¶ Then Pilate took Iesus and scourged him. And the soldiers wound a crown of thorns and put it on his head. And they did on him a purple garment, and said: hail king of the jewes. And they smote him on the face. Pilate went forth again, and said unto them: behold I bring him forth to you, that ye may know, that I find no fault in him. Then came Iesus forth wearing a crown of thorns and a robe of purple. And Pilate said unto them: Behold the man. When the high priests and ministers saw him, they cried saying: crucify him, crucify him. Pilate said unto them. Take ye him and crucify him: For I find no cause in him. The jewes answered him. We have a law, and by our law he ought to die: because he made himself the son of God.
¶ When Pilate heard that saying, he was the more afraid, and went again into the judgement house, and said unto Iesus: whence art thou? Iesus gave him none answer. Then said Pilate unto him: Speakest thou not unto me? Knowest thou not that I have power to crucify thee, and have power to loose thee? Iesus answered: Thou couldest have no power at all against me, except it were given unto thee from above. Therefore he that delivered me unto thee, is more in sin. And from thenceforth sought Pilate means to loose him: but the jewes cried saying: if thou let him go, thou art not Cesar's friend. Whosoever maketh himself a king, is against Cesar.
¶ When Pilate heard that saying he brought Iesus forth, and sat down to give sentence, in a place called the pavement: But in the Hebrew tongue, Gabbatha. (It was the saboth even which falleth in the ester feast, and about the sixth hour) And he said unto the jewes: Behold your king. They cried, away with him, away with him, Crucify him. Pilate said unto them: Shall I crucify your king? The high priests answered: We have no king but Cesar. Then delivered he him unto them to be crucified.
¶ And they took Iesus, and led him away. And he bare his cross, and went forth into a place called the place of dead men's skulls (which is named in hebrew, Golgotha) where they crucified him. And with him two other, on eitherside one, and Iesus in the midst. Pilate wrote his title, and put it on the cross: The writing was, Iesus of Nazareth, king of the jewes. This title read many of the jewes. For the place where Iesus was crucified, was nye to the city. And it was written in hebrew, greek and latin. Then said the high priests of the jewes to Pilate: write not, king of the jewes, but that he said, I am king of the jewes. Pilate answered: what I have written, that have I written.
¶ The soldiers, when they had crucified Iesus, took his garments and made four parts, to every soldier a part, and also his coat. The coat was without seam woven upon thorow and thorow. And they said one to another: Let us not divide it: but cast lots who shall have it. That the scripture might be fulfilled which saith. They parted my raiment among them, and on my coat did cast lots. And the soldiers did such things in deed.
¶ There stood by the cross of Iesus his mother, and his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene. When Iesus saw his mother, and the disciple standing whom he loved, he said unto his mother: Woman behold thy son. Then said he to the disciple: behold thy mother. And from that hour the disciple took her for his own.
¶ After that when Iesus perceived that all things were performed, that the scripture might be fulfilled: he said: I thirst. There stood a vessel full of vinegar by. They filled a sponge with vinegar, and wound it about with hyssop, and put it to his mouth. As soon as Iesus had received of the vinegar, he said: It is finished, and bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.
¶ The jewes then because it was the saboth even that the bodies should not remain upon the cross on the saboth day (For that saboth day was an high day) besought Pilate that their legs might be broken and that they might be taken down. Then came the soldiers and brake the legs of the first, and of the other which was crucified with Iesus. When they came to Iesus and saw that he was dead already, they brake not his legs: but one of the soldiers with a spear, thrust him into the side, and forthwith came there out blood and water.
¶ And he that saw it bare record, and his record is true. And he knoweth that he saith true that ye might believe also. These things were done that the scripture should be fulfilled: Ye shall not break a bone of him. And again another scripture saith: They shall look on him, whom they pierced.
¶ After that, Ioseph of Arimathia (which was a disciple of Iesus: but secretly for fear of the jewes) besought Pilate that he might take down the body of Iesus. And Pilate gave him license. And there came also Nicodemus which at the beginning came to Iesus by night, and brought of myrrh and aloes mingled to gether about an hundred pound weight. Then took they the body of Iesu and wound it in linen clothes with those confections as the manner of the jewes is to bury. In the place where Iesus was crucified, was a garden, and in the garden a new sepulchre, wherein was never man laid. There laid they Iesus because of the jewes' saboth even, for the sepulchre was nye at hand.
© Faith of God
William Tyndale 1526