The story told is that the sky grew unusually dark at midday. But then, this was like no other day, before or since. Atop Golgotha, Jesus of Nazareth (Iesus Nazarenus, Rex Iudaeorum, the placard declared), hung and nailed, had endured excruciating torment. The hours of agony played out against a background of insults (“the rulers scoffed at him . . . the soldiers also mocked him”), contempt (“those passing by reviled him”), and unseemly acts (“for my clothing they cast lots”).
His strength sapped, His spirit ebbed. But for divine intervention, there was only one natural conclusion to this necessary catastrophe.
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