The Perfect Lamb
Now it was the day of Preparation, and the next day was to be a special Sabbath. Because the Jews did not want the bodies left on the crosses during the Sabbath, they asked Pilate to have the legs broken and the bodies taken down … But when they came to Jesus and found that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. Instead one of the soldiers pierced Jesus’ side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water … These things happened so that the scripture would be fulfilled: ‘Not one of his bones will be broken,’ and, as another scripture says, ‘They will look on the one they have pierced’ John 19:31,33,34,36,37
‘Now it was the day of Preparation, and the next day was to be a special Sabbath.’ Preparation day was not the day of preparation for the Passover meal but for the Sabbath that immediately followed. It was a special Sabbath because it occurred in the Passover week.
‘Because the Jews did not want the bodies left on the crosses during the Sabbath, they asked Pilate to have the legs broken and the bodies taken down.’ From Deuteronomy 21:22,23 the Jews believed that leaving the dead body of an executed man on a tree overnight desecrated the land. So they asked Pilate if the bodies of Jesus and the other two crucified with him be removed before sunset when the Sabbath would begin. Breaking the legs of those crucified hastened their deaths by preventing the victims pushing themselves up using their legs. The arms alone cannot carry the weight for long and the victims soon die of asphyxiation. ‘But when they came to Jesus and found that he was already dead, they did not break his legs.’ Jesus was already dead.
‘Instead one of the soldiers pierced Jesus’ side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water.’ There are at least two explanations for what John describes. The first is that the spear penetrated Jesus’ heart and the flow was the clear fluid from the pericardial sac and blood from the heart itself. Another explanation is that severe injury to the chest can result in hemorrhagic fluid gathering between the rib cage and the lung. This can separate into clear serum and red fluid, both of which flow out when the chest cavity is pierced.
‘These things happened so that the scripture would be fulfilled: ‘Not one of his bones will be broken,’ and, as another scripture says, ‘They will look on the one they have pierced.’’ The first quotation is from Psalm 34:20 with a probable allusion to the Passover lamb, whose bones were not to be broken (Exodus 12:6; Numbers 9:12). The second is from Zechariah 12:10 and drawn from a passage that speaks of the mourning of Israel before their restoration. A time of great suffering and mourning would come upon Jerusalem, but through it God would bring about rescue, redemption and deliverance. The immediate result of the piercing and mourning would be a fountain being opened for the house of David and the people of Jerusalem, a fountain that would cleanse them from sin and impurity (Zechariah 12:1).
John probably also had in mind the last day when the world will look on the one who was pierced and lament (Revelation 1:7). For John, the fact that Jesus’ sufferings were foreshadowed in Scripture shows that all this took place in accord with God’s plan. It was not just a terrible miscarriage of justice. The intricacy of God’s plan is staggering. Remember that the next time you doubt His wisdom or care over your life.
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