But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs — The soldiers' discovery that Jesus is already dead (hoti ēdē tethnēken) spares him the leg-breaking. This is historically plausible: death on the cross could come more quickly through various factors (shock, exhaustion, possible asphyxiation). Yet John presents this as providential: no bones are broken, fulfilling Psalm 34:20 (and Exodus 12:46, no bone of the Passover lamb broken).

COMMUNITY REFLECTIONS

Publish a note on this verse