Anchor My Faith

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Author: Stephen Weller
648 words, 3 minutes read time

Evidence of Jesus’ Death

Scripture: John 19:31-37

^{Jn 19:31} Since it was the day of Preparation, and so that the bodies would not remain on the cross on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was a high day), the Jews asked Pilate that their legs might be broken and that they might be taken away. ³² So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first, and of the other who had been crucified with him. ³³ But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. ³⁴ But one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once there came out blood and water. ³⁵ He who saw it has borne witness—his testimony is true, and he knows that he is telling the truth—that you also may believe. ³⁶ For these things took place that the Scripture might be fulfilled: “Not one of his bones will be broken.” ³⁷ And again another Scripture says, “They will look on him whom they have pierced.”

The day of Preparation of the Passover is considered to be the day preceding the Sabbath of Passover week. Tradition holds that Jesus died and was buried on Friday. “The next day, that is, after the day of Preparation” (Matthew 27:62 ESV) would be the Sabbath. That particular Sabbath was referred to as a special Sabbath, in the ESV footnote, as it was the Sabbath of Passover week. There is some indication in the literature that this particular Sabbath was special because it occurred on Friday before the regular Sabbath that occurred on Saturday. In my opinion this is correct because it allows the sign of Jonah to be fulfilled.

Please understand that having the death of Jesus on Thursday and not on Friday is my opinion and the conviction of some others, and that I have no intention of trying to persuade you to think as I do. It is a position that has taken me nearly 70 years to be convinced of and one that I will see if it is true or false when I see Jesus. Whether there was a special Sabbath on Friday or just the normal Sabbath on Saturday, the Jews go and ask Pilate to have the legs of the three broken so that they would die of suffocation and could be removed from their respective cross before the Sabbath began in just a few hours. Soldiers were sent to break their legs but found Jesus already dead, and so his legs were not broken, but they did pierce the side of Jesus to insure his death.

The fact that the legs of Jesus were not broken was a fulfillment of Psalm 34:20. Another Scripture that was fulfilled at that time was that of Zechariah 12:10 ESV: “And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and pleas for mercy, so that, when they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn.” Just two more indications that Jesus is who he said he was, “The Son of God.” “For to us a child is born (Jesus), to us a son is given (the Son of God)” (Isaiah 9:6 ESV).

Conclusion

Now that Jesus is dead there is one more event to cover before that historical day ends. Jesus must be removed from the cross and placed in a tomb before the Sabbath begins. I don’t think the Jews slept very well that night because in the morning they go to Pilate with a request, but before we get to that, we need to see what is happening to Jesus.