In like manner also the chief priests, mocking, said with the scribes one to another: He saved others; himself he cannot save.
ομοιως και οι αρχιερεις εμπαιζοντες προς αλληλους μετα των γραμματεων ελεγον αλλους εσωσεν εαυτον ου δυναται σωσαι
9 Church Fathers comment on this verse
This is the manner in which He manifested Himself upon the cross: adorned with thorns, marred and unappealing—as though His strength had departed from Him, as if He were not the Son of God. This is how the blind perceived Him (cf. Is. 53:2).
When the Lord was nailed to the cross, it seems that His adversaries did not mock Him directly. The onlookers merely stood nearby and observed (Luke 23:35). The inscription placed above His head served as a symbol of the derision from all around. The unruly crowd, upon reading the words, shook their heads and called out, “Indeed, You who claim to restore the temple in three days! O King of Israel, why do You hesitate to rescue Yourself? What sort of Son of God are You, that You cannot come down from the cross?” (Mark 15:29). The high priests and elders did not intervene to stop the mob from deriding the Lord as He suffered; instead, they joined in, cursing and blaspheming Him in every way possible.
Their scorn was a means of countering Pilate’s cleverness, who aimed to humiliate them with the inscription. However, the chief priests were motivated by something far more significant than mere mockery. It was evident that they were primarily responsible for Jesus’ brutal execution and that Pilate had been hesitant to condemn Him. They needed to vindicate their actions in the eyes of the people and to shape public sentiment so that the foreign Jews who came to celebrate the festival would not spread the narrative that the Sanhedrin had condemned an innocent man, who may have even been the Messiah, out of their own low ambitions. History shows that honorable individuals tend to lose their credibility when ridiculed. As was their custom, the hypocrites behaved as if they were the most devoted servants of the God of Israel, the most ardent zealots for the law, and they addressed the people, saying, “Look, He saved others, but He cannot save Himself! Did we not warn you that nothing good could possibly come from this Man? That the friend of tax collectors and sinners would eventually meet his end among wrongdoers? That the desecration of the Sabbath would not go unpunished? You did not believe us, thinking He was righteous; now the truth manifests whether we were truthful or He was!” Who does not long for the Messiah? We would gladly give our lives for His arrival. But must we now have faith in a Messiah who hangs on a cross? Is there any further evidence needed? If He truly is the King of Israel, let Him come down from the cross now, and we will believe in Him immediately!” (Mark 15:32). “Indeed,” scoffed the other elders, “this is not at all the throne of a king. Now you can see what He, the Son of God, is truly like, as well as His miracles. Would the Father abandon His own Son in such a state? He trusted in God; let God rescue Him now, if He desires” (Matt. 27:39-43; Mark 15:29-32; Luke 23:35). The final jests echo similar taunts recounted by David in the psalm, voiced by the adversaries of the righteous man he describes. The prophecies were fulfilled with remarkable faithfulness, even through the unknowing actions of those who enacted them. With Jewish leaders openly mocking Him, it is no wonder that even the rough Roman soldiers on guard derided Jesus by saying, “If You are the King of the Jews, why do You not save Yourself?” Such mockery coming from the soldiers indicates the most mindless imitation. In the case of the Jewish taunt, the phrase “King of Israel, why do You not save Yourself?” carried weight, for in their minds, the Messiah must be a miracle-worker, capable of helping Himself in any situation. Conversely, the Gentiles saw the king of the Jews as just an ordinary man, and thus it did not necessarily follow that He could come down from the cross. Yet the soldiers cared little for the implications of their words, repeating what they had absorbed from others without understanding. St. Luke also notes (Luke 23:36) that the soldiers offered Jesus a sour wine, likely the drink they habitually consumed to quench their thirst in the sweltering afternoon heat. Thus, amid their derision, they did not forget to show a hint of compassion to the crucified One, whose thirst must have been far greater than their own due to His suffering, reflecting the complex nature of humanity that can hold both kindness and cruelty.
