The Wounds Of Christ

The Wounds of Christ

Isaiah 53:5

Within a few days from the Triumphal Entry, the exaltation of Christ by the crowds would quickly give way to untold suffering and the angry shouts of a mob saying “Crucify Him!” Christ’s reprehensible suffering is prophesied in the Old Testament. Bruised, Wounded, Smitten! But have you ever stopped to consider the wounds He received in His substitutionary death for you and me. Let us take time to do so today.

I. Contusions – An internal bruise caused by a blunt object such as a blow from a rod

A. Isaiah 53:5 “But He was wounded for our transgressions; He was bruised for our iniquities.”

B. Matthew 26:67-68 “Then they spit in His face and buffeted Him, and others smote Him with the palms of their hands, saying, "Prophesy unto us, thou Christ! Who is he that smote thee?"

C. Buffet - to strike, as with the hand or fist; to strike against or push repeatedly; to attack “blow after blow”, as when waves buffet a boat. Christ was repeatedly struck with both fists and open hands in a sordid sickly sadistic mockery of the Lamb of God.

D. Micah 5:1 “Now gather yourself in troops, O daughter of troops; He has laid siege against us; they will strike the judge of Israel with a rod on the cheek.”

E. Matthew 27:29 -30 “And when they had plaited a crown of thorns, they put it upon His head and a reed in His right hand, and they bowed their knees before Him and mocked Him, saying, "Hail, King of the Jews! And they spat upon Him, and took the reed and smote Him on the head.”

II. Laceration – A wound which results in a jagged or irregular tear.

A. Isaiah 50:6 “I gave My back to the smiters and My cheeks to them that plucked off the hair; I hid not My face from shame and spitting.”

B. Psalm 129:3 “The plowers plowed upon my back: they made long their furrows”

C. Matthew 27:26 “Then released he (Pilate) Barabbas unto them; and when he had scourged Jesus, he delivered Him to be crucified.”

D. “Flogging was a legal preliminary to any Roman execution. The prisoner was stripped of His clothing and His hands tied to a post above His head. The Roman legionnaire stepped forward with the flagrum, or flagellum, in his hand. This was a short whip consisting of several heavy, leather thongs with two small balls of lead attached near the ends of each. The heavy whip was brought down with full force again and again across Jesus' shoulders, back, and legs. At first the weighted thongs cut through the skin only. Then, as the blows continued, they cut deeper into the subcutaneous tissues, producing first an oozing of blood from the capillaries and veins of the skin and finally spurting arterial bleeding from vessels in the underlying muscles. The small balls of lead first produced large deep bruises that were broken open by subsequent blows. Finally, the skin of the back was hanging in long ribbons, and the entire area was an unrecognizable mass of torn, bleeding tissue. When it was determined by the centurion in charge that the prisoner was near death, the beating was finally stopped” – Dr. C Truman Davis, New Wine Magazine, April 1982.

E. 1 Peter 2:24 Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.

III. Penetrating – A wound caused by a sharp or pointed object that punctures or penetrates the skin

A. Matthew 27:29 -30 “And when they had plaited a crown of thorns, they put it upon His head and a reed in His right hand, and they bowed their knees before Him and mocked Him, saying, "Hail, King of the Jews! And they spat upon Him, and took the reed and smote Him on the head.”

B. Consider the crown of thorns. Imagine the pain that you and I would feel if a straight pin was pressed into your temple. Now imagine several dozen spiny thorns pressed hard into your brow to mingle open wounds that would mingle both blood and sweat.

C. The crown was put upon His sacred head; both to reproach Him as a king, and to torture Him as a man.

IV. Perforating Wound – Piercing – A wound caused by a sharp instrument making a hole through a body part.

A. Psalm 22:16 “For dogs have surrounded Me; the assembly of the wicked have enclosed Me; they pierced My hands and My feet.”

B. The Roman legionnaire would feel for the depression at the front of the wrist. He would then drive a 5-7 inch long heavy, wrought-iron nail with a 5/8 inch square shaft through the wrist and deep into the wood of the patibulum or crossbar. The left foot was pressed backward against the right foot. With both feet extended, toes down, a nail was driven through the arch of each.