Sermon Tone Analysis

Chapter 27

Read and summarize

The following material is adopted from John MacArthur’s commentary on Matthew and his Study guide.

Additional material taken from sources listed at the end

Look for

— Prayers ( Blue )

— Promises ( Green )

— Warnings ( Red )

— Commands ( Purple )

Matthew 27: Summary of Events

Jesus arrived at Golgotha (Mt 27:33; Mk 15:22; Lk 23:33; Jn 19:17)

He refused the offer of wine, vinegar and myrrh (Mt 27:34; Mk 15:23)

Nailed to the cross between two thieves (Mt 27:35-38; Mk 15:24-28; Lk 23:33-38; Jn 19:18)

First Cry from the cross: “Father forgive them for they know not what they do” (Lk 23:34)

Garments allocated (Mt 27:35; Mk 15:24; Lk 23:34; Jn 19:23)

Jews mocked Jesus (Mt 27:39-43; Mk 15:29-32; Lk 23:35-37)

Conversed with two thieves (Lk 23:39-43)

Second Cry: “You will be with me in paradise” (Lk 23:43)

Third cry: “Woman, behold your son,” “Behold thy mother.”

(Jn 19:26-27)

Darkness from noon to 3 PM (Mt 27:45; Mk 15:33; Lk 23:44)

Fourth Cry: “My God, My God, Why hast thou forsaken me!” (Mt 27:46,47; Mk 15:34-36)

Fifth Cry: “I am thirsty” (Jn 19:28)

He drank wine vinegar (Mt 27:48; Mk 15:36; Jn 19:29)

Sixth cry: “It is finished” (Jn 19:30)

Seventh cry: “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit” (Lk 23:46)

He dismissed His Spirit (Mt 27:50; Mk 15:37; Lk 23:46; Jn 19:30)

Temple curtain torn in twain (Mt 27:51; Mk 15:38; Lk 23:45)

Roman soldiers declare, “Surely He was the Son of God” (Mt 27:54; Mk 15:39)

The Contrast between the Wicked Leaders and The Sinless Christ ( 27:1-2 )

( 27:1-2 ) When morning came, all the chief priests and elders of the people plotted against Jesus to put Him to death. 2 And when they had bound Him, they led Him away and delivered Him to Pontius Pilate the governor.

— Country to rabbinical law, the first two phases of Jesus's religious trial carried out during the night and away from the temple

— The chief priests and elders had no authority to try Jesus in this way

— First, He was brought before Annas, the former high priest, in the hope that he could concoct a false charge that would justify the death penalty

— When that failed, Christ was brought before the acting high priest, Caiaphas, and the hastily assembled Sanhedrin

— Even with willing false witnesses that group was also unable to indict Jesus

— It was only when He confessed to be Christ and God's son did they convict him of blasphemy and being worthy of death

— “But Jesus kept silent.

And the high priest answered and said to Him, “I put You under oath by the living God: Tell us if You are the Christ, the Son of God!” 64 Jesus said to him, “It is as you said.

Nevertheless, I say to you, hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven.”

65 Then the high priest tore his clothes, saying, “He has spoken blasphemy!

What further need do we have of witnesses?

Look, now you have heard His blasphemy!

66 What do you think?”

They answered and said, “He is deserving of death.”

( 26:63-66 )

— The religious leaders had to persuade the Roman government to sentence Jesus adapt because they did not have the authority to do it themselves ( Jn 18:31 )

— The Romans had taken away the religious leaders authority to inflict capital punishment

— Politically, it was better for the religious leaders anyway is someone else was responsible for killing Jesus

— Because this charge would be thrown out Roman court, however, they had to come up with the political reason for Jesus's death

— Their strategy was to show Jesus as a rebel who claim to be a king and thus a threat to Caesar

Q: How did Judas kill himself ( Acts 1:18; Matt 27:5 )?

What did he do with the 30 pieces of silver?

The Contrast between Guilty Judas and Innocent Jesus ( 27:3-5 )

( 27:3-5 ) Then Judas, His betrayer, seeing that He had been condemned, was remorseful and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, 4 saying, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.”

