AS THEY LED him away, they seized Simon from Cyrene, who was on his way in from the country, and put the cross on him and made him carry it behind Jesus. 27A large number of people followed him, including women who mourned and wailed for him. 28Jesus turned and said to them, “Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me; weep for yourselves and for your children. 29For the time will come when you will say, ‘Blessed are the barren women, the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed!’ 30Then
“‘they will say to the mountains, “Fall on us!”
and to the hills, “Cover us!”’
31For if men do these things when the tree is green, what will happen when it is dry?”
32Two other men, both criminals, were also led out with him to be executed. 33When they came to the place called the Skull, there they crucified him, along with the criminals—one on his right, the other on his left. 34Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” And they divided up his clothes by casting lots.
35The people stood watching, and the rulers even sneered at him. They said, “He saved others; let him save himself if he is the Christ of God, the Chosen One.”
36The soldiers also came up and mocked him. They offered him wine vinegar 37and said, “If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself.”
38There was a written notice above him, which read: THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.
39One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: “Aren’t you the Christ? Save yourself and us!”
40But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence? 41We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.”
42Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”
43Jesus answered him, “I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.”
44It was now about the sixth hour, and darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour, 45for the sun stopped shining. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two. 46Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” When he had said this, he breathed his last.
47The centurion, seeing what had happened, praised God and said, “Surely this was a righteous man.” 48When all the people who had gathered to witness this sight saw what took place, they beat their breasts and went away. 49But all those who knew him, including the women who had followed him from Galilee, stood at a distance, watching these things.
Original Meaning
LUKE DEVELOPS THE story of Jesus’ crucifixion by telling it through its interaction with a variety of observers.1 As has been his custom, we see the Passion through many eyes and in varying perspectives.
Jesus goes to his death after a long day and night of emotion. Without sleep and after a scourging, he needs help in bearing the cross. Simon from Cyrene is drafted to carry the cross. He has come a long distance to Jerusalem, since Cyrene is located in what is now Tripoli. It is hard to be sure why Simon is mentioned. Of course this part of the story functions as a historical note, but is there more? There is no hint that he is a follower of Jesus. But this section does emphasize that Jesus’ going to the cross is not a private affair. It involves others because of what he is accomplishing there. As he goes to the cross, another person, just like us, shares in his journey there.
Behind Jesus is a host of people. The crowds that urged his execution have stayed on to see it carried out. With them is a group of women, wailing in mourning. Are they sympathetic or simply perfunctory mourners who accompany a person about to die? Jesus seems to treat them on sincere terms, and the narrative puts them in a sympathetic light.2
Jesus responds to their sense of remorse by redirecting their attention to a more serious issue. He urges them not to weep for him. Painful as his death will be, he knows that he will be taken care of, since his vindication in resurrection is only hours away. The real issue moves beyond what Jesus will suffer to what his death means for those who reject him. His remark in the midst of his trauma indicates his selflessness, for he is concerned about others. The women should weep for the nation and her children, for judgment is surely coming on the nation (see 13:34–35).
Jesus then exercises a prophetic role on his road to the cross. Hard days lie ahead for the nation (cf. 19:41–44), in which “barren women” will be blessed. Here is a reversal of the normal Jewish view that blessing comes from a fruitful womb. That is because the judgment to come on the nation will be harsh. Men, women, and children will be at risk, for that was the nature of war in the ancient world. Victory involved the total destruction of the opponent. Rome will therefore show no mercy. People in Jerusalem will be crushed because of their failure to recognize what they are doing.
Jesus turns his attention to the lesson of Hosea 10:8. The days of judgment will be so painful that people will long to die, to have creation (represented by the mountains and hills) come down on them (cf. Rev. 6:16, where this Hosea verse portrays the terror of judgment in the end time). How painful it is to be the object of God’s wrath.
