John 19
Amplified Bible
The Crown of Thorns
19 So then Pilate took Jesus and had Him [a]scourged (flogged, whipped). 2 And the soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on His head, and put a purple robe around Him;(A) 3 and they kept coming up to Him, saying [mockingly], “Hail, King of the Jews [Good health! Peace! Long life to you, King of the Jews]!” And they slapped Him in the face.(B) 4 Then Pilate came out again and said to them, “Look, I am bringing Him out to you so that you may know that I find no guilt in Him [no crime, no cause for an accusation].” 5 So Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe, and Pilate said to them, “Look! The Man!” 6 When the chief priests and officers saw Him, they shouted, “Crucify [Him]! Crucify [Him]!” Pilate said to them, “Take Him yourselves and crucify Him, for I find no guilt in Him [no crime, no cause for an accusation].”(C) 7 The Jews answered him, “We have a law [regarding blasphemy], and according to that law He should die, because He made Himself out to be the Son of God.”(D)
8 So when Pilate heard this said, he was [even] more [b]alarmed and afraid. 9 He went into the Praetorium again and said to Jesus, “Where are You from?” But Jesus did not answer him.(E) 10 So Pilate said to Him, “You do not speak to me? Do You not know that I have authority to release You, and I have authority to crucify You?” 11 Jesus answered, “You would have no authority over Me at all if it had not been given to you from above. For this reason the sin and guilt of the [c]one who handed Me over to you is greater [than your own].” 12 As a result of this, Pilate kept making efforts to release Him, but the Jews kept screaming, “[d]If you release this Man, you are no friend of Caesar! Anyone who makes himself out [to be] a king opposes Caesar [and rebels against the emperor]!”
13 When Pilate heard this, he brought Jesus out, and sat down on the judgment seat at a place called [e]The Pavement, but in [f]Hebrew, Gabbatha. 14 Now it was the day of Preparation for the [g]Passover [week], and it was about the sixth hour. He said to the Jews, “Look, your King!” 15 But they shouted, “Away with Him, away with Him, crucify Him!” Pilate said to them, “Shall I crucify your King?” The chief priests answered, “We have no king but Caesar!”
The Crucifixion
16 Then he handed Him over to them to be crucified.
17 So they took Jesus, and He went out, [h]bearing His own cross, to the place called [i]the Place of the Skull, which is called in Hebrew, Golgotha.(F) 18 There they crucified Him, and with Him two others, one on either side, and Jesus between them.(G) 19 Pilate also wrote an inscription [on a placard] and put it on the cross. And it was written: “JESUS THE NAZARENE, THE KING OF THE JEWS.”(H) 20 And many of the Jews read this inscription, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was written in Hebrew, in Latin, and in Greek. 21 Then the chief priests of the Jews said to Pilate, “Do not write, ‘The King of the Jews’; but, ‘He said, “I am King of the Jews.”’” 22 Pilate replied, “What I have written I have written [and it remains written].”
23 Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took His outer clothes and made four parts, a part for each soldier, and also the tunic. But the [j]tunic was seamless, woven [in one piece] from the top throughout.(I) 24 So they said to one another, “Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it, to decide whose it will be.” This was to fulfill the Scripture, “They divided My outer clothing among them, and for My clothing they cast lots.”(J) 25 So the soldiers did these things.
But standing by the cross of Jesus were His mother, His mother’s sister [[k]Salome], [l]Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.(K) 26 So Jesus, seeing His mother, and the [m]disciple whom He loved (esteemed) standing near, said to His mother, “[Dear] woman, look, [here is] your son!” 27 Then He said to the disciple (John), “Look! [here is] your mother [protect and provide for her]!” From that hour the disciple took her into his own home.
28 After this, Jesus, knowing that all was now finished, said in fulfillment of the Scripture, “I am thirsty.”(L) 29 A jar full of [n]sour wine was placed there; so they put a sponge soaked in the sour wine on [a branch of] hyssop and held it to His mouth.(M) 30 When Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And He bowed His head and [voluntarily] [o]gave up His spirit.
