Matthew 27:32-37
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
32 (A)As they were going out, they met a Cyrenian named Simon; this man they pressed into service to carry his cross.
The Crucifixion. 33 (B)And when they came to a place called Golgotha (which means Place of the Skull), 34 (C)they gave Jesus wine to drink mixed with gall.[a] But when he had tasted it, he refused to drink. 35 (D)After they had crucified him, they divided his garments[b] by casting lots; 36 then they sat down and kept watch over him there. 37 And they placed over his head the written charge[c] against him: This is Jesus, the King of the Jews.
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- 27:34 Wine…mixed with gall: cf. Mk 15:23 where the drink is “wine drugged with myrrh,” a narcotic. Matthew’s text is probably an inexact allusion to Ps 69:22. That psalm belongs to the class called the individual lament, in which a persecuted just man prays for deliverance in the midst of great suffering and also expresses confidence that his prayer will be heard. That theme of the suffering Just One is frequently applied to the sufferings of Jesus in the passion narratives.
- 27:35 The clothing of an executed criminal went to his executioner(s), but the description of that procedure in the case of Jesus, found in all the gospels, is plainly inspired by Ps 22:19. However, that psalm verse is quoted only in Jn 19:24.
- 27:37 The offense of a person condemned to death by crucifixion was written on a tablet that was displayed on his cross. The charge against Jesus was that he had claimed to be the King of the Jews (cf. Mt 27:11), i.e., the Messiah (cf. Mt 27:17, 22).
Mark 15:21-26
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
The Way of the Cross. 21 They pressed into service a passer-by, Simon, a Cyrenian,[a] who was coming in from the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to carry his cross.(A)
The Crucifixion. 22 (B)They brought him to the place of Golgotha (which is translated Place of the Skull). 23 They gave him wine drugged with myrrh, but he did not take it. 24 [b](C)Then they crucified him and divided his garments by casting lots for them to see what each should take. 25 It was nine o’clock in the morning[c] when they crucified him. 26 [d]The inscription of the charge against him read, “The King of the Jews.”
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- 15:21 They pressed into service…Simon, a Cyrenian: a condemned person was constrained to bear his own instrument of torture, at least the crossbeam. The precise naming of Simon and his sons is probably due to their being known among early Christian believers to whom Mark addressed his gospel. See also notes on Mt 27:32; Lk 23:26–32.
- 15:24 See notes on Mt 27:35 and Jn 19:23–25a.
- 15:25 It was nine o’clock in the morning: literally, “the third hour,” thus between 9 a.m. and 12 noon. Cf. Mk 15:33, 34, 42 for Mark’s chronological sequence, which may reflect liturgical or catechetical considerations rather than the precise historical sequence of events; contrast the different chronologies in the other gospels, especially Jn 19:14.
- 15:26 The inscription…the King of the Jews: the political reason for the death penalty falsely charged by the enemies of Jesus. See further the notes on Mt 27:37 and Jn 19:19.
Luke 23:26-35
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
26 (A)As they led him away they took hold of a certain Simon, a Cyrenian, who was coming in from the country; and after laying the cross on him, they made him carry it behind Jesus. 27 A large crowd of people followed Jesus, including many women who mourned and lamented him. 28 (B)Jesus turned to them and said, “Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me; weep instead for yourselves and for your children, 29 for indeed, the days are coming when people will say, ‘Blessed are the barren, the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed.’ 30 At that time people will say to the mountains, ‘Fall upon us!’ and to the hills, ‘Cover us!’(C) 31 for if these things are done when the wood is green what will happen when it is dry?” 32 Now two others, both criminals, were led away with him to be executed.
The Crucifixion.(D) 33 When they came to the place called the Skull, they crucified him and the criminals there, one on his right, the other on his left.(E) 34 [Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, they know not what they do.”][a] They divided his garments by casting lots.(F) 35 The people stood by and watched; the rulers, meanwhile, sneered at him and said,(G) “He saved others, let him save himself if he is the chosen one, the Messiah of God.”(H)
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