Matthew 27:11-27:61

What’s Happening?

Jesus is condemned to die, not because he is guilty, but because the powers of the world hand him over. Pilate himself admits he can find no fault in him (Matthew 27:23). Yet the crowds demand his execution.

Pilate offers a choice: release Jesus or release Barabbas, a violent revolutionary. The people choose Barabbas. The innocent one is handed over to death while the violent one walks free.

The soldiers mock Jesus as “King of the Jews,” even dressing him in a robe and crown of thorns (Matthew 27:29). What they meant as ridicule was ironically the truth. Jesus was—and is—the true King.

On the cross, Jesus cries out the words of Psalm 22: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” This Psalm is not only a cry of anguish but also a promise. It tells of God’s anointed one suffering unjustly but ultimately being vindicated and raised.

At the moment of his death, signs erupt all around: the temple curtain tears, tombs are opened, and Roman soldiers confess that Jesus must truly be the Son of God (Matthew 27:51–54).

Where is the Gospel?

Matthew shows us that Jesus does not build his kingdom the way the world builds theirs. Barabbas represents the kingdoms of Israel and Rome alike—kingdoms of violence, power, and revolution. Humanity has always tried to secure freedom and build kingdoms through strength and bloodshed.

But Jesus refuses to rule that way. Instead, he lets violence and evil do their worst to him. He is mocked, beaten, and killed, though he is innocent. He chooses the way of weakness, humility, and self-giving love, because he knows this is the way God’s kingdom comes.

And in the very moment of his death, God vindicates his way:

The torn curtain shows that God’s presence is no longer locked away behind temple walls. Access to him has been opened, not by force, but by Jesus’ sacrifice.

The opened tombs show that Jesus’ way leads to resurrection—life triumphing over death, peace overcoming violence.

The confession of the soldiers shows that even those who participated in his death recognized something divine. They saw that Jesus’ kingship was revealed not in power, but in suffering love.

The cross is not just a tragedy—it is a subversion of the entire system of human power. Jesus exposes the futility of violence by submitting to it and then triumphing over it in resurrection. He is the true King, not because he killed his enemies, but because he forgave them.

See for Yourself

May the Holy Spirit open your eyes to see the God who refuses to build his kingdom through violence. And may you see Jesus as the King who let the world’s evil fall on him, so he could open the way to God, bring life out of death, and reveal that true power is love.