Mark 15
Encyclopedia
Mark 15 is the fifteenth chapter of the Gospel of Mark
in the New Testament
of the Christian
Bible
. It continues Jesus
' Passion
with his trial
before Pontius Pilate
and then his crucifixion
, death
and burial
.
and hands Jesus over to Pilate. Pilate was the Roman Prefect
(governor) of Iudaea Province from 26 to 36, which was the Roman combination of Idumea, Judea
and Samaria
and did not include Galilee
, which was under the jurisdiction of Herod Antipas
. According to Matthew
the Sanhedrin had decided to execute
him. Only the Romans
were allowed to execute someone, not the local officials, according to yet records the sanhedrin ordering the stoning
of Saint Stephen
and also James the Just
according to Antiquities of the Jews
20.9.1.
"Pilate asked him, 'Are you the King of the Jews?' He answered him, 'You say so.'" An interpretation is that Pilate is asking Jesus if he is the messiah
, just as the high priest before in , only with an explicit emphasis on the Messiah's political role, that of Jewish King. According to John
in response to Pilate's question Jesus has a short conversation with Pilate and then answers, "You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me." Historically
it is likely that perceived insurrection against Rome
was for what Pilate executed Jesus. According to however Jesus said one should pay the Roman tax
and was thus not a revolutionary. The Jesus Seminar reached the conclusion that the temple incident
was the cause of the crucifixion.
The chief priests accuse him of several unnamed things but Jesus gives no reply, and Pilate asks him for one but he still remains silent, which amazes Pilate. According to Luke
Pilate at this point sent Jesus to Herod Antipas
because Jesus, as a Galilean, was under his jurisdiction. Herod was excited to see Jesus at first but ended up mocking him and sending him back to Pilate.
According to Mark it was a custom to release a prisoner at Passover
, which was a celebration of freedom. No other historical record of the time records Pilate doing this, and he is known to have been cruel, for which he was eventually expelled from his post. (JA18.4.2) All the other Gospel
s however also agree with Mark on this tradition. Perhaps Pilate did this once or a few times or the Gospels accurately record this tradition that other sources fail to mention. The Jesus Seminar
argued doing this during a volatile situation like this would be unlikely.
According to Matthew, Pilate received a message from his wife that she believed Jesus was innocent because of a disturbing dream she had just had. He asks the crowd if they want the King of the Jews released to them, because according to Mark Pilate knew the priests were envious
of Jesus and so presumably wanted to free him without a fight with them.
The priests however convince the crowd to ask for the release of Barabbas
, a prisoner. Mark says he was in prison "with" insurrectionists, which could mean he was one. Both Luke and John say he was a revolutionary. Jesus seems to have already been declared guilty as this seems a choice between releasing two prisoners.
Pilate then asks what should be done with Jesus. They say he should be crucified, but Pilate asks what he is guilty of. They still demand he be crucified so Pilate turns Barabbas over to the crowd and has Jesus flogged
and then sent out to be crucified. Matthew has Pilate washing his hands and declaring the crowd responsible, which the crowd accepts.
For his flogging Jesus would have been tied to a pillar, and hit with bone
or metal
studded whip
s. Crucifixion was a particularly shameful form of death, with a stigma put onto even the condemned's family.
Roman magistrates has wide discretion in executing their tasks, and some question whether Pilate would have been so captive to the demands of the crowd. Summarily executing someone to calm the situation however would have been a tool a Roman governor would have used.
Mark says the soldiers took Jesus to the Praetorium
, either Herod's palace or the Fortress Antonia
. They gather together all the other soldiers. These were probably mostly recruits from the area of Palestine or Syria.
The soldiers put a purple
robe on Jesus and put a crown
of thorns on his head and mockingly hail him as the King of the Jews. They hit him in the head with a staff and pay fake homage
to him. According to Matthew they put the staff in his hand first before beating him with it. They dress him in his own clothes and take him out to be crucified. According to John they left his purple robe and crown on.
Jesus is given the trappings of a King. Purple is a royal color. He wears a crown and is hit with a staff, also a royal symbol
. This whole scene is colored with divine
irony
, as everything the soldiers do to mock Jesus' claim of being a King is used by Mark to show this, at the height of the Passion, as Jesus' crowning as messiah according to God
's plan.
According to John after the flogging Pilate brought Jesus back a second time and tried to convince the crowd that he was innocent but the crowd still demanded Jesus' death and so then Pilate had him crucified. Luke has no account of the soldiers beating Jesus.
On the way to their final destination the soldiers force a man passing by, Simon of Cyrene
, to carry Jesus' cross for him, though Mark does not say why. Cyrene
was in North Africa
and Simon would have moved from there or would have been visiting. Mark lists his children, Alexander and Rufus. That Mark takes the time to list only their names suggests they might have been Early Christians known to Mark's intended audience. Paul
also lists a Rufus in Romans
16:13. Luke has Jesus talking to some of his women followers along the way.