The high priests, in dispute with the scribes and Pharisees, asserted, “He saved others; if He is indeed the Christ, the chosen Son of God, let Him save Himself also” (Matt. 27:42; Luke 23:35). They challenged, “If He truly is the King of Israel, let Him come down from the cross, and we will believe in Him” (Matt. 27:42). Thus, esteemed members of the Sanhedrin, those learned in the Scriptures often speak according to their texts. The one chosen by God is identified as the Messiah in the words of the prophet Isaiah (Isaiah 42:1). Academic minds, stirred by emotion, accuse the Christ erroneously at times, interpreting His title in a way that denotes inferiority, while on other occasions, they acknowledge Him as equal to God.
They demonstrate folly by demanding a miraculous act from the King of Israel, influenced by the inscription that confused scholarly understanding. Their intent was clear: “If He is the Messiah spoken of in the inscription, let Him descend from the cross, and we will accept Him.” Nonetheless, the Sanhedrin aims to dissuade the populace from believing that Jesus is the Messiah, a role they themselves cannot outright deny. They claim indifference towards the Messiah, yet they are poised to receive Him before anyone else. The question remains: Is Jesus truly the Messiah? How does the Sanhedrin convince the people of His alleged non-Messianic status?
The Nazarene Teacher demonstrated His divine mission through miraculous acts, yet the Sanhedrin ridicules these miracles. “He saves others,” they claim. But does mockery amount to evidence? Of course not; scorn in matters of great significance speaks to shallow reasoning, and malicious derision is far worse. Might they suggest, as previously stated, that Jesus’ miracles were the handiwork of Beelzebub? Yet they have already been shown that such thoughts reflect a lack of understanding. The Sanhedrin demands proof that Jesus is the Messiah. What proof do they seek? The demand for Him to come down from the cross reflects their ignorance. What did David foretell of the Messiah? Jewish tradition regards his Psalm 21 as a prophetic declaration about the Messiah. An ancient rabbi notes that this entire psalm is about Him, wherein the Sufferer laments, “My hands and my feet have been pierced” (Psalm 21:17). The method of execution by crucifixion was entirely unknown in David’s era. It is evident that David, through prophetic insight, foresaw the Messiah’s future suffering, as well as the fate Jesus would endure due to the Sanhedrin’s actions. Why, then, do they insist that Jesus descend from the cross? If the Messiah was destined to suffer for humanity’s sins (Isaiah 53, Daniel 9), wouldn’t His coming down from the cross actually signify that He was not the Messiah? Is the Sanhedrin seeking signs from Jesus? Does this not parallel Satan’s temptation of Christ, saying, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down”? The Sanhedrin tempts God, demanding a miracle after witnessing so many and scoffing at them. “It would mean far more to rise from the tomb than to come down from the cross,” yet Caiaphas remains unmoved. He silently bears all the reproaches from the Savior, offering no response to the malice of humanity. And why should He speak, when His adversaries articulate His truth through the prophet’s words (Psalm 21:8)?
One of the condemned malefactors derided Him, declaring, “If You are the Christ, save Yourself and us” (Luke 23:39). The sun shines universally; wax melts under its heat, whereas clay hardens, becoming stone-like. This scoundrel’s heart remained untouched by the very Light of truth before him; nothing he observed in Jesus had the power to save his soul. By referring to Jesus as the Christ, it is clear he was a Jew, akin to Caiaphas. The behavior of the rulers influenced his descent into wickedness. Nevertheless, this is an unmistakably callous man. Facing eternity, where hell awaits him, he gives no thought to his own fate nor seeks salvation through the suffering Savior. Amid the anguish of the cross, he hurls insults towards the Redeemer. What a dismal portrait of evil this is, and regrettably, he is not alone. Many individuals embody this tragic reality. Consider a man who has climbed high through dubious means only to discover he has become a pitiful shadow of his former self due to life’s trials. Shouldn’t he reflect on his eternal destiny? Isn’t it time to shed the burden of his sins through genuine repentance? Should he not seek a more tranquil dwelling beyond this life? Yet, he remains preoccupied with his earthly pursuits, and, frustrated by his failures, he maligns his fellow men and even murmurs against divine Providence.
