Verse-by-Verse Commentary
The Book of Mark
Chapter 15: Truly This Man Was the Son of God
Mark 15 is the account of the cross. Delivered to Pilate, Jesus is condemned though found guilty of no crime, and the crowd chooses Barabbas the murderer while crying, 'Crucify him.' The soldiers mock the King with a crown of thorns, and He is led to Golgotha and crucified between two thieves, 'numbered with the transgressors.' As He hangs, rulers and passersby jeer, 'He saved others; himself he cannot save.' Then darkness covers the land, and Jesus cries, 'Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?', bearing the judgment of our sin, before He gives up the ghost. The veil of the temple is rent from top to bottom, and a Roman centurion confesses, 'Truly this man was the Son of God.' Joseph of Arimathaea lays Him in a tomb hewn from rock. The chapter shows the Son of God dying in the sinner's place, opening the way to God by His blood, and laid in the grave from which He will rise.
About This Commentary
This is a verse-by-verse study of Mark chapter 15. For each section you will find the KJV text, the Greek words that sharpen the meaning, plain explanation, and a Gospel Focus. Here Jesus is condemned by Pilate, mocked, crucified, dies bearing our sin, and is laid in the tomb. Every Scripture quotation is from the King James Version.
Setting the Stage
Barabbas or Jesus
Pilate finds no crime, yet yields the innocent to the crowd's cry.
The King of the Jews
The soldiers mock, and Jesus is crucified between two thieves.
Why Hast Thou Forsaken Me?
Darkness falls, Jesus bears our judgment, dies, and the veil is torn.
Truly the Son of God
A Roman centurion confesses the crucified One as the Son of God.
He Released Barabbas (Mark 15:1-15)
The crowd chooses a murderer over the Messiah, and Pilate, to please them, delivers the innocent to be crucified.
Why, What Evil Hath He Done?
"And straightway in the morning the chief priests held a consultation with the elders and scribes and the whole council, and bound Jesus, and carried him away, and delivered him to Pilate. And Pilate asked him, Art thou the King of the Jews? And he answering said unto him, Thou sayest it. And the chief priests accused him of many things: but he answered nothing. And Pilate asked him again, saying, Answerest thou nothing? behold how many things they witness against thee. But Jesus yet answered nothing; so that Pilate marvelled. Now at that feast he released unto them one prisoner, whomsoever they desired. And there was one named Barabbas, which lay bound with them that had made insurrection with him, who had committed murder in the insurrection. And the multitude crying aloud began to desire him to do as he had ever done unto them. But Pilate answered them, saying, Will ye that I release unto you the King of the Jews? For he knew that the chief priests had delivered him for envy. But the chief priests moved the people, that he should rather release Barabbas unto them. And Pilate answered and said again unto them, What will ye then that I shall do unto him whom ye call the King of the Jews? And they cried out again, Crucify him. Then Pilate said unto them, Why, what evil hath he done? And they cried out the more exceedingly, Crucify him. And so Pilate, willing to content the people, released Barabbas unto them, and delivered Jesus, when he had scourged him, to be crucified."
Word Study
"Barabbas," Aramaic bar-abba (Βαραββᾶς). The name means "son of the father." There is a striking picture in it: a guilty "son of the father," a murderer deserving death, is set free, while Jesus, the true Son of the Father, is condemned and led away to die in his place. That is the gospel in a name. Every sinner is Barabbas, guilty and condemned, and the true Son of the Father takes our place so that we go free. The guilty one walks away because the innocent One is nailed to the cross that was, in truth, his own.
Explanation
Handed to Pilate, Jesus is silent before the charges, "so that Pilate marvelled," for the governor perceives that envy, not justice, drives the priests. Offered the custom of a Passover release, the crowd -- stirred up by the leaders -- chooses the murderer Barabbas and shouts "Crucify him" of the innocent. Pilate, "willing to content the people," hands Jesus to be scourged and crucified. The exchange is the gospel enacted in a courtyard: the guilty man walks free and the sinless One is condemned in his place, delivered up so that Barabbas -- and we -- might go.
