in derision of His kingly claim; the cruel taunt of "Hail, King of the Jews;" and the blows inflicted by ruffian hands! Behold the Son of God, in this His deep humiliation and suffering, receiving such indignities and injuries from the very people whom He came to seek and to save. How exactly were the words of the prophet fulfilled; "He was oppressed, and He was afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth He is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so He openeth not His mouth." (Isaiah liii. 7.) And yet His own perverse and hard-hearted people, on witnessing such a sight, were only moved to greater rage, and cried out the more vehemently, "Crucify Him, crucify Him." O that we may be in no way partakers of their evil spirit, and their evil deeds; that we may enter tenderly and fully into the Redeemer's sorrows, knowing and feeling for what and for whom they were borne, even "for us men and for our salvation."Let us dwell mournfully upon the afflicting scene: it is indeed " a time to mourn:" to mourn especially for the sin, which occasioned so much sorrow; to mingle the tear of repentance with the tear of pity; and to be filled with holy love and gratitude to that divine Saviour, who endured so much for our sakes; "by whose stripes we were healed." Yea, Lord, give us the grace to follow Thee, with the eye of faith, through all Thy sufferings; and let the remembrance of them be sanctified to our soul.

LECTURE LXVIII.

The Jews, in order to work upon Pilate, had reminded him, that in letting Jesus go, he would not be Cæsar's friend; and perhaps they meant to intimate that they themselves should accuse and report him as an enemy to Cæsar.

CHAP. XIX. 13.

13. When Pilate therefore heard that saying, he brought Jesus forth, and sat down in the judgment seat in a place that is called the Pavement, but in the Hebrew, Gabbatha. In a place that was paved with marble or small stones, as was the frequent custom in those days. 14. And it was the preparation of the passover, the day before, on which they prepared for it, and about the sixth hour : or, as some think it should be, about the third hour, at nine in the morning: and he saith unto the Jews, Behold your King! 15. But they cried out, Away with him, away with him, crucify him. Pilate saith unto them, Shall I crucify your King? The Chief Gen. 49. 10. Priests answered, We have no King but Cæsar.

Nothing could mark more strongly their malice and hatred to Jesus, than this declaration. They never could bear to hear of their subjec

tion to the Roman power, and would scarcely even acknowledge it; whereas now, to serve their wicked purpose, they declared that Cæsar, and none but Cæsar, should rule over them.

16. Then delivered he him therefore unto them to be crucified. And they took Jesus, and led him away.

It is clear therefore that Pilate was worked upon by fear; and delivered Jesus to be crucified against his conscience: he pretended to lay the whole weight and reproach and blame of the sin upon the Jews: but he was as guilty before God, as if his own hand had been stained with blood. He that authorises a crime, he that sanctions or consents to it, cannot be innocent incurs the same punishment as the doer of it.

th, 13.

11,

17. And he bearing his cross went forth, Num. 15. 36. that He might not be crucified in the city, into a place called the place of a skull, which is called in the Hebrew Golgotha: 18. Where they crucified him, and two other with him, on either side one, and Jesus in the midst.

Jesus bore His cross in part, as it is said to have been customary for condemned criminals to do the weight was too great to be borne altogether by one person; and they compelled Simon, a man of Cyrene, to assist; either by carrying one end of it, or by taking it up when Jesus was overborne by the load. It is not Matt. 27. 32.

GG

certainly known, why the hill was called Golgotha: some think that its shape resembled that of a skull. This was the Hebrew name; the Latin name was Calvary, which was the same place and had the same meaning. Some suppose it to have been so called, because it was a common burying-place; but then the description would have been, not the place of a skull, but the place of skulls.

19. And Pilate wrote a title, a description of the sufferer, who and what He was, and put it on the cross. And the writing was, JESUS OF NAZARETH THE KING OF THE JEWS. 20. This title then 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 Latin.

It was written in each of these languages, in order that it might be read by a greater number of people: and Pilate might have done this, in order to shew, as publicly as possible, that it was an execution in which the Jews alone were concerned, and for which they alone were answerable; that Jesus, though put to death upon the cross, according to the Roman law, did not die for any offence against the Romans, but merely as the King of the Jews.

21. Then said the Chief Priests of the Jews to Pilate, Write not, The King of the

Jews; but that he said, I am King of the Jews. 22. Pilate answered, What I have written I have written.

He meant, that he would not alter it. Perhaps he was secretly convinced, that what he had written was true: however, having nothing more to fear, having been already driven to act against his will, and seeing their unreasonableness and injustice, he would not please them any further. Here we stop.

And now that His hour is come, the blessed Jesus is finally delivered into the hands of His blood-thirsty enemies. Behold Him taking up His own cross, and helping to bear it to the place of execution. Well may this remind us of the charge which He laid upon all His disciples; well may His great example lead us to respect and obey that charge; "If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me." (Matt. xvi. 24.) If Jesus, thus meekly and patiently and cheerfully, actually bore His own heavy cross, in addition to the burden of sorrows that lay upon Him, and this for our sake, how resolutely and devotedly ought we to bear those lesser burdens, which are but called crosses, in order that we may follow Him in every path of duty; under every trouble and every self-denial and every difficulty, which may be appointed for us, in the course of our