Why Was Jesus Put on the Cross?
Welcome to the why was Jesus put on the cross article! You apparently want to know why Jesus was put on the cross. I can say right from the start that the most important reason why He went to the cross was because it was God’s plan from the very beginning to save those who believe. Jesus did not want to go to the cross, if it had been possible, but He wanted to do — and perfectly did — the will of God the Father, ✚Matt. 26:39. He received a revelation that it would happen, and it shook Him, but He “had to” do it and did it perfectly according to the Father’s will. It was also prophesied in the old covenant, ✚Isaiah 53:5.
Jesus did it to bring love into the world from the moment He died on the cross, ✚Rom. 5:8. Jesus did know that it would happen, but He spoke about it because He also knew that it would become written in the scriptures. He knew that He was the Messiah and God had surely spoken about it before it happened. He still prayed that if possible, it would be taken away, but that is mainly for the sake of the scriptures, because it was clear that He had to die on the cross.
The Pharisees accused Jesus of having said He was equal to God. The Pharisees did not understand this, because they believed there is only one God, not a triune God (Father, Son, Holy Spirit). ✚Matt. 26:65. The Pharisees did not believe in the true Jewish doctrine and they lived in a different spirit. They did observe the Jewish traditions to the letter, but they did not believe Jesus’s words that He is true God and man, as well as the Son of God.
Pilate found no reason in Jesus why He should be crucified, but the Pharisees invented a reason why the crucifixion would take place, ✚Matt. 26:63–66. In the end, it was agreed to. ✚Luke 23:14–15. However, the overriding reason why the crucifixion happened was because of God’s plan. Without the crucifixion there would have been no resurrection, even though Jesus could have died and risen from the dead in another way. However, the prophecies of the old covenant had already spoken of the crucifixion, so it was the only option, ✚Ps. 22:16.
Why Did the Jewish Leaders Want to Kill Jesus on the Cross?
The biggest reason was that Jesus challenged their theology. They wanted to remove Jesus from his life because they feared for their own beliefs. They did not accept Jesus’s words and Jesus had spoken against them. They wanted to kill Jesus right from the beginning of His ministry, but they could not, because Jesus’s time had not yet come. If they had been able to kill Jesus earlier, His words would have come to nothing. ✚Luke 19:47, ✚John 5:18.
Jesus had spoken condemning words to the Pharisees, which the Pharisees feared. They did not want Jesus to complete His mission. Admittedly they had a different theology, which was not the teaching of the true Jews, but the “leaven of the Pharisees.” They believed in their own theology. ✚Lev. 24:16. According to the law, one who blasphemed the name of the Lord could be stoned to death, but they did not understand that they were fighting against the Lord Himself. They did not regard Jesus as the Son of God, but as a heretic who could be stoned to death according to the law. They did not understand that Jesus came to bring a new covenant.
How Did Rome Get Involved?
Explain Pilate’s role. Pilate personally did not want Jesus’s death, but gave in to the pressure of the people. He feared an uprising and Caesar’s reaction. Describe how Pilate symbolically washed his hands — but still gave the verdict.
Pontius Pilate said he found no reason in Jesus deserving death. He “washed his hands” of it and said he was innocent of Jesus’s blood, ✚Matt. 27:24. However, he ultimately agreed under pressure. ✚John 19:12, ✚John 19:15–16. It was clear that mere words should not be enough for a death on the cross, but Jesus was condemned to the cross as an innocent man. It was there that murderers and robbers or other wrongdoers were sent. Jesus only spoke words and yet He was put on the cross.
Death on the cross was an extremely brutal method of execution and the pain it caused was immense. A completely disproportionate sentence, then. But as said, it was God’s will and Jesus endured it, even though He knew it would happen. He did not even take myrrh to ease His pain, ✚Mark 15:23. It must be remembered that even though Jesus is the Son of God and one part of the triune God, He had and has the same pain and feelings as any human being.
God’s Eternal Plan
Let us return to this once more. The most important part of Jesus’s death on the cross is God’s eternal plan for mankind. The cross in particular comes up many times in this. ✚Isa. 53:5, ✚1 Pet. 2:24, ✚Acts 2:23, ✚Rev. 13:8. These scriptures clearly show that it was God’s plan from the very beginning and foreseen even before the foundation of the world. Without the death on the cross, Satan would not have been defeated, and the perfect paradise and eternal life for believers would not have come. It was, however, impossible to think that there would have been no death on the cross, because it had been foreseen in advance.
After the death on the cross, a person is able to put the flesh on the cross and live a Holy life. Without the cross there would be no victory over the flesh. So there are many meanings to it. Not just the event itself but the command given to all believers to put the flesh on the cross in faith, because Jesus did it first. By believing, the believer can live in the Spirit by putting the flesh on the cross. ✚Gal. 5:24, ✚Gal. 2:19–20, ✚Rom. 6:6.
