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John

John 
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Day 307

John 19:17-42 "THE QUESTION OF THE SUPERSCRIPTION"

Day 307 – John 19

THE QUESTION OF THE SUPERSCRIPTION

The Jews charged Jesus falsely and with growing desperation, because they feared that Pilate might end up releasing Him. Charge after charge was laid against Jesus, but none had stuck! None could be used against Him under the Roman law, except the one that had to do with the kingship of Jesus.

All the Gospel writers couldn’t help but note the irony of it all. The Jews had always resented Roman rule, and yet they ended up urging the Roman Governor to charge Jesus with treason – for raising Himself as “The King of the Jews” (John 18:33). They certainly did not seek the death of Jesus out of loyalty and devotion to Rome, nevertheless they declared, ‘We have no king but Caesar!’ (John 19:15).

The question of the kingship of Jesus was never fully settled, either by the Jews or Pilate. The charges were never fully examined. The sentence was passed against Him, even though the Roman court had not examined all the evidence! The sentence had been passed. Jesus was adjudged guilty and sentenced to death by crucifixion. There was one more way that Pilate could irate the Jews.

“Now Pilate wrote a title and put it on the cross.
And the writing was:
Jesus of Nazareth, The King of the Jews.”
John 19:19

This was Pilate’s way of getting back at the Jews! John noted that Pilate had this superscription written in three languages!

“Then many of the Jews read this title, for the
place where Jesus was crucified was near the city;
and it was written in Hebrew, Greek and Latin.”
John 19:20

Pilate did not have to wait very long before the Jews came back to him. Of course they were upset with this superscription! John noted the brief conversation between the Jews and Pilate.

“Therefore the chief priests of the Jews said to
Pilate, ‘Do not write, “The King of the Jews,” But,
“He said, ‘I am the King of the Jews.'”‘”
John 19:21

Pilate must have smirked as he noted the irritation of the Jews. This time round, they had nothing to threaten him with! He had the upper hand in this encounter. He replied simply,

“What I have written, I have written.”
John 19:22

There was nothing that the Jews could fault Pilate with! The only charge that could stick was this one – the question of the Kingship of Jesus! Had not the Jews wanted Jesus crucified? Had He not been delivered to be crucified already? Wasn’t that what they wanted? What more could they demand from Pilate! The wily Roman governor had the last word this time round!

THE QUESTION OF THE KINGSHIP OF JESUS

Why had the Jews been so upset concerning the subject of the kingship of Jesus? What were they resisting in actual fact? Let us take a deeper look at the significance of the Kingship of Jesus.

1. The declaration of Nathanael

Nathanael was one of the first few people Jesus called to be a Disciple. But when Philip his good friend first introduced him to the Name of Jesus, he expressed incredulity.

“Can anything good come out of Nazareth?”
John 1:46

Philip managed to persuade him to at least see Jesus, before he wrote Him off, simply because he was associated with the town of Nazareth.

When Nathanael met Jesus, he was overwhelmed! The depth of insight, wisdom and lots more overcame his skepticism. He had changed his mind completely. He declared.

“Rabbi, You are the Son of God! You are the
King of Israel.”
John 1:49

Nathanael’s description of Jesus is truly noteworthy! He made three important statements concerning Jesus.

a) That He was a True Teacher sent from God.
b) That He was none other than the Son of God.
c) That He was indeed the prophesied and promised King of Israel.

2. Why the Jews furiously rejected Jesus as the King of Israel

The following were some reasons why the Jews rejected Jesus as their King.

a) They would have to admit that they were wrong. Nathanael had to admit his mistake before he could own Jesus as his King.
b) They would have to practise the Lordship of Jesus as the rightful King. If the Jews had admitted Jesus as King, they would logically have to practise submission to Him. They would have to own Him the Lord of their lives. They would certainly not be prepared to yield to Him every aspect of their lives!

The Jews were not unfamiliar with the prophecies of the Scriptures concerning the coming of the Messianic King. They were just not prepared to own Him as their Messiah – for obvious reasons! Thus they chose the only way out – the silencing of Jesus by His death. They thought that His death would settle the problem of His kingship permanently.