Matthew 27:43Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

In what manner do these scholars precisely embody the new attributes of the Messiah during the account of the suffering Savior? They do so at the moment they seek confirmation from Jesus regarding His identity as the Messiah. This is how the Lord exposes the arrogance and wickedness of humankind!

If their glory remained intact despite their tribulations, how much less should you be shaken regarding Christ, who through both His actions and words has dispelled such doubts from our minds." "It is not humans at Golgotha who insult the majesty of God," observes St. Philaret of Moscow, "God's providence overlooks human folly, allowing freedom to operate while skillfully directing it toward His highest wisdom; the wicked servants do not outsmart the Lord; the all-loving Father does not withhold the Son, lest He annihilate the wicked. It is not earthly hostility that can diminish the love of heaven; rather, heavenly love envelops earthly hostility, so that through the sacrifice of love it may vanquish enmity and spread the light and life of love amid the darkness and shadow of death. Thus, what was rejected, could not, and was unaware, was accomplished by those who were themselves unacknowledged, powerless, and uninformed before the entire world..."

They proclaimed, "He saved others; Himself He cannot save" (Mark 15:31). They had long asserted that the Sabbath-breaker, the companion of tax collectors and sinners, could not be the Messiah, the King of Israel, reassuring the populace not to be swayed by His miracles, which they attributed to Beelzebub's power; many had disregarded their warnings, and now what had transpired? The One who claims to be the Son of God is crucified among wrongdoers. Some speculated that their motives were personal, but were they not themselves yearning for the true Messiah, the King of Israel? Would they not follow Him? Yet, how could they recognize the Messiah in One who hung on the cross, as the law of Moses pronounces, "Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree"? If He is indeed the King of Israel, let Him descend from the cross now, and we will be the first to believe in Him. Let Him come down. But why does He not come down from the Cross? He who placed His trust in God and called Him Father? If He could not descend, and if He truly delighted the Father, let God save Him from this disgraceful execution! Yet God does not intervene... These blasphemous remarks evidently affected the crowd; at least the Evangelist Luke notes that the rulers joined in the mockery (Luke 23:35). This can be understood as follows: at first, the crowd, stunned by Jesus' gentleness and His plea for those executing Him, stood mesmerized, gazing at the tragic scene in silence. But when the rulers incited the crowd with their slanderous mockery of Jesus, a similar insolent jeering echoed from the onlookers. Those passing by derided Him, shaking their heads and proclaiming, "O you who destroy the temple and in three days rebuild it, save Yourself; if you are the Son of God, come down from the cross." Were these not the false witnesses who eagerly testified against Jesus at the night session of the Sanhedrin? Their derision of His promise to destroy the temple and raise it in three days, coinciding with their earlier testimonies, indicates their identity. Undoubtedly, these words were echoed by others within the crowd.

Why did Christ not come down from the cross? For by doing so, He would have affirmed His divine authority, compelling belief in Him. Such inquiries are still posed by many today. What shall we respond? The One at whose command demons, winds, and seas obey, who cured various ailments even from afar, and raised the dead, could have certainly descended from the cross had it been required. Thus, His remaining upon the cross implies substantial reasons, known only to God. Indeed, as sinful individuals, we may not comprehend these reasons, yet we can draw conclusions from the teachings of the Lord Himself. The Gospel reveals that Christ established Himself, in His Humanity, as a model of the perfection accessible to us, urging us to emulate Him, to take Him as our example, and to live as He, the Christ-Man, lived. However, to be the embodiment of attainable perfection, He refrained from exercising His divine power for His own benefit; otherwise, He would have set an unattainable standard, making His commandments seem impossible to fulfill, thwarting the very purpose of His coming. We are aware that He never wielded His divine authority to alleviate His human frailties and suffering. As a Man, He experienced fatigue, needing rest and nourishment; He felt hunger and thirst; He rejoiced and sorrowed, unable to consistently conceal His grief, often weeping. As a Man, He faced temptation, yet He triumphed, not through divine power inherent in Him as the Son of God, but by submitting to the Father's will. He called upon this submission as a profound means to emerge victorious in the battle against temptation. He trembled in the Garden of Gethsemane at the thought of His impending suffering and implored the Father for a postponement of His will; yet, He overcame this trial through absolute willingness to the Father's will, uttering, "Not My will, but Yours be done" (Luke 22:42). In submitting to the Father's will, the excruciating suffering on the cross prompted His heartfelt plea: "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?" (Matthew 27:46). This reflects His bewilderment at the absence of His divine power during such a harrowing moment of unjust suffering. I believe the reason Christ did not descend from the cross, nor render His suffering on that painful cross insensible, is that He could not serve as a genuine model for us, demonstrating what true humanity entails, thereby failing to accomplish His mission on earth. Yet He fulfilled His purpose precisely because He refrained from using His divine power to escape human suffering and frailty. Indeed, Christ as Man fulfilled all His commandments, living in accordance with His teachings; His words were consistently aligned with His actions; He did not utilize His divine authority to ease His burden of commandment. Therefore, in His Humanity, He stands as an obligating example for us, and we are called to live as He lived; and we are capable of doing so.