They arrive at Golgotha, which Mark says means the place of the skull
. This was probably an exhausted rock quarry whose remaining rock had been damaged in an earthquake.
They offer Jesus wine
laced with myrrh
to lessen the pain, but he refuses. Mark then simply says they crucified him. They then take his clothes and divide lots to distribute them. People have seen a relationship with this and Psalm 22:18, which John actually quotes as a fulfillment of prophecy
.
According to Mark, it was the "third hour" when Jesus was crucified. This would be the third hour of daylight, or about 9:00 AM. John however says Jesus was condemned to death around the sixth hour, or noon
. The charge listed on Jesus' cross is "THE KING OF THE JEWS" (INRI) According to John, the chief priests complained to Pilate about this but he refused to change the charge.
Two robbers
were also crucified on each side of him. Luke has the robbers' conversation with Jesus. People come by and insult Jesus and mock him for claiming he would destroy and then rebuild Herod's Temple in three days, which Jesus has not said so far in Mark but was falsely accused of claiming to destroy the "man-made" Temple and rebuilt it in three days in Mark 14:57–58. The chief priests are also there and say that if he is really the Christ
they he should be able to come down from the cross and save himself as he had saved others, a reference to his many miracles
earlier in Mark.
Mark relates these two mockings to perhaps highlight the question of why, if Jesus is indeed the messiah, can he not save himself from being put to death. Mark refutes these two charges later when Jesus rebuilds the Temple of his body and not only overcomes the cross but death itself in Mark 16. Mark might be stressing that if one follows Jesus, who Mark believes is the messiah, then one can expect help from God, such as Jesus' miracles, but one will not be saved from the pains of this world, and indeed in some way they are necessary to achieve a greater goal as Jesus' death is necessary for his role as the messiah.
The soldier might be recognizing something that no one else could and thus vindicating Jesus, or he might be saying this sarcastically
. This statement may bring the Gospel full circle to where Jesus is identified by the writer as "the Son of God" (only in some versions, see Mark 1
for details). Luke records that he said that Jesus was a righteous man. Matthew adds that at the moment of Jesus' death tombs in Jerusalem were opened and many bodies of "the saints" were raised from the dead. They were seen subsequently in the "holy city," Jerusalem, by many .
Jesus' cry to God is the prayer of Psalm 22 about abandonment but eventual salvation. According to Luke he also/or said "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit." John has the statement "It is finished." They mistake Eloi for Elijah and put the vinegar up to him to wake him up. People have seen a link between the vinegar and Psalm 69:21. According to Matthew it was wine vinegar. Luke says the soldiers gave it to him and mocked him while they did it. According to John Jesus asked for it and drank it right before his death. This raises the idea that Jesus' words in Mark 14 at the last supper, "I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until I drink it anew in the Kingdom of God," being fulfilled here. Jesus' suffering on the cross has redeemed the fallen creation from the curse, and the kingdom of God has in some sense been initiated here at the cross. Elijah appeared in Mark 9.
Some have interpreted the "darkness" as an eclipse
, see also Crucifixion eclipse
, but a solar eclipse is impossible during the full moon
such as at Passover. It could simply mean an overcast day, although Mark certainly uses it for dramatic effect here. Each stated time, three, six, and nine, grown increasingly worse, as Jesus is first mocked, then the darkness, then his death.
The veil of the Temple was the barrier between the inner Temple, thought to be God's place on Earth, and the rest. Its destruction is a vindication of Jesus. This might be a metaphor
for God now no longer being separated but free for all the world. Given the imagery of the temple veil (there were cherubim woven into it, like the cherub set as guard over the entrance to Eden after Adam and Eve were cast out) as a symbol of the barrier between the Holy God and sinful men, the rending of the veil indicates a propitiation of God's wrath.
According to John, Jesus' mother Mary and her sister Mary were there with the Disciple whom Jesus loved
and Jesus told the disciple to take Mary into his home.
It is notable that, according to Mark, it is only Jesus' women followers who are now still with him:
Mary Magdalene has not been mentioned so far in Mark, and the other Mary is perhaps Jesus' mother Mary as she is also mentioned as James' mother in Mark 6:3. She could also be another Mary, perhaps another relative. Salome was James
' and John
's mother. The fact the Mark has not explicitly related any of Jesus' interaction with them shows that Mark has left out many of the events of the life of the "Historical Jesus
" and only related events he deems necessary to make his points about Jesus.
John says the soldiers were told to take down the bodies for the Sabbath and broke the other two men's legs but stabbed Jesus with a spear to make sure he was dead. John claims this is eye witness testimony.
Evening is approaching and Joseph of Arimathea
, a member of the sanhedrin
, who was also waiting for the "Kingdom of God
," goes to Pilate and asks for Jesus' body. The Scholars Version notes this as "unexpected .. Is Joseph in effect bringing Jesus into his family?" As the next day was the Sabbath
Jesus would have to have been buried before sundown or then not until the next night. According to Mosaic law, if someone was hanged on a tree they were not to remain there at night. Pilate is surprised Jesus had died so soon and asks for confirmation and then gives Jesus' body to Joseph.
