There now appeared on the scene one, who had been well affected to the Lord, ready to take the place of the fugitive disciples. A certain man, still in his youth, followed after Him, although he had cast about his naked body only a linen cloth, as a covering in the night. And the young men — the Roman soldiers² — laid hold on him. And He let the linen cloth go, and fled from them naked.³

Jesus was now led away to the high priest; and with him were assembled all the chief priests, and the elders, and the scribes. And Peter followed the Lord afar off, even into the hall of the palace of the high priest. And he sat with the servants and warmed himself at the open fire, which threw its light on the men in the hall. And the chief priests and all the Sanhedrim sought witness against Jesus, in order to put Him to death. And they found none. For many, indeed, bare false witness against Him, but their testimonies agreed not together. Then stood up certain men, and brought false witness against Him, saying. We have heard Him say, I will destroy this temple that is made with hands, and within three days build another not made with hands. But here also, again, their witness did not agree. And the high priest stood up, walked into the midst, and addressed to Jesus the question, 'Answerest thou nothing to that which these witness against thee?' But He held His peace, and answered nothing. Again the high priest asked Him, and said, '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 power, and '' coming in the clouds of heaven'" (Dan. vii. 13). Then the high priest rent his clothes, and said, 'What need we any further witnesses? Ye have heard the blasphemy. What think ye?' And they all gave their judgment that He was guilty of death. Then began some to spit on Him, and they covered His face, smote Him on the head, and said, 'Prophesy unto us!' And the servants struck Him with the palms of their hands.

Meanwhile Peter was beneath in the hall. And there came one of the maids of the high priest; and when she saw Peter warming himself, she looked upon him, and said, 'And thou also wast with Jesus the Nazarene.' But he denied, and said, 'I know not, neither understand I what thou sayest.' And he went out into the porch, and the cock crew. And the maid, seeing him, began again to say to them that stood by, 'This is also one of them.' But he denied again. And a little while after, they that stood by said again to Peter, 'Surely thou art one of them; for thou art a Galilean, and thy speech agreeth thereto.' But he began to curse and to swear: 'I know not this man of whom ye speak.' And the cock crew the second time. Then Peter called to mind the word that Jesus had said unto him: Before the cock crow twice, thou shaft deny Me thrice. And he rushed out — his face turned towards the cry⁴ — into the night, as if the Lord without had called him to judgment — and wept.

The further step of conducting Jesus to Pilate was decided by the fact of His condemnation to death. Nevertheless a formal sitting of the Sanhedrim preceded this event. So soon as it was morning, the chief priests, with the elders and scribes — the whole Sanhedrim generally — held a meeting of the council. They then bound Jesus, carried Him away, and delivered Him to Pilate. And Pilate asked Him, 'Art thou the King of the Jews?' And He answering, said unto him, 'Thou sayest it.' Then the chief priests brought forward heavy accusations against Him. And Pilate asked Him again, and said, 'Answerest thou nothing? Behold how many things they lay to thy charge!' But Jesus answered nothing whatever further; so that Pilate marvelled.

Pilate now sought to rescue Him, by placing Him together with Barabbas. At that feast — the Passover — he released unto them one prisoner, whomsoever they desired. Now there was one, named Barabbas, taken prisoner with them that had made insurrection, and in the insurrection had committed murder. And the people went up — assembled themselves in larger numbers before the palace of Pilate,⁵ — and began to make known their request, that he would do as he had ever done unto them. But Pilate answered them, saying, 'Will ye that I release unto you the King of the Jews? 'For he knew that the chief priests had delivered Him for envy. But the chief priests incited the people — to request — that he should rather release Barabbas unto them. Then Pilate said unto them again, 'What will ye, then, that I shall do unto Him whom ye call the King of the Jews?' They cried out again, 'Crucify Him! 'And Pilate said unto them, 'What evil hath He then done?' But they cried out the more exceedingly 'Crucify Him! 'And Pilate, wishing to satisfy the people, released Barabbas unto them, and delivered Jesus, when he had scourged Him, to be crucified.

But the crowning with thorns preceded this. The soldiers, having received Jesus, led Him away into the hall — of the palace, — which is the Pretorium,⁶ and called together the whole cohort. And they clothed Him with purple, and put a crown of thorns, which they had platted, upon His head,⁷ Then they began to salute Him: Hail, King of the Jews. And they smote Him on the head with a reed, and did spit on Him, and, bowing the knee, did Him obeisance.