Let Christ, the King of Israel, come down now from the cross that we may see and believe.” Soldiers and bystanders joined in echoing these jeers, creating an atmosphere reminiscent of a cruel celebration, devoid of mercy, surrounding the One who was suffering.

If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross.” The religious leaders joined in with their own scornful accusations, taunting, “He saved others; He cannot save Himself! If He is the Christ, the chosen of God, if He is the King of Israel, let Him come down from the cross now, that we may see and believe. Let God save Him now if He delights in Him, for He said, ‘I am the Son of God.’” In their tragic ignorance, they derided not only the One who was crucified but also blasphemed God the Father, unwittingly fulfilling the prophecy of King David, who long before described the humiliation of the suffering Messiah in the very words they uttered: “All who see Me mock Me; they shake their heads and say, ‘Trust in the Lord; let Him deliver Him; let Him rescue Him, for He delights in Him’” (Ps. 21:8-9). These miserable blasphemers rejected their true Messiah embodied in the crucified Christ, leading them to become apostates.

The Roman soldiers on guard followed the example set by the Jewish leaders. These rough men, swayed only by the surrounding mockery and lacking understanding of its meaning, approached Jesus, offering vinegar as a mock gesture of compassion and echoing what they had heard: “If You are the King of the Jews, save Yourself.” Thus, from all around Golgotha, there arose demands for the crucified Lord to descend from the cross and save Himself from a dishonorable death; yet these calls only served as a malicious jest from His adversaries, echoed by others. The wicked generation of scribes and Pharisees had previously sought signs from heaven to validate the divine authority of Christ the Savior, yet each time, the answer had been that no sign would be given except the sign of the prophet Jonah (Matt. 12:39-40; Mk. 8:11; Lk. 11:29-30). Was not this latest demand for a sign from the cross merely the final effort of the same tempter who had approached the Lord at the very beginning of His ministry (Matt. 4:1-11; Luke 4:13)? Seeing that Christ would ultimately dismantle his dominion through the cross (John 14:30; 16:11), the devil continued through his lost followers to undermine the cross of Christ (1 Cor. 1:17). Yet all the taunts of folly went unaddressed. It was unnecessary and futile to perform a sign for those who, despite witnessing many miracles, still chose to disbelieve (John 12:37) and rejected God's plan for themselves (Lk. 7:30), for they had no genuine desire to recognize the truth of Christ. Contrary to their fruitless wishes, the Divine Redeemer understood that He must fully embrace the cup of suffering (Matt. 20:22) given to Him by His Father, which He accepted willingly (Matt. 26:42; John 10:17-18). Time and again, He foretold of His suffering 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), detailing specific circumstances regarding His impending death, including Judas' betrayal (Matt. 26:21-25; Mk. 14:18-21; Lk. 22:21; John 6:70; 13:18, 21, 26), Peter's denial (Matt. 26:34; Mk. 14:30; Lk. 22:34; John 13:38), the disciples' fleeing (Matt. 26:31; John 16:32), His crucifixion (John 3:14; 8:28; 12:32-33), burial (Matt. 26:12; Mk. 14:8; John 12:7), stating that He was following the path foretold about Him (Lk. 22:22) as written in the Scriptures (Matt. 26:24; Mk. 14:21), and leading all who would follow (John 18:4), even predicting to His disciples His imminent departure (14:19; 16:5, 16, 28; 17:13). Could the Son of Man, who had indeed come at this hour (John 12:27) to give His life as a ransom for many (Matt. 20:28; Mk. 10:45), descend from the cross? No, He would not come down; all that was declared in the Scriptures must come to pass (Matt. 26:54; Lk. 24:26, 45). Jerusalem, which failed to recognize the time of its visitation (Lk. 19:44), must surpass the ancient murderers of the prophets in their transgressions (Matt. 23:32)!