As the Lord was affirmed on the cross, the senseless multitude and hostile adversaries found no end to their mockery and scorn towards the Divine Messiah, particularly upon seeing the sign above Him: Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews. Yet, He refrained from calling upon His Father to enact retribution upon those who repaid His goodness with malice, instead, He offered a prayer filled with divine compassion, saying, ‘Father, forgive them. They do not know what they are doing (some are blinded by passions, others by ignorance).
In recounting the narrative of the Lord's agony on the cross, both Matthew and Mark highlight the same individuals who taunted and derided Christ: 1) the onlookers, 2) the chief priests accompanied by the scribes, elders, and Pharisees, and 3) the criminals who were crucified alongside Him.
The derision faced by the crucified Christ attracted the attention of the onlookers. Those in leadership, including the chief priests and elders of the Sanhedrin, could no longer dismiss the crowd’s silence. It was not pity or sorrow for the Crucified that rendered them speechless after their earlier cries for His execution. Instead, they reasoned, “Who can really fathom what this crowd is capable of? They are not versed in the law; they are condemned (John 7:49); education is essential.” This was likely the line of thought that led the chief priests and their allies to stir the crowd from its perilous silence.
According to the account of the Evangelist Mark, they began to converse among themselves loudly enough for the crowd to overhear: “He saved others, but he cannot save himself (Mark 15:31). We warned them that the Sabbath-breaker and the companion of tax collectors and sinners cannot possibly be the Messiah, the King of Israel. We cautioned them not to be swayed by His miracles, which were performed by the power of Beelzebub. Behold, He who claims to be the Son of God is crucified alongside criminals! Some suspected that our motives were personal, but are we not earnestly awaiting the true Messiah, the rightful King? We cannot accept the Messiah in Him who is suspended on the cross, for the law of Moses states, ‘Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree.’ If He truly is the King of Israel, let Him come down from the cross right now, and we will believe in Him. Let Him come down! But why doesn't He descend? He who relied on God and referred to Him as His Father. If He cannot come down from the cross, and if He indeed finds favor with God, then may God rescue Him from this disgraceful death... Yet God does not rescue…” These blasphemous remarks seemed to resonate with the crowd; at least, the Evangelist Luke notes that the rulers joined in the mockery (Luke 23:35). Initially, the spectators, struck by the profound meekness of Jesus and His intercession for those crucifying Him, stood in stunned silence. However, when the rulers began to deride Jesus, the same scornful laughter erupted from the people. Those passing by taunted Him, shaking their heads and saying, “You who destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save Yourself; if you are indeed the Son of God, come down from the cross.” Were these not the false witnesses who had eagerly testified against Jesus during the night session of the Sanhedrin? Their derision of His promise to demolish the temple and raise it in three days echoes their earlier testimonies, confirming their identity. Certainly, their words were mimicked by others as well.
Why did Christ remain on the cross? If He had descended, He would have undeniably demonstrated His divine authority, compelling all to believe in Him. Many ask such questions today. What we can say is that He, who commanded demons, winds, and the waves of the sea, who healed the sick even from a distance, could surely have come down from the cross if it had been deemed necessary. Therefore, His choice to remain implies that there were justifiable reasons for it—reasons known only to God. We, as sinful beings, may not comprehend them fully, yet we can speculate based on the Lord's own words. The Gospel reveals that Christ positioned Himself, through His humanity, as the exemplar of attainable perfection. He challenged us to imitate Him, to take Him as our guide, and to live as He, the Christ-Man, lived. To serve as a model of perfection accessible to us, He could never use His divine power for His own benefit; otherwise, He would have become a standard of perfection we could never attain, making His commands seem impossible to fulfill. Such a scenario would undermine His mission. We affirm that He consistently refrained from using His divine power to alleviate His human weaknesses and afflictions. He was weary as a man, needed food and rest, felt thirst, and endured hunger. He experienced joy and sorrow, at times unable to hide His grief, which often brought forth tears. As a man, He faced temptation but triumphed by yielding to the Father’s will. He instructed us to adopt this submission as a potent means to overcome temptation. In the Garden of Gethsemane, He recoiled at the impending suffering and pleaded with the Father for reprieve, yet overcame this trial by uttering, “Not My will, but Thy will be done” (Luke 22:42). When He surrendered to the Father’s will, the excruciating physical pain on the cross prompted His very human cry: “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” (Matthew 27:46). In this moment of anguish, one may wonder why His divine power did not alleviate His suffering. The answer appears to be that if Christ had come down from the cross or rendered His agony insensible, He could not exemplify the true humanity we are called to emulate, thus nullifying the purpose of His incarnation. He accomplished His mission precisely because He refrained from employing His divine authority to relieve His human suffering. Yes, Christ, in His humanity, perfectly fulfilled all His commandments; He lived in accordance with the teachings He imparted; His actions never contradicted His words. He did not lessen the burden of His commandments through His divine power; thus, His humanity serves as a compelling example for us. We are called to live as He lived, and we are empowered to do so.
