The Passion according to John can be read by dividing its two chapters into five scenes: in the first (John 18:1-11), Jesus is arrested; in the second (John 18:12-27), he is led before the High Priest Annas; in the third (John 18:28-19:16), he is taken to Pilate, the Roman procurator; in the fourth (John 19:17-37), the most dramatic, he dies on the cross. As a seal, in the fifth (John 19:38-42), we have the royal burial in the garden.

The Passion begins and ends in a garden (John 18:1; 19:41). The term kepos (“flower garden”) translates the Hebrew gan (“paradise”) and most likely alludes to the garden of Genesis, where God created man, and where the first struggle between good and evil took place (Gen 3). From this background, Jesus is the new Adam, victorious over sin. Then, with the mention of the Kidron Valley, there is another biblical reference, 2 Sam 15, which recounts King David’s escape from the conspiracy perpetrated by his son Absalom. David is a defeated king and a betrayed father. Even Jesus, the new David, is betrayed by his own. Judas, in fact, will lead the group of soldiers who come to capture him. When Jesus asks who they are looking for, and hears the reply: “Jesus of Nazareth,” he exclaims: “I am” (ego eimi) (Jn 18:5). This self-presentation, which recurs three times in our passage (John 18:5, 6, 8), indicates, with its reference to Exodus 3:14, Jesus’ divinity and the world’s powerlessness over him. It is no coincidence that at that moment, everyone steps back and falls to the ground. It is not men who seize Jesus, but rather he who spontaneously surrenders himself to them.

Jesus is then seized, bound, and brought to trial, first before the religious authorities (Annas) and then before the political authorities (Pilate). The episode of the trial before Annas (John 18:12-27) is preceded and followed by the presentation of two disciples: the Beloved Disciple and Simon Peter. In them, we can discern two ways of following the crucified Messiah. The Beloved Disciple follows Jesus, risking his own life; Simon Peter, seeing the danger threatening him, is not afraid to deny his Master. The encounter between Jesus and Annas is narrated with great mastery; If initially it is Anna who questions, then, with a reversal of roles, it is Jesus who questions Annas, referring him to the testimony of those who have heard his preaching. This appears insolent, and he is slapped. Jesus is then sent to Caiaphas, who was High Priest that year. But first he must go to Pilate (Jn 18:28-19:16). Jesus thus experiences the hypocrisy and violence of religious and civil institutions.

The central scene of the third painting (Jn 18:28-19:16) is where Jesus is crowned with thorns and scourged (Jn 19:1-3). Jesus is the king; yes, on the historical level he is a mocked and reviled king, but in the eyes of faith he is the true king, the one who frees humanity from the alienating dominion of sin. After the crowning with thorns, Pilate has him brought before the Jews. His declaration: “Behold the man!” (John 19:5), apparently referring to the prophet Daniel’s title, “Son of Man” (7:13). However, Jesus, in his extreme humiliation and impotence, unjustly condemned, is the one who possesses the power of sovereign judge because he is the Son of Man: “For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself, and has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man” (John 5:26-27).

After the interrogation, Jesus He sets out for Calvary carrying the cross. This is the fourth scene (John 19:17-37). There he is crucified between two thieves (John 19:18). An inscription in three languages ​​is then affixed to the cross. This inscription declares Jesus’ kingship to the whole world. This is followed by the division of the garments, Mary’s entrustment to the beloved Disciple, and Jesus’ death. The evangelist then reinterprets the event of the cross through two specific scriptural citations (Exodus 12:46, which speaks of the paschal lamb, and Zechariah 12:10, which announces the spirit of consolation and grace upon the house of Israel). There is then an important symbolic element, the open side from which blood and water flows. The side refers to Adam, from whom God formed Eve (Gen. 2:21-22). From Christ, therefore, the community of believers, the Church, is born. The blood, on the other hand, expresses death accepted out of love, while the water represents the gift of the Holy Spirit (John 7:37-39). Jesus, on the cross, is the new temple, the true one, from which rivers of living water flow, transforming every man into a spring of water welling up to eternal life (John 4:14).

After his death, Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus go to take Jesus’ body to bury it (John 19:38-42). Here too, John goes beyond the event itself and reads a deeper meaning. The tomb is located in a garden, where kings are buried (2 Kings 21:18). A mixture of aloe and myrrh, 30 kilograms, is brought. The aloe and myrrh perfume the bridal chamber (Prov. 7:17). The gesture of Joseph and Nicodemus turns the tomb into a bridal chamber, where the king, Christ, celebrates his espousals with the queen, humanity. The encounter, announced here, will take place on Easter morning, when the risen Lord calls Mary Magdalene by name, the image of the newly redeemed humanity (John 20:11-18).

I am thirsty.
Do you ask me for water,
Lord,
me, a broken cistern,
lost
in a parched countryside?
You will obtain nothing,
O almighty God,
unless you yourself first drink my thirst,
until you die
parched.

Amen.

Commentary by b. Sandro Carotta, osb
Abbazia di Praglia (Italy)

Translation by f. Mark Hargreaves,
Prinknash Abbey