A Crown of Thorns, a Purple Robe

“So then Pilate took Jesus and scourged Him. And the soldiers twisted a crown of thorns and put it on His head, and they put on Him a purple robe. Then they said, ‘Hail, King of the Jews!’ And they struck Him with their hands. Pilate then went out again, and said to them, ‘Behold, I am bringing Him out to you, that you may know that I find no fault in Him.’ “ –John 19:1-4

It was the Preparation Day for the Passover, a significant day in Jewish history. The Passover was the most significant religious celebration for devout Jews, the time of remembering blood smeared on the doorposts when the firstborn of the Israelites were saved when the death angel passed over, smiting the Egyptians’ firstborn children. The feast and festival held in commemoration of the Israelites’ deliverance from Egyptian bondage was a solemn time. Jesus had instituted what Christians call the Lord’s Supper on the Passover. He Himself was to be the Passover Lamb whose blood would become the saving element when on the heart of each believer.

And Pilate was dressing the Passover Lamb—Jesus who was to be crucified—for the Festival. On his head a crown of thorns. Imagine the pain and humiliation as the thorns pierced His brow and the blood ran down in great droplets from His head. Imagine the mocking, “King of the Jews!” Look at Him now? What crown bespeaks His authority as Golgotha looms in the distance? No golden crown, no scepter, but a crown from the thorn bush, and mocking, cruel words.

And the purple robe: Purple, the sign of sovereignty, of rulership, the garment of Kings, rich in elements of meaning as well as color. And with Jesus, the pure Lamb of God, as He faced the cross, even the robe, the dress of a king, was a point of mockery.

As we come close to Easter, let us think somberly on the event, happening on the fourteenth day of the first month of the Jewish year—Passover. Jesus, crowned with thorns and clothed in a purple robe signifying royalty, was the Passover Lamb. As Paul so gloriously wrote: “For even Christ, our Passover, is sacrificed for us” (I Cor. 5:7). My sins made the prick marks in the Savior’s brow; my dishonor was in the mocking that ridiculed the purple robe of the King of Kings. At the right time Christ had come into the Kingdom. And it was as God and He planned from the foundation of the world. Selah!

c Ethelene Dyer Jones; Tuesday, March 30, 2010