Matthew 27:32-34
Mark 15:21-24
Luke 23:26-31
John 19:17
Simon Carries the
Cross to the Crucifixion Site
Matthew 27:32; Mark 15:21; Luke 23:26–31
Lk 23:26aAs they led Him away, they seized Simon, a Cyrenian, Mk 15:21bthe
father of Alexander and Rufus, Lk 23:26b–27and laid the cross on him
to carry behind Jesus. 27A great multitude of the people followed
Him, including women who were mourning and lamenting Him.
28But turning to them, Jesus said, “Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep
for Me, but weep for yourselves and your
children. 29Look, the days are coming when they will say,
‘Blessed are the barren, the wombs that never bore, and the breasts that never
nursed!’ 30Then they will begin ‘to say to the mountains, “Fall on
us!” and to the hills, “Cover us!” ’ 31For if they do these
things when the wood is green, what will happen when it is dry?”[1]
Jesus Is
Crucified
Matthew 27:33–37; Mark 15:22–26; Luke
23:32–34; John 19:17–24
Lk 23:33aWhen they arrived at the place called The Skull [Jn 19:17Skull Place, which in Hebrew is called Golgotha], they crucified Him there. Mt 27:34They gave Him wine mixed with gall to drink. But when He tasted it, He would not drink it.
[1] Knight, G. W. (2001). A simplified harmony of the Gospels (pp. 234–235). Holman Bible Publishers.
https://youtu.be/KgwWOcmmsvQ
Which childhood chore (cleaning your room, mowing the lawn, caring for pets, doing the dishes), was your least favorite? Most favorite?
As the crowd led Jesus away to his death, Simon of Cyrene, who was just coming into Jerusalem from the country, was forced to follow, carrying Jesus' cross. Great crowds trailed along behind, and many grief-stricken women.
But Jesus turned and said to them, "Daughters of Jerusalem, don't weep for me, but for yourselves and for your children. For the days are coming when the women who have no children will be counted fortunate indeed. Mankind will beg the mountains to fall on them and crush them, and the hills to bury them. For if such things as this are done to me, the Living Tree, what will they do to you?"
- God is ... What do we learn about God in this passage?
- We are ... What do we learn about people in this passage?
- By now, how is Jesus faring ((see Mark 14:65; 15:15-19)? Why would someone have to help Jesus carry the cross?
- Why would Jesus rather have no one weep for him (Luke :23:28-31; see 21:20-24)? Does Jesus address these women as his followers or as citizens of Jerusalem? How would you paraphrase what he meant by the proverb in Luke 23:31?
- I will ... What has the Holy Spirit revealed to us in this passage? How can I apply it to my life this week?
- How do you view the Crucifixion: Necessary evil? Cruel and unusual punishment? Sacrifice for sin? Triumph over injustice? Why?
- You can ... Who do you know who needs to hear this? Feel free to share with others by social media links at the bottom of this.
Simon's Service
Colonies of Jews existed outside Judea. Simon had made a Passover pilgrimage to Jerusalem all the way from Cyrene in North Africa. Simon certainly never expected to carry a condemned man's cross to the execution site, yet the Roman soldiers forced him to do so. Simon alone is remembered for this particular act of service—carrying the crossbeam after Jesus, in his beaten humanity, was unable to do so. Small acts can have big effects. Simon could not have saved Jesus' life, but he did help carry the cross. At some point, it seems that Simon also came to believe in this condemned man as his Savior, for the Bible records that his sons, Alexander and Rufus, became well known later in the early church (Romans 16:13). Never discount the long-reaching effects of small acts of help and service.
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Luke alone mentions the tears of the Jewish women while Jesus was being led through the streets to his execution. Jesus told them not to weep for him but for themselves. He knew that in only about forty years, Jerusalem and the Temple would be destroyed by the Romans.
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The Cruelty of Crucifixion
The Roman cross consisted of an upright post implanted in the ground and a cross beam that the accused was required to carry. On reaching the place of execution, the victim was nailed or tied to the cross beam before it was raised into position against the post.
Crucifixion was so horrible that the Romans used it only for slaves and the lowest types of criminals. Citizens of the Roman Empire were never crucified. This method of capital punishment was designed not only to kill but also to torture and humiliate. Criminals were crucified naked, adding physical and mental humiliation to the ordeal. Death generally came slowly through loss of blood and exhaustion. Some victims survived on a cross for days in excruciating pain. But Jesus died within a few hours after being placed on the cross.
The New Testament does not dwell on the horror of what Jesus suffered, perhaps because in bearing human sin, He suffered so much more than crucifixion.
Crucify Him
A medical doctor provides a physical description:
The cross is placed on the ground and the exhausted man is quickly thrown backwards with his shoulders against the wood. The legionnaire feels for the depression at the front of the wrist. He drives a heavy, square wrought-iron nail through the wrist deep into the wood. Quickly he moves to the other side and repeats the action, being careful not to pull the arms too tightly, but to allow some flex and movement. The cross is then lifted into place. The left foot is pressed backward against the right foot, and with both feet extended, toes down, a nail is driven through the arch of each, leaving the knees flexed. The victim is now crucified.
As he slowly sags down with more weight on the nails in the wrists, excruciating fiery pain shoots along the fingers and up the arms to explode in the brain -- the nails in the wrists are putting pressure on the median nerves. As he pushes himself upward to avoid this stretching torment, he places the full weight on the nail through his feet. Again he feels the searing agony of the nail tearing through the nerves between the bones of his feet.
As the arms fatigue, cramps sweep through his muscles, knotting them deep relentless, and throbbing pain. With these cramps comes the inability to push himself upward to breathe. Air can be drawn into the lungs but not exhaled. He fights to raise himself in order to get even one small breath.
Finally, carbon dioxide builds up in the lungs and in the blood stream, and the cramps partially subsided. Spasmodically, he is able to push himself upward to exhale and bring in life-giving oxygen.
Hours of limitless pain, cycles of twisting, joint-renting cramps, intermittent partial asphyxiation, searing pain as tissue is torn from his lacerated back as he moves up and down against rough timber. Then another agony begins: a deep, crushing pain deep in the chest as the pericardium slowly fills with serum and begins to compress the heart.
It is now almost over. The loss of tissue fluids has reached a critical level. The compressed heart is struggling to pump heavy, thick, sluggish blood into the tissues. The tortured lungs are making a frantic effort to gasp in small gulps of air. He can feel the chill of death creeping through his tissues.
Finally, he allows his body to die.
All this the Bible records with the simple words, "and they crucified Him" (Mark 15:24).
-- C. Truman Davis, M.D., M.S., Arizona Medicine, Vol. 22 No. 3 March 1965
More Resources:
Mark 15:21-32 – The First Three Hours of the Cross
http://johnmarkhicks.com/2012/08/01/mark-1521-32-the-first-three-hours-of-the-cross/
There's a Stirring (a cappella worship song with lyrics and notes)