Jesus finishes his remarks with a final rhetorical question, whose force is debated. The NIV has, “If men do these things when the tree is green, what will happen when it is dry?”3 This translation interprets that ambiguous “men” (lit., “they”) as a reference either to the Jews or to humankind. However, it is difficult to see how this subject carries through both halves of the saying. The key to the saying is the contrast between what is done to a green, healthy tree and what becomes of dry, dead wood on a dead tree. “They” may well be an oblique reference to God, as in Luke 12:20.4 If this kind of fate befalls someone like Jesus, just imagine what kind of fate is ahead for the dry wood responsible for his death! This is Jesus’ last lament in Luke over the nation.
Jesus is not executed alone. Two others join him, described as “criminals.” Just as Jesus has predicted, he is reckoned among “the transgressors” (Isa. 53:12; Luke 22:37). His word comes to pass.
The locale of the crucifixion is a place called “the Skull.” In Aramaic, the name is “Golgotha”; in Latin, calvaria, which is why we refer to this site as Calvary. The hill where executions take place protrudes out of the ground like a skull.5 Jesus’ cross is situated between the two criminals. This is revealing, since in the debate between the criminals one of them will soon confess him and be saved. Jesus is the bridge by which the unrighteous can become the righteous.
As he awaits his death, Jesus turns again to the Father in prayer,6 asking that the actions of his enemies be forgiven. He speaks of their ignorance in slaying him. His point is that they have not really comprehended what they are doing. By praying for his enemies, Jesus has fulfilled an ethical standard he himself noted in 6:29, 35, to pray for one’s enemies. Jesus evidences his love and compassion here and models his own instructions on discipleship.
The soldiers at the cross are simply biding their time until the execution is complete. They divide up his clothes among them by casting lots. This remark alludes to Psalm 22:18, which is a psalm about the suffering righteous and how they are treated. Another part of the Psalm shows up in Jesus’ cry from the cross about being forsaken by God (Ps. 22:1; Matt. 27:46; Mark 15:34). These connections describe the type of suffering Jesus undergoes. He is hanging on the cross as an innocent man, willingly dying for those who do not understand his death and who mock it.
This execution fits the pattern of public crucifixion known in the ancient world. The people “watch” what is taking place, and the leaders “sneer” (v. 35; both verbs appear in Ps. 22:7). Their taunts are ironic. “He saved others; let him save himself if he is the Christ of God, the Chosen One.” This taunt may draw on Jewish tradition that believes God helps the righteous.7 Their sarcasm shows just how much confidence and passion there is in Jesus’ enemies. They are comfortable with his execution. The ultimate irony, however, is that God will actually perform their request in Jesus’ resurrection.
The soldiers add to the mocking. They offer him oxos, a dry “wine vinegar” that was used among the poor. Their taunt is for Jesus to save himself if he is the king,8 which shows that compassion is not their real motive. At this point Luke records the notice of the crime: “THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.” He consistently shows how it is Jesus as the Christ who goes to the cross.
The scene turns back to the criminals. One of them joins the taunting by hurling “insults” (a phrase that alludes to blaspheming). Everyone feels free to be a part of putting Jesus down. Like the leaders, he calls on Jesus to deliver himself if he is the Christ. In addition, he should save them too. But the other criminal speaks up and rebukes the first criminal by asking, “Don’t you fear God?” As if to say, “What gives you the right to rebuke Jesus as if you are superior?” He stresses that their sentence is just, since they are getting what they deserve. In contrast, Jesus is innocent. Pilate, Herod, and now a criminal have confessed Jesus’ innocence even as he moves toward death.
The criminal turns to make a request of Jesus. He has already shown that he sees Jesus as someone different. Now he asks Jesus to remember him when he comes into his kingdom. This criminal accepts the claim Jesus is a king, and he wants to share in his coming rule and to be among the righteous in the judgment. This criminal gives the first of many positive responses to the cross.
Jesus’ reply indicates that an answer to his request will come sooner than the criminal hopes. Even this very day, they will be together “in paradise,” a word that refers to the place of the righteous. The solemnity of this reply is indicated by the introductory phrase, “I tell you the truth.…” Jesus is saving people even as he hangs on the cross. Those who think the taunts will not come to pass are missing what is taking place.
