PIERCING THE SIDE OF JESUS

Pondering the Puzzling Outflow of Blood and Water from Our Savior

In Zechariah 12:10 we find this well-known prophetic statement, "And they shall look upon me whom they have pierced" (King James Version). The apostle John quotes this statement (John 19:37) and connects it with the act of the soldier at the cross who pierced the side of Jesus with a spear (John 19:34).

Almost all biblical scholars concur with John that the ultimate fulfillment of that prophecy was at the cross. "The historical fulfillment of this prophecy commenced with the crucifixion of the son of God, who had come in the flesh, ... by the fact that a soldier pierced his side with a lance as he was hanging upon the cross" [Drs. Keil & Delitzsch, Commentary on the OT, vol. 10, p. 388].

Notice that statement from Zechariah in its fuller context: "I, YEHOVAH, will make the descendants of David and the people of Jerusalem feel deep sorrow and pray when they see the one, they pierced with a spear. They will mourn and weep for him, as parents weep over the death of their only child or their first-born" (Zechariah 12:10, Contemporary English Version).

The text literally states that YEHOVAH would "pour out a spirit of grace and supplication" upon the Israelites in Jerusalem, causing them to perceive the true nature of the one whom they had pierced - in other words, they would come to realize it was their Messiah whom they had crucified!

Notice Zechariah 12:7-14: Telling forth the time when the lord Messiah Jesus will come to Jerusalem with all the holy ones – saints to take his seat on the throne of David at Zion at the end of this age!

“And YEHOVAH will give salvation to the tents of Judah first, that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem may not surpass that of Judah. On that day YEHOVAH will protect the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the feeblest among them on that day shall be like David, and the house of David shall be like God, like the angel of YEHOVAH, going before them. And on that day, I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.

Him Whom They Have Pierced

“And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and pleas for mercy, so that, when they look on me, on him whom they have pierced, they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for an only child, and weep bitterly over him, as one weeps over a firstborn. On that day the mourning in Jerusalem will be as great as the mourning for Hadad-Rimmon in the plain of Megiddo. The land shall mourn, each family by itself: the family of the house of David by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Nathan by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the house of Levi by itself, and their wives by themselves; the family of the Shimeites by itself, and their wives by themselves; and all the families that are left, each by itself, and their wives by themselves.

This horrific awareness (cf. - Revelation 1:7) is evidenced in Acts 2:37 - "Now when they heard this, they were pierced in the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, 'Brethren, what shall we do?!'" (NASB).

The prophecy we find in Zechariah 12:10, not only points to the piercing of the side of Jesus, but also to the hearts of the people who had rejected him: a change of heart that resulted from Yehovah's merciful outpouring upon them of the blessing of His unmerited favor! A blessing which you and I have experienced, and for which we should continually give unto Him our heartfelt thanksgiving and praise!

Returning to John's account of the crucifixion scene, we find a piece of information that is provided by none of the other gospel records. The breaking of the legs (crurifragium) of the other two men crucified that day, and the piercing of the side of Jesus, is "a detail recorded only by John" [Dr. Marvin Vincent, Word Studies in the NT, vol. 2, p. 286]. The apostle writes, "But coming to Jesus, when they saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs. But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out" (John 19:33-34, NASB). John then makes a statement attesting to the truthfulness of what he has just written: "And he who has seen has testified, and his testimony is true; and he knows that he is telling the truth, so that you may believe" (John 19:35, NKJV). Although written in the third person, there is no doubt in the minds of scholars that John is speaking of himself as the witness to this event, and that "What he saw establishes the actual death of the Messiah.

Thus, John affirms his testimony "so that you also may believe" (John 19:35). In the next couple of chapters of this gospel account, John would echo this same thought:

"Many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name" (John 20:30-31; cf., 1 John 1:1-4; 5:11-13).

Then, once more speaking of himself in the third person, John writes, "This is the disciple who is testifying to these things and wrote these things, and we know that his testimony is true" (John 21:24).

• Guy N. Woods, a beloved scholar and writer within the Stone-Campbell Movement, sums it up well in his following comment: "Of the facts involved, the writer (John) made it clear that there could be no question since he was an eyewitness of the events described - events carefully recorded in order to produce faith in the Messiah on the part of those who would later read his report (John 20:30-31).

His statement to this end is remarkable:

(1) he had seen the events occur of which he writes,

(2) of them he bore witness.

(3) they occurred exactly as described.

(4) this he knew from personal observation, and

(5) those who read it might confidently believe.

It is apparent that the writer's real purpose was to show, beyond any possible doubt, that Jesus was in a physical human body and that He died on the cross.

On this the truth of Christianity depends. These facts are incontrovertible:

(1) the authorities believed Jesus was dead.

(2) The soldier’s believed Jesus was dead.

(3) The soldier who pierced Jesus assured himself that Jesus was dead.

(4) those who loved Jesus most knew he was dead, and they buried his body.

Thus, the fact of death was established both by friends and by enemies" [A Commentary on the Gospel According to John, p. 411].

Although the above information and insights aid us in establishing the immediate context of this event, I want to narrow our focus to the following observation of John that day:

"One of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out" (John 19:34). There are several things stated in this one brief sentence that require further reflection. Perhaps one of the first things that might come to one's mind is: Why would this soldier thrust a spear into the side of Jesus? He didn't do it to the other two men being crucified that day. So, why did Jesus receive this wound? John tells us that this soldier's act was a fulfillment of Scripture (John 19:36-37)

The most likely reason is given in John 19:31 - the Jews wanted these three men dead by sundown, for a "high holy day" was fast approaching, thus they asked Pilate to expedite the executions, rather than allowing them to drag on for days (as sometimes happened). Thus, the legs of the first two condemned men were broken to hasten their death, but when they came to break the legs of Jesus, he appeared to be deceased. One of the soldiers, to ensure himself that Jesus was dead pierced Jesus side with a spear.

