Глава пятнадцатая

Mark 15:1. Immediately in the morning, the high priests with the elders and scribes and the entire Sanhedrin held a meeting and, having bound Jesus, took him away and handed him over to Pilate. Mark 15:2. Pilate asked Him: Are you the King of the Jews? He answered and said to him, “You speak.” Mark 15:3. And the chief priests accused Him of many things. Mark 15:4. Pilate asked Him again: “Are you not answering?” Do you see how many accusations are against You? Mark 15:5. But Jesus did not answer anything to this either, so Pilate marveled. Mark 15:6. For every holiday, he released to them one prisoner they asked for. Mark 15:7. Then there was a man in bonds named Barabbas, with his accomplices, who committed murder during the rebellion. Mark 15:8. And the people began to shout and ask Pilate for what he had always done for them. Mark 15:9. He answered and said to them: Do you want me to release the King of the Jews to you? Mark 15:10. For he knew that the high priests had betrayed Him out of envy. Mark 15:11. But the high priests stirred up the people to ask him to release Barabbas to them. Mark 15:12. Pilate, answering, again said to them: What do you want me to do with Him whom you call the King of the Jews? Mark 15:13. They shouted again: crucify Him. Mark 15:14. Pilate said to them, “What evil has He done?” But they shouted even more loudly: crucify Him. Mark 15:15. Then Pilate, wanting to do what was pleasing to the people, released Barabbas to them, and beat Jesus and handed him over to be crucified. The Jews betrayed the Lord to the Romans; For this reason they themselves were betrayed by the Lord into the hands of the Romans. And the words of Scripture came true: “Woe to the wicked, for there will be retribution for him for the works of his hands” (Is. 3:11); and again: “Reward them according to their deeds” (Ps. 27:4); and also: “As you have done, so it will be done to you” (Abd. 1:15). To Pilate’s question: “Are you the King of the Jews?” – The Lord gives a mutual answer. For the words “You speak” can be understood this way: you speak the truth, you yourself expressed Who I am; or you can understand it this way: I don’t say this, but you do. But being asked another time, Christ did not answer anything and thereby surprised Pilate. For Pilate marveled that He, being versed in the law and eloquent and having the opportunity with one answer to overthrow the slander brought against Him, did not say anything, but, on the contrary, humbly endured the accusations. Note the bloodthirstiness of the Jews and the moderation of Pilate (although he too is worthy of condemnation, because he did not stand firmly for the righteous). For they shouted: “Crucify Him,” and he, although weakly, however, tried to free Jesus from condemnation. Therefore, he asked again, what will I do to Jesus? - trying to give them the opportunity to release the Lord as innocent, which is why he hesitated and postponed. Finally, yielding to their demand, he began to beat the Lord, that is, hit him with a belt whip, so that it would be clear that they accepted Him as already condemned at the judgment seat, and “handed him over to be crucified.” For he wanted to do what was pleasing, pleasing to the people, and not what was pleasing to God. Mark 15:16. And the soldiers took Him inside the courtyard, that is, to the praetorium, and gathered the whole regiment, Mark 15:17. and they clothed Him in scarlet, and wove together a crown of thorns, and laid it on Him; Mark 15:18. and they began to greet Him: Rejoice, King of the Jews! Mark 15:19. And they beat Him on the head with a cane, and spat on Him, and, kneeling down, bowed to Him. Mark 15:20. When they mocked Him, they took off His scarlet robe, dressed Him in His own clothes, and led Him out to crucify Him. Mark 15:21. And they forced a certain Simon of Cyrene, the father of Alexander and Rufus, who was passing by, coming from the field, to carry His cross. The military class, always consoled by outrages and insults, has now shown its usual characteristic. For if the Jews, who heard so many teachings from Christ and received so many benefits from Him, inflicted so many insults on Him, then what can we say about the pagans? So, they call a whole detachment against Him, dress Him in purple as a king to mock Him, and begin to beat Him; they take a crown of thorns instead of a diadem, and a cane instead of a scepter. These servants of the devil forced, as it is said, someone to bear His cross; Meanwhile, another evangelist says that Jesus walked carrying the cross on Himself (John 19:17). But it was both: at first, for some time He Himself carried the tree of the cross, and when they found someone else capable of carrying it, then they forced the latter, and the cross was carried by him. And why is it said what sons this man was the father of? For greater confirmation, because that person was probably still alive and could retell everything about the cross. But let us also be clothed in purple, royal clothing. What I want to say is that we must march like kings, stepping on the snake and the scorpion and defeating sin. We are called Christians, that is, anointed, just as kings were once called Christ. Therefore, let our life be not slavish and base, but royal and free. Let us wear the crown of thorns, that is, we strive to be crowned with a life that is strict, abstinent, alien to carnal pleasures, and not luxurious, pampered and devoted to sensual pleasures. Let us also become “Simon,” which means obedience, and take up the cross of Jesus, “putting to death our lives that are on the earth” (Col. 3:5). Mark 15:22. And they brought Him to the place of Golgotha, which means: Place of Execution. Mark 15:23. And they gave Him wine and myrrh to drink; but He did not accept. Mark 15:24. Those who crucified Him divided His garments, casting lots to see who should take what. Mark 15:25. It