Through The Bible in a Year - August 11, 2026
“The Jews said to him [Pilate], ‘It is not lawful for us to put anyone to death.’ This was to fulfill the word that Jesus had spoken to show by what kind of death he was going to die.” - John 18:32
At first glance this verse seems like a footnote—a technical observation that the manner of Jesus’ death was fulfilling His own prediction. But John keeps returning to this theme throughout chapters 18 and 19, and for good reason.
Every detail of the crucifixion had been written in advance. Not only did Jesus prophesy weeks earlier that he would be killed by crucifixion (John 12:32-33), the prophets of the Old Testament said the same centuries earlier (e.g., Genesis 3:15, Isaiah 52:13–53:12). Psalm 22, written 1000 years before Jesus’ life on earth, described the Messiah’s suffering with detailed precision: bones out of joint but unbroken, hands and feet pierced, garments distributed by lot, words of abandonment spoken from the cross.
And at the crucifixion, the details came true exactly as written. His legs were not broken. His hands and feet were pierced. The soldiers cast lots for His seamless tunic. The words of Psalm 22 were spoken from His lips.
None of the events or details of Christ’s suffering were improvised. Nothing was an accident or a tragedy that God had to redeem after the fact. The suffering and death of our Savior was, as Jesus told Pilate, the very purpose for which He was born.
By the details of the prophesies of Scripture, we should recognize the ultimate source of the wounds that Jesus bore on the Cross. The holes in His hands and feet were not simply caused by Roman nails. A spear was not ultimately the cause of the wound in His side. His blood could not simply be blamed on the Jews who betrayed Him. Ultimately, the crucifixion of Jesus was in the plan and purpose of God so that our sins could be cancelled at Calvary.
God planned, across thousands of years of preparation, for Jesus to bear our guilt on Himself. Mercy was millennia in the making and will last for many millennia more because Jesus was the Lamb slain before the foundation of the world and will be the Lamb worshiped beyond the redemption of the world.
Respond: When life feels unplanned, chaotic, or like events have spun out of control—remember what John is showing you in this passage. A God who predicted the specific details of the crucifixion a thousand years in advance is a God who is not surprised by your circumstances.
The one who fulfilled Psalm 22 to the letter is the same one who directs the details of your life for your eternal good. Let the precision of God’s faithfulness be the ground you stand on when the earth seems to shake. The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases and the plans He has for you will never fail.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, You planned the redemption of Your people before creation began and executed it across a thousand years with perfect precision. Nothing surprised You. Nothing derailed You. The wounds of Jesus were prepared for my sin long before I existed. Help me trust that the same God who fulfilled every detail of the Cross directs every detail of my life for my eternal good. In Jesus’ name, Amen.