Matthew 27
The King Who Stayed on the Cross
Matthew 27 takes us from Judas’s sorrow to Jesus’s trial, death, and burial. People reject and mock Jesus, yet God’s plan to save sinners moves forward through all their cruelty.
Walking Through Matthew 27
A Price That Cannot Be Taken Back (Matthew 27:1-10)
1 When it was early in the morning, all the chief priests and the elders of the people plotted against Jesus to execute him. 2 They tied him up, led him away, and handed him over to Pilate the governor. 3 Now when Judas, who had betrayed him, saw that Jesus had been condemned, he regretted what he had done and returned the 30 silver coins to the chief priests and the elders, 4 saying, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood!” But they said, “What is that to us? You take care of it yourself!” 5 So Judas threw the silver coins into the temple and left. Then he went out and hanged himself. 6 The chief priests took the silver and said, “It is not lawful to put this into the temple treasury, since it is blood money.” 7 After consulting together they bought the Potter’s Field with it, as a burial place for foreigners. 8 For this reason that field has been called the “Field of Blood” to this day. 9 Then what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled: “They took the 30 silver coins, the price of the one whose price had been set by the people of Israel, 10 and they gave them for the potter’s field, as the Lord commanded me.”Matthew 27:1-10 · NET Bible
The chief priests and elders decide to seek Jesus’s death and hand Him over to Pilate. Judas sees that Jesus has been condemned and is filled with regret. He returns the thirty silver coins and admits that he betrayed an innocent man. The leaders refuse to take responsibility, and Judas leaves and takes his own life. This is a deeply sad ending, not something to pass over lightly. The priests will not put the money into the temple treasury because it paid for a death. Yet they had been willing to pay for that death themselves. They buy a burial field for strangers instead. Matthew connects these events with the prophets, naming Jeremiah while drawing on themes also found in Zechariah. I see a sharp warning here: keeping a religious rule does not make up for refusing what is right.
The Innocent One Is Condemned (Matthew 27:11-26)
11 Then Jesus stood before the governor, and the governor asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?” Jesus said, “You say so.” 12 But when he was accused by the chief priests and the elders, he did not respond. 13 Then Pilate said to him, “Don’t you hear how many charges they are bringing against you?” 14 But he did not answer even one accusation, so that the governor was quite amazed. 15 During the feast the governor was accustomed to release one prisoner to the crowd, whomever they wanted. 16 At that time they had in custody a notorious prisoner named Jesus Barabbas. 17 So after they had assembled, Pilate said to them, “Whom do you want me to release for you, Jesus Barabbas or Jesus who is called the Christ?” 18 (For he knew that they had handed him over because of envy.) 19 As he was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent a message to him: “Have nothing to do with that innocent man; I have suffered greatly as a result of a dream about him today.” 20 But the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowds to ask for Barabbas and to have Jesus killed. 21 The governor asked them, “Which of the two do you want me to release for you?” And they said, “Barabbas!” 22 Pilate said to them, “Then what should I do with Jesus who is called the Christ?” They all said, “Crucify him!” 23 He asked, “Why? What wrong has he done?” But they shouted more insistently, “Crucify him!” 24 When Pilate saw that he could do nothing, but that instead a riot was starting, he took some water, washed his hands before the crowd and said, “I am innocent of this man’s blood. You take care of it yourselves!” 25 In reply all the people said, “Let his blood be on us and on our children!” 26 Then he released Barabbas for them. But after he had Jesus flogged, he handed him over to be crucified.Matthew 27:11-26 · NET Bible
Pilate asks Jesus about being the King of the Jews. Jesus acknowledges the title but does not answer the accusations brought against Him. His silence amazes Pilate. At the feast, the governor offers to release a prisoner. He knows the leaders handed Jesus over out of envy, and his wife warns him after a troubling dream. Still, the leaders persuade the crowd to choose Barabbas and demand Jesus’s death. Pilate washes his hands, trying to separate himself from the blame, but he still gives the order. A public gesture cannot erase his choice. The crowd’s words about bearing the blame belong to those speakers; they do not justify hatred toward Jewish people. Barabbas goes free, while the innocent Jesus is whipped and handed over to be crucified. This exchange gives us a striking picture of grace: the guilty are released while Jesus bears the punishment.
