The crucifixion
Matthew 27:27–56; Mark 15:16–41; Luke 23:26–49; John 19:16–37; Isaiah 53; Psalm 22
Jesus was crucified at Golgotha between two criminals. Darkness covered the land from noon until three in the afternoon. Then Jesus cried out, “It is finished,” and gave up his spirit. The curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.
When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, “It is finished!” Then he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.
John 19:30 (World English Bible)
Simon of Cyrene was forced to carry his cross. Above his head Pilate placed the charge in Hebrew, Latin, and Greek: Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews. From the cross Jesus prayed for his executioners, promised paradise to a repentant criminal, and entrusted his mother to John. Soldiers divided his clothes by lot, as Psalm 22:18 foretold, and none of his bones were broken (John 19:36).
Isaiah had written that the Servant was pierced for our transgressions and that by his wounds we are healed (Isaiah 53:5). The torn curtain showed that the way into God's presence was now open (Hebrews 10:19–20). A Roman centurion who watched him die said, “Truly this man was the Son of God!” (Mark 15:39).
Places
Ancient witnesses outside the Bible
Historical sources, not Scripture.
- Antiquities 18.3.3 — Josephus's passage on Jesus; many scholars think a Christian copyist added some of its phrases
Dating notes
Ussher: Friday, 3 April AD 33; the darkness lasted from the sixth to the ninth hour (noon to 3 p.m.). The traditional site of Golgotha is within the Church of the Holy Sepulchre; the Garden Tomb north of the Damascus Gate is a later suggestion. Ussher's dates put the crucifixion on Friday, 3 April AD 33; many scholars prefer Friday, 7 April AD 30, which would move all of Holy Week three years earlier.