And after they had thus mocked Him, they took off the purple from Him, and put on Him again His own garments, and led Him away to crucify Him. And they compelled a passer-by, one Simon of Cyrene, who came from the field — from the country — the father of Alexander and Rufus, to bear His cross. So they brought Him to the place Golgotha, which is, being interpreted. The place of a skull. And they gave Him to drink wine mingled with myrrh; but He received it not. And when they had crucified Him, they parted His garments, and cast lots upon them, who should take a part. And it was the third hour when they crucified Him.⁸ And the ground of His condemnation was written above over Him as a superscription: The King of the Jews. And they crucified with Him two thieves; the one on His right hand, and the other on His left. And the Scripture was fulfilled which saith, And He was numbered with the trangressors.⁹ And they that passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads, and saying, 'Ah, Thou that destroyest the temple and bulkiest it in three days! save Thyself, and come down from the cross.' In like manner the chief priests mocked Him among themselves, with the scribes, and said, 'He saved others; Himself He cannot save. Let Christ, the King of Israel, descend now from the cross, that we may see and believe.'

And also they that were crucified with Him reviled Him.

And when the sixth hour was come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth liour. And at the ninth hour, Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, 'Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani! 'which is, being interpreted, My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me! And some of them that stood by, when they heard it, said, 'Behold, He calleth Elias.' And one ran and filled a sponge with vinegar, put it on a reed, and gave Him to drink, saying, 'Let alone; let us see whether Elias will come to take Him down.' But Jesus uttered a loud cry, and gave up the ghost.

And the veil of the temple was rent in twain, from the top to the bottom.

And when the centurion, who stood by over against Him, saw that with so powerful a cry He gave up the ghost,¹⁰ he said. Truly this man was the! Son of God.' There were also women there, who looked on from afar; among them, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the Less and of Joses, and Salome — women — who had followed Him and ministered unto Him when He was still in Galilee; and — besides these — many others who had journeyed with Him up to Jerusalem.

As it was now already even, and because it was the preparation day, or the day before the Sabbath, came Joseph of Arimathea, an honourable councillor, who also himself waited for the kingdom of God, ventured to go in unto Pilate, and craved the^body of Jesus. But Pilate marvelled that He should be already dead: and he called the centurion, and asked him whether He had been any while dead. And when he had learned this of the centurion, he gave to Joseph the body. And he bought fine linen, and took Him down, wrapped Him in the linen, and laid Him in a sepulchre, which was hewn out of a rock, and rolled a stone unto the door of the sepulchre.

And Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses beheld where He was laid.

Thus did the Lord accomplish His mortal suffering. He suffered with divine, heroic fortitude. Thus did He regard the anointing which the female disciple prepared for Him as the anointing of His body for the burial (also according to Matthew). Thus does He stand in Gethsemane over against His slumbering disciples, who know not what they speak, in the greatest self-possession and strength. He inspires the traitor with such fear, that the latter enjoins His enemies to lead Him away their prisoner, with great vigilance. He endures with a lofty, magnanimous silence. He was silent for the most part under the accusations of the false witnesses before the high priests; again. He was silent for the most part under the false accusations of the chief priests before Pilate; and He was sunk in deep and almost unbroken silence on the cross. Before the high priest He uttered only the confession, I am He — the Messiah; and ye shall see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven. Before Pilate He uttered the confession that He was the King of the Jews, with the words. Thou sayest it; and again wrapped Himself up in silence. Finally, on the cross He called out aloud, 'My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me? 'And at the last He uttered the overpowering cry with which He breathed out His life — a cry in which the heart of the heathen centurion recognized the divine power of the dying sufferer. Thus did the Lord as the Lamb of God also maintain the character of the Lion of the tribe of Judah, in the divine strength with which He completed His contest with death.

