The Passion of the Christ and What the Scriptures Say
Stephen Mathews
Mel Gibson’s movie the Passion of The Christ has stirred a lot of commentary among the general public. Some critics call his movie a masterpiece while others call it anti-Semitic (against the Jews). The first question among the public is “How accurate is it?” This question has come from viewers and non-viewers of the film. The second question has been “is it anti-Semitic?” That question comes from all the critical accusations that Mel Gibson made the movie portray the Jews as the bad guys with his Roman Catholic influence. Some say that he makes the Romans look like the good guys. The second question only matters based on the answer to the first question, “How accurate is it?” I will address both.
After watching the movie twice in five days I decided to research the accuracy of the film. This paper aims to answer the first question by pointing out scenes that are recorded in the scriptures and scenes that are not. References to other documents are also made as they pertain to the movie. There are four books in the New Testament (Christian Scriptures) that account for Jesus’ life on earth. These four books are Matthew, Mark, Luke and John and are the primary reference for this paper.
Note: Abbreviations for the books used:
Mt = Matthew; Mk = Mark; Lk = Luke; Jn = John
It is recorded that Judas Iscariot, one of the disciples, agreed to betray Jesus. The priests paid him thirty pieces of silver (Mt 26:15) to lead them to him.
Mt 26:14-16; Mk 14:10-11; Lk 22:3-6
The initial conspiracy of the priests to kill Jesus is recorded in Mt 26:3-4; Mk 14:1; Lk 22:2.
Jesus went to Gethsemane on the Mount of Olives with Peter, James and John (named in Mark 14:33) to pray. He was distressed so much that Luke recorded that his sweat was like blood (Lk 22:44), barely visible in the dark scene of the garden. In the November 1986 issue of OMNI magazine, Mayo Clinic pathologist, William Edwards is quoted saying “That describes a rare condition called hematidrosis, sometimes induced by highly emotional states.” It was recorded that the disciples present had fallen asleep three times while he prayed (Mk 14:37,40,41), the movie only showed once but since he was already praying when the movie started their two previous times may have been past. Satan is not recorded being present in the garden during this time as it is dramatically shown in the movie.
It is recorded that Judas led servants of the priests armed with swords and clubs to arrest Jesus. It is also recorded that Judas arranged a signal to the men, that the man he would kiss is Jesus, the man to be arrested (Mt 26:48). Judas is not recorded as apprehensive during the arrest as depicted in the movie. A servant of the priests was struck by Peter’s sword and his right ear was cut off. The healing of his ear is recorded in Luke 22:51. The servant’s name was Malchus (Jn 18:10) and that name is used in the movie.
After the arrest, Jesus was taken to Caiaphas the high priest and brought before him and the Sanhedrin. Peter followed behind. It is recorded that they were looking for a reason to put Jesus to death (Mt 26:59; Mk 14:55). The opening conversation before Caiaphas in the movie was from John 18:20-21. The first hit in the face is recorded (Jn 18:21). The people coming forward and making false contradictory claims against him comes from Mark 14:56-59. His silence to it is also recorded. The question of him being the Messiah and his reply to it are recorded as well. After hearing this, Caiaphas tore his own clothes (Mt 26:65; Mk 14:63). For his response to Caiaphas they sentenced him to death for blasphemy (Mt 26:66; Mk 14:64). It was then that they proceeded to hit him with their fists, spit in his face and slapped him (Mt 26:67; Mk 14:65). It is recorded that they blindfolded him before they continued punching him (Mk 14:65) but he was not blindfolded in the movie.
It is recorded that Peter denied knowing Jesus three times and after realizing that he did it he wept bitterly. It is recorded in Luke that Jesus looked at Peter after the third denial and then he realized what he had done. It is not recorded that he ran into Mary afterward and avoided her touch in shame as shown in the movie. The movie left out that a rooster crowed after the third denial as predicted by Jesus.
Mt 26:69-75; Mk 14:66-72; Lk 22:55-62; Jn 18:15-18, 25-27
The movie shows a brief retrospective view of Jesus telling Peter he would deny him. This comes from Mt 26:31-35; Mk 14:27-31; Lk 22:31-38; Jn 13:37-38
It is recorded that Judas tried to return the silver he received for betraying Jesus to the priests and expressed his guilt for betraying an innocent man. The response of the priest in the movie is recorded in Matthew. There is no record of children taunting Judas or the presence of demons haunting him as is shown in the movie. It is recorded that he hanged himself after meeting with the priests.
