This coming Sunday is the celebration of the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe. In yesterday’s post we covered some background on the solemnity, the titular use of “king” as applied to Jesus and an exploration of Luke’s use of the phrase “the kingdom of God.” Today, we take a look at Luke’s sparse description of the crucifixion and its location.

In verses just prior to our gospel reading, Jesus addresses the women as representatives of the nation: “daughters of Jerusalem” (Is 37:22; Mic 1:8; Zeph 3:14; Zech 9:9). Jesus notes that they weep for the wrong thing: “weep for yourselves and for your children.” This is because Jesus’ rejection means judgment for the nation (Luke 13:34; 19:41-44; 21:20-21). The tragedy, Jesus says, is not his death but the nation’s failure to choose deliverance, life and forgiveness. And that tragedy plays out on Golgotha.

When they came to the place called the Skull, they crucified him and the criminals there, one on his right, the other on his left. Jesus and two criminals are delivered to their earthly fate.