Matthew 27 - "Jesus Paid A Debt He Didn't Owe For We Who Owed a Debt We Couldn't Pay!"

Matthew 27 - NIV



Judas Hangs Himself
27 Early in the morning, all the chief priests and the elders of the people made their plans how to have Jesus executed. 2 So they bound him, led him away and handed him over to Pilate the governor. 3 When Judas, who had betrayed him, saw that Jesus was condemned, he was seized with remorse and returned the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and the elders. 4 “I have sinned,” he said, “for I have betrayed innocent blood.” “What is that to us?” they replied. “That’s your responsibility.” 5 So Judas threw the money into the temple and left. Then he went away and hanged himself. 6 The chief priests picked up the coins and said, “It is against the law to put this into the treasury, since it is blood money.” 7 So they decided to use the money to buy the potter’s field as a burial place for foreigners. 8 That is why it has been called the Field of Blood to this day. 9 Then what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled: “They took the thirty pieces of silver, the price set on him by the people of Israel, 10 and they used them to buy the potter’s field, as the Lord commanded me.”

Although Judas receives a lot of judgment, perhaps rightfully so, we see Judas' remorse in this passage. It must have been a rough night of sleep for him. After Jesus had said he would betray him, Judas executed the plan he had purposed in his heart. But then came the realization of what he had done. It was so overwhelming he hung himself. He had to be pretty low to do such a thing. The thirty pieces of silver is a fulfilled prophecy from Zechariah 11, as is the potters field, which is where potters put their discarded clay pots and also a burial for foreigners. 

Did Judas go to hell? Most say yes. We do see remorse and what could be seen as repentance when he returned the blood money. After all, all the other disciples denied Jesus as well, though not in the same way. Most scholars believe he did go to hell, as he was never a true believer. 

Acts 1 seems to confirm that when the apostles replaced Judas with Matthis and said, "Show us which of these two you have chosen 25 to take over this apostolic ministry, which Judas left to go where he belongs."

Jesus said this in his prayer to the Father in John 17, “While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by that name you gave me. None has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled.” 

Finally, while the others denied Jesus, we see Jesus restored them into the ministry and filled them with the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, the church was born. 

Jesus Before Pilate
11 Meanwhile Jesus stood before the governor, and the governor asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?” “You have said so,” Jesus replied. 12 When he was accused by the chief priests and the elders, he gave no answer. 13 Then Pilate asked him, “Don’t you hear the testimony they are bringing against you?” 14 But Jesus made no reply, not even to a single charge—to the great amazement of the governor.

15 Now it was the governor’s custom at the festival to release a prisoner chosen by the crowd. 16 At that time they had a well-known prisoner whose name was Jesus[b] Barabbas. 17 So when the crowd had gathered, Pilate asked them, “Which one do you want me to release to you: Jesus Barabbas, or Jesus who is called the Messiah?” 18 For he knew it was out of self-interest that they had handed Jesus over to him. 19 While Pilate was sitting on the judge’s seat, his wife sent him this message: “Don’t have anything to do with that innocent man, for I have suffered a great deal today in a dream because of him.” 20 But the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowd to ask for Barabbas and to have Jesus executed. 21 “Which of the two do you want me to release to you?” asked the governor. “Barabbas,” they answered. 22 “What shall I do, then, with Jesus who is called the Messiah?” Pilate asked They all answered, “Crucify him!” 23 “Why? What crime has he committed?” asked Pilate. But they shouted all the louder, “Crucify him!” 24 When Pilate saw that he was getting nowhere, but that instead an uproar was starting, he took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd. “I am innocent of this man’s blood,” he said. “It is your responsibility!” 25 All the people answered, “His blood is on us and on our children!” 26 Then he released Barabbas to them. But he had Jesus flogged, and handed him over to be crucified.

Jesus refused to be a pawn in this scene. As the Roman governor interrogated Jesus, Jesus reminded him who was in charge by not answering his questions. The government was amazed at Jesus' restraint. Perhaps he even liked him. As a nod to the Jews, the Governor (Pontius Pilate), informed the crowd of people gathered for the Passover festival that he always released a prisoner. 

