In Roman law, an inscription was placed on the cross of those condemned to crucifixion, stating the reason for their execution. The inscription was a form of public shaming and a warning to others against rebellion, a common practice in the Roman Empire. All four Gospel authors record the inscription on Jesus’s cross; however, they differ from each other. Are these contradictions?
Let’s go to the scriptures:
(Matthew 27:37) THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS.
(Mark 15:26) THE KING OF THE JEWS.
(Luke 23:38) THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS
(John 19:19) JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS.
The truth is that there is no contradiction, but the following title was written on the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ: This is Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews. However, Matthew, Mark, and Luke abbreviated it. We must also note that the title was written in three languages: Hebrew, Greek, and Latin, and there are linguistic differences between them.
A contradiction would have been if an evangelist had said something like “It is written only Christ,” and another evangelist came and said: “It is written only King of the Jews,” and this is not the case. So, abbreviation is not a contradiction.
However, it seems that at least one of the languages, most likely Hebrew, was written as “This is Jesus, King of the Jews.” This is why it bothered those who read Hebrew, and this is what the Jews objected to (John 19:21). But even if the three languages were equal, Matthew the Evangelist abbreviated the word “the Nazarene,” and Mark the Evangelist, who is known for his abbreviation, wrote “King of the Jews.” He and Luke also focused on the title “King of the Jews” only, and John the Beloved wrote the full title and not the reference only. This is not a mistake, but each of them focused on the important part. The inscription on the cross of Christ mentioned by all four gospel writers proves once more, not that the Bible contains discrepancies, but that the writers functioned independently.
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