Read Mark 15:15 –20. What did the soldiers do to Jesus, and what is its significance?

The Romans utilized a severe form of beating to prepare prisoners for execution. The victim was stripped of his clothes, tied to a pole, and then lashed with leather whips to which pieces of bone, glass, stones, and nails were tied.

After Jesus was whipped, the soldiers tasked with His execution continued His humiliation by clothing Him in a purple robe, placing a crown of thorns on His head, and mocking Him as king of the Jews. The group of soldiers is called a battalion, in this case anywhere from 200 to 600 men.

The irony in the scene is evident to the reader because Jesus really is the King, and the mocking words of the soldiers proclaim this truth. The action of the soldiers was a parody of how soldiers hailed the Roman emperor with the words “Hail, Caesar, Emperor!” Thus, there is an implicit comparison to the emperor.

The actions of the soldiers in mocking Jesus are “striking” His head with a reed, “spitting” on Him, and “kneeling down” in mock homage. All three of these actions are expressed in Greek with the imperfect tense. In this setting, this tense has the idea of repetitive action. Thus, they kept striking Him, kept spitting on Him, and kept kneeling down in mock homage before Him. Jesus takes all of this in silence, not responding at all.

The typical pattern of Roman execution by crucifixion involved having the convicted person carry the cross naked to the place of execution. This pattern, again, was to humiliate and shame the person completely before the community.

But the Jews abhorred public nakedness. Mark 15:20  notes that they removed the purple cloak and put His own clothes back on Him. Thus, this appears to be a concession that the Romans made to the Jews at that time and place.

Think about all the irony here. Their bowing and paying “homage” to Jesus as King was all in mockery even though Jesus really was the King, not just of the Jews but of the Romans, as well.

These men had no idea what they were doing. Why, though, will their ignorance not excuse them on Judgment Day?