No criticism could deter the Lord's mercy, which seeks to restore the fallen, from its destined course, for a singular sacrifice was being made for God. The slaughter of Christ, the true Lamb foretold ages ago, ushered the children of promise into the freedom of faith; a new covenant was established, and through Christ's blood, the heirs of the eternal kingdom were marked. The great High Priest entered the Holy of Holies, and the pure Priest passed through the veil of His flesh to appease God; the transition was made from the law to the Gospel, from the synagogue to the Church, from a multitude of sacrifices to one Divine offering. What did the pure and holy essence of the God-Man, suspended on the cross amidst the severest anguish, feel and ponder witnessing the scorn of the wicked assembly? Long before the events at Golgotha, the royal Psalmist David conveyed these thoughts and emotions prophetically through the voice of the crucified sufferer: "Many dogs have surrounded Me; the congregation of the wicked has enclosed Me. They pierced My hands and feet; I can count all My bones; they look and stare at Me" (Ps. 21:16-17). The mouth of the sinner and that of the flatterer opened against Me, filled with malicious words as they banded together against Me that day. Instead of loving Me, they exchanged goodness for evil and hatred for My love (Ps. 108:2-5). I am a stranger to My own (Ps. 68:9). Mortal afflictions have overtaken Me; deadly snares have preceded Me (Ps. 17:5-6). To accomplish Your will, O My God, Your law is within My heart (Ps. 39:9). But I beseech You, O God, may it be a time of favor; in the multitude of Your mercy, hear me, in the truth of Your salvation (Ps. 68:14). The Redeemer of humanity, when He offered Himself on the cross for the sins of the world, was focused solely on fulfilling the eternal purpose of God. He proclaimed, “Behold, I come; in the scroll of the book, it is written of Me” (Ps. 39:8), and no terrors, plagues, or depths of humiliation could deter Him from completing the work He had undertaken (John 4:34). On the cross, amidst the clamor and tumult of human passions, He exhibited obedience to the point of death, even death on a cross (Phil. 2:8). Not cries or moans escaped the lips of the suffering Savior, but rather words of intercession, exuding His limitless love for those who crucified Him and for all humanity. He not only forgave His enemies and those who crucified Him in His final moments but also obscured their transgressions out of His own volition, interceding with His Father for their pardon, striving to justify them. He was oblivious to His own anguish caused by them; He focused solely on the fact that He suffered for their sins and for the sins of all mankind. All, especially the adversaries of Christ, should have learned and acknowledged that, in the words of St. Ignatius the Theotokos, “love was crucified.”

“It is not humanity at Golgotha that mocks the majesty of God; divine providence remains unfazed by the tumult of man, allowing Him to serve His highest wisdom while maintaining individual freedom; it is not sinful servants who deceive the Lord; the all-good Father withholds nothing from His Son, lest He jeopardize the wickedness of those servants; it is not earthly hostility that crushes heavenly love; heavenly love cloaks itself in earthly enmity, so by the death of love, it may vanquish enmity and illuminate the darkness and shadow of death with the light and life of love." Thus, what was unintentional, inconceivable, and unknown to them was achieved before the whole world by those very same entities. In the depths of utter humiliation, amid profound suffering and the scorn of a frenzied crowd, the greatest glory of the Cross and the triumph of divine love are unveiled, invisible to disbelief yet tangible to faith. While His enemies attempted to taint the last moments of the crucified Lord with disdain, He sought that His death might be redemptive for them, covering their offense with their ignorance; they, in their frenzied passion, were eager to accept His innocent blood upon themselves and upon their children; He interceded that His blood would not be held against them; they were hastening to fulfill their culpable actions, while He endeavored to minimize their transgression. “Father,” the crucified Savior implored His heavenly Father, “forgive them, for they know not what they do.” If they had known, remarked the holy Apostle, “they would not have crucified the Lord of glory” (1 Cor. 2:8); had they believed the Gospel message, they would not have rejected the Holy and Righteous One, nor would they have slain the Author of Life (Acts 3:14-15). Yet this ignorance was willful and sinful, resulting from the extreme darkness of their minds and the hardness of their hearts (Matt. 13:13-15). The Lord petitions for forgiveness for their sin of ignorance. Not only were the crucifiers of Christ guilty of this ignorance, but also all those Jews who denied their Messiah and participated, whether directly or indirectly, in His death, as well as all who disbelieve the Gospel, fall under the reach of this prayer for forgiveness, which, as noted by St. John of Damascus, extends “to all without exception—Greeks, Jews, foreigners, and barbarians.” This prayer even encompasses those who, having been enlightened by Christianity, having embraced the heavenly gift and participated in the Holy Spirit, subsequently and quite deliberately crucify the Son of God for themselves (Hebrews 6:4-6), trample on Him, disregard the sanctity of the blood of the covenant, and insult the Spirit of grace (Hebrews 10:29). According to the same holy Father, Our Lord proclaimed, “Let them be forgiven once," but this plea is perpetually fulfilled; it is not merely uttered for His adversaries, but for “every nation, He continually calls, and whoever is willing receives remission.” Thus, the heavenly Teacher, who commanded the love of enemies (Matt. 5:44), realized this commandment in the last minutes of His life in the most complete manner.