Mocked as King, Crucified as Savior (Matthew 27:27-44)
27 Then the governor’s soldiers took Jesus into the governor’s residence and gathered the whole cohort around him. 28 They stripped him and put a scarlet robe around him, 29 and after braiding a crown of thorns, they put it on his head. They put a staff in his right hand, and kneeling down before him, they mocked him: “Hail, king of the Jews!” 30 They spat on him and took the staff and struck him repeatedly on the head. 31 When they had mocked him, they stripped him of the robe and put his own clothes back on him. Then they led him away to crucify him. 32 As they were going out, they found a man from Cyrene named Simon, whom they forced to carry his cross. 33 They came to a place called Golgotha (which means “Place of the Skull”) 34 and offered Jesus wine mixed with gall to drink. But after tasting it, he would not drink it. 35 When they had crucified him, they divided his clothes by throwing dice. 36 Then they sat down and kept guard over him there. 37 Above his head they put the charge against him, which read: “This is Jesus, the king of the Jews.” 38 Then two outlaws were crucified with him, one on his right and one on his left. 39 Those who passed by defamed him, shaking their heads 40 and saying, “You who can destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself! If you are God’s Son, come down from the cross!” 41 In the same way even the chief priests—together with the experts in the law and elders—were mocking him: 42 “He saved others, but he cannot save himself! He is the king of Israel! If he comes down now from the cross, we will believe in him! 43 He trusts in God—let God, if he wants to, deliver him now because he said, ‘I am God’s Son’!” 44 The robbers who were crucified with him also spoke abusively to him.Matthew 27:27-44 · NET Bible
The soldiers turn Jesus’s kingship into a cruel joke. They give Him a robe, a crown of thorns, and a reed, then spit on Him and strike Him. On the way to Golgotha, they force Simon of Cyrene to carry His cross. Jesus refuses wine mixed with gall. The soldiers crucify Him, divide His clothes by casting lots, and keep watch. The charge posted above Him names Him as King of the Jews. Two robbers are crucified beside Him. People passing by, religious leaders, and even the robbers mock Him. They treat His suffering as proof that His claims are false. They say they would believe if He came down from the cross. But coming down would not complete the work He came to do. I want us to notice this: their demand for proof runs against the very rescue they need.
His Death Changes Everything (Matthew 27:45-56)
45 Now from noon until three, darkness came over all the land. 46 At about three o’clock Jesus shouted with a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “ My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? ” 47 When some of the bystanders heard it, they said, “This man is calling for Elijah.” 48 Immediately one of them ran and got a sponge, filled it with sour wine, put it on a stick, and gave it to him to drink. 49 But the rest said, “Leave him alone! Let’s see if Elijah will come to save him.” 50 Then Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and gave up his spirit. 51 Just then the temple curtain was torn in two, from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks were split apart. 52 And tombs were opened, and the bodies of many saints who had died were raised. 53 (They came out of the tombs after his resurrection and went into the holy city and appeared to many people.) 54 Now when the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and what took place, they were extremely terrified and said, “Truly this one was God’s Son!” 55 Many women who had followed Jesus from Galilee and given him support were also there, watching from a distance. 56 Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joseph, and the mother of the sons of Zebedee.Matthew 27:45-56 · NET Bible
Darkness covers the land from noon until three. Jesus cries out in words from Psalm 22:1, expressing the deep pain of being forsaken. Some bystanders mistake His cry for a call to Elijah. Someone offers sour wine, while others wait to see whether Elijah will come. Jesus cries out again and gives up His spirit. Then the temple curtain tears from top to bottom, the earth shakes, and tombs open. The torn curtain points to the way His death opens access to God. Matthew also reports that many holy people are raised and, after Jesus’s resurrection, enter Jerusalem and appear to many. He gives no further details, so we should not invent them. The Roman officer and those guarding Jesus are terrified and confess that He truly was God’s Son. Women who had followed and served Jesus watch from a distance. His death is real, witnessed, and filled with signs of God’s power.
A Known Grave and Faithful Witnesses (Matthew 27:57-61)
57 Now when it was evening, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who was also a disciple of Jesus. 58 He went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate ordered that it be given to him. 59 Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, 60 and placed it in his own new tomb that he had cut in the rock. Then he rolled a great stone across the entrance of the tomb and went away. 61 (Now Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting there, opposite the tomb.)Matthew 27:57-61 · NET Bible
As evening comes, Joseph of Arimathea, a rich man and a disciple of Jesus, asks Pilate for the body. After Pilate gives permission, Joseph wraps Jesus in clean linen and lays Him in his own new tomb, cut into rock. He rolls a large stone across the entrance and leaves. Mary Magdalene and the other Mary remain nearby, facing the tomb. These details matter. Jesus is not left at an unknown location, and His burial is not a rumor. His followers know where His body has been placed. I also notice the quiet care shown here. After so much public cruelty, Jesus’s body is handled with dignity.
A Sealed Tomb Cannot Set the Ending (Matthew 27:62-66)
62 The next day (which is after the day of preparation) the chief priests and the Pharisees assembled before Pilate 63 and said, “Sir, we remember that while that deceiver was still alive he said, ‘After three days I will rise again.’ 64 So give orders to secure the tomb until the third day. Otherwise his disciples may come and steal his body and say to the people, ‘He has been raised from the dead,’ and the last deception will be worse than the first.” 65 Pilate said to them, “Take a guard of soldiers. Go and make it as secure as you can.” 66 So they went with the soldiers of the guard and made the tomb secure by sealing the stone.Matthew 27:62-66 · NET Bible
The next day, the chief priests and Pharisees ask Pilate to secure the tomb. They remember that Jesus said He would rise after three days. They fear His disciples might steal the body and announce that He has risen. Pilate allows them to make the tomb secure with a guard. They seal the stone and post the guards. Matthew ends the chapter with Jesus truly dead and His tomb firmly closed. The leaders are trying to prevent a false resurrection claim, but their actions also prepare the reader for what follows. The coming empty tomb will not be explained by a lack of care in securing the grave.
- Innocent — Jesus had done no wrong, yet He was sentenced to die.
- Fulfillment — God carries out what He promised, even through events people meant for evil.
Where might you be judging God’s care only by whether He removes a hard situation?
Father, thank You for the love shown through Jesus’s death. Help us face our sin honestly and trust the grace He provides. Teach us to see strength and love through the cross. Amen.