Jesus sentenced to be crucified
1Then Pilate took Jesus and had him flogged. 2The soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on his head. They clothed him in a purple robe 3and went up to him again and again, saying, ‘Hail, king of the Jews!’ And they slapped him in the face.
4Once more Pilate came out and said to the Jews gathered there, ‘Look, I am bringing him out to you to let you know that I find no basis for a charge against him.’ 5When Jesus came out wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe, Pilate said to them, ‘Here is the man!’
6As soon as the chief priests and their officials saw him, they shouted, ‘Crucify! Crucify!’
But Pilate answered, ‘You take him and crucify him. As for me, I find no basis for a charge against him.’
7The Jewish leaders insisted, ‘We have a law, and according to that law he must die, because he claimed to be the Son of God.’
8When Pilate heard this, he was even more afraid, 9and he went back inside the palace. ‘Where do you come from?’ he asked Jesus, but Jesus gave him no answer. 10‘Do you refuse to speak to me?’ Pilate said. ‘Don’t you realise I have power either to free you or to crucify you?’
11Jesus answered, ‘You would have no power over me if it were not given to you from above. Therefore the one who handed me over to you is guilty of a greater sin.’
12From then on, Pilate tried to set Jesus free, but the Jewish leaders kept shouting, ‘If you let this man go, you are no friend of Caesar. Anyone who claims to be a king opposes Caesar.’
13When Pilate heard this, he brought Jesus out and sat down on the judge’s seat at a place known as the Stone Pavement (which in Aramaic is Gabbatha). 14It was the day of Preparation of the Passover; it was about noon.
‘Here is your king,’ Pilate said to the Jews.
15But they shouted, ‘Take him away! Take him away! Crucify him!’
‘Shall I crucify your king?’ Pilate asked.
‘We have no king but Caesar,’ the chief priests answered.
16Finally Pilate handed him over to them to be crucified.
The crucifixion of Jesus
So the soldiers took charge of Jesus. 17Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place of the Skull (which in Aramaic is called Golgotha). 18There they crucified him, and with him two others – one on each side and Jesus in the middle.
19Pilate had a notice prepared and fastened to the cross. It read:
Jesus of Nazareth, the king of the Jews.
20Many of the Jews read this sign, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city, and the sign was written in Aramaic, Latin and Greek. 21The chief priests of the Jews protested to Pilate, ‘Do not write “The King of the Jews”, but that this man claimed to be king of the Jews.’
22Pilate answered, ‘What I have written, I have written.’
23When the soldiers crucified Jesus, they took his clothes, dividing them into four shares, one for each of them, with the undergarment remaining. This garment was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom.
24‘Let’s not tear it,’ they said to one another. ‘Let’s decide by lot who will get it.’
This happened that the scripture might be fulfilled that said,
‘They divided my clothes among them
and cast lots for my garment.’19:24 Psalm 22:18
So this is what the soldiers did.
25Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. 26When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing near by, he said to her, ‘Woman,19:26 The Greek for Woman does not denote any disrespect. here is your son,’ 27and to the disciple, ‘Here is your mother.’ From that time on, this disciple took her into his home.
The death of Jesus
28Later, knowing that everything had now been finished, and so that Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, ‘I am thirsty.’ 29A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus’ lips. 30When he had received the drink, Jesus said, ‘It is finished.’ With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.
31Now it was the day of Preparation, and the next day was to be a special Sabbath. Because the Jewish leaders did not want the bodies left on the crosses during the Sabbath, they asked Pilate to have the legs broken and the bodies taken down. 32The soldiers therefore came and broke the legs of the first man who had been crucified with Jesus, and then those of the other. 33But when they came to Jesus and found that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. 34Instead, one of the soldiers pierced Jesus’ side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water. 35The man who saw it has given testimony, and his testimony is true. He knows that he tells the truth, and he testifies so that you also may believe. 36These things happened so that the scripture would be fulfilled: ‘Not one of his bones will be broken,’19:36 Exodus 12:46; Num. 9:12; Psalm 34:20 37and, as another scripture says, ‘They will look on the one they have pierced.’19:37 Zech. 12:10
The burial of Jesus
38Later, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. Now Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jewish leaders. With Pilate’s permission, he came and took the body away. 39He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night. Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about thirty-five kilograms. 40Taking Jesus’ body, the two of them wrapped it, with the spices, in strips of linen. This was in accordance with Jewish burial customs. 41At the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb, in which no-one had ever been laid. 42Because it was the Jewish day of Preparation and since the tomb was near by, they laid Jesus there.
Jesus Is Sentenced to Be Crucified
1Then Pilate took Jesus and had him whipped. 2The soldiers twisted thorns together to make a crown. They put it on Jesus’ head. Then they put a purple robe on him. 3They went up to him again and again. They kept saying, “We honor you, king of the Jews!” And they slapped him in the face.