Joseph wraps it in linen
and puts it in a sepulchre
, rolls a stone over the entrance, and leaves. According to John he was assisted by the Pharisee Nicodemus
. The Marys see this and serve as Mark's witnesses to the events of Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection
. Bodies were normally anointed, but there seems to be no time here. John however says Nicodemus wrapped up Jesus' body with spices, which seems to be anointing. The tomb, one of many around Jerusalem, was a limestone
cave
and Jesus' body would have been laid on a pre-cut shelf, and then most bodies would have been left for a year.
Jesus largely passively underwent all this, only speaking twice. Many have seen this as fulfillment of the suffering servant
of Isaiah
53:7
Jesus' trial before Pilate and his crucifixion, death, and burial are also found in Matthew
27, Luke 23, and John 18:28–19:42.
Gospel of Mark
The Gospel According to Mark , commonly shortened to the Gospel of Mark or simply Mark, is the second book of the New Testament. This canonical account of the life of Jesus of Nazareth is one of the three synoptic gospels. It was thought to be an epitome, which accounts for its place as the second...
in the New Testament
New Testament
The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....
of the Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
. It continues Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
' Passion
Passion (Christianity)
The Passion is the Christian theological term used for the events and suffering – physical, spiritual, and mental – of Jesus in the hours before and including his trial and execution by crucifixion...
with his trial
Trial (law)
In law, a trial is when parties to a dispute come together to present information in a tribunal, a formal setting with the authority to adjudicate claims or disputes. One form of tribunal is a court...
before Pontius Pilate
Pontius Pilate
Pontius Pilatus , known in the English-speaking world as Pontius Pilate , was the fifth Prefect of the Roman province of Judaea, from AD 26–36. He is best known as the judge at Jesus' trial and the man who authorized the crucifixion of Jesus...
and then his crucifixion
Crucifixion
Crucifixion is an ancient method of painful execution in which the condemned person is tied or nailed to a large wooden cross and left to hang until dead...
, death
Death
Death is the permanent termination of the biological functions that sustain a living organism. Phenomena which commonly bring about death include old age, predation, malnutrition, disease, and accidents or trauma resulting in terminal injury....
and burial
Burial
Burial is the act of placing a person or object into the ground. This is accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing an object in it, and covering it over.-History:...
.
Trial before Pilate
It is early in the morning. The Sanhedrin reaches a decisionSanhedrin Trial of Jesus
The Sanhedrin trial of Jesus refers to the Canonical Gospel accounts of the trial of Jesus before the Jewish Council, or Sanhedrin, following his arrest and prior to his trial before Pontius Pilate...
and hands Jesus over to Pilate. Pilate was the Roman Prefect
Prefect
Prefect is a magisterial title of varying definition....
(governor) of Iudaea Province from 26 to 36, which was the Roman combination of Idumea, Judea
Judea
Judea or Judæa was the name of the mountainous southern part of the historic Land of Israel from the 8th century BCE to the 2nd century CE, when Roman Judea was renamed Syria Palaestina following the Jewish Bar Kokhba revolt.-Etymology:The...
and Samaria
Samaria
Samaria, or the Shomron is a term used for a mountainous region roughly corresponding to the northern part of the West Bank.- Etymology :...
and did not include Galilee
Galilee
Galilee , is a large region in northern Israel which overlaps with much of the administrative North District of the country. Traditionally divided into Upper Galilee , Lower Galilee , and Western Galilee , extending from Dan to the north, at the base of Mount Hermon, along Mount Lebanon to the...
, which was under the jurisdiction of Herod Antipas
Herod Antipas
Herod Antipater , known by the nickname Antipas, was a 1st-century AD ruler of Galilee and Perea, who bore the title of tetrarch...
. According to Matthew
Gospel of Matthew
The Gospel According to Matthew is one of the four canonical gospels, one of the three synoptic gospels, and the first book of the New Testament. It tells of the life, ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth...
the Sanhedrin had decided to execute
Capital punishment
Capital punishment, the death penalty, or execution is the sentence of death upon a person by the state as a punishment for an offence. Crimes that can result in a death penalty are known as capital crimes or capital offences. The term capital originates from the Latin capitalis, literally...
him. Only the Romans
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
were allowed to execute someone, not the local officials, according to yet records the sanhedrin ordering the stoning
Stoning
Stoning, or lapidation, is a form of capital punishment whereby a group throws stones at a person until the person dies. No individual among the group can be identified as the one who kills the subject, yet everyone involved plainly bears some degree of moral culpability. This is in contrast to the...
of Saint Stephen
Saint Stephen
Saint Stephen The Protomartyr , the protomartyr of Christianity, is venerated as a saint in the Roman Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, Oriental Orthodox and Eastern Orthodox Churches....
and also James the Just
James the Just
James , first Bishop of Jerusalem, who died in 62 AD, was an important figure in Early Christianity...
according to Antiquities of the Jews
Antiquities of the Jews
Antiquities of the Jews is a twenty volume historiographical work composed by the Jewish historian Flavius Josephus in the thirteenth year of the reign of Roman emperor Flavius Domitian which was around 93 or 94 AD. Antiquities of the Jews contains an account of history of the Jewish people,...
