2 and began to accuse him, saying, `This one we found perverting the nation, and forbidding to give tribute to Caesar, saying himself to be Christ a king.'
From this `time' was Pilate seeking to release him, and the Jews were crying out, saying, `If this one thou mayest release, thou art not a friend of Caesar; every one making himself a king, doth speak against Caesar.'
and not having found them, they drew Jason and certain brethren unto the city rulers, calling aloud -- `These, having put the world in commotion, are also here present, whom Jason hath received; and these all do contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying another to be king -- Jesus.'
For I have heard the evil report of many, Fear `is' round about: `Declare, and we declare it,' All mine allies are watching `for' my halting, `Perhaps he is enticed, and we prevail over him, And we take our vengeance out of him.'
having a good conscience, that in that in which they speak against you as evil-doers, they may be ashamed who are traducing your good behaviour in Christ; for `it is' better doing good, if the will of God will it, to suffer, than doing evil; because also Christ once for sin did suffer -- righteous for unrighteous -- that he might lead us to God, having been put to death indeed, in the flesh, and having been made alive in the spirit,
and having brought them to the magistrates, they said, `These men do exceedingly trouble our city, being Jews; and they proclaim customs that are not lawful for us to receive nor to do, being Romans.'
they answered and said to him, `If he were not an evil doer, we had not delivered him to thee.'
And the chief priests were accusing him of many things, `but he answered nothing.' And Pilate again questioned him, saying, `Thou dost not answer anything! lo, how many things they do testify against thee!' and Jesus did no more answer anything, so that Pilate wondered.
and he was keeping silent, and did not answer anything. Again the chief priest was questioning him, and saith to him, `Art thou the Christ -- the Son of the Blessed?' and Jesus said, `I am; and ye shall see the Son of Man sitting on the right hand of the power, and coming with the clouds, of the heaven.'
they say to him, `Caesar's;' then saith he to them, `Render therefore the things of Caesar to Caesar, and the things of God to God;'
And I cut off the three shepherds in one month, and my soul is grieved with them, and also their soul hath abhorred me.
And the heads say unto the king, `Let, we pray thee, this man be put to death, because that he is making feeble the hands of the men of war, who are left in this city, and the hands of all the people, by speaking unto them according to these words, for this man is not seeking for the peace of this people, but for its evil.'
Only -- from his excellency They have consulted to drive away, They enjoy a lie, with their mouth they bless, And with their heart revile. Selah.
and cause two men -- sons of worthlessness -- to sit over-against him, and they testify of him, saying, Thou hast blessed God and Melech; and they have brought him out, and stoned him, and he dieth.' And the men of his city, the elders and the freemen who are dwelling in his city, do as Jezebel hath sent unto them, as written in the letters that she sent unto them, they have proclaimed a fast, and caused Naboth to sit at the head of the people, and two men -- sons of worthlessness -- come in, and sit over-against him, and the men of worthlessness testify of him, even Naboth, before the people, saying, `Naboth blessed God and Melech;' and they take him out to the outside of the city, and stone him with stones, and he dieth;
nor are they able to prove against me the things concerning which they now accuse me.
Pilate, therefore, entered into the praetorium again, and called Jesus, and said to him, `Thou art the King of the Jews?' Jesus answered him, `From thyself dost thou say this? or did others say it to thee about me?' Pilate answered, `Am I a Jew? thy nation, and the chief priests did deliver thee up to me; what didst thou?' Jesus answered, `My kingdom is not of this world; if my kingdom were of this world, my officers had struggled that I might not be delivered up to Jews; but now my kingdom is not from hence.' Pilate, therefore, said to him, `Art thou then a king?' Jesus answered, `Thou dost say `it'; because a king I am, I for this have been born, and for this I have come to the world, that I may testify to the truth; every one who is of the truth, doth hear my voice.'
And, having watched `him', they sent forth liers in wait, feigning themselves to be righteous, that they might take hold of his word, to deliver him up to the rule and to the authority of the governor, and they questioned him, saying, `Teacher, we have known that thou dost say and teach rightly, and dost not accept a person, but in truth the way of God dost teach; Is it lawful to us to give tribute to Caesar or not?' And he, having perceived their craftiness, said unto them, `Why me do ye tempt? shew me a denary; of whom hath it an image and superscription?' and they answering said, `Of Caesar:' and he said to them, `Give back, therefore, the things of Caesar to Caesar, and the things of God to God;'
And the chief priests and all the sanhedrim were seeking against Jesus testimony -- to put him to death, and they were not finding, for many were bearing false testimony against him, and their testimonies were not alike.