Gospel Focus
This trial is a study in guilt and grace. Pilate quickly sees the truth, "he knew that the chief priests had delivered him for envy," and can find no crime: "Why, what evil hath he done?" Even under a flood of accusations Jesus "answered nothing," so that "Pilate marvelled", the silent, majestic dignity of the Lamb led to the slaughter. Yet Pilate, unwilling to do right at the cost of the crowd's favor, looks for an escape and offers them a choice: Jesus, or Barabbas, "which... had committed murder." Stirred by the chief priests, the crowd chooses the murderer and cries of Jesus, "Crucify him." And "Pilate, willing to content the people," hands over the innocent to be scourged and crucified. Here, at the center of the scene, stands a living picture of the gospel. Barabbas, a guilty man deserving death, is set free, while Jesus, the innocent, is condemned and dies in his place. That is substitution, and Barabbas is every one of us. We are the guilty who deserve the sentence; Christ is the innocent who takes it, so that we may go free. Barabbas that day walked out of prison because Another took his cross, and that is exactly what Christ has done for every sinner who trusts Him. Note too the tragedy of Pilate: a man who knew the truth, who saw Jesus was innocent, yet did the wrong thing to please the crowd. To know the right and refuse it for fear of men is its own guilt, and no washing of hands can remove it. But the deeper wonder is the grace: the Son of the Father died so that the guilty sons of men might be set free.
He Saved Others; Himself He Cannot Save (Mark 15:16-32)
The King is crowned with thorns and nailed to a cross, jeered by rulers who do not know their own words are the gospel.
Numbered with the Transgressors
"And the soldiers led him away into the hall, called Praetorium; and they call together the whole band. And they clothed him with purple, and platted a crown of thorns, and put it about his head, And began to salute him, Hail, King of the Jews! And they smote him on the head with a reed, and did spit upon him, and bowing their knees worshipped him. And when they had mocked him, they took off the purple from him, and put his own clothes on him, and led him out to crucify him. And they compel one Simon a Cyrenian, who passed by, coming out of the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to bear his cross. And they bring him unto the place Golgotha, which is, being interpreted, The place of a skull. And they gave him to drink wine mingled with myrrh: but he received it not. And when they had crucified him, they parted his garments, casting lots upon them, what every man should take. And it was the third hour, and they crucified him. And the superscription of his accusation was written over, THE KING OF THE JEWS. And with him they crucify two thieves; the one on his right hand, and the other on his left. And the scripture was fulfilled, which saith, And he was numbered with the transgressors. And they that passed by railed on him, wagging their heads, and saying, Ah, thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days, Save thyself, and come down from the cross. Likewise also the chief priests mocking said among themselves with the scribes, He saved others; himself he cannot save. Let Christ the King of Israel descend now from the cross, that we may see and believe. And they that were crucified with him reviled him."
Word Study
"numbered with the transgressors," Greek elogisthe (ἐλογίσθη). The word means to be counted, reckoned, or accounted. Mark notes that in being crucified between "two thieves," Jesus fulfilled Isaiah's prophecy: "he was numbered with the transgressors" (Isaiah 53:12). The sinless One was accounted among criminals, taking His place with the guilty. This is the mystery of the atonement: He who knew no sin was "made sin for us," reckoned among transgressors in His death that transgressors might be reckoned righteous in Him. His place among the thieves was the very reason He came, to bear the sin of many.
Explanation
The soldiers crown Him with thorns, robe Him in mock purple, and hail Him "King of the Jews," acting out in scorn the very truth they deny. At Golgotha He is crucified between two thieves, and the mockers converge on one taunt: "let Christ the King of Israel descend now from the cross, that we may see and believe." But sight-on-demand is not faith, and coming down would have left the world unsaved. "He saved others; himself he cannot save" -- unknowingly the truest sermon of the day, for it was to save others that He would not save Himself. Love, not weakness, held Him to the wood.