20.9.1.
"Pilate asked him, 'Are you the King of the Jews?' He answered him, 'You say so.'" An interpretation is that Pilate is asking Jesus if he is the messiah
Messiah
A messiah is a redeemer figure expected or foretold in one form or another by a religion. Slightly more widely, a messiah is any redeemer figure. Messianic beliefs or theories generally relate to eschatological improvement of the state of humanity or the world, in other words the World to...
, just as the high priest before in , only with an explicit emphasis on the Messiah's political role, that of Jewish King. According to John
Gospel of John
The Gospel According to John , commonly referred to as the Gospel of John or simply John, and often referred to in New Testament scholarship as the Fourth Gospel, is an account of the public ministry of Jesus...
in response to Pilate's question Jesus has a short conversation with Pilate and then answers, "You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me." Historically
Historical Jesus
The term historical Jesus refers to scholarly reconstructions of the 1st-century figure Jesus of Nazareth. These reconstructions are based upon historical methods including critical analysis of gospel texts as the primary source for his biography, along with consideration of the historical and...
it is likely that perceived insurrection against Rome
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
was for what Pilate executed Jesus. According to however Jesus said one should pay the Roman tax
Render unto Caesar...
"Render unto Caesar…" is the beginning of a phrase attributed to Jesus in the synoptic gospels, which reads in full, "Render unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's, and unto God the things that are God's" ....
and was thus not a revolutionary. The Jesus Seminar reached the conclusion that the temple incident
Jesus and the Money Changers
The narrative of Jesus and the money changers, commonly referred to as the cleansing of the Temple, occurs in all four canonical gospels of the New Testament....
was the cause of the crucifixion.
The chief priests accuse him of several unnamed things but Jesus gives no reply, and Pilate asks him for one but he still remains silent, which amazes Pilate. According to Luke
Gospel of Luke
The Gospel According to Luke , commonly shortened to the Gospel of Luke or simply Luke, is the third and longest of the four canonical Gospels. This synoptic gospel is an account of the life and ministry of Jesus of Nazareth. It details his story from the events of his birth to his Ascension.The...
Pilate at this point sent Jesus to Herod Antipas
Herod Antipas
Herod Antipater , known by the nickname Antipas, was a 1st-century AD ruler of Galilee and Perea, who bore the title of tetrarch...
because Jesus, as a Galilean, was under his jurisdiction. Herod was excited to see Jesus at first but ended up mocking him and sending him back to Pilate.
According to Mark it was a custom to release a prisoner at Passover
Passover
Passover is a Jewish holiday and festival. It commemorates the story of the Exodus, in which the ancient Israelites were freed from slavery in Egypt...
, which was a celebration of freedom. No other historical record of the time records Pilate doing this, and he is known to have been cruel, for which he was eventually expelled from his post. (JA18.4.2) All the other Gospel
Gospel
A gospel is an account, often written, that describes the life of Jesus of Nazareth. In a more general sense the term "gospel" may refer to the good news message of the New Testament. It is primarily used in reference to the four canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John...
s however also agree with Mark on this tradition. Perhaps Pilate did this once or a few times or the Gospels accurately record this tradition that other sources fail to mention. The Jesus Seminar
Jesus Seminar
The Jesus Seminar is a group of about 150 critical scholars and laymen founded in 1985 by Robert Funk under the auspices of the Westar Institute....
argued doing this during a volatile situation like this would be unlikely.
According to Matthew, Pilate received a message from his wife that she believed Jesus was innocent because of a disturbing dream she had just had. He asks the crowd if they want the King of the Jews released to them, because according to Mark Pilate knew the priests were envious
Envy
Envy is best defined as a resentful emotion that "occurs when a person lacks another's superior quality, achievement, or possession and either desires it or wishes that the other lacked it."...
of Jesus and so presumably wanted to free him without a fight with them.
Barabbas
Barabbas or Jesus Barabbas is a figure in the Christian narrative of the Passion of Jesus, in which he is the insurrectionary whom Pontius Pilate freed at the Passover feast in Jerusalem.The penalty for Barabbas' crime was death by crucifixion, but according to the four canonical gospels and the...
, a prisoner. Mark says he was in prison "with" insurrectionists, which could mean he was one. Both Luke and John say he was a revolutionary. Jesus seems to have already been declared guilty as this seems a choice between releasing two prisoners.
Pilate then asks what should be done with Jesus. They say he should be crucified, but Pilate asks what he is guilty of. They still demand he be crucified so Pilate turns Barabbas over to the crowd and has Jesus flogged
Flagellation
Flagellation or flogging is the act of methodically beating or whipping the human body. Specialised implements for it include rods, switches, the cat o' nine tails and the sjambok...
and then sent out to be crucified. Matthew has Pilate washing his hands and declaring the crowd responsible, which the crowd accepts.
