Matthew 27:33 ¶ And when they were come unto a place called Golgotha, that is to say, a place of a skull, 34 They gave him vinegar to drink mingled with gall: and when he had tasted thereof, he would not drink. 35 And they crucified him, and parted his garments, casting lots: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, They parted my garments among them, and upon my vesture did they cast lots. 36 And sitting down they watched him there; 37 And set up over his head his accusation written, THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS. 38 Then were there two thieves crucified with him, one on the right hand, and another on the left. 39 And they that passed by reviled him, wagging their heads, 40 And saying, Thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days, save thyself. If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross. 41 Likewise also the chief priests mocking him, with the scribes and elders, said, 42 He saved others; himself he cannot save. If he be the King of Israel, let him now come down from the cross, and we will believe him. 43 He trusted in God; let him deliver him now, if he will have him: for he said, I am the Son of God. 44 The thieves also, which were crucified with him, cast the same in his teeth. 45 Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land unto the ninth hour. 46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? 47 Some of them that stood there, when they heard that, said, This man calleth for Elias. 48 And straightway one of them ran, and took a spunge, and filled it with vinegar, and put it on a reed, and gave him to drink. 49 The rest said, Let be, let us see whether Elias will come to save him.
An ancient tradition that has no foundation in any historical
document was that Adam’s skull was found at Golgotha, hence its name. However,
the more likely explanation is that with people being executed and left to
decompose bones, including skulls, would have been prominently displayed.
Vinegar was part of a Roman soldier’s allowance so was readily
available some say. It had been used as a condiment and preservative for a
thousand years or more.
Ruth 2:14 And Boaz said
unto her, At mealtime come thou hither, and eat of the bread, and dip thy
morsel in the vinegar. And she sat beside the reapers: and he reached her
parched corn, and she did eat, and was sufficed, and left.
It is also said by some that it was thought to prolong the life of
men sentenced to die to make them suffer more. Some say that vinegar mixed with
gall would have been very bitter.
Psalm 22 is a Psalm that foretells Christ and His sufferings.
Psalm 22:16 For dogs have
compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have inclosed me: they pierced my
hands and my feet…18 They part my
garments among them, and cast lots upon my vesture.
See what Pilate has done to rub this in the face of the Jews,
labelling Jesus as their king?
In verse 40 the former accusation is repeated showing that the
misunderstanding of Jesus’ earlier comment was common. See Matthew 26:61 and
then John 2:19-21.
There is a lot of information found in the other gospels that
Matthew doesn’t discuss because he probably wasn’t privy to certain
conversations. For instance he doesn’t mention the thief on the Cross who
speaks with Jesus in Luke 23. As I have said repeatedly I did not want to make
my study of Matthew a harmonization of the gospels but present Matthew’s
experience and his recollections prompted and given by inspiration by the Holy
Spirit.
In verse 46 Jesus directs us to Psalm 22 by quoting the first
verse aloud in Aramaic which confuses the hearers as it confuses many
Christians today. Here is that Psalm about Christ which I will discuss in
detail in my comments on the Psalms.
Psalm 22:1 ¶ «To the chief
Musician upon Aijeleth Shahar, A Psalm of David.» My God, my God, why hast thou
forsaken me? why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my
roaring? 2 O my God, I cry in the
daytime, but thou hearest not; and in the night season, and am not silent.
3 But thou art holy, O thou that
inhabitest the praises of Israel. 4 Our
fathers trusted in thee: they trusted, and thou didst deliver them. 5 They cried unto thee, and were delivered:
they trusted in thee, and were not confounded. 6 But I am a worm, and no man; a reproach of
men, and despised of the people. 7 All
they that see me laugh me to scorn: they shoot out the lip, they shake the head,
saying, 8 He trusted on the LORD that he
would deliver him: let him deliver him, seeing he delighted in him. 9 But thou art he that took me out of
the womb: thou didst make me hope when I was upon my mother’s
breasts. 10 I was cast upon thee from
the womb: thou art my God from my mother’s belly.
11 ¶ Be not far from me; for trouble is near; for
there is none to help. 12 Many bulls
have compassed me: strong bulls of Bashan have beset me round. 13 They gaped upon me with their mouths, as a
ravening and a roaring lion. 14 I am
poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint: my heart is like wax;
it is melted in the midst of my bowels. 15
My strength is dried up like a potsherd; and my tongue cleaveth to my
jaws; and thou hast brought me into the dust of death. 16 For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of
the wicked have inclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet. 17 I may tell all my bones: they look and stare
upon me. 18 They part my garments among
them, and cast lots upon my vesture. 19
But be not thou far from me, O LORD: O my strength, haste thee to help
me. 20 Deliver my soul from the sword;
my darling from the power of the dog. 21
Save me from the lion’s mouth: for thou hast heard me from the horns of
the unicorns.
22 ¶ I will declare thy name unto my brethren: in
the midst of the congregation will I praise thee. 23 Ye that fear the LORD, praise him; all ye the
seed of Jacob, glorify him; and fear him, all ye the seed of Israel. 24 For he hath not despised nor abhorred the
affliction of the afflicted; neither hath he hid his face from him; but when he
cried unto him, he heard. 25 My praise
shall be of thee in the great congregation: I will pay my vows before them that
fear him. 26 The meek shall eat and be
satisfied: they shall praise the LORD that seek him: your heart shall live for
ever. 27 All the ends of the world shall
remember and turn unto the LORD: and all the
kindreds of the nations shall worship before thee. 28 For the kingdom is the LORD’S: and he is the
governor among the nations. 29 All they
that be fat upon earth shall eat and worship: all they that go down to the dust
shall bow before him: and none can keep alive his own soul. 30 A seed shall serve him; it shall be accounted
to the Lord for a generation. 31 They
shall come, and shall declare his righteousness unto a people that shall be
born, that he hath done this.
From noon to three there was a darkness over the land and then
Jesus died. I believe this was a miraculous event like the fish/whale God
prepared just for Jonah. We will be frustrated in trying to find an eclipse on
record.
John 9:4 I must work the
works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can
work. 5 As long as I am in the world, I
am the light of the world.
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