Bible Questions and Answer

When the Romans crucified people, they sometimes broke their legs to speed up death. With broken legs, the victim couldn't push himself up to breathe and would suffocate quickly. The Jewish leaders didn't want bodies left on crosses during the Sabbath, so they asked Pilate to have the legs broken. The soldiers broke the legs of the two men crucified with Jesus. But when they came to Jesus, He was already dead, so they didn't break His legs. John says, "These things happened so that the scripture would be fulfilled: 'Not one of his bones will be broken.'" This matches Psalm 34:20, which says God protects all the bones of the righteous. It also matches the Passover lamb. God told Israel in Exodus 12 not to break any of the lamb's bones. Jesus died at Passover, and Paul calls Him "our Passover lamb." John saw even this small detail as God showing who Jesus really was.