For his flogging Jesus would have been tied to a pillar, and hit with bone
Bone
Bones are rigid organs that constitute part of the endoskeleton of vertebrates. They support, and protect the various organs of the body, produce red and white blood cells and store minerals. Bone tissue is a type of dense connective tissue...
or metal
Metal
A metal , is an element, compound, or alloy that is a good conductor of both electricity and heat. Metals are usually malleable and shiny, that is they reflect most of incident light...
studded whip
Whip
A whip is a tool traditionally used by humans to exert control over animals or other people, through pain compliance or fear of pain, although in some activities whips can be used without use of pain, such as an additional pressure aid in dressage...
s. Crucifixion was a particularly shameful form of death, with a stigma put onto even the condemned's family.
Roman magistrates has wide discretion in executing their tasks, and some question whether Pilate would have been so captive to the demands of the crowd. Summarily executing someone to calm the situation however would have been a tool a Roman governor would have used.
The soldiers mock Jesus
Praetorium
- Etemology :The praetorium, also spelled prœtorium or pretorium, was originally used to identify the general’s tent within a Roman Castra, Castellum, or encampment. The word originates from the name of the chief Roman magistrate, known as Praetor...
, either Herod's palace or the Fortress Antonia
Antonia Fortress
The Antonia Fortress was a military barracks built by Herod the Great in Jerusalem on the site of earlier Ptolemaic and Hasmonean strongholds, named after Herod's patron Mark Antony...
. They gather together all the other soldiers. These were probably mostly recruits from the area of Palestine or Syria.
The soldiers put a purple
Purple
Purple is a range of hues of color occurring between red and blue, and is classified as a secondary color as the colors are required to create the shade....
robe on Jesus and put a crown
Crown (headgear)
A crown is the traditional symbolic form of headgear worn by a monarch or by a deity, for whom the crown traditionally represents power, legitimacy, immortality, righteousness, victory, triumph, resurrection, honour and glory of life after death. In art, the crown may be shown being offered to...
of thorns on his head and mockingly hail him as the King of the Jews. They hit him in the head with a staff and pay fake homage
Homage
Homage is a show or demonstration of respect or dedication to someone or something, sometimes by simple declaration but often by some more oblique reference, artistic or poetic....
to him. According to Matthew they put the staff in his hand first before beating him with it. They dress him in his own clothes and take him out to be crucified. According to John they left his purple robe and crown on.
Jesus is given the trappings of a King. Purple is a royal color. He wears a crown and is hit with a staff, also a royal symbol
Symbol
A symbol is something which represents an idea, a physical entity or a process but is distinct from it. The purpose of a symbol is to communicate meaning. For example, a red octagon may be a symbol for "STOP". On a map, a picture of a tent might represent a campsite. Numerals are symbols for...
. This whole scene is colored with divine
Divinity
Divinity and divine are broadly applied but loosely defined terms, used variously within different faiths and belief systems — and even by different individuals within a given faith — to refer to some transcendent or transcendental power or deity, or its attributes or manifestations in...
irony
Irony
Irony is a rhetorical device, literary technique, or situation in which there is a sharp incongruity or discordance that goes beyond the simple and evident intention of words or actions...
, as everything the soldiers do to mock Jesus' claim of being a King is used by Mark to show this, at the height of the Passion, as Jesus' crowning as messiah according to God
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
's plan.
According to John after the flogging Pilate brought Jesus back a second time and tried to convince the crowd that he was innocent but the crowd still demanded Jesus' death and so then Pilate had him crucified. Luke has no account of the soldiers beating Jesus.
Jesus' crucifixion
Simon of Cyrene
Simon of Cyrene was the man compelled by the Romans to carry the cross of Jesus as Jesus was taken to his crucifixion, according to all three Synoptic Gospels...
, to carry Jesus' cross for him, though Mark does not say why. Cyrene
Cyrene, Libya
Cyrene was an ancient Greek colony and then a Roman city in present-day Shahhat, Libya, the oldest and most important of the five Greek cities in the region. It gave eastern Libya the classical name Cyrenaica that it has retained to modern times.Cyrene lies in a lush valley in the Jebel Akhdar...
was in North Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
and Simon would have moved from there or would have been visiting. Mark lists his children, Alexander and Rufus. That Mark takes the time to list only their names suggests they might have been Early Christians known to Mark's intended audience. Paul
Paul of Tarsus
Paul the Apostle , also known as Saul of Tarsus, is described in the Christian New Testament as one of the most influential early Christian missionaries, with the writings ascribed to him by the church forming a considerable portion of the New Testament...
also lists a Rufus in Romans
Epistle to the Romans
The Epistle of Paul to the Romans, often shortened to Romans, is the sixth book in the New Testament. Biblical scholars agree that it was composed by the Apostle Paul to explain that Salvation is offered through the Gospel of Jesus Christ...