At the sixth hour, or midday, it becomes dark for three hours. Now even the heavens testify to the nature of the hour. In the Old Testament darkness often indicates judgment (Joel 2:10; Amos 8:9; Zeph. 1:15). God is signaling his presence. The sun is nowhere to be found. The real hour of darkness has come (Luke 22:53).
Another sign then adds to the moment. The curtain at the temple is torn in two. It is debated which curtain is meant—either the curtain at the Holy of Holies or the curtain at the temple court. More important is what this act indicates. (1) A time of judgment has come and the temple is included in that judgment. Since the temple is the center of Judaism’s religion, this is a significant judgment for the nation. (2) The tearing of the curtain also suggests an opening of the way to God. The curtain shielded access to God. By ripping it open, restricted access no longer exists. Later, the author of Hebrews mentions that the need for sacrifice has ended because of Jesus’ death (Heb. 8–10).9
With the cosmic signs comes Jesus’ death. His final words come from Psalm 31:5, reflecting the trust that he has in the Father: “Into your hands I commit my spirit.” Jesus trusts the Lord to care for him. This psalm describes a righteous sufferer, just as Jesus is. What happens from this point on is up to God. He will have to give his testimony about Jesus by what he does in the next few days.
A centurion now offers praise to God. Like the criminal earlier, he also has some insight into the event, which serves as the final commentary Luke supplies for the whole event. He declares that Jesus is surely dikaios. This Greek term is ambiguous. Does it mean “innocent” or “righteous” (either is possible)? In one sense, the difference does not matter, since an innocent Jesus is a righteous Jesus. But in a context that has emphasized Jesus’ innocence, a final testimony to that innocence makes more sense. The centurion thus becomes a second witness to affirm Jesus’ legal innocence as he is dying (Deut. 19:15), and the fourth person in Luke 23 to do so. Luke will later emphasize Jesus’ innocence in Acts (3:14; 7:52; 13:28; 22:14).10
The crowds also react. They depart, beating their breasts. The cosmic signs may have given them pause. Imagine slaying the Chosen One of God and realizing that the mistake has been made when it is too late to reverse it! Such mourning may have prepared the way for the openness Peter meets with in his speech in Acts 2, since these events became well known (see especially Acts 2:37).
The disciples see things from a distance. Among them is a group of women who have been with Jesus from the start of his ministry in Galilee. The one thing this death has is numerous witnesses. Luke has noted many different groups who share in what has just taken place. He has also noted the variety of perspectives about the event. Which one is true? The closing words of the centurion leave no doubt.
Bridging Contexts
AS WITH THE previous events of the Passion, the text works at historical, narrative, and theological levels. All three levels help bridge the gap to our present age.
The historical level presents the events of the cross in a summary fashion. Luke’s version gives us a glimpse at a wide array of reactions, ranging from conversion to hostility. He notes how certain events took place in ways that recall the testimony of Scriptures about how the righteous suffer. Jesus suffers as an innocent figure, but by divine design. One of the great ironies here is the taunting to save himself and others, which he is actually performing as the taunts take place. The most perceptive people at the scene are a criminal and a centurion, whose attitudes most closely parallel that of Luke.
The narrative level works with various representative characters. There is even some interaction between the groupings, such as the interaction that takes place between Jesus and the women. The women, reacting at a normal human level, are convinced that Jesus’ death is a tragedy for him. That is why they weep. Yet Jesus’ remarks make it clear that the real tragedy is to misjudge who he is. The nation is headed to judgment for their rejection of him. Thus the meaning of the cross is not what it seems on the surface. While it appears to be the end for Jesus, Golgotha is really the locale of a fateful decision by the nation. What is true of the nation is also true for an individual’s decision about Jesus. When rejection comes, accountability to God for that rejection follows.
Jesus’ compassion is also significant in that it reveals his heart as he dies. God desires in the cross to show his love for lost humanity (John 3:16). Jesus models that heart by his intercession for his enemies (v. 34). An indication of the success of that intercession comes in the conversion of someone like Saul in Acts 9. Some unbelievers come to see God’s love through what emerges at the cross.
