When Jesus died, he was given all the markings of a King, but done in mockery:
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Two days before he was anointed for his burial by a woman bearing an alabaster flask, which his own disciples challenged him on, as an alabaster flask of fragrant oil was very expensive. This tracks a king's anointing before coronation.
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They held an election between the Barabbas the Insurrectionary(not actually just a murderer, he slew a Roman officer while leading a resistance to free Judah from occupation), and Jesus.
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He bore a crown of thorns, which punctured his skull.
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He was scourged, which mimicked kings being fanned with palm fronds.
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He briefly bore a red(violet and red were interchangeable in Greek) cape/robe.
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He was judged and found unblemished by the Roman Governor (Pontius Pilate) who went on to place a INRIover him on the cross, basically doing the Roman paperwork necessary to designate him a King.
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He was given Vinegar to drink and Gall(a curative oil).
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He was punctured by a rod of iron / scepter. Notable that he was stabbed in the same place Adam had his rib removed, though no bones of Jesus were broken.
Basically.. The Romans and Pharisees unwittingly performed the entire Coronation Rite on Jesus, but in mockery.
I'm probably missing a few, but there are far more than enough to make the case that Jesus wasn't just a normal prophet. He truly was the King of Kings and just as he said, "they know not what they do", we really were clueless at the time that we were coronating him in the most savage way imaginable.
What indignant little jerks we are, aye?
If you want a follow up, check out the Supper of the Lamb and how Jesus IS the passover lamb (whose blood is shed so that death may pass-over the holdings of the Exodus-era Hebrews). All the apostles would have realized what Jesus was doing, performing the Temple Seder Passover Feast OUTSIDE the temple -- big no-no.
They would have been confused, however, that the lamb was not present. When Jesus said "I tell you, I will not drink from this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom” he was telling them that the feast did not end there, and that he was to be the lamb. None of them understood, except maybe Judas, what was soon to come.
Some other parts of this ritual is the judgement by the authority. Whenever a sacrifice is to be given to God, it is judged to be unblemished. So a lamb, for instance, must be declared a "choice" offering free of blemish and sin. It can't be the funky lamb that walks funny.
Consider, what did Pontius Pilate do?
And Pilate said unto the chief priests and the multitudes, I find no fault in this man.
What about the vinegar laced with gall?
Read above about the Seder requiring bitter herbs as part of the Passover Ritual.
Yup, the entire Passion narrative is a series of Prophetic check-boxes affirming the identity of the Son of Man; the Messiah; the Christ; Emmanuel; the Right Hand of God.
The Lamb Seder Passover Meal detailed in the Old Testament was a prophetic "remembrance" of events yet to come -- a Prophecy revealing the true Messiah. This is the real meaning of the words "Do this in remembrance of me."
Jesus is basically told the Apostles (and us) that what was about to happen (his sacrifice) had already happened, he was just fulfilling it so that we may come to recognize him. Had any of them been as learned in the teachings, they would have caught the subtlety.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
Ultimately, what's funny is that the people who fought hardest to prove he was not the Messiah were the ones who, unwittingly, performed every single rite necessary to prove he was.
God's got a funny sense of humor, I tell ya what!
Great post and discussion all around. Thanks y’all. I love it here!