Reference: Crucifixion
Easton
a common mode of punishment among heathen nations in early times. It is not certain whether it was known among the ancient Jews; probably it was not. The modes of capital punishment according to the Mosaic law were, by the sword (Ex 21), strangling, fire (Le 20), and stoning (De 21).
This was regarded as the most horrible form of death, and to a Jew it would acquire greater horror from the curse in De 21:23.
This punishment began by subjecting the sufferer to scourging. In the case of our Lord, however, his scourging was rather before the sentence was passed upon him, and was inflicted by Pilate for the purpose, probably, of exciting pity and procuring his escape from further punishment (Lu 23:22; Joh 19:1).
The condemned one carried his own cross to the place of execution, which was outside the city, in some conspicuous place set apart for the purpose. Before the nailing to the cross took place, a medicated cup of vinegar mixed with gall and myrrh (the sopor) was given, for the purpose of deadening the pangs of the sufferer. Our Lord refused this cup, that his senses might be clear (Mt 27:34). The spongeful of vinegar, sour wine, posca, the common drink of the Roman soldiers, which was put on a hyssop stalk and offered to our Lord in contemptuous pity (Mt 27:48; Lu 23:36), he tasted to allay the agonies of his thirst (Joh 19:29). The accounts given of the crucifixion of our Lord are in entire agreement with the customs and practices of the Roman in such cases. He was crucified between two "malefactors" (Isa 53:12; Lu 23:32), and was watched by a party of four soldiers (Joh 19:23; Mt 27:36,54), with their centurion. The "breaking of the legs" of the malefactors was intended to hasten death, and put them out of misery (Joh 19:31); but the unusual rapidity of our Lord's death (Joh 19:33) was due to his previous sufferings and his great mental anguish. The omission of the breaking of his legs was the fulfilment of a type (Ex 12:46). He literally died of a broken heart, a ruptured heart, and hence the flowing of blood and water from the wound made by the soldier's spear (Joh 19:34). Our Lord uttered seven memorable words from the cross, namely, (1) Lu 23:34; (2) Lu 23:43; (3) Joh 19:26; (4) Mt 27:46; Mr 15:34; (5) Joh 19:28; (6) Joh 19:30; (7) Lu 23:46.
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In one house shall it be eaten; thou shalt not carry forth any of the flesh abroad out of the house; neither shall ye break a bone thereof.
his body shall not remain all night upon the tree, but thou shalt in any wise bury him that day (for he that is hanged is a curse of God); and thou shalt not defile thy land, which Jehovah thy God giveth thee for an inheritance.
Therefore will I assign him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong: because he hath poured out his soul unto death, and was reckoned with the transgressors; and he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.
they gave to him to drink vinegar mingled with gall; and having tasted it, he would not drink.
And sitting down, they kept guard over him there.
but about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?
And immediately one of them running and getting a sponge, having filled it with vinegar and fixed it on a reed, gave him to drink.
But the centurion, and they who were with him on guard over Jesus, seeing the earthquake and the things that took place, feared greatly, saying, Truly this man was Son of God.
and at the ninth hour, Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?
And he said the third time to them, What evil then has this man done? I have found no cause of death in him: I will chastise him therefore and release him.
Now two others also, malefactors, were led with him to be put to death.
And Jesus said, Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do. And, parting out his garments, they cast lots.
And the soldiers also made game of him, coming up offering him vinegar,
And Jesus said to him, Verily I say to thee, To-day shalt thou be with me in paradise.
And Jesus, having cried with a loud voice, said, Father, into thy hands I commit my spirit. And having said this, he expired.
Then Pilate therefore took Jesus and scourged him.
The soldiers therefore, when they had crucified Jesus, took his clothes, and made four parts, to each soldier a part, and the body-coat; but the body-coat was seamless, woven through the whole from the top.
Jesus therefore, seeing his mother, and the disciple standing by, whom he loved, says to his mother, Woman, behold thy son.
After this, Jesus, knowing that all things were now finished, that the scripture might be fulfilled, says, I thirst. There was a vessel therefore there full of vinegar, and having filled a sponge with vinegar, and putting hyssop round it, they put it up to his mouth. read more. When therefore Jesus had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished; and having bowed his head, he delivered up his spirit. The Jews therefore, that the bodies might not remain on the cross on the sabbath, for it was the preparation, (for the day of that sabbath was a great day,) demanded of Pilate that their legs might be broken and they taken away.
but coming to Jesus, when they saw that he was already dead they did not break his legs, but one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and immediately there came out blood and water.
