Lucas 23

Lucas 23

Sproul - It is the cross … that reveals the most violent and mysterious outpouring of the wrath of God that we find anywhere in Scripture. Until the ninth hour - That is about 3 PM (see Kenneth Bailey below for what else transpired at 3 PM). Apparently Jesus spoke nothing during the 3 hours of darkness, but at the end of the darkness, the other Gospels record three sayings from Jesus not recorded by Luke. (1) About the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “ELI, ELI, LAMA SABACHTHANI?” that is (Mk 15:34 has "which is translated"), “MY GOD, MY GOD, WHY HAVE YOU FORSAKEN ME?” 47 And some of those who were standing there, when they heard it, began saying, “This man is calling for Elijah.” 48 (AFTER SAID "I AM THIRSTY") Immediately one of them ran, and taking a sponge, he filled it with sour wine and put it on a reed, and gave Him a drink (Jn 19:29). 49 But the rest of them said, “Let us see whether Elijah will come to save Him.” 50 (THIS NEXT VERSE PARALLELS Lk 23:46) And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit. (Mt 27:46-50, cf Mark 15:34-35) Comment: Jesus quotes from Ps 22:1. Matthew uses the Greek "Eli" while Mark 15:34 uses the Aramaic "Eloi" both of which mean "My God." Now think about this for a moment. First, note that Jesus is not "whispering" but is in essence using a "megaphone" so to speak for the word loud is megas and voice is phone, giving us our English megaphone! Secondly, Jesus is quoting from a Jewish Psalm which would have been familiar to the onlookers. The point is that there would have been little doubt among the Jewish onlookers that Jesus was crying out to God. And yet they mockingly assert He is calling for Elijah. The were cruel, callous and cynical to the very end of His life! Why is Jesus crying out? The darkness has presumably lifted and in the mysterious workings known only to the Trinity, Jesus had for the first time in eternity been separated from His Father. And thus it is notable that this is the only time in the Gospels that Jesus did not address God as "Father." When Jesus took the sin of the world on Himself, the Father turned away, an action that is incomprehensible to the human mind. And we may never been insight into this moment in time, for as Deuteronomy 29:29 says "“The secret things belong to the LORD our God." We can but fall on our faces in wholehearted love and devotion to Jesus Who manifested matchless grace and infinite love to accomplish our eternal redemption. The Father turning from the Son reminds us of Habakkuk's declaration "Your eyes are too pure to approve evil, And You can not look on wickedness with favor." (Hab 1:13+) The Greek verb for forsaken is egkataleipo (from en = in + kataleipo = forsake, desert) means literally to leave down in and conveys the sense of the Father abandoning the Son. The word forsake means to leave someone who needs or counts on you; to leave in the lurch. John