Matthew 27-28
What I Noticed Today (Matthew 27-28)
Matthew 27
In verses 1-2, the chief priests and elders decided to put Jesus to death that morning, so they bound Him and delivered Him to Pilate, the governor.
Note: It was against Jewish law to conduct trials at night. So these initial trials by the chief priests and elders were all a violation of Jewish law. Also, under Roman law, Jews did not have the right to pass a death sentence on someone, so they took the trial to Pilate, the Roman governor of Judea.
In verses 3-10, Judas had a change of heart, having realized that he had betrayed an innocent man. He attempted to return the money to the chief priests by throwing it down at their feet. They refused, so Judas went out and hanged himself. The chief priests took the money and bought a potter’s field as a burial place for strangers (called the Field of Blood because it was purchased with blood money). This was in fulfillment of Zechariah 11:12-13 and Jeremiah 32:6-9.
In verses 11-14, Jesus was brought before Pilate, who asked if He was king of the Jews, and Jesus answered only, “You have said so.” When accused by the chief priests and elders, Jesus said nothing.
Note: According to Roman law, refusing to put on a defense was equivalent to an admission of guilt.
In verses 15-23, it was a tradition during the feast of governors to release a prisoner. So Pilate asked the crowd do you want me to release Barabbas or Jesus, who is called Christ. Pilate’s wife warned him not to have anything to do with Jesus’ death, but the chief priests and elders stirred up the crowd so that they shouted for Barabbas’ release and the crucifixion of Jesus.
In verses 24-26, when Pilate realized the crowd was determined, he washed his hands before them, saying he was innocent of Jesus’ blood. He then had Jesus scourged and released him to be crucified.
Note: Scourging before crucifixion was a common Roman punishment. The scourging was done with a whip that had multiple thongs, each with bone or metal shards. When the whip hit the body, it was then pulled away, tearing off pieces of flesh.
In verses 27-30, the battalion of the governor’s soldiers took Jesus to the governor’s palace, stripped him, put on a scarlet robe, and a crown of thorns on his head, and a reed in his hands. First, they mocked him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews.” Next, they spat on him and hit him with the reed. Finally, they put his own clothes on him and led him away to be crucified.
Note: A Roman battalion was between 420 and 480 men.
Note: Scarlet was associated with sin (Isaiah 1:18). Putting on the scarlet robe is a picture of Jesus taking on our sins.
Note: Jesus said nothing during this time of humiliation.
In verses 32-44, Jesus carried his cross on the way to be crucified. The Romans compelled Simon the Cyrene (in northern Africa) to help carry the cross to Golgotha.
Note: Golgotha is Aramaic for “skull.” So named perhaps because the place was shaped like a skull. Also, Calvary is the Anglicized translation of Latin for the Greek word kranion.
When Jesus had been lifted up on the cross, they offered him wine mixed with gall, but he refused it. The soldiers divided his garment by casting lots for them in fulfillment of Psalm 22:18. Jesus was crucified with two robbers in fulfillment of Isaiah 53:12. The chief priests, elders, and the crowd continued to mock Him because of His claim to be king of the Jews, the Son of God.
Note: Gall was a narcotic used as a pain deadener.
In verses 45-50, between the sixth hour and the ninth hour (12n – 3 pm), there was darkness over all the land, and in the ninth hour, Jesus said, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me.”
Note: It was during this time that Jesus had taken on the sins of man. Since God is Holy and cannot be in the presence of sin, Jesus, for the first time, felt separated from the Father.
Jesus cried out again in a loud voice and gave up His spirit.
Note: Jesus’ life was not taken from Him; He gave it up, releasing His spirit to the Father.
In verses 51-54, three miraculous events occurred at the time of Jesus’ death:
- The curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The curtain separated the place where the priests ministered from the Holy of Holies, where God lived. Rabbinic tradition speaks of the veil being as thick as a man’s hand or about 4 inches.
- There was a strong earthquake.
- The tombs of many saints were opened. They were raised up and went into the city and appeared to many!
When the centurion watching over Jesus saw all this, he said, “Truly this was the Son of God.”
In verses 55-56, many women from Galilee who had been following Jesus and ministering to Him looked on from a distance, including Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joseph, and the mother (Salome), the sons of Zebedee.
Note: It is telling that these women were faithful in their ministry to Jesus right up until the end. It stands in stark contrast to the disciples who had deserted Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane.
In verses 57-61, Joseph of Arimathea, a rich man and a disciple of Jesus, went to Pilate asking for Jesus’ body. Instead, he buried Jesus in his own new tomb. Mary Magdalene and the “other” Mary were there by the tomb.
In verses 62-66, the day after the Passover, the chief priests and Pharisees were concerned about Jesus’ claim to be raised on the third day, so they went to Pilate asking for permission to secure Jesus’ tomb. Pilate gave his permission, so they sealed the tomb and posted a guard.
Matthew 28
In verses 1-10, as dawn was breaking on Sunday morning, the two Marys went to the tomb. There was a great earthquake, and an angel from heaven rolled back the stone from the entrance to the tomb. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes as white as snow. The guards trembled. The angel spoke to the women, comforting them, saying that Jesus had risen from the dead. The angel told them to go tell the disciples and go to Galilee, where they will see Him again. They ran to tell the disciples, and along the way, Jesus met them, telling them again to go tell the disciples and then meet Him in Galilee.
In verses 11-15, the guards went to tell the chief priests what had happened. The elders and the priests gave money to the guards telling them to tell people that the disciples had come in the night and taken Jesus away.
Note: Falling asleep during guard duty was punishable by death according to Roman law. So for the soldiers to say they had fallen asleep while on duty was an admission of a crime. But, of course, this story begs additional questions, like how is it that all the soldiers fell asleep at the same time if they did fall asleep, how did they know it was the disciples who took Jesus’ body, and how is it that in the act of rolling away the stone none of the soldiers woke up?
In verses 16-20, the eleven disciples went to Galilee, found Jesus, and worshiped Him. Jesus then gave the disciples the Great Commission: 1) go, 2) make disciples of all the nations, 3) baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and 4) teach them to observe all that He had commanded them.
Note: “Go” is an imperative verb. It tells us what to do. Making disciples, baptizing them, and teaching them are all imperative participles. They tell us how to do it. These are not suggestions from Jesus; these are commands of what and how we are to fulfill His commission.
Some thoughts for additional consideration:
- Jesus did not defend himself when he was accused. Therefore, none of His accusers would have believed Him anyway.
- Despite the humiliation, torture, and abuse, Jesus did not retaliate.
- In His death on the cross and resurrection, He overcame all His enemies.
- Jesus kept His promises to His disciples.
- Jesus goes before us.
- Jesus has all authority on earth and in heaven.
- Jesus will be with us always!
All the notes for the book of Matthew have been compiled into a single pdf document. You can download it by clicking here.
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