16:13. Luke has Jesus talking to some of his women followers along the way.
They arrive at Golgotha, which Mark says means the place of the skull
Skull
The skull is a bony structure in the head of many animals that supports the structures of the face and forms a cavity for the brain.The skull is composed of two parts: the cranium and the mandible. A skull without a mandible is only a cranium. Animals that have skulls are called craniates...
. This was probably an exhausted rock quarry whose remaining rock had been damaged in an earthquake.
They offer Jesus wine
Wine
Wine is an alcoholic beverage, made of fermented fruit juice, usually from grapes. The natural chemical balance of grapes lets them ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes, or other nutrients. Grape wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast...
laced with myrrh
Myrrh
Myrrh is the aromatic oleoresin of a number of small, thorny tree species of the genus Commiphora, which grow in dry, stony soil. An oleoresin is a natural blend of an essential oil and a resin. Myrrh resin is a natural gum....
to lessen the pain, but he refuses. Mark then simply says they crucified him. They then take his clothes and divide lots to distribute them. People have seen a relationship with this and Psalm 22:18, which John actually quotes as a fulfillment of prophecy
Prophecy
Prophecy is a process in which one or more messages that have been communicated to a prophet are then communicated to others. Such messages typically involve divine inspiration, interpretation, or revelation of conditioned events to come as well as testimonies or repeated revelations that the...
.
According to Mark, it was the "third hour" when Jesus was crucified. This would be the third hour of daylight, or about 9:00 AM. John however says Jesus was condemned to death around the sixth hour, or noon
Noon
Noon is usually defined as 12 o'clock in the daytime. The word noon is also used informally to mean midday regarding the location of the sun not the middle of a persons day. Although this is a time around the middle of the day when people in many countries take a lunch break...
. The charge listed on Jesus' cross is "THE KING OF THE JEWS" (INRI) According to John, the chief priests complained to Pilate about this but he refused to change the charge.
Two robbers
Theft
In common usage, theft is the illegal taking of another person's property without that person's permission or consent. The word is also used as an informal shorthand term for some crimes against property, such as burglary, embezzlement, larceny, looting, robbery, shoplifting and fraud...
were also crucified on each side of him. Luke has the robbers' conversation with Jesus. People come by and insult Jesus and mock him for claiming he would destroy and then rebuild Herod's Temple in three days, which Jesus has not said so far in Mark but was falsely accused of claiming to destroy the "man-made" Temple and rebuilt it in three days in Mark 14:57–58. The chief priests are also there and say that if he is really the Christ
Christ
Christ is the English term for the Greek meaning "the anointed one". It is a translation of the Hebrew , usually transliterated into English as Messiah or Mashiach...
they he should be able to come down from the cross and save himself as he had saved others, a reference to his many miracles
Miracles of Jesus
The miracles of Jesus are the supernatural deeds of Jesus, as recorded in Gospels, in the course of his ministry. According to the Gospel of John, only some of these were recorded. states that "Jesus did many other things as well...
earlier in Mark.
Mark relates these two mockings to perhaps highlight the question of why, if Jesus is indeed the messiah, can he not save himself from being put to death. Mark refutes these two charges later when Jesus rebuilds the Temple of his body and not only overcomes the cross but death itself in Mark 16. Mark might be stressing that if one follows Jesus, who Mark believes is the messiah, then one can expect help from God, such as Jesus' miracles, but one will not be saved from the pains of this world, and indeed in some way they are necessary to achieve a greater goal as Jesus' death is necessary for his role as the messiah.
The death of Jesus
According to Mark:- And when the sixth hour was come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour. And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? And some of them that stood by, when they heard it, said, Behold, he calleth Elias. And one ran and filled a spunge full of vinegarVinegarVinegar is a liquid substance consisting mainly of acetic acid and water, the acetic acid being produced through the fermentation of ethanol by acetic acid bacteria. Commercial vinegar is produced either by fast or slow fermentation processes. Slow methods generally are used with traditional...
, and put it on a reedPhragmitesPhragmites, the Common reed, is a large perennial grass found in wetlands throughout temperate and tropical regions of the world. Phragmites australis is sometimes regarded as the sole species of the genus Phragmites, though some botanists divide Phragmites australis into three or four species...
, and gave him to drink, saying, Let alone; let us see whether Elias will come to take him down. And Jesus cried with a loud voice, and gave up the ghostSoulA soul in certain spiritual, philosophical, and psychological traditions is the incorporeal essence of a person or living thing or object. Many philosophical and spiritual systems teach that humans have souls, and others teach that all living things and even inanimate objects have souls. The...
. And the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom. And when the centurionCenturion (Roman army)A centurion , also hekatontarch in Greek sources, or, in Byzantine times, kentarch was a professional officer of the Roman army after the Marian reforms of 107 BC...
, which stood over against him, saw that he so cried out, and gave up the ghost, he said, Truly this man was the Son of God.
