Luke 23:26–49

Jesus Is Crucified

²⁶As they led Jesus away, Simon, a man from Cyrene, was coming in from the fields. They forced him to carry Jesus’ cross and to walk behind him.

²⁷A large crowd of people was following Jesus, including some women who were sad and crying for him. ²⁸But Jesus turned and said to them, “Women of Jerusalem, don’t cry for me. Cry for yourselves and for your children. ²⁹The time is coming when people will say, ‘Blessed are the women who cannot have children and who have no babies to nurse.’ ³⁰Then people will say to the mountains, ‘Fall on us!’ And they will say to the hills, ‘Cover us!’ ³¹If they act like this now when life is good, what will happen when bad times come?” ⁿ

³²There were also two criminals led out with Jesus to be put to death. ³³When they came to a place called the Skull, the soldiers crucified Jesus and the criminals—one on his right and the other on his left. ³⁴Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, because they don’t know what they are doing.” ⁿ

The soldiers threw lots to decide who would get his clothes. ³⁵The people stood there watching. And the leaders made fun of Jesus, saying, “He saved others. Let him save himself if he is God’s Chosen One, the Christ.”

³⁶The soldiers also made fun of him, coming to Jesus and offering him some vinegar. ³⁷They said, “If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself!” ³⁸At the top of the cross these words were written: this is the king of the jews.

³⁹One of the criminals on a cross began to shout insults at Jesus: “Aren’t you the Christ? Then save yourself and us.”

⁴⁰But the other criminal stopped him and said, “You should fear God! You are getting the same punishment he is. ⁴¹We are punished justly, getting what we deserve for what we did. But this man has done nothing wrong.” ⁴²Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”

⁴³Jesus said to him, “I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.” ⁿ

Jesus Dies

⁴⁴It was about noon, and the whole land became dark until three o’clock in the afternoon, ⁴⁵because the sun did not shine. The curtain in the Temple ⁿ was torn in two. ⁴⁶Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Father, I give you my life.” After Jesus said this, he died.

⁴⁷When the army officer there saw what happened, he praised God, saying, “Surely this was a good man!”

⁴⁸When all the people who had gathered there to watch saw what happened, they returned home, beating their chests because they were so sad. ⁴⁹But those who were close friends of Jesus, including the women who had followed him from Galilee, stood at a distance and watched.