was the third hour, and they crucified Him. Mark 15:26. And the inscription of His guilt was: King of the Jews. Mark 15:27. Two thieves were crucified with Him, one on His right and the other on His left. Mark 15:28. And the word of Scripture came true: “and he is numbered among the evildoers” (Is. 53:12). There is a legend that has come down to us from the holy fathers that Adam was buried on Calvary. Here the Lord is crucified, healing the fall and death of Adam, so that the destruction of death would follow there, where death began. “They gave Him wine and myrrh to drink”; but myrrh is the most bitter liquid; This means that it was given to the Lord as a reproach to Him. Another evangelist says that the Lord was given vinegar with gall (Matthew 27:34), and the third says that something else was offered to Him. But there is no contradiction in this; During the disorder of that time, some brought one thing, others another: one brought vinegar with gall, the other wine with myrrh. Or it could be that the wine was acidic and the myrrh rancid, and, therefore, the evangelists agree with each other when one of them speaks of wine with myrrh, and the other - of vinegar with gall. For wine could be called vinegar, and myrrh - gall, the first because of its acid, the second because of its bitterness. In the same way, when one says that “they gave Him a drink, but He did not take it,” this does not contradict the other, who says: “And having tasted it, He did not want to drink” (Matthew 27:34). For when it is said “did not take”, it is already clearly shown that he did not drink. And they cast lots for His clothes also to mock Him, that is, dividing among themselves as if they were royal clothes, although they were meager. They also wrote the guilt for which the Lord was crucified: “King of the Jews,” in order to disgrace His glory as an outrageous man who calls Himself a king, and so that all those passing by would not only not regret Him, but, on the contrary, would attack Him as the thief of royal power. But how does Mark say that Christ was crucified at the third hour, and Matthew says that darkness occurred at the sixth hour? We can say that he was crucified at the third hour, and darkness began from the sixth hour and continued until the ninth. And the Lord was crucified with the robbers so that people would have a bad opinion of Him, that He too was a villain. But this was at the discretion of God, for, on the one hand, the prophecy was fulfilled: “he was numbered among the evildoers” (Is. 53:12), on the other hand, the two thieves were images of two peoples - Jewish and pagan. Both of these peoples were lawless - the pagan, as having transgressed the natural law, the Jewish, as having transgressed both this law and the written one, which God gave him. But the pagan people turned out to be prudent robbers, on the contrary, the Jewish people turned out to be blasphemers to the end. In the midst of these two nations the Lord is crucified, since He is the Stone that unites us in Himself. Mark 15:29. Those passing by cursed Him, nodding their heads and saying: Eh! destroying the church, and building in three days! Mark 15:30. save yourself and come down from the cross. Mark 15:31. Likewise, the high priests and the scribes, mocking, said to each other: He saved others, but he cannot save himself. Mark 15:32. Let Christ, the King of Israel, now come down from the cross, so that we may see and believe. And those crucified with Him reviled Him. “Those who pass by,” that is, those who passed along the road where the Lord was crucified, and those, says the evangelist, blasphemed the Lord, reproaching Him as a deceiver. Since the Lord, working miracles, saved many, then, like those passing by, the bishops also said: He saved others, but He does not save Himself? They said this, mocking His miracles and considering them ghostly phenomena. But the devil urged them to say, “come down from the cross.” Since the leader of evil knew that salvation would be achieved through the cross, he again tempted the Lord, so that in the event of His descent from the cross, he would be convinced that He was not the Son of God, and so that the salvation of people through the cross would thus be destroyed. But He was the true Son of God, and that is precisely why He did not come down from the cross. On the contrary, since He knew that this would be for the salvation of people, He decided to be crucified, and to endure everything else, and to complete His work. And those crucified with Him at first both reviled Him. Then one of them recognized Him as innocent and even admonished the other when he blasphemed. Mark 15:33. At the sixth hour darkness came over the whole earth and continued until the ninth hour. Mark 15:34. At the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice: Eloi! Eloi! lamma - sabachthani? which means: My God! My God! Why have you forsaken me? Mark 15:35. Some of those standing there heard it and said, “Look, he is calling Elijah.” Mark 15:36. And one ran, filled a sponge with vinegar and, putting it on a reed, gave Him a drink, saying: wait, let's see if Elijah comes to take Him down. Mark 15:37. Jesus cried out loudly and gave up the ghost. The darkness was not in one place, but throughout the whole earth. And if then there was a time of damage (of the moon), then someone could still say that it was a natural eclipse. But now it was the fourteenth day of the month, when a natural eclipse is impossible. The Lord pronounces the prophetic saying in Hebrew, showing that He honors the Hebrew until the last breath. “Why have you forsaken me?” - He says on behalf of human nature, as it were: why did You, God, leave me, a man, so that I needed God to be crucified for me? For we humans were abandoned, but He was never abandoned by the Father. Listen to what He Himself says: “I am not alone, for the Father is with Me” (John 