He thought perhaps Jesus was a likely candidate given his wide and large following. Pilate also knew that the religious leaders were handing over Jesus to be crucified for selfish reasons. In addition, Pilate's wife had a deeply disturbing bad dream about Jesus. But the crowd did not relent. Stirred up by the religioius leaders that crowded chanted, "Crucify him, crucify him."

It amazes me that given what Jesus had done for so many people that the people so quickly turned on him. Even when Pilate asked them what Jesus had done, they shouted all the louder, "Crucify him!"

Though we want to blame the Jewish leaders, we see that all of the people had a role in crucifying Jesus. Would we have been any different if we were there? At this point every single person had turned on Jesus!

Pilate was so convinced of Jesus' innocence that he took water and washed his hands as a sign that he was innocent of Jesus' blood. Shockingly the people respoinded, "His blood is one us and our children!" Little did they know how true their statement was. In the end Barabbas, a known murder, was released. The one who was innocent took the penalty. The one who was guilty went free. Does that sound familiar?

The Soldiers Mock Jesus
27 Then the governor’s soldiers took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the whole company of soldiers around him. 28 They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, 29 and then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on his head. They put a staff in his right hand. Then they knelt in front of him and mocked him. “Hail, king of the Jews!” they said. 30 They spit on him, and took the staff and struck him on the head again and again. 31 After they had mocked him, they took off the robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him away to crucify him.

Things go from bad to worse for Jesus. He is judged unjustly and now he is completely humiliated. His clothes were stripped off (i.e. he was naked), and they dressed him up like a mock king. They jammed a crown of sharp thorns into his forehead. They gave him a staff like a king's staff. They then took it from him and beat him with it. They mocked and spit on him. 

Take a moment to comtemplate what is happening here? Jesus, God's only Son, is totally tortured and humiliated by these brutal Roman soldiers. Remember Jesus is 100% human and 100% God. Therefore, your God and my God is being treated the most heinous criminal. It wouldn't have been right to treat a viscious murderer like this.  

And why did Jesus endure such unjust and cruel punishment? 

Me and You! Jesus endured this out of love for us. This is the definition of unconditional love. This is the heart of Christianity!

The Crucifixion of Jesus
32 As they were going out, they met a man from Cyrene, named Simon, and they forced him to carry the cross. 33 They came to a place called Golgotha (which means “the place of the skull”). 34 There they offered Jesus wine to drink, mixed with gall; but after tasting it, he refused to drink it. 35 When they had crucified him, they divided up his clothes by casting lots. 36 And sitting down, they kept watch over him there. 37 Above his head they placed the written charge against him: this is jesus, the king of the jews.

Simon of Cyrene was from Africa. Cyrene is in North Africa, and Cyrene was modern day Tripoli. The name "Golgotha" might come from the giant Goliath, whose head was cut off by David, which is why it is called the place of the skull. In what appeared to be an act of mercy, they offered Jesus some wine as a painkiller, but it was mixed with "gall'

"In the Bible, the word gall most often refers to a bitter-tasting substance made of a plant such as wormwood or myrrh." - GotQuestions.org

The divided up his clothes thinking they might profit from such an iconic person. This fulfilled a prophecy from Psalm 22. 

38 Two rebels were crucified with him, one on his right and one on his left. 39 Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads 40 and saying, “You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself! Come down from the cross, if you are the Son of God!” 41 In the same way the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders mocked him. 42 “He saved others,” they said, “but he can’t save himself! He’s the king of Israel! Let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him. 43 He trusts in God. Let God rescue him now if he wants him, for he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’” 44 In the same way the rebels who were crucified with him also heaped insults on him.

Jesus continues to get mocked and insulted. They mocked him saying that if he was going to rebuild the temple in three days why didn't he get off the cross and do it. Little did he knew the temple he was talking about what his body, which would be raised three days after his death. They insulted him by taunting him to come down off the cross. Of course, Jesus knew what that would mean. It would sabotage the whole purpose of his mission on earth. The one he came down from heaven to fulfill. The other criminals joined in as well. 