Hastings
CRUCIFIXION
1. Its nature.
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And if a man have committed a sin worthy of death, and he be put to death, and thou have hanged him on a tree,
And if a man have committed a sin worthy of death, and he be put to death, and thou have hanged him on a tree, his body shall not remain all night upon the tree, but thou shalt in any wise bury him that day (for he that is hanged is a curse of God); and thou shalt not defile thy land, which Jehovah thy God giveth thee for an inheritance.
And afterwards Joshua smote them, and put them to death, and hanged them on five trees; and they were hanging upon the trees until the evening.
And they put his armour in the house of Ashtaroth; and they fastened his body to the wall of Beth-shan.
Also I have given order that whosoever shall alter this rescript, let timber be pulled down from his house, and being set up, let him be hanged thereon, and let his house be made a dunghill for this.
So they hanged Haman on the gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai. And the king's wrath was appeased.
And as they went forth they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name; him they compelled to go with them that he might bear his cross.
they gave to him to drink vinegar mingled with gall; and having tasted it, he would not drink. And having crucified him, they parted his clothes amongst themselves, casting lots.
And they set up over his head his accusation written: This is Jesus, the King of the Jews.
And immediately one of them running and getting a sponge, having filled it with vinegar and fixed it on a reed, gave him to drink.
Now when even was come there came a rich man of Arimathaea, his name Joseph, who also himself was a disciple to Jesus.
And the superscription of what he was accused of was written up: The King of the Jews.
And he said the third time to them, What evil then has this man done? I have found no cause of death in him: I will chastise him therefore and release him.
And there was also an inscription written over him in Greek, and Roman, and Hebrew letters: This is the King of the Jews.
behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Handle me and see, for a spirit has not flesh and bones as ye see me having.
behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Handle me and see, for a spirit has not flesh and bones as ye see me having.
Then Pilate therefore took Jesus and scourged him.
And Pilate wrote a title also and put it on the cross. But there was written: Jesus the Nazaraean, the King of the Jews.
And Pilate wrote a title also and put it on the cross. But there was written: Jesus the Nazaraean, the King of the Jews.
The Jews therefore, that the bodies might not remain on the cross on the sabbath, for it was the preparation, (for the day of that sabbath was a great day,) demanded of Pilate that their legs might be broken and they taken away.
The Jews therefore, that the bodies might not remain on the cross on the sabbath, for it was the preparation, (for the day of that sabbath was a great day,) demanded of Pilate that their legs might be broken and they taken away.
but one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and immediately there came out blood and water.
The other disciples therefore said to him, We have seen the Lord. But he said to them, Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails, and put my finger into the mark of the nails, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.
The God of our fathers has raised up Jesus, whom ye have slain, having hanged on a cross.
We also are witnesses of all things which he did both in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem; whom they also slew, having hanged him on a cross.
And when they had fulfilled all things written concerning him, they took him down from the cross and put him in a sepulchre;
Christ has redeemed us out of the curse of the law, having become a curse for us, (for it is written, Cursed is every one hanged upon a tree,)
having effaced the handwriting in ordinances which stood out against us, which was contrary to us, he has taken it also out of the way, having nailed it to the cross;
This is he that came by water and blood, Jesus the Christ; not by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit that bears witness, for the Spirit is the truth.
the Spirit, and the water, and the blood; and the three agree in one.
Morish
The most painful and the most degrading capital punishment, reserved for the worst crimes and for the lowest class of people. The Romans used a short beam fastened to a long upright one, on which was placed a piece of wood for the feet to rest on. Nails were driven through the hands and feet; but historians say that sometimes the feet were only tied. The torture was dreadful, and the thirst great; but in some cases life lasted three days, none of the vital parts being reached. The crucifixion of the Lord Jesus and of the two malefactors are the only cases named in scripture: crucifixion was not practised by the Jews. A stupefying draught was given to the prisoners, but the Lord refused it. He would drink the bitter cup to the dregs. It is clear from scripture, by His crying with a loud voice just before His death, that as stated in John's gospel (Joh 10:18) He gave up His life. Lu 23:46; Joh 19:30. The Lord referred to the manner of His death as being lifted up out of the earth, so that death by stoning would not have answered to this. Joh 3:14; 8:28; 12:32. We also read that He was made a curse for us; for "Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree." Ga 3:13; De 21:23. Thus did the blessed Lord in saving rebellious man go down to the very lowest form of death.
The crucifixion is used metaphorically to instruct those who are associated with Christ: of believers it is said their 'old man' is crucified with Him. Ro 6:6. Paul could say that he was crucified with Christ; and that by Christ the world was crucified to him, and he to the world. Ga 2:20; 6:14. He accepted the judgement of himself in the cross, and he was cut off from the world by the same means.