16:32). Or does he say that he is also for the Jews, since He Himself was a Jew in the flesh: “Why have You forsaken Me,” that is, the Jewish people, so that they crucify Your Son? Just as we usually say: God clothed himself in me, instead of in human nature, so here the expression: “He has forsaken me” must be understood instead of My human nature or My Jewish people. “And one ran, filled a sponge with vinegar and gave Him something to drink,” so that the bitterness of the vinegar would kill Him more quickly. Jesus gave up his spirit, crying out with a loud voice, that is, as if calling for death, as the Master and dying according to His authority. And what a voice there was, this was indicated by Luke: “Father! into Your hands I commend My spirit” (Luke 23:46). By this the Lord has done for us that the souls of the saints go into the hands of God. For before the souls of all were kept in hell, until He came who preached remission to the captives. Mark 15:38. And the veil of the church was torn in two, from top to bottom. Mark 15:39. The centurion standing opposite Him, seeing that He had given up the ghost after having cried thus, said: Truly this man was the Son of God. Mark 15:40. There were also women here who looked from afar: among them was Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the less and Josiah, and Salome, Mark 15:41. who, even when He was in Galilee, followed Him and served Him, and many others who came with Him to Jerusalem. The veil was torn as a sign that the grace of the Spirit had departed from the temple, that the Holy of Holies would become visible and accessible to everyone, as it happened when the Romans entered, and that the church itself would lament. Just as the Jews usually acted in misfortunes and tore their clothes, so the church, as if animated, showed the same thing during the suffering of the Creator, tearing its clothes. But this also means something else. Our flesh is the veil of our church, that is, the mind. So, the power that the flesh had over the spirit is torn by the sufferings of Christ “from top to bottom,” that is, from Adam to the last man. For Adam was also sanctified by the sufferings of Christ, and his flesh is no longer subject to curse and corruption; on the contrary, we are all honored by incorruptibility. The centurion, that is, the leader of a hundred soldiers, seeing that He died so sovereignly, was surprised and confessed. Notice how order has changed! The Jews kill, the pagan confesses; The students run away, the wives remain. “There were,” says the evangelist, “and there were women; among them was Mary Magdalene, and Mary, the mother of James the less and Josiah,” that is, the Mother of God, who was their mother. Since She was betrothed to Joseph, and Jacob and Josiah were Joseph’s children, She is called their mother, like a stepmother, just as She was also called Joseph’s wife in the form of a bride. Salome, the mother of the sons of Zebedee, and many others were also there. The evangelist mentioned only the most important ones. Mark 15:42. And when evening had already come, because it was Friday, that is, the day before Saturday, Mark 15:43. Joseph came from Arimathea, a famous member of the council, who himself expected the Kingdom of God, dared to enter Pilate, and asked for the body of Jesus. Mark 15:44. Pilate was surprised that He had already died, and, calling the centurion, asked him how long ago He had died? Mark 15:45. And, having learned from the centurion, he gave the body to Joseph. Mark 15:46. He bought a shroud and took Him off, wrapped him in the shroud, and laid Him in a tomb, which was hewn out of the rock, and rolled the stone to the door of the tomb. Mark 15:47. Mary Magdalene and Mary of Joseph looked where they laid Him. Blessed Joseph, while still serving the Law, recognized Christ as God, which is why he dared to undertake a commendable feat. He did not think: I am rich and I can lose my wealth if I ask for the body of the One who is condemned for appropriating royal power to Himself, and I will become hated by the Jews - so he did not think about anything like that with himself, but, leaving everything as less important, he asked for one thing - to bury the body of the Condemned One. “Pilate was surprised that He had already died,” for he thought that Christ would endure suffering for a long time, like the thieves, which is why he asked the centurion: “How long has it been since he died?” . That is, did he really die prematurely? Having received the body, Joseph bought a shroud and, taking off the body, wrapped it around it, giving it an honest burial. For he was himself a disciple of Christ, and knew how to honor the Master. He was “famous,” that is, a respectable, pious, impeccable man. As for the title of adviser, it was a certain dignity or, better, a service and a civil position, which those who had had to manage the affairs of the court, and here they were often exposed to dangers from the abuses inherent in this place. Let the rich and those engaged in public affairs hear how the dignity of a counselor did not in the least hinder the virtue of Joseph. The name “Joseph” means “offering,” and “Arimathea” means “take it.” Let us, following the example of Joseph, always apply zeal to virtue and take it, that is, true good. May we be worthy to receive the Body of Jesus through Communion and place it in a tomb carved out of stone, that is, in a soul that firmly remembers and does not forget God. Let our soul be hewn out of stone, that is, having its confirmation in Christ, Who is the Stone. Let us wrap this Body in a shroud, that is, let us accept it into a pure body, for the body is, as it were, a shroud of the soul. The Divine Body must receive not only a pure soul, but also a pure body. It must be precisely wrapped around it, that is, covered, and not revealed, for the Sacrament must be covered, hidden, and not revealed.