King

 of  the  Jews  

David Feddes
Mark 15:1 Andas soon as it was morning, the
chief priests held a consultation with the
elders and scribes and the whole council. And
they bound Jesus and led him away and
delivered him over to Pilate. 2 And Pilate asked
him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” And he
answered him, “You have said so.” 3 And the
chief priests accused him of many things.
4 And Pilate again asked him, “Have you no

answer to make? See how many charges they

bring against you.” 5 But Jesus made no
further answer, so that Pilate was amazed.
6 Now at the feast he used to release for
them one prisoner for whom they asked.
7 And among the rebels in prison, who had

committed murder in the insurrection, there

was a man called Barabbas. 8 And the crowd
came up and began to ask Pilate to do as he
usually did for them. 9 And he answered
them, saying, “Do you want me to release for
you the King of the Jews?” 10 For he
perceived that it was out of envy that the
chief priests had delivered him up. 11 But the
chief priests stirred up the crowd to have him
release for them Barabbas instead.
12 And Pilate again said to them, “Then what
shall I do with the man you call the King of
the Jews?” 13 And they cried out again,
“Crucify him.” 14 And Pilate said to them,
“Why, what evil has he done?” But they
shouted all the more, “Crucify him.” 15 So
Pilate, wishing to satisfy the crowd, released
for them Barabbas, and having scourged
Jesus, he delivered him to be crucified.
16  And the soldiers led him away inside the
palace (that is, the governor's headquarters),
and they called together the whole battalion.
17  And they clothed him in a purple cloak, and

twisting together a crown of thorns, they put it

on him. 18 And they began to salute him, “Hail,
King of the Jews!” 19 And they were striking his
head with a reed and spitting on him and
kneeling down in homage to him. 20 And when
they had mocked him, they stripped him of the
purple cloak and put his own clothes on him.
And they led him out to crucify him.
21  And they compelled a passerby, Simon of
Cyrene, who was coming in from the country,
the father of Alexander and Rufus, to carry his
cross. 22 And they brought him to the place
called Golgotha (which means Place of a Skull).
23 And they offered him wine mixed with myrrh,

but he did not take it. 24 And they crucified him

and divided his garments among them, casting
lots for them, to decide what each should take.
25 And it was the third hour when they crucified