Mt 27:3-5 (There is graphical mention of the hanging in Acts 1:18)
The council of the elders and the priests took Jesus to the Roman governor, Pilate, for execution. In the movie Pilate’s wife wakes from a bad dream and asks him to leave Jesus alone. It’s not recorded quite like that but it’s close (Mt 27:19). The whole assembly told Pilate that Jesus was misleading the people, telling them not to pay taxes to Caesar and that he is Christ the King (Lk 23:2). The argument Pilate had with the priests about them using their own laws to Jesus is record in John (18:31). In the movie Pilate brought Jesus into the palace and began the line of questioning regarding him being a King and of truth (Jn 18:33-38). The question of Jesus being King is recorded in all four books (Mt 27:11; Mk 15:2; Lk 23:3; Jn 18:37). After questioning, Pilate announced that he did not find a basis for a charge against him (Lk 23:4; Jn 18:38).
It is recorded in Luke that during the response from the crowd Pilate discovered that Jesus was Galilean so he told them to take him to Herod for judgment because it was his jurisdiction (Lk 23:6-7). When they brought him to Herod he was delighted to see Jesus (Lk 23:8). He was hoping to see him perform miracles (Lk 23:8). Herod asked him many questions but Jesus didn’t answer (Lk 23:9). So Herod and his men ridiculed him sent him back to Pilate (Lk 23:11).
When Jesus was brought back to Pilate for execution, Pilate reminded the priests that neither he nor Herod found a basis for death (Lk 23:13-15). It is recorded that it was a custom of Pilate to release a prisoner selected by the crowd during Passover (Mt 27:15; Mk 15:6; Jn 18:39). He brought out a prisoner named Barabbas (Mt 27:16) who was imprisoned for murder and participating in riots (Mk 15:7; Lk 23:19). After asking the crowd to pick between Jesus and Barabbas they said to release Barabbas (Mt 27:21; Lk 23:18; Jn 18:40). It is recorded (Mk 15:11) that the priests stirred up the crowd to ask for Barabbas. Pilate asked why but the crowd shouted more (Mt 27:23; Mk 15:14; Lk 23:20). Hoping to satisfy them he told them he had no grounds for the death penalty and so he would punish him and then release him instead (Mk 15:15; Lk 23:16,22). The punishment which was said to be flogging or scourging (Mt 27:26; Mk 15:15) is mentioned briefly but is record historically as a horrific method of whipping someone. The method utilized by the Romans at that time was known to cause death although it was only meant to cause great pain.
After having Jesus scourged Pilate handed him over to be crucified (Mt 27:26; Mk 15:15).
It was recorded in all four gospels that Jesus was crucified with two criminals, one on each side. This fulfilled the prophecy from Isaiah 53:12. This account is a good example of “biblical contradictions” and how they can be interpreted. Luke is the only gospel that records one of the criminals defending Jesus and being invited to paradise by the savior. The other gospels record both criminals taunting Jesus. To a believer, this contradiction shows the personal perspectives of each account. Luke (or his witness) may have been close enough to the crosses to hear the exchange between Jesus and the “good” criminal.
Mt 27:38,44; Mk 15:27,32; Lk 23:39-43; Jn 19:18
…
Is it the Priests?
In the book of Leviticus, in the Jewish Torah (the five books known as “The Law” written by Moses), God told Moses that the punishment for blasphemy was death by stoning (Leviticus 24:10-16). For Caiaphas to hear Jesus claim to be the Son of God (which is blasphemy when it’s not true), and not believe it, he may have felt that putting Jesus to death was his obligation. This is somewhat mentioned in John 19:7. But in Mark 15:10 it states that Pilate knew that it was out of envy that the chief priests handed Jesus over to him. It is not recorded how Pilate knew this.
Who does Mel Gibson say the bad guy was?
In several interviews with Mel Gibson and articles about his movie it was mentioned that he (actually his hands) made a cameo appearance in the movie as the hands that nailed Jesus to the cross. He said he did this because it was his sins that put Jesus on the cross.
Who does the Bible say the bad guy was?
In the book of Isaiah, in the Jewish Nevi’im (the twenty one books of the prophets), there is a verse (Isaiah 53:5) that was on the big screen before the movie began. Here are a few well-known translations of that verse:
New International Version:
But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed.
Tanakh (Jewish Publication Society Translation - Second Edition):
But he was wounded because of our sins, Crushed because of our iniquities. He bore the chastisement that made us whole, And by his bruises we were healed.
New King James Version (American Bible Society):
But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed.
Christians firmly believe that this prophecy was fulfilled by the crucifixion of Jesus. With that the verse places blame for his crucifixion on Christians as healed transgressors. All believers know this to be true.