GOSPEL MEDITATION
John 19:28–42
The Death of Jesus, Jesus’ Side is Pierced, Jesus is Buried
Find a quiet place, alone and apart from distractions. Be comfortably alert, still, and at peace. Say the Lord’s Prayer. Sing or cant the Jesus Prayer. Pray for family, friends, neighbors, and yourself. Slowly and carefully read the passage of Scripture.
1. Friday late afternoon, the 14th of Nisan, the first day of Passover, and the Day of Unleavened Bread about to commence. Jesus is crucified on Passover, the Passover Lamb of God, now to be buried and with Him our sin as the yeast, representing sin, is removed from the Jewish households.
2. Jesus then is fulfilling the intent of the first two feasts of Israel. He will fulfill the third feast also, the Feast of First Fruits, the third major feast of Israel, by His resurrection.
3. “I thirst” said Jesus, which fulfills a Scripture; Jesus did not say it in order to fulfill it, but because He was thirsty which is typical for a crucified person.
4. At the very last then, Jesus cries out, “It is finished.” It is a cry of victory in that all that He was to do has now, with His dying, been completed.
5. The day, Friday was ending and the law stated (Deuteronomy 21:22–23) that a body hung on a tree must be taken down before the beginning of the new day, at sundown.
6. If a hung person was yet alive, his legs would be broken meaning this person could not hoist himself up to breath so would soon die of asphyxiation. Jesus’ legs were not broken (fulfilling yet another prophecy) since He was already dead and the spear that pierced His side clearly revealed that.
7. Two leading members of the Council of Israel, the Sanhedrin, now play a major role in Jesus’ burial–Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus. They were secret followers of Jesus. Normally the Romans allowed the bodies to remain of the cross thus letting the birds and other animals consume the body. But Joseph secures Jesus’ body and Nicodemus has prepared what was necessary for a proper Jewish burial.
8. Jesus’ body is placed in a tomb in a nearby garden.