Sunday

MEDICAL ANALYSIS OF THE CRUCIFIXION AND DEATH OF JESUS CHRIST (IX) & (X)


JESUS LAID DOWN HIS LIFE

Luke 23:46 "Jesus called out with a loud voice, 'Father, into your hands I commit my spirit'." When he had said this, he breathed his last.

The average time of suffering before death by crucifixion is stated to be about 2-4 days, although there are reported cases where the victims lived for 9 days.

The actual causes of death by crucifixion are multifactorial, one of the most significant would have been the severity of the scourging. Jesus died a quick physical death (Pilate was surprised that He had died so soon (Mark 15:44)).

While many of the physical signs preceding death were present, one possibility is that Jesus did not die by physical factors which ended His ability to live, but that He gave up His life of His own accord.

His last statement, "Into your hands I commit my Spirit" seems to show that Jesus' death occurred by giving Himself up. In John 10, He states that only He has the power to lay down His life. He proved His power over death by His resurrection.

DEATH BY CRUCIFIXION (II)


This is HASTENED by the breaking of the legs, so that the victim could not push up to take a good breath.

John 19:32-33: "The soldiers therefore came and broke the legs of the first man who had been crucified with Jesus, and then those of the other. But when they came to Jesus and found that he was already dead, they did not break his legs."

His death was CONFIRMED by a spear thrust into the right side of His heart.

John 19:34: Instead, one of the soldiers pierced Jesus' side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water. Death in crucifixion was hastened by the breaking of the legs of the victim.

This procedure, called CRURIFRACTURE, prevented the ability of the victim to take in a good breath. Death would quickly occur from suffocation.

In Jesus' case, He died quickly and did not have His legs broken. To confirm that a victim was dead, the Romans inflicted a spear wound through the right side of the heart.

When pierced, a sudden flow of blood and water came from Jesus' body. The medical significance of the blood and water has been a matter of debate:

One theory states that Jesus died of a massive MYOCARDIAL INFARCTION (heart attack), in which the heart ruptured which may have resulted from His falling while carrying the cross.

Another theory states that Jesus' heart was surrounded by fluid in the pericardium, which constricted the heart and caused death. The physical stresses of crucifixion may have produced a fatal cardiac arrhythmia.

The stated order of "blood and water" may not necessarily indicate the order of appearance, but rather the relative prominence of each fluid. In this case, a spear through the right side of the heart would allow the pleural fluid (fluid built up in the lungs) to escape first, followed by a flow of blood from the wall of the right ventricle.

The important fact is that the medical evidence supports that Jesus did die a physical death.

The story, of course, does not end here. The greatest event that separates Jesus from all others is the fact that He rose again and lives today. He intercedes for those who follow Him at the right hand of the Father. (Heb 7:25).

THE END

For the beginning part of this update, read HERE