4Once more Pilate came out. He said to the Jews gathered there, “Look, I am bringing Jesus out to you. I want to let you know that I find no basis for a charge against him.” 5Jesus came out wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Then Pilate said to them, “Here is the man!”
6As soon as the chief priests and their officials saw him, they shouted, “Crucify him! Crucify him!”
But Pilate answered, “You take him and crucify him. I myself find no basis for a charge against him.”
7The Jewish leaders replied, “We have a law. That law says he must die. He claimed to be the Son of God.”
8When Pilate heard that, he was even more afraid. 9He went back inside the palace. “Where do you come from?” he asked Jesus. But Jesus did not answer him. 10“Do you refuse to speak to me?” Pilate said. “Don’t you understand? I have the power to set you free or to nail you to a cross.”
11Jesus answered, “You were given power from heaven. If you weren’t, you would have no power over me. So the one who handed me over to you is guilty of a greater sin.”
12From then on, Pilate tried to set Jesus free. But the Jewish leaders kept shouting, “If you let this man go, you are not Caesar’s friend! Anyone who claims to be a king is against Caesar!”
13When Pilate heard that, he brought Jesus out. Pilate sat down on the judge’s seat. It was at a place called the Stone Walkway. In the Aramaic language it was called Gabbatha. 14It was about noon on Preparation Day in Passover Week.
“Here is your king,” Pilate said to the Jews.
15But they shouted, “Take him away! Take him away! Crucify him!”
“Should I crucify your king?” Pilate asked.
“We have no king but Caesar,” the chief priests answered.
16Finally, Pilate handed Jesus over to them to be nailed to a cross.
Jesus Is Nailed to a Cross
So the soldiers took charge of Jesus. 17He had to carry his own cross. He went out to a place called the Skull. In the Aramaic language it was called Golgotha. 18There they nailed Jesus to the cross. Two other men were crucified with him. One was on each side of him. Jesus was in the middle.
19Pilate had a notice prepared. It was fastened to the cross. It read,
Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.
20Many of the Jews read the sign. That’s because the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city. And the sign was written in the Aramaic, Latin and Greek languages. 21The chief priests of the Jews argued with Pilate. They said, “Do not write ‘The King of the Jews.’ Write that this man claimed to be king of the Jews.”
22Pilate answered, “I have written what I have written.”
23When the soldiers crucified Jesus, they took his clothes. They divided them into four parts. Each soldier got one part. All that was left was Jesus’ long, inner robe. It did not have any seams. It was made out of one piece of cloth from top to bottom.
24“Let’s not tear it,” they said to one another. “Let’s cast lots to see who will get it.”
This happened so that Scripture would come true. It says,
“They divided up my clothes among them.
They cast lots for what I was wearing.” (Psalm 22:18)
So that is what the soldiers did.
25Jesus’ mother stood near his cross. So did his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. 26Jesus saw his mother there. He also saw the disciple he loved standing nearby. Jesus said to his mother, “Dear woman, here is your son.” 27He said to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” From that time on, the disciple took her into his home.
Jesus Dies
28Later, Jesus knew that everything had now been finished. He also knew that what Scripture said must come true. So he said, “I am thirsty.” 29A jar of wine vinegar was there. So they soaked a sponge in it. They put the sponge on the stem of a hyssop plant. Then they lifted it up to Jesus’ lips. 30After Jesus drank he said, “It is finished.” Then he bowed his head and died.
31It was Preparation Day. The next day would be a special Sabbath day. The Jewish leaders did not want the bodies left on the crosses during the Sabbath day. So they asked Pilate to have the legs broken and the bodies taken down. 32The soldiers came and broke the legs of the first man who had been crucified with Jesus. Then they broke the legs of the other man. 33But when they came to Jesus, they saw that he was already dead. So they did not break his legs. 34Instead, one of the soldiers stuck his spear into Jesus’ side. Right away, blood and water flowed out. 35The man who saw it has been a witness about it. And what he has said is true. He knows that he tells the truth. He is a witness so that you also may believe. 36These things happened in order that Scripture would come true. It says, “Not one of his bones will be broken.” (Exodus 12:46; Numbers 9:12; Psalm 34:20) 37Scripture also says, “They will look to the one they have pierced.” (Zechariah 12:10)
Jesus Is Buried
38Later Joseph asked Pilate for Jesus’ body. Joseph was from the town of Arimathea. He was a follower of Jesus. But he followed Jesus secretly because he was afraid of the Jewish leaders. After Pilate gave him permission, Joseph came and took the body away. 39Nicodemus went with Joseph. He was the man who had earlier visited Jesus at night. Nicodemus brought some mixed spices that weighed about 75 pounds. 40The two men took Jesus’ body. They wrapped it in strips of linen cloth, along with the spices. That was the way the Jews buried people. 41At the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a garden. A new tomb was there. No one had ever been put in it before. 42That day was the Jewish Preparation Day, and the tomb was nearby. So they placed Jesus there.
