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John 19:23-25
New Catholic Bible
John 19:23-25
New Catholic Bible
23 [a]When the soldiers had crucified Jesus, they took his clothes and divided them into four shares, one share for each soldier. They also took his tunic, which was woven seamless, top to bottom. 24 They said to one another, “Instead of tearing it, let us cast lots for it to see who is to get it.” In this way, the Scripture was fulfilled that says,
“They divided my garments among them,
and for my clothing they cast lots.”
And that is what the soldiers did.
25 Mary and John at the Cross. Standing near the cross of Jesus were his mother and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- John 19:23 To the last moment, Jesus retains a keen awareness that he is completing God’s work for the world, the will of God that all of the Scriptures (so frequently cited) proclaim. We see how Jesus’ final gestures are symbols of the gifts given to humankind.
In dividing the garments of the crucified man, the soldiers are careful not to tear the seamless tunic. By calling attention to this, John perhaps wishes to signify the unity that Christ leaves as a heritage to those whom he wills to save.
Tradition identifies John with the beloved disciple (see Jn 13:23; 20:2-10; 21:7-20; and compare Jn 1:35-39; 18:15) to whom Jesus entrusts his mother. As she did with the servants at Cana (Jn 2:5), Mary will teach the disciple how to follow the example and teaching of her Son. The passage suggests the maternal vocation of the Mother of Jesus in relation to all believers.
The author bears witness to the fulfillment of the Scriptures. The words “I thirst” recall Ps 69:22: “In my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.” By drinking the sour wine offered to him, Jesus finishes the cup of his suffering (Jn 18:11). Jesus is pierced by a lance, immolated like the Passover lamb, the bones of which are not broken. From his opened breast spurt blood, the sign of life surrendered, and water, the sign of the Spirit that he gives to believers (see Jn 7:38-39). Spiritual meditation has taken these symbols further; the blood and water are seen as prefigurations of the Eucharist and Baptism, the two Sacraments that form and feed the Church, this new Eve that has come forth from the opened side of the new Adam, Jesus Christ.
All are called to the heart of the Redeemer where they can joyfully draw water from the fountain of salvation (see Isa 12:3). A privileged disciple, doubtless the beloved disciple once again, offers a special guarantee of the truth of the events and the richness of their meaning: in his mind it is a case not of the sad death of a human being but of the fulfillment of God’s plan, the shining forth of his love and his glory.
