he would not drink. They give him vinegar mingled with gall. 403 clxxxix. Mat. gled with gall, and when him nothing better to drink than vinegar mingled SECT. he had tasted thereof, with gall, by that odious mixture farther expressing their cruelty and contempt: and when he had tasted [of it,] that he might submit to XXVII. every distasteful circumstance which providence 34 allotted to him, he would not drink any large draught of it, as knowing it would answer no MARK XV. 23. valuable end to do it. And, as some of his Mark friends had on that occasion provided a cordial XV. 23. cup, they gave him [also] a draught of generous wine to drink, mingled with myrrh and other spices, which they thought proper on that sad occasion; but he did not receive [it,] determining to bear the full force of his pains, unallayed by any such preparation, and to maintain his thoughts in the most vigorous exercise. And they also gave mingled with myrrh: but he received it not. him to drink, wine 25 And it was the third hour, and [there] they crucified him :[LUKE XXII.—33. 27 And it was now the third hour of the day, or 25 nine o'clock in the morning, when they thus brought him to mount Calvary; and there, when JOHN XIX. 18.-] all things were made ready, they nailed his hands and his feet to the cross, and crucified him. 27 And with him And they also crucified with him the two malethey crucify [LUKE, factors [or] robbers, that were mentioned betwo thieves, the one fore, the one on his right-hand, and the other on his right-hand, the left; and they placed Jesus in the midst, as and the other on his a mark of the greatest indignity, to prejudice left, [JOHN, and Je the multitude the more against him, and to insus 111 the midst.] [MAT. duce them to regard him as the most infamous the malefactors, or] on They gave him also wine to drink, mingled with myrrh.] Some think that this was sour wine, called vinegar by Matthew; but I apprehend the reasons which Dr. Edwards has produced (Exercit. part ii. No. 2. p. 178-188.) sufficiently prove that this wine mingled with myrrh was a different mixture from the vinegar and goll, which he received so far as to taste it. Probably those prous women, some of them (as the story shews) persons in plentiful circumstances, whose zeal engaged them to follow him to Calvary, and afterwards so liberally to prepare unguents and aromatic drugs for his embalming, had provided on this sad occasion some rich wine tempered with choice spices, which with perfect propriety he refused to taste, lest malice should insinuate he intended thereby to render himself insensible of the terrors of death. d It was now the third hour of the day, or nine o'clock in the morning.] I can by no means agree with Vossius, and some other critics, to read it here the sixth hour; for there ought to be very cogent reasons VOL. VII. criminal for departing from the authority of all 3 E • And 404 Reflections on the crucifixion of Christ. 28 And the scripture SECT. criminal of the three. And thus the scripture [MA T. XXVII. 38. clxxxix. was remarkably fulfilled, (Isa. liii. 12.) in which JOHN XIX.-18.] the prophet Isaiah, speaking with an amaz- was fulfilled. which XV. 28. ing plainness of the suffer ngs of the Messiah, saith, And he was saith," And he was numbered with the trans- t ausgressors. Mark Luke gressors " And Jesus made no manner of resistance to XXII134 this cruel violence, nor did he revile them even when they were distorting his limbs as on a rack, and nailing his hands and his feet on the full stretch to the accursed tree; but, in the midst of his anguish, he breathed out his soul in a compassionate praver for his murderers; and pleading the only excuse which the most extensive charity could suggest, he said, Father, forgive them, for they know not what they are doing : The Roman soldiers, who were the immediate instruments of his death, having indeed but little knowledge of him; and the Jews, who were the authors of it, through their obstinate prejudices not apprehending who he was: " for if they had known him, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory." (1 Cor. ii. 8.) numbered with the LUKE XXIII. 34. Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. XIX. IMPROVEMENT. HERE let us pause a while, and make a few serious reflections John on this amazing story, which the evangelists relate with so much simplicity. Behold the Son of God bearing his cross, faint17, 18 ing under the load of it, and at length extended upon it, and nailed to it. Him they took, and with wicked hands crucified and slew him, (Acts ii. 23.) Blessed Jesus, was it for this that thou didst honour our nature by a union to thine own, and come from thy throne of glory to visit these abodes of misery and guilt! Was it for this that so many gracious discourses were delivered, and so many works of love and power performed! for this, that thou mightest be treated as the worst of criminals, and suspended on a cross in the air, as if unworthy of a place on earth even to die Mark XV. 27, 28 e And he was numbered with the transgressors.] I choose, in quotations from the Old Testament, to keep as close to our English version of the passage quoted as the Greek will allow me, that the memory of the hearer may assist him in distinguishing the text; else I should have rendered avowy, criminals, as the word WD, which Isaiah uses, seems also to signify. The least offence is a transgres sion of the law of God, or a stepping over the boundaries he has prescribed but this imports much more. upon! Reflections on the crucifixion of Christ. 