The soldier might be recognizing something that no one else could and thus vindicating Jesus, or he might be saying this sarcastically
Sarcasm
Sarcasm is “a sharp, bitter, or cutting expression or remark; a bitter jibe or taunt.” Though irony and understatement is usually the immediate context, most authorities distinguish sarcasm from irony; however, others argue that sarcasm may or often does involve irony or employs...
. This statement may bring the Gospel full circle to where Jesus is identified by the writer as "the Son of God" (only in some versions, see Mark 1
Mark 1
Mark 1 is the first chapter of the Gospel of Mark of the New Testament of the Christian Bible. It begins "The beginning of the gospel about Jesus Christ, the Son of God" stating right from the start Mark's belief. However, because there is no article in the Koine Greek some have suggested be...
for details). Luke records that he said that Jesus was a righteous man. Matthew adds that at the moment of Jesus' death tombs in Jerusalem were opened and many bodies of "the saints" were raised from the dead. They were seen subsequently in the "holy city," Jerusalem, by many .
Jesus' cry to God is the prayer of Psalm 22 about abandonment but eventual salvation. According to Luke he also/or said "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit." John has the statement "It is finished." They mistake Eloi for Elijah and put the vinegar up to him to wake him up. People have seen a link between the vinegar and Psalm 69:21. According to Matthew it was wine vinegar. Luke says the soldiers gave it to him and mocked him while they did it. According to John Jesus asked for it and drank it right before his death. This raises the idea that Jesus' words in Mark 14 at the last supper, "I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until I drink it anew in the Kingdom of God," being fulfilled here. Jesus' suffering on the cross has redeemed the fallen creation from the curse, and the kingdom of God has in some sense been initiated here at the cross. Elijah appeared in Mark 9.
Some have interpreted the "darkness" as an eclipse
Eclipse
An eclipse is an astronomical event that occurs when an astronomical object is temporarily obscured, either by passing into the shadow of another body or by having another body pass between it and the viewer...
, see also Crucifixion eclipse
Crucifixion eclipse
According to the Christian synoptic gospels, on the day Jesus Christ was crucified, darkness covered the land for hours, an event which later came to be referred to as the "crucifixion eclipse". Although medieval writers treated the darkness as a miracle, various Christian historians have...
, but a solar eclipse is impossible during the full moon
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
such as at Passover. It could simply mean an overcast day, although Mark certainly uses it for dramatic effect here. Each stated time, three, six, and nine, grown increasingly worse, as Jesus is first mocked, then the darkness, then his death.
The veil of the Temple was the barrier between the inner Temple, thought to be God's place on Earth, and the rest. Its destruction is a vindication of Jesus. This might be a metaphor
Metaphor
A metaphor is a literary figure of speech that uses an image, story or tangible thing to represent a less tangible thing or some intangible quality or idea; e.g., "Her eyes were glistening jewels." Metaphor may also be used for any rhetorical figures of speech that achieve their effects via...
for God now no longer being separated but free for all the world. Given the imagery of the temple veil (there were cherubim woven into it, like the cherub set as guard over the entrance to Eden after Adam and Eve were cast out) as a symbol of the barrier between the Holy God and sinful men, the rending of the veil indicates a propitiation of God's wrath.
According to John, Jesus' mother Mary and her sister Mary were there with the Disciple whom Jesus loved
Disciple whom Jesus loved
The phrase the disciple whom Jesus loved or, in John 20:2, the Beloved Disciple is used five times in the Gospel of John, but in no other New Testament accounts of Jesus. claims that the Gospel of John is based on the written testimony of the "Beloved Disciple".Since the end of the 2nd century,...
and Jesus told the disciple to take Mary into his home.
Jesus' entombment
For the subject in art, see Entombment of ChristEntombment of Christ
The Entombment redirects here. For other uses, The Entombment The Entombment of Christ, that is to say the burial of Jesus Christ, occurred after his death by crucifixion, when, according to the gospel accounts, he was placed in a new tomb belonging to Joseph of Arimathea.-Biblical account:All four...
- Some women were watching from a distance. Among them were Mary MagdaleneMary MagdaleneMary Magdalene was one of Jesus' most celebrated disciples, and the most important woman disciple in the movement of Jesus. Jesus cleansed her of "seven demons", conventionally interpreted as referring to complex illnesses...
, Mary the mother of James the younger and of JosesJosesSaint Joses is the second of the brothers of Jesus appearing in the New Testament. Joses is first mentioned in , which related people talking about Jesus:...
, and SalomeSalome (disciple)Salome , sometimes venerated as Mary Salome, was a follower of Jesus who appears briefly in the canonical gospels and in more detail in apocryphal writings...
. In Galilee these women had followed him and cared for his needs. Many other women who had come up with him to Jerusalem were also there. (40–41)
Mary Magdalene has not been mentioned so far in Mark, and the other Mary is perhaps Jesus' mother Mary as she is also mentioned as James' mother in Mark 6:3. She could also be another Mary, perhaps another relative. Salome was James
Saint James the Great
James, son of Zebedee was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus. He was a son of Zebedee and Salome, and brother of John the Apostle...
