But when they came to Jesus and saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs.
Parallel translations
- WEB but when they came to Jesus, and saw that he was already dead, they didn’t break his legs.
- KJV But when they came to Jesus, and saw that he was dead already, they brake not his legs:
- NKJV But when they came to Jesus and saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs.
- NASB but after they came to Jesus, when they saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs.
- NLT But when they came to Jesus, they saw that he was already dead, so they didn’t break his legs.
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
Finding Jesus already dead, the soldiers do not break his legs. This preserves the fulfillment of Scripture.
Overview
Jesus had already given up his spirit, so the soldiers see no need to break his legs. This providential detail fulfills the requirement that no bone of the Passover lamb be broken (Exodus 12:46). Thus even in death Jesus is shown to be the true Passover Lamb of God.
Cross-references & the web
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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 19:33 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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