405 clxxxix. xxiii. 27, 28 upon Amazing and lamentable sight! Justly, O sun, mightest SECT. thou blush to see it: justly, O earth, mightest thou tremble to support it! Lord, like these pious women, who had the zeal and fortitude Luke to attend thee, when thine own apostles forsook thee and fled, we would follow thee weeping: yet not for thee, but for ourselves: that our guilt had brought us under a condemnation, from which we could be redeemed by nothing less than the precious blood of the Son of God: that Lamb without blemish and without spot, (1 Pet. i. 19.)—We should behold herein the goodness and the severity of God, (Rom. xi. 22.) for while the riches of his goodness are displayed in his providing a ransom for the redemption of lost sinners, an awful proof is given of the severity of his justice, in his not sparing his own Son, nor exempting him from the sorrows and sufferings due to sin, when he came to put himself in the stead of sinners and may we not in such a view tremble for fear of him, and be afraid of his judgments?, (Psal. cxix. 120.) Who can support the weight of his indignation, especially when it shall come aggravated by the abuse of so much love! If these things 31 be done in the green wood, what shall be done in the dry? And if such sufferings be inflicted, where there was not any personal guilt to kindle the flame, on one who only answered for the sins of others; what then will be the end of those who, by their own iniquities, are become as fuel prepared for the fire, and are as vessels of wrath fitted to destruction? How shocking is it to behold the vile indignities that were put Ver.33 upon a suffering Jesus, and to reflect upon the cruel treatment that he met with from his insulting enemies! Yet have not we been verily guilty concerning this matter? (Gen. xlii. 21.) Are we not chargeable with despising Christ? and have we not crucified the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame? (Heb. vi. 6.) O may that apology be heard in our favour! Father, for-34give them, for they know not what they do! For surely sinners do not know what they do, when they pierce Christ by their sins, and turn away their faces from him.-But under all his sufferings, how amazing was his meekness! and how compassionate the concern which he expressed for his most cruel persecutors? May we learn patience, and love to our enemies, from so bright an example of it! May we, like him, bless them that curse us, and pray for them that despitefully use us, and persecute us! (Mat. v. 44.) Instead of being ingenious to aggravate their faults, and to paint them in the most shocking colours, let us rather seek for the best excuses, which even the worst of causes will fairly bear; influenced by that charity which unconstrained believes no evil, and hopeth all things even against hope. (1 Cor. xiii, 5, 7: 406 SECT. clxxxix. SECT. John XXI. 23. 21 The soldiers divide his garments by lot. Gracious Saviour thy dying prayer, and thy dying blood, were not like water spilt upon the ground: they came up in remembrance before God, when thy gospel began to be preached at Jerusalem and multitudes, who were now consenting to thy death, gladly received thy word, and were baptized, (Acts ii. 41.) and they are now in glory, celebrating that grace which has taken out the scarlet and crimson dye of their sins, and turned that blood which they so impiously shed into the balm of their wounds, and the life of their souls. SECT. CXC. Christ's garments are divided by lot; and while he is himself insulted on the cross, he shews his mercy to the penitent thief. Mat. XXVII. 35-37, 39-44. Mark XV. 24, 26, 29— 32. Luke XXIII. 34-43. John XIX. 19—24. JOHN XIX. 23. JOHN XIX. 23. THEN the soldiers, cified Jesus, took his garments, and made four parts, to every soldier a part; [MARK casting lots upon them, what every man should take ;] and also his coat: now the coat was when they had cru without seam, woven 35.-MARK XV. 24. HE soldiers therefore, when they had thus crucified Jesus, took his garments, which according to custom they had stripped off, that the shame of suffering naked might be added to all the agony of the cross; and, as it was usual for the executioners to have the garments of the criminal whom they put to death,they made four, parts of his clothes, assigning to each soldier of the quaternion employed on that occasion a part, from the top throughand casting lots upon them which of the four each out. [MAT. XXVII. man should take and they took also the vest, or LUKE XXIII.