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The Soldiers Mock Jesus

16 Then the soldiers led him into the courtyard of the palace (that is, the governor’s headquarters; and they called together the whole cohort. 17 And they clothed him in a purple cloak; and after twisting some thorns into a crown, they put it on him. 18 And they began saluting him, ‘Hail, King of the Jews!’ 19 They struck his head with a reed, spat upon him, and knelt down in homage to him. 20 After mocking him, they stripped him of the purple cloak and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him out to crucify him.

The Crucifixion of Jesus

21 They compelled a passer-by, who was coming in from the country, to carry his cross; it was Simon of Cyrene, the father of Alexander and Rufus. 22 Then they brought Jesus to the place called Golgotha (which means the place of a skull). 23 And they offered him wine mixed with myrrh; but he did not take it. 24 And they crucified him, and divided his clothes among them, casting lots to decide what each should take.

25 It was nine o’clock in the morning when they crucified him. 26 The inscription of the charge against Him read, ‘The King of the Jews.’ 27 And with him they crucified two bandits, one on his right and one on his left. 29 Those who passed by derided him, shaking their heads and saying, ‘Aha! You who would destroy the temple and build it in three days, 30 save yourself, and come down from the cross!’ 31 In the same way the chief priests, along with the scribes, were also mocking him among themselves and saying, ‘He saved others; he cannot save himself. 32 Let the Messiah, the King of Israel, come down from the cross now, so that we may see and believe.’ Those who were crucified with him also taunted him.

The Death of Jesus

33 When it was noon, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. 34 At three o’clock Jesus cried out with a loud voice, ‘Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?’ which means, ‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?’ 35 When some of the bystanders heard it, they said, ‘Listen, he is calling for Elijah.’ 36 And someone ran, filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on a stick, and gave it to him to drink, saying, ‘Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to take him down.’ 37 Then Jesus gave a loud cry and breathed his last. 38 And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. 39 Now when the centurion, who stood facing him, saw that in this way he breathed his last, he said, ‘Truly this man was God’s Son!’

40 There were also women looking on from a distance; among them were Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joses, and Salome. 41 These used to follow him and provided for him when he was in Galilee; and there were many other women who had come up with him to Jerusalem.

The Burial of Jesus

42 When evening had come, and since it was the day of Preparation, that is, the day before the sabbath, 43 Joseph of Arimathea, a respected member of the council, who was also himself waiting expectantly for the kingdom of God, went boldly to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. 44 Then Pilate wondered if he were already dead; and summoning the centurion, he asked him whether he had been dead for some time. 45 When he learned from the centurion that he was dead, he granted the body to Joseph. 46 Then Joseph bought a linen cloth, and taking down the body, wrapped it in the linen cloth, and laid it in a tomb that had been hewn out of the rock. He then rolled a stone against the door of the tomb. 47 Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses saw where the body was laid” Mark 15:16-47.

Dear friends, Jesus has come to the point in His life where He will now be mocked and killed. We are torn between amazement in an inherently ironic text and horror at what it reports. Jesus is acclaimed as King and rejected as King in almost every event and word.

• Roman soldiers bow down to Israel’s King, honoring him with royal robes and pledging their loyalty. “Hail! King of the Jews!” is their ironic cry (15:16-20).

• Pilate announces that Israel is now ruled by King Jesus. Jesus has taken His throne; let all the world know! “The King of the Jews!” is Pilate’s ironic label for the crucified Messiah (15:26).

• Two insurrectionists are privileged to take their places, one at Jesus’ right and one at His left in His glory! For this honor, the disciples of Jesus have competed (“37 And they said to Jesus, ‘Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory’” 10:37.), but in the decisive moment, they are not there to claim their prize: “And with Him they crucified two bandits, one on his right and one on his left” (15:27).

• Those who pass by proclaim the gospel: Jesus has lived to save others; now he dies to do the same. To accomplish his mission, he must remain on the cross: “He saved others; he cannot save himself” (15:31).  They mock, but they speak truth.

Jesus suffers deeply, but notice that Mark highlights the mockery of Jesus more than His physical pain. No one comes to Jesus’ aid — not the disciples, who have abandoned Him in the crisis; not Elijah, “the patron saint of hopeless causes”; not God, to whom Jesus cries in despair. Jesus’ enemies have their way. God has determined that they shall “succeed.” Jesus’ submission to their schemes has made it possible. After Jesus’ enemies “succeed,” it is time for the tables to begin to turn.

Did you notice that there are some women present to witness the crucifixion? They are with Jesus to the end, as they have been with Him from the beginning. From out of nowhere comes an accomplice to arrange the burial. The women become official witnesses that Jesus “suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and buried (Apostles’ Creed)”. Without Mark 16, there is not yet good news. Good Friday and Easter Sunday need each other. Good Friday would be Absolute Horror Friday if God did not act decisively to vindicate the rejected King. Easter Sunday would be just a myth of an empty tomb if it were not preceded by the unimaginable torment of Friday. Mark’s Gospel indeed proclaims a resurrection, but it will be the resurrection of Jesus, who was crucified. That terrible and wonderful story Mark is the story that Mark tells.

What strikes me so much about Mark is that Christ/Messiah and the cross did not fit together for Peter (8:32), nor for the other disciples, whose fear grew as Jesus’ teaching became clearer. Never forget what Jesus said to the disciples shortly before entering Jerusalem: “32 They were on the road, going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus was walking ahead of them; they were amazed, and those who followed were afraid. He took the twelve aside again and began to tell them what was to happen to him, 33 saying, ‘See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn him to death; then they will hand him over to the Gentiles; 34 they will mock him, and spit upon him, and flog him, and kill him; and after three days he will rise again’” Mark 10:32-34.

Christ/Messiah and cross did not fit together for Peter (8:32), nor for the other disciples, whose fear grew as Jesus’ teaching became clearer (10:32-34). When the combination of Messiah and cross became inevitable, the disciples abandoned the Messiah rather than embracing the cross. King and cross is a combination that Israel’s leaders rejected and Roman soldiers mocked. “Christ crucified is a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles,” Paul said (1 Cor. 1:23). Mark agrees. Jesus hangs in shame, the title of honor written over him. Mark is preaching again.

This abandoning of the Messiahs is something we all know too well. We often redefine our lives, and when doing so, we abandon Jesus Christ.

Take time today and beg the Lord to receive you back into His loving and merciful arms. Do not abandon the Lord!

Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, have mercy on me a sinner.