The Death of Jesus
45 From noon until three in the afternoon darkness came over all the land. 46 About three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eli, Eli,[c] lema sabachthani?” (which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”).[d] 47 When some of those standing there heard this, they said, “He’s calling Elijah.” 48 Immediately one of them ran and got a sponge. He filled it with wine vinegar, put it on a staff, and offered it to Jesus to drink. 49 The rest said, “Now leave him alone. Let’s see if Elijah comes to save him.” 50 And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit. 51 At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook, the rocks split 52 and the tombs broke open. The bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. 53 They came out of the tombs after Jesus’ resurrection and[e] went into the holy city and appeared to many people. 54 When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified, and exclaimed, “Surely he was the Son of God!” 55 Many women were there, watching from a distance. They had followed Jesus from Galilee to care for his needs. 56 Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joseph,[f] and the mother of Zebedee’s sons.

Finally, the moment for which the religious leaders had hoped for had come. On Good Friday (Good for us not for Jesus!) darkness covered the whole land. At the end of those climactic three hours Jesus took his last breath and cried, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"

This is perhaps the most poignant moment in all of scripture. If we ever wondered whether or not Jesus was truly human, we only need to read this passage. Jesus had enjoyed unbroken fellowship with His Father. Everything he did was in obedience and empowered by the Father. His ministry began with His Father saying, "This is my Son, with whom I am well pleased!"

In that moment Jesus was totally abandoned by the Father. The Father had to turn His back on His Son in order to judge him for the sin of the world. As Paul says in 2 Corinthians 5:21 "God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God."

As the saying goes, "Jesus paid a debt he didn't owe, for we who owed a debt we couldn't pay."

The Burial of Jesus
57 As evening approached, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who had himself become a disciple of Jesus. 58 Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus’ body, and Pilate ordered that it be given to him. 59 Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, 60 and placed it in his own new tomb that he had cut out of the rock. He rolled a big stone in front of the entrance to the tomb and went away. 61 Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting there opposite the tomb.

We have already had one rather obscure person play a role in these last days of Jesus, Simon of Cyrene. Today, we meet Joseph of Arimathea. Joseph was a man of means, and he used his wealth to buy a tomb for Jesus, which was carved out of a rock. In those days this was a very dignified place to be buried. It was the one thing Joseph could do! 

Customarily, the bodies of crucified criminals were left on their crosses to rot or to be eaten by wild animals. But the Jews wanted no such horror displayed during the Passover season, and Romans were known to grant the corpses of executed men to friends or relatives for proper burial. - Guzik

He came into the world from a virgin’s womb; He came forth again from a virgin tomb. No body had ever been set in that tomb, so that when a body came forth and the tomb was empty, there was no possible confusion as to which body came forth.

The Guard at the Tomb
62 The next day, the one after Preparation Day, the chief priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate. 63 “Sir,” they said, “we remember that while he was still alive that deceiver said, ‘After three days I will rise again.’ 64 So give the order for the tomb to be made secure until the third day. Otherwise, his disciples may come and steal the body and tell the people that he has been raised from the dead. This last deception will be worse than the first.” 65 “Take a guard,” Pilate answered. “Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how.” 66 So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard.

The reason we know Jesus had made it clear he would be resurrected three days after he was put to death is shown here.  The leaders were paranoid enough to not only seal the huge tomb. but even have guards watching it 24/7. 

So we have many prophecies from the Old Testament fuflilled in the last two chapters.

1. His clothes would be divided and they would cast lots to distribute them. 
2. He would be betrayed for 30 pieces of silver and buried in a otter's field. 
3. He would cry out, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me." 

There is no way Jesus could have orchestrated 1 and 2. Fulfilled prophecy is one of the most powerful arguments to the truth of the Christian faith. These events were watched by others, so Matthew was not just inserting these details to match these prophecies. He wrote within 30-40 years of these events so those not sympathetic to Christianity could have disproved it easily. 

When you take in the reality of the events of Jesus' last day on earth, how does it affect you? When we are tempted to sin do we contemplate what Jesus did for us on the cross that day? Do we cheapen the pure grace Jesus offered us that day by saying, "I'm forgiven so I can do what I want?" 

Let's remember what Jesus did for us and live our lives in gratitude to great love he showed us by going to the cross to die for our sins!

 




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