Prophecies of Jesus’s Death on the Cross
As I already shed some light on earlier, in the old covenant the crucifixion of Jesus had been prophesied in advance. So it did not come as a surprise to Him personally, nor to anyone else. This matter was, however, not understood by the Pharisees and the scribes. Those who believed in Jesus had certainly read these prophecies about Jesus’s death on the cross.
Here the event of the death on the cross comes out clearly, from which one can clearly read the connection with the piercing of hands and feet. This can hardly be connected to anything other than the death on the cross, ✚Ps. 22:16. Furthermore, this passage was fulfilled perfectly — not a broken bone, ✚Ps. 34:20. This passage also speaks in favor of the death on the cross, ✚Isa. 53:9.
Everything has therefore been prophesied beforehand. Why then did the Pharisees not believe the prophecies? They were not necessarily able to connect them, and the spirit of judgment and a different spirit operated in them. If they had understood, they would not have offered resistance. Yet they rose up against the Lord without understanding that they were fighting against God Himself.
What Does the Cross Mean to You?
The death of Jesus on the cross is good news for the believer, even though the execution itself is not good news. It nevertheless makes possible salvation and a way out of deliberate sin and the works of the flesh for those who believe. It means the message of salvation to the believer. The believer can, by believing, put the flesh on the cross and live a Holy life, which leads to salvation. ✚Rom. 10:9, ✚Eph. 2:8–9, ✚2 Cor. 5:21, ✚John 1:12.
So receive salvation, confess your sins, repent and believe the gospel. Be baptized in water and receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Live your entire life as a believer in Jesus and eternal life in Christ Jesus is stored up for you, if you are one of His sheep. All of Jesus’s sheep will be saved!
FAQ: Why Was Jesus Crucified?
❓ 1. Why was Jesus crucified even though Pilate declared him innocent?
Pilate knew that Jesus was innocent. He declared it out loud three times and found no reason to condemn Him. Yet he gave in to the pressure of the people and the chief priests. He feared an uprising and that the Roman Emperor Tiberius would hear of the unrest. Pilate symbolically washed his hands to show that he did not approve of the verdict — but gave it nonetheless. This shows that Jesus’s death was not a victory of justice, but the result of political fear. (✚Matthew 27:24, ✚John 19:12–16)
❓ 2. Was the crucifixion God’s plan or a human mistake?
Both were true at the same time. On the human side, it was abuse, envy and fear. On God’s side, it was an eternal plan of salvation, decided before the foundation of the world. The Bible clearly states that Jesus was handed over “according to God’s definite plan and foreknowledge.” God was not surprised — He used the sinful choices of people to carry out His greatest act of love. The crucifixion was not a mistake that God allowed, but a plan that God carried out. (✚Acts 2:23, ✚Revelation 13:8)
❓ 3. Why couldn’t God forgive sins without the cross?
God is perfectly holy and cannot overlook sin as though it had not happened. Sin requires atonement — someone must bear its consequences. Since no human being is sinless, none of us could serve as an atoner. Jesus, who was both fully God and fully man and completely sinless, was the only one who could bear the punishment for the sin of mankind. The cross was not God’s wrath — it was God’s love and holiness meeting each other. (✚Romans 6:23, ✚Hebrews 9:22, ✚2 Corinthians 5:21)
❓ 4. What did Jesus say before His death on the cross?
The Bible records seven things Jesus said on the cross. He prayed for those who crucified Him: “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” He promised paradise to the repentant criminal beside Him. He asked the disciple John to take care of His mother Mary. He cried out: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” — bearing the burden of our sins. His last words were: “It is finished” and “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” (✚Luke 23:34, ✚John 19:30, ✚Luke 23:46)
❓ 5. How does Jesus’s death on the cross save us?
Jesus died in our place. He took upon Himself the punishment that belongs to us sinful people. The Bible teaches that “the wages of sin is death” — but Jesus died on our behalf, so that we would have a way back to God. When a person believes in Jesus and receives Him as Lord, Jesus’s righteousness is credited to them and their sin is atoned for. Salvation is not based on one’s own deeds but on what Jesus has already done. (✚Romans 6:23, ✚Ephesians 2:8–9, ✚1 Peter 2:24)
❓ 6. Did Jesus know in advance that He would be crucified?
Yes — and He went willingly nonetheless. Jesus predicted His death many times to His disciples before arriving in Jerusalem. He knew exactly what would happen. In the Garden of Gethsemane He prayed: “Not my will, but yours be done” — showing that it was a conscious choice, not compulsion. He also said that He had the power to lay down His life and take it back again. Jesus was not a victim — He was the Savior who chose the cross out of love. (✚John 10:17–18, ✚Luke 22:42, ✚Matthew 16:21)
Thank you for reading to the end!
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