The scene was undeniably distressing. Many individuals appeared to stand in silent contemplation, gazing at the crosses; however, a few who passed by—possibly the false witnesses and other wrongdoers from the night before—continued to deride Jesus with scornful jeers and taunts, particularly insinuating that if He truly held such power to dismantle the temple and reconstruct it in three days, He should be able to save Himself by descending from the cross. The chief priests, scribes, and elders, displaying less shame and compassion than the surrounding crowd, unabashedly mocked the aged dignity of their station and further intensified the already unbearable anguish of the Divine sufferer.
Standing before the cross, they scornfully remarked to one another: "He saved others, but He cannot save Himself. Christ, the King of Israel, let Him now come down from the cross, that we may see and believe." The onlookers and soldiers repeated these jeers, creating an atmosphere of savage triumph and insensitivity around the One who was suffering. Yet, Christ stood above this desperate humanity, who were wildly rejoicing in the death of their Savior, and remained silent. This divine silence conveyed more to certain hearts than the most eloquent sermon. It particularly impacted one of the criminals crucified alongside Him, who not only silenced the derogatory comments from his fellow wrongdoers but also rebuked his companion for his inappropriate language. A profound transformation occurred within him. According to tradition, this 'good thief' had once protected the Holy Child and the Virgin Mary during their escape to Egypt and must have heard much about the Galilean Teacher who welcomed all sinners and tax collectors. Witnessing the infinitely gentle and forgiving countenance of the Crucified, the best within him stirred, prompting him to turn to Jesus and implore with genuine compassion: "Remember me, O Lord, when Thou comest into Thy kingdom." In response to this humble plea from the repentant sinner, the previously silent Christ replied immediately: "Truly I say unto thee, now shalt thou be with Me in Paradise."
It was closer to the sixth hour than to the third, based on the Jewish timekeeping, or roughly our eleventh hour, when the crucifixion at Golgotha occurred, and the Savior’s body was laid bare for the entirety of Jerusalem to see. A large and varied multitude, journeying to and from the city, including the enforcers of civil law—members of the Sanhedrin, coarse Roman soldiers, and even condemned thieves—jeered and cruelly ridiculed the Divine Sufferer who was being crucified.
As our Divine Redeemer hung on the heights of His Cross, everything He witnessed and heard intensified His physical agony with profound moral anguish. Present at Golgotha were the chief priests and the members of the Sanhedrin, who, despite the impending great feast, sought to witness the execution of the sentence firsthand, driven by their desire for vengeance as they gazed upon the suffering Jesus. They aimed to taint His final moments with slander and mockery. The onlookers remained silent, while those passing by stopped, shaking their heads in contempt, proclaiming, “O ye that destroy the temple, and build it in three days!
Save yourself: if you are the Son of God, come down from the cross.” The chief priests, along with the scribes, elders, and Pharisees, reinforced the derision of the passersby with ridiculing remarks. They taunted one another, exclaiming, “He saved others; can He not save Himself? If He is the Christ, God’s chosen one, if He is the King of Israel, let Him come down now from the cross, that we may see and believe in Him. Let Him trust in God, so that God may deliver Him now if He desires, for He claims to be the Son of God.” In their tragic blindness, they not only mocked the crucified Messiah but also blasphemed the Father Himself. Simultaneously, they unwittingly fulfilled the words of the royal prophet David, who had long foretold the humiliation of the suffering Christ: “All they that see Me mock Me: they shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying, ‘He trusted in the Lord that He would deliver him: let Him deliver him, seeing He delighted in him” (Ps. 21:8-9). In their wretchedness, they blasphemed the true Messiah in the person of the crucified Christ and became apostates by their rejection of Him.
