often repeats ideas the way English poetry rhymes words. The poison food and the sour wine can refer to the same thing. This cocktail might not have been the same medicated wine reported in Mark 15:23 or the sour wine that soldiers drank, reported in Matthew 27:48 and Luke 23:36. The wine Matthew describes was probably not being offered kindly.

A more literal translation would be they “threw lots.” This may have been something as simple as stones with some kind of marks on them. Romans did play dice. It was a popular game. Some played dice with stones that looked very much like the dice that people use today. Other Romans used knuckle bones from animals, such as sheep. See also Psalm 22:18.

The Gospel of John says the Romans crucified Jesus at about noon (John 19:14). Mark says at 9 a.m. (Mark 15:25). In Greek, those times are referred to as the third hour and the sixth hour because the day was considered starting at 6 in the morning, the first hour. Some Bible experts say the mix-up may have taken place in copying early manuscripts because the Greek letter representing the number three, gamma (Γ), may have been mistaken for the letter representing the number six, digamma (Ϝ). Other Bible experts say that the writer of the Gospel of John or a later editor may have bumped the time up to noon, to help Jewish readers recognize the symbolism behind the death of Jesus. Noon is when Jews typically sacrificed the Passover lamb. Christians teach that Jesus became the sacrifice to end all sacrifices (Hebrews 10:10).

Aramaic was a common language spoken among the Jews. It may have been the language Jesus spoke most often. It came from Aram, now Syria, but it spread throughout the Middle East, becoming an international language. Jews picked up the language when Babylonians from what is now Iraq conquered their Jewish homeland in 586 BC and exiled most of the survivors to Iraq.

Bible experts can only speculate about why Jesus said this. Some say Jesus felt abandoned because the darkness represented God’s judgment against the sins of humanity, and the statement of Jesus suggests that God’s judgment fell on him. Others say Jesus was quoting a song that seems to predict some of the suffering he experienced, but that ends with an upbeat message (Psalm 22). It begins, “My God, my God, why did you leave me?” (v. 1). It talks about the people ridiculing him and shaking their heads at him (v. 7). It talks about throwing dice to divvy up his clothing (v. 18). It ends with the promise of hope that the poor will be fed and people throughout the world will honor him (vv. 26-27).

In the Aramaic language that Jesus spoke, “My God” is Eloi, (L-low), which sounds a little like “Elijah.”

Matthew is the only Gospel writer who says resurrected people were walking around after the crucifixion of Jesus, then again after his resurrection. Most commentators acknowledge that there is no evidence from history or from other Bible writers to support what Matthew says here. Some well-respected and well-known commentators, such as A. B. Bruce, suggest that what we’re reading is part of a Christian legend. Others say Matthew may have been reporting what others told him, though they may have been mistaken. Still some commentators say we can’t rule out the possibility that Matthew got it right, and that we simply don’t have the evidence to back it up yet.

Zebedee’s boys were James and John, the two disciples of Jesus nicknamed Sons of Thunder. They were two of Jesus’s three best friends. Peter was the third. They alone went with Jesus on special occasions, such as the Transfiguration and the prayer on the night of his arrest.

Of the roughly 900 burial caves studied around Jerusalem, only three have been found with disk-shaped blocking stones. The others apparently used a square stone that worked more like a cork. The theory is that the disk-shaped stones were more expensive and were probably used by rich folks. Some tombs built for disk stones were built on an incline. Presumably, the stone was rolled uphill to open it, required two or more people, or only one Samson. To close it and roll it downhill might require only one last mourner.