Care of the Body of Jesus
31 Since it was the day of Preparation [for the Sabbath], in order to prevent the bodies from hanging on the cross on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was a high holy day) the Jews asked Pilate to have their legs [p]broken [to hasten death] and the bodies taken away. 32 So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first man, and of the other who had been crucified with Him. 33 But when they came to Jesus and saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs. 34 But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came [flowing] out. 35 And he (John, the eyewitness) who has seen it has testified, and his testimony is true; and he knows that he is telling the truth, so that you also [who read this] may believe. 36 For these things took place to fulfill the Scripture, “Not a bone of His shall be broken.”(N) 37 And again another Scripture says, “They shall look at Him whom they have pierced.”(O)
38 And after this, Joseph of Arimathea—a disciple of Jesus, but secretly for fear of the Jews—asked Pilate to let him take away the body of Jesus; and Pilate gave him permission. So he came and took away His body.(P) 39 Nicodemus, who had first come to Him at night, also came bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, [weighing] about a hundred [Roman] [q]pounds. 40 So they took Jesus’ body and bound it in linen wrappings with the fragrant spices, as is the burial custom of the Jews. 41 Now there was a garden at the place where He was crucified, and in the garden a new tomb [cut out of solid rock] in which no one had yet been laid. 42 Therefore, because of the Jewish day of Preparation, and since the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.
Footnotes
- John 19:1 Because Pilate viewed Jesus as innocent, he may have ordered the beating expecting that the Jews would consider it adequate punishment and consent to Jesus’ release. Scourging was a horrific, brutal form of punishment. The glass and metal of the whip tore the body apart, exposing the vital organs. Men frequently died of the scourging.
- John 19:8 As a Roman pagan, Pilate would have been superstitious and may have feared that Jesus actually had some sort of magical or divine power.
- John 19:11 This may refer to Judas Iscariot, but Caiaphas may be the more likely one since he was directly responsible for Jesus’ going before Pilate.
- John 19:12 This put political pressure on Pilate. The Jews indicated if Pilate released Jesus they would inform Rome and Pilate’s career would be in jeopardy.
- John 19:13 Gr The Lithostrotos, i.e. the Mosaic Pavement, the Stone Platform.
- John 19:13 I.e. Jewish Aramaic.
- John 19:14 See note 18:28.
- John 19:17 The vertical post remained permanently in the ground. Jesus carried the cross beam.
- John 19:17 Latin: Calvarius or Calvary; Aram: Golgotha; Greek: Kranion.
- John 19:23 Gr khiton, the long shirtlike undergarment worn next to the skin.
- John 19:25 The mother of the apostles John and James, the sons of Zebedee.
- John 19:25 The mother of James the Younger (also called James the Less). Believed to be a sister or sister-in-law of Jesus’ mother.
- John 19:26 John, the Apostle and author of this Gospel was Jesus’ cousin.
- John 19:29 This sour wine was not to dull the senses, but to provide minimal relief to the victim. The wine mixed with gall (myrrh) that Jesus earlier had refused to drink (Matt 27:34; Mark 15:23) had narcotic qualities to deaden the pain.
- John 19:30 This wording implies that Jesus voluntarily and sovereignly released His spirit from His body in submission to God’s plan.
- John 19:31 After the legs were broken with a heavy blow, the condemned prisoner could no longer push upwards to assist his own breathing and would soon suffocate due to the awkward position that was forced on him by crucifixion. At the same time, breaking the legs was more painful than a quicker end with the point of a spear.
- John 19:39 Lit litras, equal to 12 oz each.