Gospel Focus
The soldiers turn the King's suffering into sport, dressing Him in "purple," pressing a "crown of thorns" on His head, mock-saluting Him, "Hail, King of the Jews!", spitting on Him and striking Him. They did not know they were crowning the true King of kings, nor that His silent endurance of their cruelty was the very love that would save some of them. On the way, they "compel one Simon a Cyrenian" to carry the cross, and Mark names his sons, Alexander and Rufus, likely known believers in the early church, so that the man pressed into service that day became part of the family of faith. At "Golgotha... The place of a skull," they crucify Him, and Mark states it with restraint: "they crucified him." Every detail fulfills Scripture: His garments divided by lot (Psalm 22:18), and His place between "two thieves" fulfilling Isaiah's word that He would be "numbered with the transgressors." Over His head hangs the charge, "THE KING OF THE JEWS", a mockery that is in truth the deepest confession. And the mockery deepens: "He saved others; himself he cannot save. Let Christ the King of Israel descend now from the cross, that we may see and believe." They meant it as scorn, but it is the profoundest gospel truth ever spoken in unbelief. It was precisely because He would save others that He would not save Himself. He could have come down; He stayed by love, not by nails. And their bargain, "descend now... that we may see and believe", was a lie, for the proof that He is the Son of God was not that He came down but that He stayed up, bearing our sin to the end. The King wore our crown of thorns, was numbered with our transgressors, and would not save Himself, so that we, the guilty, might be saved.
My God, My God, Why Hast Thou Forsaken Me? (Mark 15:33-47)
Darkness veils the land as Jesus bears the judgment of sin, dies, and the torn veil and the centurion's cry reveal what His death has done.
The Veil of the Temple Was Rent
"And when the sixth hour was come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour. And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? And some of them that stood by, when they heard it, said, Behold, he calleth Elias. And one ran and filled a spunge full of vinegar, and put it on a reed, and gave him to drink, saying, Let alone; let us see whether Elias will come to take him down. And Jesus cried with a loud voice, and gave up the ghost. And the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom. And when the centurion, which stood over against him, saw that he so cried out, and gave up the ghost, he said, Truly this man was the Son of God. There were also women looking on afar off: among whom was Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the less and of Joses, and Salome; (Who also, when he was in Galilee, followed him, and ministered unto him;) and many other women which came up with him unto Jerusalem. And now when the even was come, because it was the preparation, that is, the day before the sabbath, Joseph of Arimathaea, an honourable counsellor, which also waited for the kingdom of God, came, and went in boldly unto Pilate, and craved the body of Jesus. And Pilate marvelled if he were already dead: and calling unto him the centurion, he asked him whether he had been any while dead. And when he knew it of the centurion, he gave the body to Joseph. And he bought fine linen, and took him down, and wrapped him in the linen, and laid him in a sepulchre which was hewn out of a rock, and rolled a stone unto the door of the sepulchre. And Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses beheld where he was laid."
Word Study
"gave up the ghost," Greek exepneusen (ἐξέπνευσεν). The word means "he breathed out," he expired. Mark uses it twice here, and it carries a weight of meaning: Jesus did not simply die of exhaustion; He "cried with a loud voice" and then breathed out His life. His death was not merely something done to Him but something He yielded up. He laid down His life of His own will, in command to the end, as He had said: "No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself" (John 10:18). The loud cry of a dying man who still has strength to shout shows that He gave His life; it was not taken from Him.
Explanation
Darkness covers the land, and from it comes the cry, "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" -- the sinless Man, in His true humanity, tasting the judgment our sin deserved. At His death the temple veil is "rent in twain from the top to the bottom": the same violent tearing with which heaven was torn open at His baptism (1:10) now opens the way to God, torn by God's own hand from above. The Gentile centurion who watched Him die makes the confession the whole Gospel aimed at: "Truly this man was the Son of God." A pagan soldier sees at the cross what Israel's leaders would not.
Gospel Focus
Here we stand at the holiest and most solemn moment in history. For three hours, from noon to three, "there was darkness over the whole land", a supernatural darkness, as if creation itself veiled its face while the Creator suffered. Then from that darkness comes the cry, "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" We must tread softly here. On the cross Jesus was bearing the full weight of the world's sin, and with it the judgment sin deserves. In His genuine humanity He entered, in our place, the God-forsakenness that is the wages of sin. This was not one divine person turning away from another, for the one God was in Christ; it was the sinless Man, made sin for us, who tasted the horror of being forsaken, so that we, who deserved to be forsaken forever, might be received forever. This is the cost of our redemption, and no words can plumb it. Then "Jesus cried with a loud voice, and gave up the ghost." Note that phrase, "gave up", His life was not simply taken; He yielded it. He died as He had lived, in command, laying down His life of His own will. And at the instant of His death, God gave signs to interpret it. "The veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom." That veil had shut sinful men out of the holiest place, the symbolic presence of God; now, torn from top to bottom, from heaven's side down, by God's own hand, it declares that the way to God is open through the death of Christ. His body broken opened the way the veil had barred. And a hardened Roman centurion, watching Him die, was moved to the confession the whole Gospel of Mark has been building toward from its first verse: "Truly this man was the Son of God." At the cross, a Gentile soldier sees what the rulers would not, that the crucified One is the Son of God. Then comes the burial: Joseph of Arimathaea, "an honourable counsellor" who "waited for the kingdom of God," boldly asks for the body and lays it in a rock-hewn tomb, witnessed by the faithful women. The gospel rests on a real death and a real burial, and on the torn veil that flung wide the way to God. The Son of God has died in our place; look on Him, and believe.