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his body shall not remain all night upon the tree, but thou shalt in any wise bury him that day (for he that is hanged is a curse of God); and thou shalt not defile thy land, which Jehovah thy God giveth thee for an inheritance.
And Jesus, having cried with a loud voice, said, Father, into thy hands I commit my spirit. And having said this, he expired.
And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, thus must the Son of man be lifted up,
Jesus therefore said to them, When ye shall have lifted up the Son of man, then ye shall know that I am he, and that I do nothing of myself, but as the Father has taught me I speak these things.
No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have authority to lay it down and I have authority to take it again. I have received this commandment of my Father.
and I, if I be lifted up out of the earth, will draw all to me.
When therefore Jesus had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished; and having bowed his head, he delivered up his spirit.
knowing this, that our old man has been crucified with him, that the body of sin might be annulled, that we should no longer serve sin.
I am crucified with Christ, and no longer live, I, but Christ lives in me; but in that I now live in flesh, I live by faith, the faith of the Son of God, who has loved me and given himself for me.
Christ has redeemed us out of the curse of the law, having become a curse for us, (for it is written, Cursed is every one hanged upon a tree,)
But far be it from me to boast save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom the world is crucified to me, and I to the world.
Smith
was in used among the Egyptians,
the Carthaginians, the Persians,
the Assyrians, Scythains, Indians, Germans, and from the earliest times among the Greeks and Romans. Whether this mode of execution was known to the ancient Jews is a matter of dispute. Probably the Jews borrowed it from the Romans. It was unanimously considered the most horrible form of death. Among the Romans the degradation was also a part of the infliction, and the punishment if applied to freemen was only used in the case of the vilest criminals. The one to be crucified was stripped naked of all his clothes, and then followed the most awful moment of all. He was laid down upon the implement of torture. His arms were stretched along the cross-beams, and at the centre of the open palms the point of a huge iron nail was placed, which, by the blow of a mallet, was driven home into the wood. Then through either foot separately, or possibly through both together, as they were placed one over the other, another huge nail tore its way through the quivering flesh. Whether the sufferer was also bound to the cross we do not know; but, to prevent the hands and feet being torn away by the weight of the body, which could not "rest upon nothing but four great wounds," there was, about the centre of the cross, a wooden projection strong enough to support, at least in part, a human body, which soon became a weight of agony. Then the "accursed tree" with its living human burden was slowly heaved up and the end fixed firmly in a hole in the ground. The feet were but a little raised above the earth. The victim was in full reach of every hand that might choose to strike. A death by crucifixion seems to include all that pain and death can have of the horrible and ghastly, --dizziness, cramp, thirst, starvation, sleeplessness, traumatic fever, tetanus, publicity of shame, long continuance of torment, horror of anticipation, mortification of untended wounds, all intensified just up to the point at which they can be endured at all, but all stopping just short of the point which would give to the sufferer the relief of unconsciousness. The unnatural position made every movement painful; the lacerated veins and crushed tendons throbbed with incessant anguish; the wounds, inflamed by exposure, gradually gangrened; the arteries, especially of the head and stomach, became swollen and oppressed with surcharged blood; and, while each variety of misery went on gradually increasing, there was added to them the intolerable pang of a burning and raging thirst. Such was the death to which Christ was doomed. --Farrar's "Life of Christ." The crucified was watched, according to custom, by a party of four soldiers,
Joh 19:23
with their centurion,
whose express office was to prevent the stealing of the body. This was necessary from the lingering character of the death, which sometimes did not supervene even for three days, and was at last the result of gradual benumbing and starvation. But for this guard, the persons might have been taken down and recovered, as was actually done in the case of a friend of Josephus. Fracture of the legs was especially adopted by the Jews to hasten death.
Joh 19:31
In most cases the body was suffered to rot on the cross by the action of sun and rain, or to be devoured by birds and beasts. Sepulture was generally therefore forbidden; but in consequence of
De 21:22-23
an express national exception was made in favor of the Jews.
This accursed and awful mode of punishment was happily abolished by Constantine.
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In yet three days will Pharaoh lift up thy head from off thee, and hang thee on a tree; and the birds will eat thy flesh from off thee.
So they hanged Haman on the gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai. And the king's wrath was appeased.
He, going to Pilate, begged the body of Jesus. Then Pilate commanded the body to be given up.
And they went and secured the sepulchre, having sealed the stone, with the watch besides.
The soldiers therefore, when they had crucified Jesus, took his clothes, and made four parts, to each soldier a part, and the body-coat; but the body-coat was seamless, woven through the whole from the top.
The Jews therefore, that the bodies might not remain on the cross on the sabbath, for it was the preparation, (for the day of that sabbath was a great day,) demanded of Pilate that their legs might be broken and they taken away.