read that he refused it. St. Mark does not record this second occasion.
Ver. 24.—And they crucify him (xa) orav- podow avrdyv). Such is the most approved reading. The evangelist states the fact without staying to dwell on the painful cir- cumstances connected with the act of nailing him to the cross; and passes on to the men- tion of other things. They part his garments among them, casting lots upon them, what each should take. The outer robe and the tunic would have been removed previously to the crucifixion. St. John (xix. 23) here goesinto details. “ They took his garments, and made four parts, to every soldier a part; and also the coat: now the coat was with- out seam, woven from the top through- out.” His garments (rd iudria). This would be the loose, flowing outer dress with girdle. The tunic (yirév) was a close- fitting dress, worn underneath the iudriov. There were four soldiers employed for each crucifixion. St. Cyril refers to the clothes of criminals as the perquisite of the executioners. Here was another ingre- dient of bitterness in our Lord’s cup, that he saw before his eyes his garments torn by the soldiery, and his tunic divided to them by lot. But he divested himself of these gar- ments of mortality, that he might clothe us with life and immortality.
Ver. 25.—And it was the third hour, and they crucified him. The third hour would literally be nine o’clock. But we gather from ver. 33 that our Lord was on his cross, and still alive, at the sixth hour, that is, at twelve o’clock. The simplest mode of solving the chronological difficulty seems to be this: The Jews divided their day into four parts, which they called hours, namely, the first, from six to nine; the third, from nine to twelve; the sixth, from twelve to three; and the ninth, from three to six. It was, then, within ’the third hour, that is, between nine and twelve, that they crucified him; and it was from the sixth to the ninth hour that he was actually upon his cross. St. John employs the Asiatic mode of com- puting time.
Ver. 26.—And the superscription of his accusation was written over, THE KING OF THE JEWS. This would probably be the shortest form of inscription, and in Latin, “Rex Judeorum.” Allthe evangelists men- tion the inscription; but no two of them in precisely the same words. It appears by a comparison of them that the whole title was, “This is Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.” In the case of remarkable prisoners the accusation was written on a white tablet, and carried before them as they went to the place of execution. It was then placed over their heads when the cross was erected. St. John tells us that our Lord’s title was
307
written in three languages—Hebrew, Latin, and Greek. Such appears to be the proper order of the words, namely, the national, the official, and the common dialect. St. Mark, writing at Rome, would naturally mention the Latin title. It is quite possible that the superscription wy haye varied in the dif- ferent renderings in which it was given. It is evident from St. John (xix. 19—22) that the title was much canvassed by the Jews and the chief priests. Bede says that this title was fitly placed over his head, because, although he was crucified in weakness for us, yet he shone with the majesty of a King above his cross. The title proclaimed that he was after all a King; and that from henceforth be began to reign from his cross over the Jews. And therefore Pilate was divinely restrained from making any alteration in the title, so that it should mean anything less than this.
Ver. 27.—And with him they orucify two robbers (Anoral)—not “thieves” («Admrat); St. Luke (xxiii. 32) shows that these two robbers formed a part of the procession to Calvary; but they were crucified after our Lord—one on his right hand, and one on his left. We know from St. Luke (xxiii. 40) that one of these malefactors was saved; while it would appear that the other died in his sins. And thus Christ upon his cross, between these two men, and with the title of King over his head, presented a striking and awful picture of the final judgment. Such is the view of St. Ambrose on St. Luke xxiii., and of St. Augustine, who says, “ This cross, if you mark it well, was a judgment- seat. For the Judge being placed in the midst, the one who believed was set free; the other who reviled him was condemned; and thus he signified what he will do with the quick and thedead. Some he will place on his right hand, and some on his left” (Augustine, Tract. 31 in S. Johan.).
Ver. 28.—This verse is omitted in the oldest manuscripts. It is supposed to have been taken from St. Luke (xxii. 37).
Vers, 25, 30.—And they that passed by railed on him, wagging their heads, Here was another fulfilment of prophecy, and an- other aggravation of the misery of Christ. “ All they that see me laugh me to scorn: they shoot out the lip, they shake the head saying, He trusted on the Lord that he would deliver Lim; let him deliver him, secing he delighteth in him” (Ps. xxii. 7, 8). The tor- ment of crucifixion itself was terrible; but it wasa still greater torment to the Crucified to be insulted in hisagony. Our Lord may well have had these worde in his mind, “ They persecute him whom thou hast smitten, and they tell of the sorrow of those whom thou hast wounded ” (Ps. lxix. 26). They that passed by. Calvary was probably near to
808
THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ST. MARK.
[ck. av. 1—4%.
i
one of the thoroughfares leading to the city ; so that there would be a continual stream of persons passing to and fro; more especially at this time, when Jerusalem was thronged with visitors. And no doubt the words of ‘the accusation against him in its incorrect form would pass freely from mouth to mouth, Ha! thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days, save thyself. If you could make such a boast as this, show your power by coming down from the cross.