The taunting by the Jewish leadership and the passersby shows how hostile and blind rejection of Jesus can be. Such blindness leads to the execution of an innocent servant of God. The gloating over Jesus’ death shows just how empty of compassion some of Jesus’ opponents have become. Their misjudgment about him is a crucial error. What they think is impossible for Jesus to achieve on the cross is precisely what he is accomplishing.
The “meeting of the sides” is summarized in the exchange between the two criminals crucified with Jesus. One is convinced that Jesus has nothing to offer; the other asks him to exercise his authority as a king in order to assure him a place among the saved. This second criminal gives as eloquent and succinct a testimony to Jesus as Scripture offers anywhere. Jesus guarantees the confessing criminal a place among the righteous. This man has gone from guilty to gifted by his coming to Jesus. His faith has moved him to think afresh about Jesus and led him into a defense of the one crucified unjustly.
The narrative also notes the testimony of God through the signs in the heaven. The fact that Jesus had to die is a dark moment in history. Sin is a dark reality in our world. But alongside the darkness is the opening up of access to God. The ripping of the temple curtain shows that no barrier exists between God and humanity that cannot be removed by turning to God through Jesus. The heavens normally give only a silent witness to God (Ps. 19:1–6), but when it speaks as here, we should ponder what is said.
At a theological level, the cross requires full commentary. In a sense, one can argue that the entire New Testament is a commentary on the cross. Whether one looks at Romans 3:21–31 or Hebrews 8–10 or considers the testimony tied to rites like baptism and the Lord’s Supper, the cross functions as a commentary for each generation. Of all the ironies of the cross that bridge the centuries, none is greater than the idea that eternal life for human beings springs out of Jesus’ death. By offering up his Son, God is able to make sons and daughters of all who respond to this work. Therefore, we must believe what God has done through Christ at the cross and respond to it with a life that honors God (Rom. 12:1–2).
Theologically, the cross provides the atonement that forgives sin. Jesus offers himself here in service to others. He prays for the forgiveness of his enemies and accepts one of the criminals into his kingdom. He represents us as he unjustly bears the penalty for our sin in his love. The most important consideration we can give to the cross is to embrace its meaning with a responsive heart that is filled with the forgiveness, love, and humility Jesus so eloquently displays here. The only action that does the cross of Christ justice is to welcome its work with an all-embracing faith.
Melanchthon, Luther’s main colleague, states our response to the work of Jesus this way:11
Therefore, we are justified when, put to death by the law, we are made alive again by the word of grace promised in Christ; the gospel forgives our sins, and we cling to Christ in faith, not doubting in the least that the righteousness of Christ is our righteousness, that the satisfaction Christ wrought is our expiation, and that the resurrection of Christ is ours. In a word, we do not doubt at all that our sins have been forgiven and that God now favors us and wills our good. Nothing, therefore, of our works, however good they may seem or be, constitutes our righteousness. But FAITH alone in the mercy and grace of God in Jesus Christ is our RIGHTEOUSNESS.
The Reformer then cites Romans 1:17; 3:22; 4:5; and Genesis 15:6. Because of Christ, the Christian can say, “It is well with my soul.”