The actions of the Jewish leaders were echoed by the Roman soldiers on guard. These rough and unrefined men, hearing the mockery around them and failing to grasp its significance, approached the Lord, offering Him vinegar as a gesture of pity for His plight, and repeated the taunts they had heard: “If You are the King of the Jews, save Yourself.” Thus, from all sides at Golgotha arose demands for the crucified one to come down from the cross and to rescue Himself from this disgraceful death—yet all these appeals were malicious mockery, clearly articulated by the enemies of Christ and echoed by others following their lead. The wicked generation of scribes and Pharisees had previously sought signs from heaven to validate the Divine nature of Christ, but each time they were told that no sign would be given to them except the sign of Jonah the prophet (Matt. 12:39-40; Mk. 8:11; Lk. 11:29-30). Was not this latest quest for a sign from the cross merely the final temptation from the adversary who had approached the Lord at the outset of His ministry (Mt. 4:1-11; Lk. 4:13)? The devil, the enemy of our salvation, recognized that Christ would dismantle his dominion through the cross (Jn. 14:30; 16:11) and persisted in trying to abolish the message of the cross through his doomed followers (1 Cor. 1:17). However, all the challenges born of this futile madness went unanswered. It was neither necessary nor effective to perform miracles for those who had witnessed many of the Lord’s wonders yet remained unbelieving (John 12:37) and had rejected God’s purpose for themselves (Lk. 7:30) because within them was no genuine inclination to grasp the truth of Christ.
Contrarily, the Divine Redeemer understood that He needed to fully drink from the cup of suffering (Matt. 20:22), the cup presented to Him by His Father, which He accepted willingly (Matt. 26:42; Jn. 10:17-18). He had repeatedly foretold His impending sufferings and death on the cross (Matt. 16:21; 17:12, 22-23; 20:18-19; 26:2; Mk. 8:31; 9:12, 31; 10:33; Lk. 9:22, 44; 13:33; 17:25; 21:15-16; 24:7), highlighting specific circumstances surrounding His upcoming demise, including Judas’ betrayal (Matt. 26:21-25; Mk. 14:18-21; Lk. 22:21; Jn. 6:70; 13:18, 21, 26), Peter’s denial (Matt. 26:34; Mk. 14:30; Lk. 22:34; Jn. 13:38), and the flight of the disciples (Matt. 26:31; Jn. 16:32), along with His crucifixion (Jn. 3:14; 8:28; 12:32-33) and burial (Matt. 26:12; Mk. 14:8; Jn. 12:7). He spoke of events to come as fulfilling His own words (Lk. 22:22) and as prophesied about Him (Matt. 26:24; Mk. 14:21), leading even the coming generations (Jn. 18:4) and foretelling to His disciples of His imminent departure (14:19; 16:5, 16, 28; 17:13). Could the Son of Man, who had arrived at this hour (John 12:27) to give His life as a ransom for many (Matt. 20:28; Mk. 10:45), come down from the cross? No, He would not descend, for all spoken in the Scriptures must come to fruition (Matt. 26:54; Lk. 24:44). Jerusalem, having failed to recognize the time of its visitation (Lk. 19:44), must fill to overflowing the measure of wickedness as did the ancient murderers of prophets (Mt. 23:32)! The Lord’s unfailing mercy, which restores the fallen, remained on its chosen path, for a unique sacrifice was being offered to God at that moment. The sacrifice of Christ, the true Lamb foretold many centuries prior, ushered the children of promise into the freedom of faith; the new covenant was established, and through Christ’s blood, heirs of the eternal kingdom were granted their inheritance. The great Shepherd entered the Holy of Holies, and the immaculate High Priest passed through the veil of His flesh to appease God. The transition occurred from the Law to the Gospel, from the synagogue to the Church, from a multitude of sacrifices to the one Divine sacrifice.
Passages read together with this verse.
Greek text, 17 words with lemma, transliteration and Strong’s number. Tap to expand.
THEOSIS