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Bible Notes - Tabernacle Commentaries
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Mark 15:17
Comments
They clothed him with purple – part of the mockery. No doubt an old soldier’s cloak, discarded and faded imperial purple. ‘Plaited a crown of thorns.’ Why thorns? Thorns were worthless things in the minds of the soldiers. ‘Give him a crown’, they said. ‘Obviously not a gold crown. Certainly we are not going to gather green branches and make a crown that would resemble an athlete’s prize such as they had in those days. What we'll do is gather up these thorny sticks, and ram them on his head. His crown! Something worthless; that’s what we think of him worthless.’
Application
Today they are saying that religion and the Christian faith are great evils. Atheism has become so audacious now that it says crazy things. Richard Dawkins says, religion is the cause of all wars. He doesn't know any history; he is out of his depth here. That is certainly not the case. The may millions who have died have perished in ideological wars, not even false religious wars. But they try to make a case: ‘Religion is harmful. Don't you know you’ve got to hate it; it’s harmful.’ This is what they were saying when they put a crown of thorns on his head. ‘Give him a crown of thorns, the King of the worthless, the King of the rubbish, the King of the decadent, the untrue, and the ridiculous. That meant something; it also hurt.
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