John 19
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
19 Then Pilate took Jesus and had him flogged.(A) 2 And the soldiers wove a crown of thorns and put it on his head, and they dressed him in a purple robe.(B) 3 They kept coming up to him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” and striking him on the face.(C) 4 Pilate went out again and said to them, “Look, I am bringing him out to you to let you know that I find no case against him.”(D) 5 So Jesus came out wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate[a] said to them, “Behold the man!”(E) 6 When the chief priests and the police saw him, they shouted, “Crucify him! Crucify him!” Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves and crucify him; I find no case against him.”(F) 7 The Jews answered him, “We have a law, and according to that law he ought to die because he has claimed to be the Son of God.”(G)
8 Now when Pilate heard this, he was more afraid than ever. 9 He entered his headquarters again and asked Jesus, “Where are you from?” But Jesus gave him no answer.(H) 10 Pilate therefore said to him, “Do you refuse to speak to me? Do you not know that I have power to release you and power to crucify you?” 11 Jesus answered him, “You would have no power over me unless it had been given you from above; therefore the one who handed me over to you is guilty of a greater sin.”(I) 12 From then on Pilate tried to release him, but the Jews cried out, “If you release this man, you are no friend of Caesar. Everyone who claims to be a king sets himself against Caesar.”(J)
13 When Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus outside and sat[b] on the judge’s bench at a place called The Stone Pavement, or in Hebrew[c] Gabbatha.(K) 14 Now it was the day of Preparation for the Passover, and it was about noon. He said to the Jews, “Here is your King!”(L) 15 They cried out, “Away with him! Away with him! Crucify him!” Pilate asked them, “Shall I crucify your King?” The chief priests answered, “We have no king but Caesar.” 16 Then he handed him over to them to be crucified.
The Crucifixion of Jesus
So they took Jesus,(M) 17 and carrying the cross by himself he went out to what is called the Place of the Skull, which in Hebrew[d] is called Golgotha.(N) 18 There they crucified him and with him two others, one on either side, with Jesus between them. 19 Pilate also had an inscription written and put on the cross. It read, “Jesus of Nazareth,[e] the King of the Jews.” 20 Many of the Jews read this inscription because the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city, and it was written in Hebrew,[f] in Latin, and in Greek. 21 Then the chief priests of the Jews said to Pilate, “Do not write, ‘The King of the Jews,’ but, ‘This man said, I am King of the Jews.’ ”(O) 22 Pilate answered, “What I have written I have written.” 23 When the soldiers had crucified Jesus, they took his clothes and divided them into four parts, one for each soldier. They also took his tunic; now the tunic was seamless, woven in one piece from the top. 24 So they said to one another, “Let us not tear it but cast lots for it to see who will get it.” This was to fulfill what the scripture says,
“They divided my clothes among themselves,
and for my clothing they cast lots.”(P)
25 And that is what the soldiers did.
Meanwhile, standing near the cross of Jesus were his mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.(Q) 26 When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing beside her, he said to his mother, “Woman, here is your son.”(R) 27 Then he said to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” And from that hour the disciple took her into his own home.
28 After this, when Jesus knew that all was now finished, he said (in order to fulfill the scripture), “I am thirsty.”(S) 29 A jar full of sour wine was standing there. So they put a sponge full of the wine on a branch of hyssop and held it to his mouth. 30 When Jesus had received the wine, he said, “It is finished.” Then he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.(T)
Jesus’s Side Is Pierced
31 Since it was the day of Preparation, the Jews did not want the bodies left on the cross during the Sabbath, especially because that Sabbath was a day of great solemnity. So they asked Pilate to have the legs of the crucified men broken and the bodies removed.(U) 32 Then the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first and of the other who had been crucified with him.(V) 33 But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. 34 Instead, one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once blood and water came out.(W) 35 (He who saw this has testified so that you also may believe. His testimony is true, and he knows[g] that he tells the truth, so that you also may continue[h] to believe.)(X) 36 These things occurred so that the scripture might be fulfilled, “None of his bones shall be broken.”(Y) 37 And again another passage of scripture says, “They will look on the one whom they have pierced.”(Z)
The Burial of Jesus
38 After these things, Joseph of Arimathea, who was a disciple of Jesus, though a secret one because of his fear of the Jews, asked Pilate to let him take away the body of Jesus. Pilate gave him permission, so he came and removed his body. 39 Nicodemus, who had at first come to Jesus by night, also came, bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, weighing about a hundred pounds.(AA) 40 They took the body of Jesus and wrapped it with the spices in linen cloths, according to the burial custom of the Jews.(AB) 41 Now there was a garden in the place where he was crucified, and in the garden there was a new tomb in which no one had ever been laid. 42 And so, because it was the Jewish day of Preparation and the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.
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New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.