Chapter 15 in Review
Mark 15 is the record of the cross. Delivered to Pilate, who finds no crime yet yields to the crowd, Jesus is condemned while Barabbas the murderer goes free. The soldiers mock the King with a crown of thorns, and He is crucified at Golgotha between two thieves, "numbered with the transgressors," under the title "THE KING OF THE JEWS," jeered with words truer than the mockers knew: "He saved others; himself he cannot save." Darkness covers the land, and Jesus cries, "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?", bearing the judgment of our sin, then "gave up the ghost." The veil of the temple is torn from top to bottom, and a Roman centurion confesses, "Truly this man was the Son of God." Joseph of Arimathaea lays Him in a tomb hewn from rock.
For the Apostolic reader this chapter is the heart of the gospel. The innocent Son of the Father dies in the place of the guilty; Barabbas set free while Jesus is condemned is the picture of every sinner saved by substitution. The King wears our crown of thorns, is numbered with our transgressors, and will not save Himself precisely because He is saving others. In the darkness He bears the forsakenness our sin deserved, that we might never be forsaken, and He lays down His life of His own will, giving up the ghost with a loud cry. And the moment He dies, the torn veil proclaims the gospel's greatest news: the way to God is now open through the blood of Christ, and we may draw near. The centurion's confession, "Truly this man was the Son of God," is the goal of the whole Gospel of Mark, which opened by calling Jesus "the Son of God," and now, at the cross, a Gentile soldier confesses it. The One who died here is the Son of God, God come in flesh, who gave His life a ransom for many. He is laid in the tomb, but the story is not over; the grave cannot hold Him. Behold the Son of God, slain for you; look on Him and believe.
- The innocent Son of the Father died so guilty Barabbas, and we, might go free (15:15).
- Jesus was "numbered with the transgressors," taking His place among the guilty (15:28; Isaiah 53:12).
- "He saved others; himself he cannot save": He stayed on the cross by love (15:31).
- On the cross Jesus was forsaken in our place, that we might never be forsaken (15:34).
- He "gave up the ghost": He laid down His life of His own will (15:37).
- The torn veil opens the way to God; the centurion confesses "the Son of God" (15:38-39).
Questions for Reflection
- Do you see yourself in Barabbas, the guilty one set free because Christ took your place?
- What does it mean to you that Jesus "could not save" Himself because He was saving you?
- Have you grasped that He was forsaken so that you never need be?
- Like the centurion, will you look on the crucified Christ and confess Him "the Son of God"?
References & Sources
Scripture is quoted from the King James Version (KJV). Supporting passages are listed so every claim can be verified in its own setting. Prophecies of the crucifixion: Psalm 22:1, 7-8, 18; Isaiah 53:12. Christ numbered with transgressors and made sin: Isaiah 53:12; 2 Corinthians 5:21; 1 Peter 2:24. He laid down His life willingly: John 10:17-18. The torn veil and access to God: Hebrews 10:19-22; Ephesians 2:13-18. The Son of God, Mark's theme: Mark 1:1, 11; 9:7. If anything here does not look right, a verse, a reference, or a wording, please tell us at info@FruitBearers.net. Thank you for helping us keep Bible Learning error free.
- The trial before Pilate and Barabbas: Mark 15:1-15; Matthew 27:1-26; Luke 23:1-25; John 18:28-19:16.
- The mocking and the crucifixion: Mark 15:16-32; Matthew 27:27-44; Luke 23:26-43; John 19:16-27; Isaiah 53:12; Psalm 22.
- The death, the torn veil, the centurion, and the burial: Mark 15:33-47; Matthew 27:45-66; Luke 23:44-56; John 19:28-42.