him. 26 And the inscription of the charge

against him read, “The King of the Jews.”
27  Andwith him they crucified two robbers, one
on his right and one on his left. 29 And those
who passed by derided him, wagging their
heads and saying, “Aha! You who would destroy
the temple and rebuild it in three days, 30 save
yourself, and come down from the cross!” 31  So
also the chief priests with the scribes mocked
him to one another, saying, “He saved others;
he cannot save himself. 32 Let the Christ, the
King of Israel, come down now from the cross
that we may see and believe.” Those who were
crucified with him also reviled him.
 King  of  the  Jews  
“Are you the King of the Jews?”
“Do you want me to release for you the King of
the Jews?”
“Then what shall I do with the man you call the
King of the Jews?”
“Hail, King of the Jews!”
The inscription of the charge against him read,
“The King of the Jews.”
“Let the Christ, the King of Israel, come down now
from the cross that we may see and believe.”
King  of  the  Jews  
•  Jesus’ Jewishness
•  Jesus’ kingship
 Jesus  the  Jew  
•  Born Jewish, raised Jewish, homeland
•  Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Nazareth
•  Circumcision, synagogue, temple
•  Jewish Scriptures, prophecies, hopes
•  Jewish rabbi, prophet, Messiah
•  Jewish shepherds, apostles, women, early
church, mission network
•  Gospel is “first for the Jews”
 A  Jew  for  Jews  
Mary: “He has helped his servant Israel,
remembering to be merciful to Abraham and
his descendants forever, even as he said to
our fathers.” (Luke 1:54-55)
Nathaniel: “Rabbi, you are the Son of God;
you are the King of Israel.” (John 1:49)
Did God reject his people? By no means!
(Romans 11:1)
“I am the way… No one comes to the Father
except through me.” (John 14:6)
 A  Jew  for  Gentiles  
“All peoples on earth will be blessed through
you and your offspring.” (Genesis 28:14).
“Salvation is from the Jews.” (John 4:22)
Jesus’ Jewishness matters for Gentiles:
•  Relating to Jews: “Whoever touches you
touches the apple of my eye.” (Zech 2:8)
•  Relating to God
•  Continuity of history
•  Unity and value of both Testaments
King  of  the  Jews  
•  Jesus’ Jewishness
•  Jesus’ kingship
 Kingdom  comes  near  
Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel
of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and
the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and
believe in the gospel.” (Mark 1:14-15)
“If it is by the finger of God that I cast out
demons, then the kingdom of God has come
upon you.” (Luke 11:20)
Jesus, knowing that they intended to come and
make him king by force, withdrew again to a
mountain by himself. (John 6:15)
 David  and  
Solomon  
•  Victory over
foreign powers
•  Building God’s
temple
 Judah  
The  Hammer  
•  Led three-year
campaign against
foreign occupation
•  Cleansed temple
in 164 B.C.
•  Still celebrated at
Hanukkah
 Herod  
The  Great  
•  Declared King of
Judea in 40 B.C.
•  Led three year
campaign against
Parthian invaders
•  Rebuilt the temple
and dedicated it
 Is  Herod  the  desired  ruler?  
Herod Antipas, son of Herod the Great, ruled
during Jesus’ ministry. Antipas’s symbol was a
reed that grows beside the Sea of Galilee.
Jesus began to speak to the crowd about John:
“What did you go out into the wilderness to
see? A reed swayed by the wind? If not, what
did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine
clothes? No, those who wear fine clothes are
in kings’ palaces. Then what did you go out to
see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than
a prophet. (Matthew 11:7-9)
 Supreme  King  and  Son  of  God  
Augustus Tiberius Chief Priest
Caesar, son of the
(Pontifex Maximus)
Divine Augustus.
 Accused  of  treason  
They began to accuse him, saying, “We have
found this man subverting our nation. He
opposes payment of taxes to Caesar and
claims to be Messiah, a king.” (Luke 23:2)
Pilate tried to set Jesus free, but the Jewish
leaders kept shouting, “If you let this man
go, you are no friend of Caesar. Anyone who
claims to be a king opposes Caesar.” (John
19:12)
 Different  kind  of  kingship  
“The kingdom of God is not coming in ways
that can be observed, nor will they say, ‘Look,
here it is!’ or ‘There!’ for behold, the kingdom
of God is in the midst of you.” (Luke 17:20-21)
Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world.
If it were, my servants would fight to prevent
my arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my
kingdom is from another place.” (John 18:36)
 Different  kind  of  kingship  
•  Jesus’ main battle is not against Rome
but against sin, death, and Satan.
•  God is becoming king on earth as in
heaven through Jesus.
•  His kingship is active now in forgiving,
healing, and transforming, not in
forcing his reign upon people.
•  When King Jesus comes again, he will
come in glory and power.
 Three  figures  predicted    
by  the  prophets  
•  A king, the Messiah, Son of David, will
defeat enemies and rule wisely and well.
•  Yahweh, the Lord himself, will come as
ruler and shepherd of Israel.
•  A humble, unimpressive servant will suffer
rejection, torture, and death for sins that
others have committed.
Nobody imagined that the king, the Lord,
and the servant could be the same person.
 King  and  Lord  
“The days are coming,” declares the LORD,
“when I will raise up for David a righteous
Branch, a King who will reign wisely and do
what is just and right in the land. In his days
Judah will be saved and Israel will live in
safety. This is the name by which he will be
called: The LORD Our Righteous
Savior.” (Jeremiah 23:5-7)
 Arm  of  the  Lord:  
Ruling  king,  suffering  servant  
The LORD will lay bare his holy arm in the sight
of all the nations, and all the ends of the
earth will see the salvation of our God… Who
has believed our message  and to whom has
the arm of the LORD been revealed… He was
despised and rejected by men, a man of
sorrows, and familiar with suffering… He was
pierced for our transgressions (Isaiah 52-53).
 A  ridiculous  king?  
•  Pilate thinks Jesus has no power.
•  Herod and his soldiers mock the king.
•  Pilate’s soldier’s mock the king.
•  The crowds and priests mock the king.
•  The king dies in disgrace
•  Is there anyone who doesn’t think it’s
ridiculous to call Jesus king?
 Sins  may  be  wiped  out  
The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of
our fathers, has glorified his servant Jesus. You
handed him over to be killed… Now, fellow
Israelites, I know that you acted in ignorance, as
did your leaders. But this is how God fulfilled what
he had foretold through all the prophets, saying
that his Messiah would suffer. Repent, then, and
turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out,
that times of refreshing may come from the
Lord, and that he may send the Messiah, who has
been appointed for you—even Jesus. (Acts 3:13-20)