Contemporary Significance
THE APPLICATIONS OF this text build off issues raised in the previous section. Again, as with all the Passion material, the most fundamental application deals with the decisions made about Jesus and the nature of his work on the cross. Luke has told the narrative in such a way as to persuade the reader of the case for Jesus. The different issues the cross raises can only be summarized, because the issue of the cross is in many ways the issue of the New Testament.12
The New Testament uses many images to describe what the cross is and how we should see it. It is a ransom (Mark 10:45; 1 Tim. 2:6), a payment for the debt of sin. It is a substitution—Jesus offers himself in our place (cf. the meaning of Barabbas in the previous section; see also Luke 22:18–20; John 6:51–52; Rom. 8:3; 2 Cor. 5:21; cf. Isa. 53:10). It is a propitiation, satisfying the justice of God by dealing with sin (Rom. 3:25). It represents the “lifting up of Jesus,” and through it Satan is overthrown (John 3:14–15; 8:28; 12:31–32; 18:32). It is the means by which the church is purchased (Acts 20:28). It is the sacrifice that ends all other sacrifices for sin (Heb. 8–10). It is the precursor to the Lord’s being lifted up and seated at God’s side (Acts 2:16–39; Heb. 1:3). It is the basis on which God sets apart his children as a holy community (1 Peter 1:2, 18–25; 2:1–11). On the cross Jesus became a curse for us, a mediator of our guilt before God (Gal. 3:13, 19–20). There reconciliation takes place between God and humanity, as well as between Jew and Gentile (Rom. 5:8–11; 2 Cor. 5:20–21; Eph. 2:11–22; Col. 1:21–22; 2:11–15). So God can now justify us, that is, declare us righteous before him (Rom. 3:21–31).
This listing has a matter-of-factness about it that obscures just how amazing and comprehensive this work of Jesus is. Each of the texts above is rich in imaging only one aspect of the complex work of the cross. Numerous hymns also attempt to express what all of this means. Great songs written in honor of the cross, such as “Amazing Grace,” “On the Old Rugged Cross,” “And Can It Be,” and “Love So Excelling, So Divine,” lead us to reflect on just what God has done through Jesus. In fact, the cross probably should not be so much discussed theologically as meditated over and pondered. I sometimes wonder if a Good Friday service should not allow for a long period of silence and prayer before the Lord, where each person can reflect quietly on just what the cross means to him or her. Silence is usually not popular in our culture. But the cross is an event that should be absorbed, not just described.
The call, then, is simply to trust Christ for all the benefits that come from recognizing that he has taken our place on the cross. The applications fall into two classes, depending on whether a person comes to this decision for the first time or is already living his or her life out in the recognition that, in the words of that great hymn, “Jesus Paid It All.”
The cross is at its heart the offer of God’s gracious forgiveness to those who embrace it. To embrace the cross means to renounce our own works as the basis of our salvation. Our relationship with God comes through trusting in Jesus and in his finished work. “My sin, not in part but the whole” has been wiped away by the forgiveness Jesus provides. The cross offers an opportunity of a new life, lived with a clean slate before God. That offer comes by God’s grace, with nothing for us to earn. If we accept his grace, God begins a new walk with us. Our spiritual well-being rests solidly and securely in the hands of a caring heavenly Father.
For those who have made that decision, the cross reminds us where it all started. My relationship with God is a response of gratitude for all he has done to bring me to himself. Grace calls us to live in a way that honors God by reflecting the new life he has provided for us (Rom. 6–8; Titus 2:11–14).
Reconciliation with God not only transforms my relationship with God, but also alters the way I relate to others. As Ephesians 2 stresses, barriers are removed between people of different ethnic origins through the cross. Imagine the effect of a testimony where people of different ethnic origins are able to function together harmoniously. In a real sense, the ultimate application of the cross involves relating to others on a different basis, because we now operate in the world as forgiven people who know where and how they fit in the creation. The cross becomes the ground of all Luke’s passages of discipleship (9:51–19:44). Another way to say this is that at the center of God’s plan stands Jesus, and at the center of Jesus’ work stand the cross and resurrection.
One final application is important here. The cross is described through appeal to a variety of Psalms that point to Jesus’ suffering as a righteous innocent. He is an example of someone offering everything to show his love for his neighbor, even when the neighbor is unjust to him. God sees Jesus’ suffering and promises to vindicate him, with the first indication being that Jesus’ prayer for forgiveness (v. 34) receives an initial answer in the saved criminal (v. 43). Jesus thus shows how the person who walks with God should reach out to the lost. The least we can do is to proclaim to everyone the forgiveness that he died to provide.
I alluded to the hymn “Jesus Paid It All” above. There is no better commentary on the application of the cross than the message of its chorus:
Jesus paid it all,
All to him I owe;
Sin had left a crimson stain—
He washed it white as snow.