THE KING’S BUSINESS
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OF THE JEWS) is the way it read in the Latin, and the most taunting way of all. The way it reads in Luke is a summary of the indictment, THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS. So instead of having here a difficulty, we really have a confirma tion of the accuracy of the four Gospel narratives even down to the very words. The Jews went out to see the crucified Saviour and read the title over the cross. Wherever they came from they could speak either Latin or Greek or Hebrew and all saw the charge there. The chief priests and Jews were naturally annoyed. There blazoned befóte their eyes was the state ment that this crucified one was their King, and they bésought Pilate to change the superscription so it would not read “THE KING OF THE JEWS” but that “He said, Í am King of the Jews.” But Pilate had done all the yielding that he would and all the priests got was a stub born refusal. There was a deeper mean ing in Pilate’s words “What I have writ ten, I have written1’ than Pilate himself realized. What Pilate had said would stand: the One that hung there was indeed the King of the Jews and no Jewish malice could change that ffict. They might have induced Pilate to change his way of put ting things, but that could not change the eternal ordination of God that the One who was dying there as a malefactor was to be to all eternity King, and King of the Jews. vs. 25-27. “Now there stood (But there was standing) by the cross of Jesus, (omit ,) His mother, and His mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Mag dalene. When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple standing by, whom He loved, He saith unto His mother, Woman, behold thy son. (!) Then saith He to the disciple, Behold (add ,) thy mother. (!) And from that hour that (the) disciple took her into his own home.” In these moments of supreme agony, while He hangs there on the cross, suffering untold agonies in His body and with His heart breaking by the reproach of men
12:10). Jesus had companions in His shame and suffering. Who were those companions? Two robbers. Seemingly they were crucified with Him to add to His dishonor, but really one of the great est consolations of that hour came from one of those two (Luke 23:40-43). It proved a wonderful privilege for that one who suffered with Christ. It is a wonder ful privilege today to suffer with Him (Phil. 3:10). vs. 19-22. "And Pilate wrote a title (add, also), and put it on the cross. And the writing was (And there was written)> JESUS OF' NAZARETH , THE KING OF THE JEWS, th is title then (there fore) read many of the Jews: for the place where Jesus' was crucified was nigh to the city. (:) and it was written in Hebrew, and Greek and iMtin (and in Latin and in Greek), Then said the chief priests of the Jews (The chief priests therefore said) to Pilate, Write not, The King of the Jews: but that (; but, that) He said, I am King of the Jews. Pilate answered, What I have written, I have written .” It was the Roman custom to put over criminals the charge upon which they were indicted. Pilate did this in this instance, but did it in a way that would annoy the Jews. He was taking his revenge upon them in this way for their having forced him to this deed. The way Pilate did it was a procla mation to them and to all coming ages, and in the three great languages, in Hebrew, the language of religion, in Latin, the language of law, and in Greek, the lan guage of literature, that Jesus of Nazareth was really the King of the Jews. . In the different Gospels we are told of three dif ferent forms of the superscription and many have taken this as a contradiction and an argument against verbal inspiration. But the superscription was put up in three different languages, and the way we have it in John is the way it read in the Greek. The way that we have it in Matthew is the way that it read in Hebrew (THIS IS JESUS, THE KING OF THE JEWS). The way we'have it in Mark (THE KING
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