The Pulpit Commentary — John — Volume 2 — Section 414

,..-hioh susti,ins the probability th&t it is the naile to the wood. A ,edi"le WBS BrrBnged l,omh onco hallowed by the most stupendous to bear a portion of the weight of the body ,,r<>ni in tbe history of the world. Bobineon which would never have been 1u1t&ined by snid, "The place wae probably upon a great the gt\J)ing wounde, The oroes was then rond leading from one of the gatee, and euch raieed by the executioners, and thruet with n spot would only be found upon the west a fierce jerk into the hole or socket .Prepared or norib side of the cit-y, on the roade lead- for it. There was nothing in thie 1uh umBu ing to Joppa or Damascus." The word torture neoeesa.rily to occasion death. The "Gul~otl,a" or "Gulgoltha" ie the AJ'l\maio sufferers often lingered for twelve hours, ( of. S~-rinc GiiguU<i)form of Gu!golat/1,Hebrew and sometimes for several days, dying at fnr "ekull," and m11y dol'ivc its name from last of thirst, starvation, Bnd utterly in- the form of the mound or oore pl&00 where tolerable agony. The Romans generally w11e the garden in which the rock-hewn lert the bodies to be devoured by birds of tomb of Joseph had been exc1\\"ated. The prey; the Jews buried the corpses. Constan- Yulge.te tmnsle.tes the word Oa.lvaria,a skull, tine I., after his conversion, out of reverence from which our word" Ca.lrarv" is derived. for the Lord whom he had chosen, abolished The English version in Luke :niii. 33 the punishment, which, far more terrible thus tm.nsla.t.es the Greek word 1<pa.11lo11, and than one by wild beasts or fire, he.a never from this pa.asa.ge the word has been natu- been renewed, and rarely practised in Europe ra.lized in our language. There is no a.utho-- since the.t day. There, then, these Jews, by rity for the appellation "Mount Ce.lval'y." the hands of lawless men, by Roman execu- The ne.me probably refers to the she.pc of tioners, "oruci.fied the Lord of glory," and the site where the event took place. From by their hideous insensibility to goodness, by this verse we learn that Jesus went forth to judicial bliudneBB, bigotry, envy, and pride, ihe spot, and (eh. rix. 20) John further ea.ye not knowing the infinite crime they were it was "nigh unto the city," therefore not committing, offered up a se.cri.fice, slew the within it. The same position relative to Lamb of God, killed a Pe.ssover of transcen- the city is obvious from Matt. :uviii. 11, dent price. That torture-tree has become where the Roman guard came from the his throne, and the very symbol of all that tomb E<s n,11 w-d1,.,.,_ The Romans were ac- is most sacred and a.we-inspiring in the customed to execute their criminals in some entire region of human thought. They did conspicuous position, adjoining a travelled not by this gross a.n.d inconceivable wicked- road, so that those passing by, as well as ness bring their rage to its full se.tisfaction ; those who congregated for the purpose, for they oruoifled two other with him, 011 might know and learn its mee.n.ing. They either Bide one ( ;,,,.,..;;s.v ,,al ,,,.,..vs•.,, an reacLed the chosen spot- expression only found in this passage and \"er. lil.-Where they crucuied him. As Rev. :uii. 2), and Jesus in the midst, most John be.rely mentions this awful climax of prominent in this tragedy, and exalted to his Gospel, it is not needful here to enlarge what they believed was the very pinnacle of upon the heartrending details of this shame. The synoptic narrative he.s told us hideous process, one which Cioero described these ttDO men were "robbers 1' (11.110-.-al, not e.s '' crndelissimu.m,teterrimum,summum sup- ,rl,...,,.,.a.[) or (1<a,covp-yo,) "malefactors," who, plicium," one from which no Roman citizen according to their own confession, were could suffer, and which was reserved for the "suffering the due reward of their deeds." most ignominious and degraded of mankind- For a while both these dying ruffie.ns tried for tra.i.tol'li, brigands, and condemned sle.ves. 1 to add torment to their quiet a.n.d patient It is sufficient to say that, from the mention fellow-Sufferer. Luke's oocount of the of the ,1rrypaqni br' a.imj (Luke :n:iii. 38), change that came over one of them as the the oross was not simply of the T shape awful hours rolled on is one of the sublimest ea.lied mu:,: eommiasa., but rather (Luthardt portents that attended the Crucifixion. John and Zockler) of the farni.lill.r shape + a.n.d p888e8 this well-known incident by, most termed muz immwa., upon the upper arm of obviously supplementing the synoptists' nar- which the title or a.ccusa.tion, which had rative with matter which they had omitted, Leen pla.oed round his nook, was e.fiixed. It is strange that John, if he had simply a The victim of t.his punishment WIIB stripped. theologica.l purpose in his selection of facts, l.&.id on the central ba.r, and the arms should have omitted the sublime prayer, attaclu,d by ropes to the transverse beam, "Father, forgive them; for they know not tht: hands a.n.d feet w.tened with huge iron what they do" (Luke :u.ili.84), a revelation of compe.ssion, power, inward agony, blended 1 Otio Zookler • Cross of OhriBt,' Clark'• with Divine prerogative and unspeakable tra.n.e. ; Wi.ner, • Bee.l woJ t.erbuch,' "Oreuzi- tranquillity, which has done so much to gung; " F&ml,l''s • Lifo of Cbl'ist; ' have reveal " the heart of Christ," the essence exLa.ustw the 1111bjbCt (cf. Steinmeyer, a.n.d character of the living Go<l. • P&<>aiu,,,' etc.). VerH. 19-22.-(b) The title un Uui oroe,. oa. XI%., 1-42.J THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ST. JOHN. 427