Good Friday
Perhaps it is best to call this study, “Red Letter Friday.”
30 When {he had finished praying [and]JN} they had sung a hymn, they went out {and crossed the Kidron ValleyJN} to the Mount of Olives {as usual.LK}
Consider how often He prayed through these hours
36 Then Jesus went with his disciples to {an olive grove,JN} a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, “Sit here while I go over there and pray. {[You p]ray that you will not fall into temptation.LK}”
37 He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee {James and John,MK} along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled.
38 Then he said to them, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.”
35 Going a little farther {about a stone’s throw beyond them,LK} he {knelt down andLK} fell {with his faceMT} to the ground and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from him.
36 “Abba, Father,” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will but what you will.”
43 An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him. 44 And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.
40 Then {[w]hen he rose from prayerLK} he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping, {exhausted from sorrow.LK} “{Why are you sleeping?LK} Could you men not keep watch with me for one hour?” he asked Peter.
41 “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak.”
42 He went away a second time and prayed, “My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done.”
43 When he came back, he again found them sleeping, because their eyes were heavy. {They did not know what to say to him.MK}
44 So he left them and went away once more and prayed the third time, saying the same thing.
45 Then he returned {the third timeMK} to the disciples and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? {Enough!MK} Look, the hour is near, and the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. 46 Rise, let us go! Here comes my betrayer!”
What follows; betrayal, arrest, trials, abuse and torture, death penalty, and the Cross.
The Red Letters of the Cross
33 They came to a place called Golgotha {in AramaicJN} (which means The Place of the Skull). 34 There they offered Jesus wine to drink, mixed with gall {myrrhMK} but after tasting it, he refused to drink it.
[JN 19:]18 Here they crucified him, and with him two others {robbersMT, MK}—one on each side and Jesus in the middle.
[Mk 15:]25 It was the third hour when they crucified him.
[LK 23:]34 Jesus said “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”
Forgive
39 Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads 40 and saying, “You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself! Come down from the cross {and save yourself,MK} if you are the Son of God!”
41 In the same way the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders mocked him {among themselves.MK}
42 “He saved others,” they said, “but he can’t save himself! He’s the King of Israel, {the Christ of God, the Chosen One!LK} Let him come down now from the cross {that we may see,
43 } and we will believe in him. “He trusts in God. Let God rescue him now if he wants him, for he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’ ”
36 The soldiers also came up and mocked him. They offered him wine vinegar 37 and said, “If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself.”
44 In the same way the robbers who were crucified with him also heaped insults on him.
39 One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: “Aren’t you the Christ? Save yourself and us!”
40 But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence? 41 We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.”
42 Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”
43 Jesus answered him, “I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.”
Grace and mercy when none can be found
25 Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.
26 When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, “Dear woman, here is your son,”
27 and to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” From that time on, this disciple took her into his home.
Family redefined
[MK 15]33 At the sixth hour darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour.
[LK 23:]45 For the sun stopped shining.
[MK 15]34 And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?”—which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
35 When some of those standing near heard this, they said, “Listen, he’s calling Elijah.”
Suffering God’s Cup of Wrath…for us
28 Later, knowing that all was now completed, and so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, “I am thirsty.” 29 A jar of wine vinegar was there, so {immediatelyMT} they {one manMK} soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus’ lips.
49 The rest said {he said,MK} “Now leave him alone. Let’s see if Elijah comes to take him down.”
30 When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.”
Finished
46 {With that, heJN} called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” When he had said this he breathed his last, {bowed his head, and gave up his spirit.JN}
Even with His last breath, Scripture is quoted (the 31st Psalm). God’s plan 10,000 generations in the making.
Then God speaks...
[MT 27:]51 At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split
52 The tombs broke open and the bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life.
53 They came out of the tombs, and after Jesus’ resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many people.
54 When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus {heard his cry and saw how he died [and]MK} saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified, and {praised God andLK} exclaimed, “Surely he {this manMK} was the Son of God! {a righteous man.LK}”
48 When all the people who had gathered to witness this sight saw what took place, they beat their breasts and went away.