And the chief priests, and the elders, and all the council, were seeking false witness against Jesus, that they might put him to death, and they did not find; and many false witnesses having come near, they did not find; and at last two false witnesses having come near,
but, that we may not cause them to stumble, having gone to the sea, cast a hook, and the fish that hath come up first take thou up, and having opened its mouth, thou shalt find a stater, that having taken, give to them for me and thee.'
And Amaziah priest of Beth-El sendeth unto Jeroboam king of Israel, saying, `Amos hath conspired against thee in the midst of the house of Israel; the land is not able to bear all his words,
And it cometh to pass, he is at the gate of Benjamin, and there `is' a master of the ward -- and his name is Irijah son of Shelemiah, son of Hananiah -- and he catcheth Jeremiah the prophet, saying, `Unto the Chaldeans thou art falling.' And Jeremiah saith, `Falsehood -- I am not falling unto the Chaldeans;' and he hath not hearkened unto him, and Irijah layeth hold on Jeremiah, and bringeth him in unto the heads, and the heads are wroth against Jeremiah, and have smitten him, and put him in the prison-house -- the house of Jonathan the scribe, for it they had made for a prison-house.
Who sharpened as a sword their tongue, They directed their arrow -- a bitter word. To shoot in secret places the perfect, Suddenly they shoot him, and fear not. They strengthen for themselves an evil thing, They recount of the hiding of snares, They have said, `Who doth look at it?' They search out perverse things, `We perfected a searching search,' And the inward part of man, and the heart `are' deep.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible » Commentary on Luke 23
Commentary on Luke 23 Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
CHAPTER 23
Lu 23:1-5. Jesus before Pilate.
(See on Mr 15:1-5; and Joh 18:28-19:22.)
Lu 23:6-12. Jesus before Herod.
(See Mr 15:6.)
7. sent him to Herod—hoping thus to escape the dilemma of an unjust condemnation or an unpopular release.
at Jerusalem … at that time—to keep the passover.
8. some miracle—Fine sport thou expectedst, as the Philistines with Samson (Jud 16:25), O coarse, crafty, cruel tyrant! But thou hast been baulked before (see on Lu 13:31-33), and shalt be again.
9. answered … nothing—(See Mt 7:6).
10. stood and vehemently accused him—no doubt both of treason before the king, and of blasphemy, for the king was a Jew.
11. his men of war—his bodyguard.
set him at naught, &c.—stung with disappointment at His refusal to amuse him with miracles or answer any of his questions.
gorgeous robe—bright robe. If this mean (as sometimes) of shining white, this being the royal color among the Jews, it may have been in derision of His claim to be "King of the Jews." But if so, "He in reality honored Him, as did Pilate with His true title blazoned on the cross" [Bengel].
sent him again to Pilate—instead of releasing him as he ought, having established nothing against Him (Lu 23:14, 15). "Thus he implicated himself with Pilate in all the guilt of His condemnation, and with him accordingly he is classed" (Ac 4:27) [Bengel].
at enmity—perhaps about some point of disputed jurisdiction, which this exchange of the Prisoner might tend to heal.
Lu 23:13-38. Jesus Again before Pilate—Delivered Up—Led Away to Be Crucified.
(See on Mr 15:6-15; and Joh 19:2-17).
26. Cyrenian—of Cyrene, in Libya, on the north coast of Africa, where were many Jews who had a synagogue at Jerusalem (Ac 6:9, and see Ac 2:10). He was "the father of Alexander and Rufus" (Mr 15:21), probably better known afterwards than himself, as disciples. (See Ro 16:13).
out of the country—and casually drawn into that part of the crowd.
laid the cross—"Him they compel to bear His cross," (Mt 27:32)—sweet compulsion, if it issued in him or his sons voluntarily "taking up their cross!" It would appear that our Lord had first to bear His own cross (Joh 19:17), but being from exhaustion unable to proceed, it was laid on another to bear it "after Him."
27-31. women—not the precious Galilean women (Lu 23:49), but part of the crowd.
28. not for me, &c.—noble spirit of compassion, rising above His own dread endurances, in tender commiseration of sufferings yet in the distance and far lighter, but without His supports and consolations!
30. mountains … hills, &c.—(Ho 10:8), flying hither and thither as they did in despair for shelter, during the siege; a very slight premonition of cries of another and more awful kind (Isa 2:10, 19, 21; Re 6:16, 17).
