John 24
Why did the Roman soldiers dress Jesus as a king and mock Him? The answer is simply that they were immature – they were spiteful and cruel because they could be and none of their leaders was interested in the men being good in any way so long as they followed orders. Those giving the orders did not care if their men abused their position as soldiers by being cruel to the people. This may not have been the case with all Roman soldiers and all Roman leaders in all times and places but it was the case in Judea at this time.
We often forget that out of fear Pilate tried to let Jesus go free but his fear of men and desire for power and authority from Rome was greater than his fear of God. Pilate did not write the title for the cross out of spite or mean-spiritedness but as a way of explaining why he would kill a man he could find no-fault with. If the Jews had a king it would be his job to put down such a man to show that Rome was in charge. Pilate refused to write that Jesus claimed to be king because he wanted to make sure that nobody would question whether crucifixtion was necessary to quell the rebellion.
Three Marys stood at the foot of the cross – Mary, the mother of Christ; Mary, the wife of Cleophas (who must have been close to Christ for the Savior appeared to him on the road to Emmaus); and Mary Magdalene, the first person to whom He appeared after His resurrection and who some have speculated to be His wife.
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