-31.] inner-garment; now the vest had this curious circumstance attending it, that it was without any seam at all, being woven from the top throughout in one whole piece. And as this was con- 24 They said therefore among themsidered by them as more valuable than ordinary, selves, Let us not rent they said therefore one to another, Let us not it, but cast lots for it, spoil this coat, as we must do if we about go to tear it into four parts, but let us cast ken by the prophet] lots for it, whose the whole of it shall be: might be fulfilled, which saith, and accordingly they did so, that the scripture They parted my raiment spoken by the prophet David in the person of among them, and for the Messiah might thus be literally fulfilled, which my vesture they did saith, (Psalm xxii. 18.) They divided my gar- cast lots. These things mentsamong them, and cast lots for my vesture. a Woven from the top throughout in one whole piece.] Perhaps this curious garment might be the work and present of some of the pious women who attended him, and ministered to him of their substance, (Luke viii. 3.) The bint here given of its make These whose it shall be: that the scripture [spo therefore has set some mechanical heads to work to contrive a frame for weaving such a vest; and a good cut of it may be seen in Calmet's Dictionary, on the word vestments, Vol. III. p. 119. They divided my garments among them, &c.] 407 The title of King of the Jews is put over him on the cross. therefore the soldiers These things therefore the soldiers did, though SECT. did. [MAT. XXVII. with the utmost freedom as to themselves, yet 35.1 CXC. by the secret disposal of Providence, which, by John an undiscerned influence on their minds, led xix. 24 them to act in a remarkable correspondence to MAT. XXVII. 36. the Divine oracle. And, having done thus, Mat. And sitting down, they they sat down near the cross, and guarded him, and the other two who were crucified with him, that none might come there to rescue them before they were quite dead. watched him there: 37 And set up over scription of] his accu XXVII 36 And, as the usual method was in cases of cru- 37 his head [the super- cifixion, they put upon the cross over his head a sation written, THIS superscription in capital letters, containing the IS JESUS [JOHN, substance of his pretended crime, written in these OF NAZARETH, 1 remarkable words, THIS IS JESUS OF THE KING OF THE JOHN XIX. 19. And Pilate wrote [the] title, and put it on the cross. JEWS. [MARK XV. NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE 26. LUKE XXIII. 38. JEWS. And indeed it was Pilate who wrote John JOAN XIX.-19.] [this] title, and ordered them to put it on the XIX. 19 Cross; which, howsoever it was designed as a reproach to Jesus, was in effect a declaration of his real character; and by the secret providence of God was over-ruled in a remarkable and public manner to proclaim the kingdom of Christ, while it was only meant to expose and ridicule 20 This title then his title to it. Many of the Jews therefore that 20 read many of the Jews: came up to the feast of the passover, read this inJesus was crucified scription; because the place where Jesus was cruciwas nigh to the city: fied was near to the city, and lay but just without and it was written in the gates: and that the inscription might be ge[letters of] Hebrew, [and] Greek, [and] nerally understood, it was expressed by Pilate's Latin. [LUKE XXIII. order in three languages, and written both in Hebrew, and Greek, and Latin letters, so that it might easily be read by Jews, Romans, and most other foreigners. for the place where -38.] &c.] We are no where told that David's goods were thus divided; and there are several other passages in the xxii. Psalm, particularly that in which mention is made of piercing his hands and his feet, to which no circumstance of David's personal sufferings seems to have borne any resemblance. It therefore seems to me exceeding probable that in this scripture, and some others the mind of the prophet was thrown into a preternatural ecstacy, in which on some secret intimation given to him that he therein personated the Messiah, he wrote expressly what the Spirit dictated, with out any particular regard to himself; so that David might, for any thing I can find, with equal propriety have written such a psalm, if his whole life had been as prosperous and peaceable as the reign of Solomon his son. (Compare 1 Pet. i. 10—12.) Now That none might come to rescue them, &c.] This was the more necessary in this kind of execution, because the wounds given in crucifixion were not generally mortal. The person crucified died partly by the loss of blood, if any large vessel was pierced by the nails, when nails (as here) were used; but chiefly by the violent distortion of the limbs, which were stretched forth as on a rack; a circumstance which must, no doubt, occasion exquisite anguish. They put over his head a superscription.] This Bishop Pearson (on the Creed, p. 205.) and Dr. Lardner, (Credibility, part i, book i. chap. 7, § 10, Vol. 1. p. 347.) have abundantly proved to be usual in cases of any extraordinary punishment. e In Hebrew, and Greek, and Latin letters.] It was written in Latin, for the ma jesty |