They kept saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” and they kept slapping him.
Parallel translations
- KJV And said, Hail, King of the Jews! and they smote him with their hands.
- BSB And they went up to Him again and again, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” and slapping Him in the face.
- NKJV Then they said, “Hail, King of the Jews!” And they struck Him with their hands.
- NASB and they repeatedly came up to Him and said, “Hail, King of the Jews!” and slapped Him in the face again and again.
- NLT “Hail! King of the Jews!” they mocked, as they slapped him across the face.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The soldiers hail Jesus as 'King of the Jews' in mockery while striking him. Their ridicule ironically declares the truth they fail to see.
Overview
The repeated mock salute and slapping continue the soldiers' cruel theater, treating Jesus' kingship as a joke. John's account is rich with irony: in deriding Jesus they speak the truth, for he genuinely is the King. He endures this humiliation in silence, embodying the suffering Servant who was despised and rejected (Isaiah 53:3).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 6
- Matt 27:29They braided a crown of thorns and put it on his head, and a reed in his right hand; and they kneeled down before him, and mocked him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!”
- Matt 26:49Immediately he came to Jesus, and said, “Hail, Rabbi!” and kissed him.
- Luke 1:28Having come in, the angel said to her, “Rejoice, you highly favored one! The Lord is with you. Blessed are you among women!”
- John 19:19–22Pilate wrote a title also, and put it on the cross. There was written, “JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS.”
- John 18:33Pilate therefore entered again into the Praetorium, called Jesus, and said to him, “Are you the King of the Jews?”
- John 18:22When he had said this, one of the officers standing by slapped Jesus with his hand, saying, “Do you answer the high priest like that?”
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Christ at the center
John declares him plainly: the eternal Word made flesh, the Lamb of God, the great 'I AM' — bread, light, door, shepherd, way, truth, life, resurrection — that you may believe and have life in his name.
How John 19:3 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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