John 19:31-42
The fulfilled prophecies of Jesus’s death are a testimony that demands a response.
Introduction
Jesus’ throne was disguised as a cross, and on that cross, it was finished- our sin, our pain, our sickness, our sorrow. It is finished by the blood of the Lamb, our Royal Redeemer! Jesus’ last words were, “It is finished!” and then He bowed His head and gave up His spirit (Jn. 19:30). This is a sobering moment. It was at this moment that the dreams and hopes of the disciples seemed lost, as their conquering King’s lifeless body now hung on a criminal’s cross. At this moment, it seems the only thing to do is bury His body and try to move on. They were defeated, grieving, and beaten. That is the mood. However, that was not an ordinary man hanging on that cross; instead, it is our King, our Royal Redeemer, and He deserves to be buried in that same way. So, two unsuspecting men ensured His body was cared for immediately: Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus. Up to this point, both men had been secret disciples of Jesus, but at that moment, they risked it all to worship their King the only way they knew how: by taking care of His body. These men were making a choice, a final stand. Before their eyes, they saw the fulfilled prophecies of Jesus’ death, a testimony to His Kingship that demanded a response.
Declaration of Kingship (Jn. 19:31-37)
• Just as God used practical circumstances to cause Roman soldiers to fulfill a Jewish prophecy that said they would divide one of Jesus’ garments and cast lots for the other (Ps 22:11-18), God also used practical circumstances to set in motion a series of events which led to the fulfillment of two more prophecies.
• Jesus was crucified on a Friday. It was the day of preparation because the day before every Sabbath is used for preparations, so no work would need to be done the following day.
• The high priests realized it would be a violation of the Law to leave these victims hanging on a cross (Dt 21:22-23), so they asked Pilate to order his soldiers to break the legs of the crucified men so they would die quickly, and their bodies could be removed and buried before sunset. Pilate agreed to their request.
• They broke the legs of the men on either side of Jesus, but when they came to Jesus, He was already dead. A soldier took his spear and drove the blade into His side, likely angling it upward under His rib cage so that the blade would split His heart.
• Jesus’ bones were not broken (v33), and His side was pierced with a spear (v34). Both of those facts have deep biblical meaning.
• When Isaiah spoke of the sufferings the Messiah would undergo as a sacrifice for our sins, he specifically stated that He would be “pierced through for our transgressions…” (Is 53:5).
• Two hundred years later, Zechariah described the Messiah coming at the end of the age to deliver Jerusalem from the nations attacking it (Zec 12:1-9). During his description, he heard the Messiah declare that He will “…pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the Spirit of grace and supplication so that they will look on Me whom they have pierced; and they will mourn for Him, as one mourns for an only son, and they will weep bitterly over Him like the bitter weeping of a firstborn” (Zec 12:10).
• The Hebrew word, which is translated as “pierced,” primarily means to run someone through with a lance or sword. Jesus is the “pierced” Messiah described by Isaiah and Zechariah.
• For John to announce that both prophetic symbols happened to Jesus after He died, that His bones were not broken and His side was pierced, is so spiritually significant that John feels the need to testify that he is telling us the truth.
• It means that God was clearly overseeing the treatment of His Son’s dead body to bring those actions in alignment with significant prophecies about the Messiah. Then, so there would be no mistaking what he meant, John quotes from both passages (Ex 12:46; Zec 12:10).
A King’s Burial (Jn. 19: 38-42)
• Joseph of Arimathea was a prominent member of the Sanhedrin, but he did not support their decision to condemn Jesus (Lk 23:51). He was a good and righteous man (Lk 23:50), and in his heart, he secretly believed in Jesus (Mt 27:57), yet he feared the Jews (Jn 19:38; 9:22). He was also a wealthy man (Mt 27:57) and had carved a new tomb for his family in a rock wall (Mt 27:60; Mk 15:46) only a short distance away from the place where Jesus was crucified (Jn 19:41-42).
• Watching what happened to Jesus might have convinced someone who didn’t know the Bible that Jesus was not the Messiah, but for someone like Joseph, who knew the Bible well, it had the opposite effect.
• It would have convinced him that Jesus must be the Messiah because as he observed the crucifixion, he knew precisely which prophecies were being fulfilled in front of his eyes.
• At some point during that awful event, he must have realized that he was watching Isaiah’s description of the Messiah’s sufferings as if God were going down a checklist. Once he saw that, he also knew why Jesus was suffering that way. He knew that in the fifty-third chapter of Isaiah, the prophet describes the Messiah as a suffering “Servant” and says that it was for our transgressions that He was “cut off out of the land of the living” (Is 53:8). That meant that Jesus had died for him. Jesus was not a martyr; He was God’s great sacrifice for our sins.
• However, it was probably the following verse of Isaiah’s prophecy that came to Joseph’s mind and sent chills up his spine: “His grave was assigned with wicked men, yet He was with a rich man in His death because He had done no violence, nor was there any deceit in His mouth” (Isa 53:9).
• He, Joseph of Arimathea, was rich, and he owned a new tomb only a short distance away! And then he knew exactly what he must do. He could hide no longer. He must openly declare his faith in Jesus, and he must do it by asking Pilate for the body of Jesus so he could bury it honorably in his own tomb.
• Another of Israel’s great religious leaders had also seen what happened and knew that he couldn’t hide any longer either (Jn 3:1-2, 10). So, while Joseph went to Pilate, Nicodemus went somewhere and found about seventy-five pounds of myrrh and aloes. The fact that he brought such a large quantity of this mixture shows that he, too, intended to honor Jesus. Typically, only royalty would be buried in such a way.
• Nicodemus was also very familiar with the prophesies he watched come true as he stood at the cross. He was a pharisee and part of the Sanhedrin. He was sure to remember the secret conversation he had with Jesus (Jn. 3:3-21).
• The two men took Jesus’ mangled body off the cross, and then they may have washed it with water.
• After that, they wrapped His body with long strips of linen, placing a mixture of myrrh and aloes between the layers. That was the burial custom of the Jews, and when the men were finished, they laid Jesus’ body on a stone shelf in Joseph’s tomb and rolled a large, round stone in front of the entrance (Mt 27:60; Mk 15:46). Then they must have hurried home before the Sabbath began.
• By that act of devotion, both men had publicly confessed their faith in Jesus, and their lives would never be the same again.
• Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus did what they could not do when Jesus was alive. The fulfillment of prophecies brought them to their knees. Their secret devotion out of fear was outweighed by their need to worship the King.
Allegiance to the King
• What is God asking of us? It requires a response.
• What other images have we lifted up and called King in our lives? It requires a response.
• We must consider what Jesus surrendered as our King.
• Have you been a secret follower of Christ, not wanting to give up your status or the things that have you bound?
• Just like Joseph and Nicodemus, there comes a point when we must choose our allegiance.
• In that first conversation with Nicodemus Jesus spoke of what must happen in response to His sacrifice (Jn. 3:18-21).
Conclusion
Our Royal Redeemer paid it all on His throne disguised as a cross, and as so many looked on, two men were faced with a decision. Would they honor Jesus as King, or would they continue to hide in the darkness? These men were making a choice, a final stand. Before their eyes, they saw the fulfilled prophecies of Jesus’ death, a testimony to His Kingship that demanded a response. They made their proclamation as they gave Him a King’s burial. Their response was to show their complete devotion and worship to the King.
Discussion Questions
- What stands out about the prophecies that were fulfilled in Jesus’ death on the cross__?
- When you think about the burial of Jesus, how do you think that impacted the men caring for His body__?
- What does “allegiance to the King” mean to you personally__?