Matthew 27:36

27:36 Then they sat down and kept guard over him there.

Matthew 27:39-41

27:39 Those ¹  who passed by defamed him, shaking their heads 27:40 and saying, “You who can destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself! ²  If you are God’s Son, come down ³  from the cross!” 27:41 In ⁴  the same way even the chief priests – together with the experts in the law ⁵  and elders ⁶  – were mocking him: ⁷ 

Mark 15:29-32

15:29 Those who passed by defamed him, shaking their heads and saying, “Aha! You who can destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, 15:30 save yourself and come down from the cross!” ⁸  15:31 In the same way even the chief priests – together with the experts in the law ⁹  – were mocking him among themselves: ¹⁰  “He saved others, but he cannot save himself! 15:32 Let the Christ, ¹¹  the king of Israel, come down from the cross now, that we may see and believe!” Those who were crucified with him also spoke abusively to him. ¹² 

Luke 23:27

23:27 A great number of the people followed him, among them women ¹³  who were mourning ¹⁴  and wailing for him.

Luke 23:35

23:35 The people also stood there watching, but the rulers ridiculed ¹⁵  him, saying, “He saved others. Let him save ¹⁶  himself if ¹⁷  he is the Christ ¹⁸  of God, his chosen one!”

¹ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

² sn There is rich irony in the statements of those who were passing by, “save yourself!” and “come down from the cross!” In summary, they wanted Jesus to come down from the cross and save his physical life, but it was indeed his staying on the cross and giving his physical life that led to the fact that they could experience a resurrection from death to life.

³ tc ‡ Many important witnesses (א* A D pc it sy^[s],p) read καί (kai, here with the force of “then”) before κατάβηθι (katabhqi, “come down”). The shorter reading may well be due to homoioarcton, but judging by the diverse external evidence (א² B L W Θ 0250 Ë^1,13 33 Ï lat) it is equally possible that the shorter reading is original (and is so considered for this translation). NA²⁷ puts the καί in brackets, indicating doubts as to its authenticity.

⁴ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated.

⁵ tn Or “with the scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 2:4.

⁶ tn Only “chief priests” is in the nominative case; this sentence structure attempts to capture this emphasis.

⁷ tn Grk “Mocking him, the chief priests…said.”

⁸ sn There is rich irony in the statement of those who were passing by, “Save yourself and come down from the cross!” In summary, they wanted Jesus to come down from the cross and save his physical life, but it was indeed his staying on the cross and giving his physical life that led to the fact that they could experience a resurrection from death to life. There is a similar kind of irony in the statement made by the chief priests and experts in the law in 15:31.

⁹ tn Or “with the scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 1:22. Only “chief priests” is in the nominative case; this sentence structure attempts to capture this emphasis.

¹⁰ tn Grk “Mocking him, the chief priests…said among themselves.”

¹¹ tn Or “the Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”

¹² sn Mark’s wording suggests that both of the criminals spoke abusively to him. If so, one of them quickly changed his attitude toward Jesus (see Luke 23:40-43).

¹³ sn The background of these women is disputed. Are they “official” mourners of Jesus’ death, appointed by custom to mourn death? If so, the mourning here would be more pro forma. However, the text seems to treat the mourning as sincere, so their tears and lamenting would have been genuine.

¹⁴ tn Or “who were beating their breasts,” implying a ritualized form of mourning employed in Jewish funerals. See the note on the term “women” earlier in this verse.

¹⁵ tn A figurative extension of the literal meaning “to turn one’s nose up at someone”; here “ridicule, sneer at, show contempt for” (L&N 33.409).

¹⁶ sn The irony in the statement Let him save himself is that salvation did come, but later, not while on the cross.

¹⁷ tn This is a first class condition in the Greek text.

¹⁸ tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”