And they said, “What is that to us?

You see to it!” 5 Then he threw down the pieces of silver in the temple and departed, and went and hanged himself.

The Traitor’s Suicide

— Jesus's formal accuser wanted to drop his charges ( 23:48 ), but the religious leaders refused to halt the trial

— When he betrayed Jesus, perhaps Judas was trying to force Jesus's hand get him to lead the revolt against

— This did not work of course, whatever his reason, Judas changed his mind but it was too late

— Many of the plans we set into motion cannot be reversed

— It is best to think of the potential consequences before we launch into an action we may later regret

— The Priest’s job was to teach people about God and act as intercessors for them, helping administer the sacrifices to cover their sins

— Rather than helping him Judas find forgiveness however the priest said, "That's your responsibility."

— Not only had they rejected the Messiah, they rejected their role as priests

— According to Matthew, Judas hanged himself.

Acts 1:18, says that he fell and burst open

— The best explanation is that the limb from which he was hanging broke, and the resulting fall split open by

Going Deeper

— No man could be more evil than Jews Iscariot

— Only eleven other men in all of history have had intimate, personal relationship he had with the incarnate son of God

— No man has ever been more exposed to God's perfect truth, both in precept and example

— No man has been more exposed first-hand to God's love, compassion, power, kindness, forgiveness, and grace

— Yet in all of those 3 indescribably blessed years with Jesus, Jesus did not take so much as the first step of faith

— In a way that defies comprehension, Judas persistently resisted and rejected God's truth, God’s grace, even God's own son also in a way that defies understanding, he managed to completely conceal his wicked rebellion from everyone but Jesus

— His hypocrisy was so complete and deceptive that even when Jesus predicted that one of the disciples with training, Judas was not suspected

— Judas’s remorse was not repentance of sin as the King James Version suggests

— Matthew did not use μετανοέω (metanoeō), which means a genuine change mind and will, but μεταμέλομαι (metamelomai), which merely connotes regret or sorrow.

— He did not experience spiritual penitence s but only emotional remorse

— Although he would not repent of his sin, he could not escape the reality of his guilt

— Genuine sorrow for sin can be prompted by God in order to produce repentance as Paul declares ( 2 Cor 7:10)

— But Judas’s remorse was not prompted by God to lead to repentance but only to guilt and despair

The Contrast between the Hypocrisy of Men and the Prophecy of God ( 27:6-10 )

( 27:6-10 ) But the chief priests took the silver pieces and said, “It is not lawful to put them into the treasury, because they are the price of blood.”

7 And they consulted together and bought with them the potter’s field, to bury strangers in.

8 Therefore that field has been called the Field of Blood to this day.

9 Then was fulfilled what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying, “And they took the thirty pieces of silver, the value of Him who was priced, whom they of the children of Israel priced, 10 and gave them for the potter’s field, as the Lord directed me.”

— By admitting it was blood money the work they condemn themselves their own mouth

— By definition, the price of one referred to money illegitimately paid and received to falsely convict a man of a crime that led to his execution

— These chief priests felt no guilt in giving Judas money betraying innocent man, but when Judas return the money, the priests could not accept it because it was wrong to accept blood money-- payment for murder!

— Their hatred for Jesus had caused them to lose all sense of right and wrong

— More fulfilled prophecy:

Zechariah 11:12-13 (NIV) 12 I told them, "If you think it best, give me my pay; but if not, keep it."

So they paid me thirty pieces of silver.

13 And the LORD said to me, "Throw it to the potter"--the handsome price at which they priced me!

So I took the thirty pieces of silver and threw them into the house of the LORD to the potter.

Going Deeper

— The fact that this quotation comes from Zechariah ( 13:11-12 ) and not Jeremiah Has caused some interpreters to accuse Matthew of error

— Others have tried to relate the quotation to sections of Jeremiah 18 or 19 although it clearly does not fit

— Others say that the Jewish division of the Old Testament into three sections — the Law, the Writings, and the Prophets and that Jeremiah was always listed first and represented the prophets