514

MARY-JOHN-THE ROBBERS.

offered Him a portion of their sour wine in mockery.-Luke 23:36.

FOURTH. In sad contrast there stood at a distance, for decency's sake, a group of sorrowing, weeping women, consisting of "Mary the mother of Jesus, Mary the wife of Cleopas, Mary Magdalene," and, perhaps, Salome, and Mary, and Martha, and others, with the beloved disciple John in their midst.

Seeing them, Jesus, forgetful of His own sufferings, turned to them and said, in Aramaic, first to His mother:

"Woman, behold your son;" then to John:

"John, behold your mother."

This was said in future provision for His mother, and John so understanding it says, "And from that hour I took her to my own house."

LASTLY, we note the two robbers hanging with Jesus.

We have given the reason for these two being placed here -"one on the right hand and one on the left" of Jesus―viz., for His ridicule. Not "that the scriptures might be fulfilled, which says, 'And He was numbered with the transgressors (Mark 15 28), before applied to taking the two swords. Professor Schaff says, "Verse 28 is omitted by the oldest manuscripts, and rejected by the latest critics."

These two robbers also reviled Him (Mark). One, seeing Jesus' sufferings equalling his own, said to the other: "Do you not fear God, seeing that you are justly condemned, whereas this man is innocent?" Then to Jesus he cried:

"Lord, remember me when thou comest in thy kingdom." Was not this the first man to understand that Christ's kingdom was not of this age?

The answer of Jesus was that he should be with Him in paradise that day. "Paradise is a word signifying 'beautiful land,' borrowed, by the Jews, from Persia; a waiting-place for saints till the final judgment, according to Jewish popular belief."-Abbott.

Jesus spoke to men as they could understand. His reply to this sufferer was in the popular language of the day. It

was no time to enter into explanation of facts, which would only have bewildered the poor man's mind, and increased his physical sufferings. As it was, the repentant man was assured of salvation.

Now darkness began to gather over the land: the sun was pallid, the earth quaked, casting up the dead hid in her breast; fear came upon all people, and amid the awful chaos and gloom the temple was shaken, and the veil rent in twain. That vast piece of embroidery, of purple and gold, thirty feet by sixty, with its awful pretensions, tore asunder and fell to the earth.

At this perilous hour the "Son of David," in His terrible anguish, repeating His father's words in a loud voice, cried: "My God, my God! Why hast thou forsaken me?

Couple this cry with His next words, "I thirst," and we may possibly faintly comprehend the "extraordinary physical sufferings of Jesus (especially) indicated in the phrase, why hast thou forsaken me.'"-Dr. Robinson-S. S. Times.

In answer to the cry, "I thirst," one of the pagan guard filled a sponge with the sour wine which was left of his own lunch, and raised it on a rod to the parched lips of the sufferer. This was not the myrrh mixture before mentioned, but the common sour wine of the country.

Having drank the wine, Jesus again cried in agony and died. It was three o'clock in the afternoon when He expired.

* Aramaic or Syro-Chaldaic tongue," Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani.”—Ps. 22 : 1.

CHAPTER LXIV.

THE ENTOMBMENT.

TIME-Friday, P. M., from 3 to 6 o'clock, April 7, A. D. 30.
PLACE-A Tomb in a Garden near the Western Wall of Jerusalem.

References. Matt. 27 57-61. Mark 15: 42-47.

RULY this man was the Son Luke 23: 50-56.

of God."

Such was the testimony of

John 19: 31-42.
Acts 2: 22-32.

an eye-witness to the sufferings and death of Christ, and that witness a heathen.

With the appalling darkness and the terror of the earthquake, "the multitude" in general fled back to the city, crying and smiting their breasts (Luke 23: 48), while the friends of Jesus, who had not all forsaken Him, with the brave and constant women from Galilee, stood afar off, witnessing all these marvellous

scenes.

Now night drew on apace. Soon it would be the Sabbath; and while the Romans cared nothing for the Jewish sacred day, and were accustomed to allow bodies to hang on the cross until consumed by birds and beasts of prey, or decomposition, the righteous Jews could not think of permitting three corpses to remain thus exposed so near the holy city on the Sabbath! Beside, their law explicitly stated that the body should not hang on the tree over night, but should be buried the same day.-Deut. 21: 23.

The Jews, therefore, because it was the preparation, that the bodies should not remain on the cross upon the