Daily Devotions
John
John 19:16-42 "BREAKING OF THE LEGS OF THE CRUCIFIED"
Day 322 – John 19
BREAKING OF THE LEGS OF THE CRUCIFIED
If permission was granted by the Governor, a special procedure must be followed. Since the sentence was death by crucifixion, then of course the condemned prisoner must be killed!
One of the ways in which death could be hastened was to break the legs of the crucified while they were hanging on the cross. John showed that he had knowledge of this procedure.
“… the Jews asked Pilate that their legs might
be broken, and that they might be taken away.”
John 19:31
When a person is crucified, he could live for a few days, if his physical constitution was very strong. While hanging on the cross, his legs would be able to “rest”. The nails would ensure that the legs were fastened to the cross. Of course every movement would course intense pain, but with the passing of the hours, the body would adjust to the level of pain felt.
The breaking of the legs would introduce another powerful spasm of pain. This would create yet another shock to the body! The breaking of the legs by using a mallet would cause internal bleeding, and would hasten the death of the person crucified. It was a terrible thing to do! Imagine asking that death be hastened by creating even more excruciating pain! And this request was made so that the Jews could celebrate their Passover and keep the Sabbath as well!
REQUEST GRANTED
Pilate acceded to this request of the Jews. Orders were issued to the soldiers to break the legs of the crucified to hasten their death. The soldiers did not expect that any of the prisoners would have died, for they had been hanging for only three hours!
John noted how the soldiers went about carrying out their instructions.
“Then the soldiers came and broke the legs of the
first and of the other who was crucified with Him.”
John 19:32
Pilate was no longer very interested in the case. If the Jews wanted Jesus to be taken down from the cross, he would grant their request. The two criminals died a terrible death. They must have died screaming because of the intense pain caused by the breaking of their legs! Their only consolation was that their suffering was shortened considerably! For the prisoner who had come to faith in Jesus, he would see Jesus in paradise!
THE DEATH OF JESUS
When the soldiers came to Jesus, they were surprised. John carefully noted what happened when they came to Jesus’ cross.
“But when they came to Jesus and saw that
He was already dead, they did not break His legs.”
John 19:33
The soldiers must have been really surprised. They had seen some who lingered on for days. Jesus had shown such strength. He had spoken to some people. He had asked for a drink. He had prayed. That showed great strength. How was it that He had died before the other two?
Nevertheless, the soldiers knew that Jesus had died. They had seen dead people many times. They would be able to recognize if Jesus had really died!
However, to be on the safe side, one of the soldiers did something that would have confirmed that Jesus was truly dead.
“But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a
spear, and immediately blood and water came out.”
John 19:34
This short thrust of the spear would have killed Jesus, if He had not died! The soldiers would now be able to report to their superiors that they had done their duty. They had either directly caused the prisoners to die, or they could report that they could confirm that the prisoners had really died. On that understanding, they could bring the crucified down from their crosses for burial.
JOHN’S TESTIMONY
John could write as he did, because he was an eye-witness. Thus he wrote,
“And he who has seen has testified, and his
testimony is true; and he knows that he is
telling the truth, so that you may believe.”
John 19:35
John was right there with the women Disciples, and of course with his new adoptive mother, Mary. What were they doing there? They would be there as “relatives” or very close family friends. They would be there to receive His body and to prepare it for burial!
As the soldiers came around to make sure that the prisoners had died, John was there, hurting deeply with the women Disciples. They were powerless to prevent the Roman soldiers from carrying out their duties.
As John watched, he knew in his heart that Jesus had truly died. He concurred with the opinion of the soldiers! Jesus was dead! The thrust of the spear to His side was further proof that He had died!
What was John trying to say in this text? Though the suffering and death of Jesus was something very hard to accept, in a strange but wonderful way, John’s faith in Jesus was deepened. All had happened just as Jesus had foretold! His death was no accident! He had died that men may believe in Him! He had died as the Lamb of God! He had not died in vain!