31. green tree—that naturally resists the fire.
the dry—that attracts the fire, being its proper fuel. The proverb here plainly means: "If such sufferings alight upon the innocent One, the very Lamb of God, what must be in store for those who are provoking the flames?"
Lu 23:32-38, 44-46. Crucifixion and Death of the Lord Jesus.
(See on Joh 19:17-30).
Lu 23:39-43. The Two Thieves.
39. railed on him—catching up the universal derision, but with a turn of his own. Jesus, "reviled, reviles not again"; but another voice from the cross shall nobly wipe out this dishonor and turn it to the unspeakable glory of the dying Redeemer.
40. Dost not thou—"thou" is emphatic: "Let others jeer, but dost thou?"
fear God—Hast thou no fear of meeting Him so soon as thy righteous Judge? Thou art within an hour or two of eternity, and dost thou spend it in reckless disregard of coming judgment?
in the same condemnation—He has been condemned to die, but is it better with thee? Doth even a common lot kindle no sympathy in thy breast?
41. we … justly, &c.—He owns the worst of his crimes and deserts, and would fain shame his fellow into the same.
nothing amiss—literally, "out of place"; hence "unnatural"; a striking term here. Our Lord was not charged with ordinary crime, but only with laying claim to office and honors which amounted to blasphemy. The charge of treason had not even a show of truth, as Pilate told His enemies. In this defense then there seems more than meets the eye. "He made Himself the promised Messiah, the Son of God; but in this He 'did nothing amiss'; He ate with publicans and sinners, and bade all the weary and heavy laden come and rest under His wing; but in this He 'did nothing amiss': He claimed to be Lord of the Kingdom of God, to shut it at will, but also to open it at pleasure even to such as we are; but in this He 'did nothing amiss!'" Does His next speech imply less than this? Observe: (1) His frank confession and genuine self-condemnation. (2) His astonishment and horror at the very different state of his fellow's mind. (3) His anxiety to bring him to a better mind while yet there was hope. (4) His noble testimony, not only to the innocence of Jesus, but to all that this implied of the rightfulness of His claims.
42. said unto Jesus, &c.—Observe here (1) The "kingdom" referred to was one beyond the grave; for it is inconceivable that he should have expected Him to come down from the cross to erect any temporal kingdom. (2) This he calls Christ's own (Thy) kingdom. (3) As such, he sees in Christ the absolute right to dispose of that kingdom to whom He pleased. (4) He does not presume to ask a place in that kingdom, though that is what he means, but with a humility quite affecting, just says, "Lord, remember me when," &c. Yet was there mighty faith in that word. If Christ will but "think upon him" (Ne 5:19), at that august moment when He "cometh into His kingdom," it will do. "Only assure me that then Thou wilt not forget such a wretch as I, that once hung by Thy side, and I am content." Now contrast with this bright act of faith the darkness even of the apostles' minds, who could hardly be got to believe that their Master would die at all, who now were almost despairing of Him, and who when dead had almost buried their hopes in His grave. Consider, too, the man's previous disadvantages and bad life. And then mark how his faith comes out—not in protestations, "Lord, I cannot doubt, I am firmly persuaded that Thou art Lord of a kingdom, that death cannot disannul Thy title nor impede the assumption of it in due time," &c.—but as having no shadow of doubt, and rising above it as a question altogether, he just says, "Lord, remember me when Thou comest," &c. Was ever faith like this exhibited upon earth? It looks as if the brightest crown had been reserved for the Saviour's head at His darkest moment!
43. Jesus said, &c.—The dying Redeemer speaks as if He Himself viewed it in this light. It was a "song in the night." It ministered cheer to His spirit in the midnight gloom that now enwrapt it.
Verily I say unto thee—"Since thou speakest as to the king, with kingly authority speak I to thee."
To-day—"Thou art prepared for a long delay before I come into My kingdom, but not a day's delay shall there be for thee; thou shalt not be parted from Me even for a moment, but together we shall go, and with Me, ere this day expire, shalt thou be in Paradise" (future bliss, 2Co 12:4; Re 2:7). Learn (1) How "One is taken and another left"; (2) How easily divine teaching can raise the rudest and worst above the best instructed and most devoted servants of Christ; (3) How presumption and despair on a death hour are equally discountenanced here, the one in the impenitent thief, the other in his penitent fellow.
Lu 23:47-56. Signs and Circumstances Following His Death—His Burial.
(See on Mt 27:51-56; Mt 27:62-66; and Joh 19:31-42).