Westminster Larger Catechism, Question 49
Question 49
How did Christ humble himself in his death?
Christ humbled himself in his death, in that having been betrayed by Judas, forsaken by his disciples, scorned and rejected by the world, condemned by Pilate, and tormented by his persecutors; having also conflicted with the terrors of death, and the powers of darkness, felt and borne the weight of God's wrath, he laid down his life an offering for sin, enduring the painful, shameful, and cursed death of the cross.
Scripture references for paragraph 1
Berean Standard Bible. Public domain text and source credits.
Matthew 27:44“I have sinned by betraying innocent blood,” he said. “What is that to us?” they replied. “You bear the responsibility.”
Matthew 26:5656But this has all happened so that the writings of the prophets would be fulfilled.” Then all the disciples deserted Him and fled.
Isaiah 53:2-32He grew up before Him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no stately form or majesty to attract us, no beauty that we should desire Him.
3He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief. Like one from whom men hide their faces, He was despised, and we esteemed Him not.
Matthew 27:26-5026So Pilate released Barabbas to them. But he had Jesus flogged, and handed Him over to be crucified.
27Then the governor’s soldiers took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the whole company around Him.
28They stripped Him and put a scarlet robe on Him.
29And they twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on His head. They put a staff in His right hand and knelt down before Him to mock Him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!”
30Then they spit on Him and took the staff and struck Him on the head repeatedly.
31After they had mocked Him, they removed the robe and put His own clothes back on Him. Then they led Him away to crucify Him.
32Along the way they found a man from Cyrene, named Simon, and they forced him to carry the cross of Jesus.
33And when they came to a place called Golgotha, which means The Place of the Skull,
34they offered Him wine to drink, mixed with gall; but after tasting it, He refused to drink it.
35When they had crucified Him, they divided up His garments by casting lots.
36And sitting down, they kept watch over Him there.
37Above His head they posted the written charge against Him: THIS IS JESUS, THE KING OF THE JEWS.
38Two robbers were crucified with Him, one on His right hand and the other on His left.
39And those who passed by heaped abuse on Him, shaking their heads
40and saying, “You who are going to destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save Yourself! If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross!”
41In the same way, the chief priests, scribes, and elders mocked Him, saying,
42“He saved others, but He cannot save Himself. He is the King of Israel! Let Him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in Him.
43He trusts in God. Let God deliver Him now if He wants Him. For He said, ‘I am the Son of God.’”
44In the same way, even the robbers who were crucified with Him berated Him.
45From the sixth hour until the ninth hour darkness came over all the land.
46About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”
47When some of those standing there heard this, they said, “He is calling Elijah.”
48One of them quickly ran and brought a sponge. He filled it with sour wine, put it on a reed, and held it up for Jesus to drink.
49But the others said, “Leave Him alone. Let us see if Elijah comes to save Him.”
50When Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, He yielded up His spirit.
John 19:3434Instead, one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water flowed out.
Luke 22:4444And in His anguish, He prayed more earnestly, and His sweat became like drops of blood falling to the ground.
Matthew 27:4646About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”
Isaiah 53:1010Yet it was the LORD’s will to crush Him and to cause Him to suffer; and when His soul is made a guilt offering, He will see His offspring, He will prolong His days, and the good pleasure of the LORD will prosper in His hand.
Philippians 2:88And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to death— even death on a cross.
Hebrews 12:22Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
Galatians 3:1313Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us. For it is written: “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.”
Source and edition
Westminster Larger Catechism. NonlinearFruit/Creeds.json, Unlicense. Creeds.json, English transcription
Unlicense. Source transcription.
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