' and John
John the Apostle
John the Apostle, John the Apostle, John the Apostle, (Aramaic Yoħanna, (c. 6 - c. 100) was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus. He was the son of Zebedee and Salome, and brother of James, another of the Twelve Apostles...
's mother. The fact the Mark has not explicitly related any of Jesus' interaction with them shows that Mark has left out many of the events of the life of the "Historical Jesus
Historical Jesus
The term historical Jesus refers to scholarly reconstructions of the 1st-century figure Jesus of Nazareth. These reconstructions are based upon historical methods including critical analysis of gospel texts as the primary source for his biography, along with consideration of the historical and...
" and only related events he deems necessary to make his points about Jesus.
John says the soldiers were told to take down the bodies for the Sabbath and broke the other two men's legs but stabbed Jesus with a spear to make sure he was dead. John claims this is eye witness testimony.
Evening is approaching and Joseph of Arimathea
Joseph of Arimathea
Joseph of Arimathea was, according to the Gospels, the man who donated his own prepared tomb for the burial of Jesus after Jesus' Crucifixion. He is mentioned in all four Gospels.-Gospel references:...
, a member of the sanhedrin
Sanhedrin
The Sanhedrin was an assembly of twenty-three judges appointed in every city in the Biblical Land of Israel.The Great Sanhedrin was the supreme court of ancient Israel made of 71 members...
, who was also waiting for the "Kingdom of God
Kingdom of God
The Kingdom of God or Kingdom of Heaven is a foundational concept in the Abrahamic religions: Judaism, Christianity and Islam.The term "Kingdom of God" is found in all four canonical gospels and in the Pauline epistles...
," goes to Pilate and asks for Jesus' body. The Scholars Version notes this as "unexpected .. Is Joseph in effect bringing Jesus into his family?" As the next day was the Sabbath
Shabbat
Shabbat is the seventh day of the Jewish week and a day of rest in Judaism. Shabbat is observed from a few minutes before sunset on Friday evening until a few minutes after when one would expect to be able to see three stars in the sky on Saturday night. The exact times, therefore, differ from...
Jesus would have to have been buried before sundown or then not until the next night. According to Mosaic law, if someone was hanged on a tree they were not to remain there at night. Pilate is surprised Jesus had died so soon and asks for confirmation and then gives Jesus' body to Joseph.
Joseph wraps it in linen
Linen
Linen is a textile made from the fibers of the flax plant, Linum usitatissimum. Linen is labor-intensive to manufacture, but when it is made into garments, it is valued for its exceptional coolness and freshness in hot weather....
and puts it in a sepulchre
Sepulchre
The rock-cut tombs in ancient Israel are a group of hundreds of rock-cut tombs constructed in Israel in ancient times. They were cut into the rock, sometimes with elaborate facades and multiple burial chambers. Some are free-standing, but most are caves. Each tomb typically belonged to a...
, rolls a stone over the entrance, and leaves. According to John he was assisted by the Pharisee Nicodemus
Nicodemus
Saint Nicodemus was a Pharisee and a member of the Sanhedrin, who, according to the Gospel of John, showed favour to Jesus...
. The Marys see this and serve as Mark's witnesses to the events of Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection
Resurrection of Jesus
The Christian belief in the resurrection of Jesus states that Jesus returned to bodily life on the third day following his death by crucifixion. It is a key element of Christian faith and theology and part of the Nicene Creed: "On the third day he rose again in fulfillment of the Scriptures"...
. Bodies were normally anointed, but there seems to be no time here. John however says Nicodemus wrapped up Jesus' body with spices, which seems to be anointing. The tomb, one of many around Jerusalem, was a limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
cave
Cave
A cave or cavern is a natural underground space large enough for a human to enter. The term applies to natural cavities some part of which is in total darkness. The word cave also includes smaller spaces like rock shelters, sea caves, and grottos.Speleology is the science of exploration and study...
and Jesus' body would have been laid on a pre-cut shelf, and then most bodies would have been left for a year.
Jesus largely passively underwent all this, only speaking twice. Many have seen this as fulfillment of the suffering servant
Isaiah 53
Isaiah 53, taken from the Book of Isaiah, is the last of the four Songs of the Suffering Servant, and tells the story of the Man of Sorrows or "The Suffering Servant", which became a common theme in medieval and later Christian art. The passage is known for its interpretation by many Christians to...
of Isaiah
Book of Isaiah
The Book of Isaiah is the first of the Latter Prophets in the Hebrew Bible, preceding the books of Ezekiel, Jeremiah and the Book of the Twelve...
53:7
Jesus' trial before Pilate and his crucifixion, death, and burial are also found in Matthew
Matthew 27
Matthew 27 is the 27th chapter in the Gospel of Matthew, part of the New Testament.-Overview:Matthew describes the trial, crucifixion and burial of Jesus....
27, Luke 23, and John 18:28–19:42.