───♦───

Notes

The most of the last quoted delineations of Mark we find in a similar form also in Matthew. It is quite in accordance with the character of Mark, that the peculiar individuality of his Gospel should retire to the background in the history of the passion. Nevertheless, in single points, it occasionally shines through. The woman who anointed Jesus breaks the box over His head. Of the cup in the Supper he remarks, 'And they all drank of it.' The announcement of the denial of Peter is very definite: to-day, in this night, before the cock crow twice. Concerning the suffering of Christ in Gethsemane, he informs us, that it consisted in an hour of deep dejection which befell Him there. In the prayer of Christ itself, he has preserved the original Abba. On the other hand, he passes over the modification of the second prayer (ver. 39). To the notice of the sleep which overpowered the three disciples, which he has in common with Matthew, he adds, 'They knew not what they answered Him.' Quite characteristic is the word, 'It is now past '(ἀπέχει), which, according to him, Jesus speaks to the slumbering disciples. He informs us how the traitor exhorted the enemies to conduct the Lord away in sure custody. He mentions the designating Rabbi, Rabbi, with which Judas fawningly approaches the Lord. On the other hand, he omits the rebuke given by the Lord to Peter for striking with the sword. Again, he alone has the little episode in the history of the apprehension of Jesus, of the young man who followed Him (vers. 50-52). The open (light-giving) fire, at which Peter warmed himself among the servants, he mentions in a way suited to aid the conception. The false witness of the enemies of Jesus he gives in a more definite form: it is not, I can, but I will destroy the temple which is made with hands, and within three days build another, not made with hands. Of the false testimonies he remarks repeatedly, 'They did not agree.' According to his representation, the high priest not only stands up, but also at the same time walks into the midst — of the assembly. He states the silence of Jesus with strong emphasis (ver. 61). The first denial of Peter he characteristically describes as a timid evasion. He passes by the distinction between the first maid and the second, in the part played by the maid that kept the door — both are one. He remarks that it was the second crowing of the cock by which Peter awoke. The repentance of Peter he describes shortly and strikingly, as a great act of the heart (see above). He characterizes Barabbas most exactly (though similarly to Luke: he had been taken prisoner with them that had made insurrection, and in the insurrection had committed murder). From him we learn how speedily the people begged for the release of Barabbas, at the instigation of their superiors (xv. 8). The locality of the Pretorium he determines more exactly. He designates Simon of Gyrene as the father of Alexander and Rufus. He presents the mocking of the Crucified One in a more solemn form than Matthew (ver. 32). He gives the cry of Christ, 'My God, My God,' in the Syrian dialect. According to him, the man who gives the Lord to drink on the cross, calls out to the others, 'Let alone, let us see; 'whilst Matthew has preserved the call of the others. He describes the three women under the cross more exactly, as those who had already followed and ministered to the Lord in Galilee, and then distinguishes from them many others who had journeyed with Him to Jerusalem. Joseph of Arimathea is called here an honourable councillor; he ventures to go to Pilate; and Pilate marvels that Jesus should be already dead, inquires cautiously of the centurion whether Jesus then really had been already a considerable time — thus certainly — dead. In the highest degree characteristic is the last point mentioned. According to Matthew, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary place themselves over against the grave in silent reflection; the lively Mark, on the contrary, introduces the circumstance that they looked on, and thus remarked for themselves where Jesus was laid. The abbreviated form in which he gives the history of the passion, has necessarily resulted in a series of omissions.

1) According to Weisse (i. 602), Mark in this expression only means to say — who eateth with me, without indicating the traitor. There is lacking here a right conception of the paschal feast. It was an irregularity, that the traitor dipped his hand with Him in the dish at all, which is to be explained as the result of excitement. See above, vol. iii. p. 129.

2) 'Id est milites Romani, quos et Graeci νεανίσκους, et Latini sacpe juventutem vocant.' — Grotius in loco.

3) See above, vol. i. p. 203.

4) The various interpretations of the enigmatical ἐπιβαλών, see De Wette, p. 190. It appears to me that the Evangelist wishes to indicate an involuntary rushing out of the disciple in the direction of the cry of the cock, as if at the summons of a judge: in the first moment, the cry of the cock and the call of the judge being to him identical. Hitzig (p. 32) explains the word from the Hebrew idiom, שִׂים עַל־לב to take to heart, and quotes analogies of considerable weight, for the connection of this expression with זכר to which here ἀνεμνήσθη would correspond. This explanation, according to him, is also mediated by the reading of the Cod. St Gall — ἐπιλαβών. But that reading is probably only an attempt at explanation.

5) The reading ἀναβὰς, ver. 8, is not only to be preferred to the reading ἁνοβοήσας according to the manuscripts, but also in accordance with the parallels Matt, xxvii. 17 and Luke xxiii. 13.

6) The Evangelist considers the Pretorium as still standing, and seems to distinguish it from an outer part of the building, which was not reckoned as belonging to the Pretorium or palace of the governor. Gfrörer finds in this exactness only an awkwardness of expression, which has arisen from a slavish regard to Matthew's narrative.

7) Mark seems to indicate that they took the measure of the platted crown of thorns on the head itself.

8) See above, Book II. Part. vii. sec. 7, note 2. When Fritzsche and others read ἐσταύρωσαν as plusquamperf. in order to 'escape the impropriety of Mark speaking twice of the crucifixion, here and ver. 24,' they thereby first introduce a difficulty into the text. The word, namely, refers to the first commencement of the crucifixion, to which Mark also reckons the scourging.

9) Isa. liii. 12. The citation is not sufficiently accredited by MSS.

10) Gfrörer has entirely misapprehended the meaning of this passage, explaining it as an awkward abbreviation of Matthew (p. 198).