They clothed him with purple, and weaving a crown of thorns, they put it on him.
Parallel translations
- KJV And they clothed him with purple, and platted a crown of thorns, and put it about his head,
- BSB They dressed Him in a purple robe, twisted together a crown of thorns, and set it on His head.
- NKJV And they clothed Him with purple; and they twisted a crown of thorns, put it on His head,
- NASB And they *dressed Him in purple, and after twisting together a crown of thorns, they put it on Him;
- NLT They dressed him in a purple robe, and they wove thorn branches into a crown and put it on his head.
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 dress Jesus in purple and crown him with thorns. They mock his kingship while unknowingly proclaiming it.
Overview
Purple signified royalty, and the crown of thorns parodies a king's diadem. Intending ridicule, the soldiers unwittingly testify that Jesus truly is King. The thorns, a sign of the curse on creation, fittingly mark the one who bears the curse to redeem his people.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 3
- Matt 27:28–30They stripped him, and put a scarlet robe on him.
- John 19:2–5The soldiers twisted thorns into a crown, and put it on his head, and dressed him in a purple garment.
- Luke 23:11Herod with his soldiers humiliated him and mocked him. Dressing him in luxurious clothing, they sent him back to Pilate.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Mark drives urgently to the cross, showing Jesus the Son of God as the suffering Servant who 'came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.'
How Mark 15:17 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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