Daily Devotion for Thursday 31st July 2025

St John 19: 31 – 37

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. Then the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first and of the other who had been crucified with him. But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. Instead, one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once blood and water came out. (He who saw this has testified so that you also may believe. His testimony is true, and he knows that he tells the truth.)  These things occurred so that the scripture might be fulfilled, ‘None of his bones shall be broken.’  And again another passage of scripture says, ‘They will look on the one whom they have pierced.’

Reflection

So this is how it ends? Jesus is hanging there lifelessly. The crowds are slowly dissipating.  What were they thinking? Some maybe wanted to witness just one more miracle. But look at him now, or maybe they can’t even do that? It’s been too brutal, his body looks so crushed and broken, so fragile. The detail of his bones not being broken seems incidental, they’ve already driven the life out of him, what does it matter?

This was the prophet, healer, teacher, we even hoped he was the Messiah, and now? On any other Sabbath Eve a body would be left and some bodies were left for days, partly as a warning. This was a special Sabbath – a more holy day; Passover – when the angel of death passed over and spared the first born sons (no irony intended then, when God’s first born son hadn’t been spared) 

The Romans wouldn’t have cared either way about the body of a dead criminal, but the Jewish authorities looked to the Law of Moses and the needs to bring a body to burial (Deuteronomy 21: 21-22) This Law is more to protect the people and the land, lest they and it be defiled, than out of respect for the body of the dead person or dignity in burial (who in their eyes was outside of God’s favour) It was almost about getting him out of sight, any maybe hopefully soon out of mind of those people who had foolishly put their trust and faith in him.

But did the pierced side and non-broken bones worry those who knew their scriptures? Just like the passover lamb, a sacrifice without its bones broken has now been made, and an echo of Zechariah and Isaiah infused the images of a pierced side, an atonement.

What more could a Messiah do, but to save his people?

Prayer

Suffering and atoning Jesus
Making the prophets and the gospel true
Save us, hear us and help us
Amen