“And saying, Thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days, save thyself. If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross.”
(Matthew 27:40)
In addition to all the physical torment He suffered, Christ’s passion brought Him enormous emotional pain when His fear-filled apostles deserted Him at His arrest, the religious leaders mocked and blasphemed Him, and His own chosen people wished Him dead. But both Matthew and Luke tell us that the derision did not stop there. For even those who simply passed the cross that day “wagged their heads” in contempt at His marred form hanging between earth and heaven (Matthew 27:39-40, Mark 15:29).
Some of them twisted what He had prophesied about His own death and resurrection in John 2:19, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up,” into “Ah, thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days, save thyself. If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross!” (Mark 15:29-30). They thought themselves to be clever by daring the Lord to save Himself from His imminent death, “If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross!”
Only a few years earlier, when He had been tempted by the devil, Christ heard something similar, “If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down from hence” (Matthew 4:5-6). So when His enemies at the crucifixion challenge Him using the same language, they make it patently clear whose family they belong to. And if it there was any doubt, Christ had already told them, “Ye are of Your father the devil, and the lusts of Your father ye will do” (John 8:44). Besides, just how foolish were they to think that Christ was incapable of removing Himself from a cross of wood that they themselves had constructed? They failed to realize that this was the very Son of God who chose to take on Himself the form of a man and come to earth from the throne of heaven a little more than 30 years previous.
They did not see (because God blinded their eyes) that they were mere dust underneath His footstool for, in truth, the heaven of heavens could not contain Him (2 Chronicles 2:6). Their taunting behavior demonstrated their complete lack of understanding of who this battered man was, as they really thought a nail driven through each of His hands could hold Him to that cross without His consent. They also had forgotten that He had already escaped their capture on more than one occasion when He disappeared from among those who sought to arrest Him (John 10:39), simply because His time to suffer had not yet come.
So clearly, it was not the power of the government officials, nor the orders from the soldiers, nor the insistence of the religious leaders that kept Christ on that cross. Rather, it was His immeasurable love that held Him there.[1]
Such love turned all His tortures into embraces that only death itself could release Him from. The challenge thrown at Christ by the passersby, echoing the tempter’s words in the wilderness, reveals the spiritual blindness afflicting His mockers. Their wagging heads and twisted quotes from His temple prophecy (John 2:19) expose not only ignorance but alignment with satanic forces. As Christ declared, their actions mirrored that of their father, the devil (John 8:44). This derision, far from clever, underestimated the divine purpose unfolding before them.
Christ’s refusal to descend from the cross was not weakness but willful obedience to the Father’s plan. Had he yielded to their dare, redemption would have been aborted, leaving humanity in sin’s grip. His endurance fulfilled prophecy, crushing the serpent’s head (Genesis 3:15). It was not the nails, but love’s bonds that secured Him, embracing the whole of humanity’s guilt to grant His people freedom.
Contemplations:
- Proof in staying. You proved Your Sonship by staying on the cross, Lord, triumphing over captivity (Ephesians 4:8). Forgive my unbelief, and help me see Your constancy in obediently and fully fulfilling the Father’s will.
- My altar and anchor. You are the altar and anchor of my soul, Lord. I confess often seeking security elsewhere, forgetting Your provision (Matthew 6:33) and that all things are ordained by You for my good (Romans 8:28). Forgive my self-reliance, and let me trust Your care, enjoying every blessing that comes through You.
- Trembling at Your scepter. Despite Your accusers’ tortures, temptations, and dares, Your endurance magnifies Your victorious love and mercy. I confess my complacency in regard to Your kingdom’s power, so Lord, do not ever let the devils’ trembling before Your majesty surpass that of my own (James 2:19).
- Armed against the enemy. Your word governs grace (Psalm 45:3). And yet I find myself vulnerable to temptations when I forget the power of Your indwelling Spirit using Your word to guard against the enemy. Equip my soul with truth against Satan that I may effectively wield Your weapon against despair, presumption, and all sin that would separate me from You.
Prayer (confession)
O holy God, You are the sovereign Lord whose plans unfold perfectly, even through human ridicule. I come before You, a sinner prone to doubt, confessing my failures to stand firm in my faith. Matthew 27:40 records taunts: “If thou be the Son of God, come down”; I grieve echoing such challenges in trials. Forgive my demands for proof, questioning Your power amid my suffering.
I acknowledge doubting You like Your mockers, twisting Your words (John 2:19) into derision. Their blindness, which was God-ordained, served my redemption; mine, however, stems from unbelief.
You are infinite, Lord. The heavens cannot contain You (2 Chronicles 2:6). And yet I confess treating You as if You were finite like me, demanding rescue from my own crosses of circumstance. Forgive me for underestimating the truth that Your love held You there until death released You.
The words of Your enemies mirrored Satan’s temptation (Matthew 4:5-6), and I must confess times of my own resemblance to the devil through my doubt (John 8:44). Break this bond, Lord, and align me with Your family so that I may endure taunts faithfully.
Your apostles deserted You, religious leaders blasphemed You, Your own people demanded Your death. I confess sometimes deserting You in fear and mocking You with my unbelief. Your love held firm, Lord, but mine often falters. Wash away my guilt and renew my commitment.
When Satan testifies against me, Your scarred hands silence him (Zechariah 3:1-2). When the Law charges me with guilt, You step forward with Your substitutionary fulfillment of the Law for me. You were innocent of all guilt, and yet You became sin for me (2 Corinthians 5:21), conquering sin’s curse of death and Satan.
Break my patterns of unbelief and let love hold me as it held You. In trials, I want to see Your constancy. Forgive my wavering and anchor me in truth. Cleanse me thoroughly and let my devotion match Your love.
In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.
Further Scripture references for Matthew 27:40
Matt. 26:61, Matt. 4:3, Matt 26:63, Matt. 27:42.
[1] “The pleasures of the world are vain; earthly gain breeds great vexations, worldly honors vanish and come to nothing; but God is our pleasure, glory, gain, everlasting, and immeasurable love.” John Ball, A Treatise of Divine Meditation, (Crossville, TN: Puritan Publications, 2016) eBook, Solemn Meditation.