The word 'pierce' translates a Greek term meaning to gash, to stab. It was a violent thrust intended to produce instant death if such had not already occurred. Thus, this soldier, an unbeliever, unintentionally provided irrefutable proof that Jesus was dead.

In John 19:34 we are also told that this soldier, whoever he was, used his spear to "pierce" the side of Jesus. This is the Greek word "nusso," which appears only here in the NT writings (the word "pierced" in verse 37 is a different word, although both signify a deadly stabbing). "The verb used here (nusso) is used to describe severe and deadly wounds. ... The soldier inflicted a deep thrust on the side of Jesus" [Dr. Marvin Vincent, Word Studies in the NT, vol. 2, p. 287]. That this was such a massive wound is seen in the fact that Jesus told Thomas, "Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve but believe.”" (John 20:27, KJV). "As the wound inflicted by this spear thrust seems to have been a handbreadth wide (John 20:25, 27), it may be presumed the soldier meant to make sure that Jesus was dead by giving Him a thrust which itself would have been fatal" [Dr. W. Robertson Nicoll, The Expositor's Greek Testament, vol. 1, p. 859]. "It is certain, from chapter 20:27, that the act caused a deep wound, and that the point of the lance therefore penetrated to the interior organs of the body" [Dr. Charles Ellicott, Commentary on the Whole Bible, vol. 6, p. 538].

Clearly, John, as an eyewitness, is impressed by the fact that when the soldier pierced the side of Jesus, it brought forth "a sudden flow of blood and water" (John 19:34, NIV).

Martin Luther (1483-1546) wrote: "The blood and the water which flowed from the side of our dear lord Jesus the Messiah on the cross is our highest comfort. For therein consists of our salvation: in the blood is our redemption and satisfaction for our sins; in the water there is our daily cleansing and purging from sins. This we should learn well and thank Yehovah, for His boundless love and goodness, and our faithful Savior Jesus the Messiah for his suffering and death, with all our hearts" [quoted by Dr. Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible - The NT, vol. 1, p. 520].

Augustus Montague Toplady [1740-1778], in his hymn "Rock of Ages," deals with this very poetically, speaking of the "double cure" of this flow of blood and water.

About this phrase by Toplady, and its meaning, one writer stated, "The original speaks of the double nature of the Messiah’s propitiatory atonement, whereby he receives our sins, and we receive his righteousness.

The "Rock of Ages," of course, is Jesus, and the fact that it was "cleft for me," refers to the cleaving/piercing of our lord's side by the spear. That cleaving brought about the double cure from both sin and from death. We are not only cleansed, but we are also redeemed, a purifying and a purchasing! We are the slaves of the lord Jesus purchased by his shed blood!

"We can scarcely be wrong in supposing that the blood and water are symbolical. The order confirms this. Blood symbolizes the work of redemption which had just been completed by his sin-offering; and water symbolizes the 'birth from above,' with its cleansing from sin, which was the result of his death, and is how we appropriate it.

Notice the words of the Hymn “Rock of Ages”: edited.

1. Rock of Ages, cleft for me,
Let me hide myself in You;
Let the water and the blood,
From Your wounded side which flowed,
Be of sin the double cure,
Save from wrath and make me pure.

2. Not the labor of my hands
Can fulfill Your law’s demands;
Could my zeal no respite know,
Could my tears forever flow,
All for sin could not atone;
You must save, and You alone.

3. Nothing in my hand I bring,
Simply to Your cross I cling;
Naked, come to You for dress [to be clothed with righteousness];
Helpless, look to You for grace;
Foul, I to the fountain fly;
Wash me, Savior, or I die.

4. While I draw this fleeting breath,
When my eyes shall close in death,
When I rise to worlds unknown,
And behold You on Your throne,
Rock of Ages, cleft for me,
Let me hide myself in You. 

I will close this study with the thoughts of Matthew Henry (1662-1714), a nonconformist theologian, pastor, and author from Wales, perhaps best known for his extensive six-volume Commentary on the Whole Bible, in which he made this observation on the blood and water that flowed from the side of Jesus (and in which we see the "double cure" spoken of later by Toplady):

"They signified the two great benefits which all believers partake of through the Messiah: justification and sanctification; blood for remission, water for regeneration; blood for atonement, water for purification. ... Guilt contracted must be expiated by blood; stains contracted must be done away by the water of purification. These two must always go together. You are sanctified, you are justified (1 Corinthians 6:11). The Messiah has joined them together, and we must not think to put them asunder. They both flowed from the pierced side of our Redeemer.

To the Messiah crucified we owe both merit for our justification, and Spirit and grace for our sanctification; and we have as much need of the latter as of the former (1 Corinthians 1:30). ... It is not the water in the font that will be to us the washing of regeneration, but the water out of the side of the Messiah; not the blood of the grape that will pacify the conscience and refresh the soul, but the blood out of the side of the Messiah.

Now was the rock smitten (1 Corinthians 10:4: and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank from the spiritual Rock that followed them, and the Rock was the Messiah.)

Now was the fountain opened (Zechariah 13:1: “On that day there shall be a fountain opened for the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse them from sin and uncleanness.),

Now were the wells of salvation digged (Isaiah 12:2-3: “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for Yehovah God is my strength and my song, and He has become my salvation. With joy you^[c] will draw water from the wells of salvation.”)

“Here is the river, the streams whereof make glad the city of our God" [e-Sword].

Written by Al Maxey and edited by Bruce Lyon