Jesus is crowned with thorns

Consummatum est. JJ Tissot. Brooklyn Museum.

Our Lenten meditations continue with posts taken from a Simple Exposition of the Circumstances of the Passion of Jesus Christ (1761) by Saint Alphonsus de Liguori.

I have inserted references in the text to numbered footnotes. These references are not hyperlinked but may be found by scrolling to the end of the relevant paragraph.

Totus tuus ego sum et omnia mea tua sunt. Tecum tutus semper sum.
Ad Jesum per Mariam.

This grace I ask of thee to-day: obtain for me a continual remembrance of the passion of Jesus, and of thine also, and a tender devotion to them.

Jesus is crowned with thorns

Crowning with thorns. JJ Tissot. Brooklyn Museum.

Then the soldiers of the governor taking Jesus into the hall, gathered together unto Him the whole band, and stripping Him, they put a scarlet cloak about Him: and platting a crown of thorns, they put it on His head, and a reed in His right hand. [1]

Let us now consider the other torments which the soldiers inflicted on our tortured Lord. The entire band is assembled, they put on his shoulders a scarlet cloak (which was an old mantle worn by soldiers over their armor), in imitation of the purple, as the emblem of royalty: they then placed in his hand a reed for a sceptre, and for a crown they put on a wreath of thorns which surrounded the entire head. And because by the pressure of the hands the thorns did not enter sufficiently into his sacred head, which was already wounded by the scourges, they took a reed, and spitting in his face, beat with all their might the cruel crown into the head of Jesus. And spitting on Him, they took the reed and struck His head.[2]



[1] [27] Then the soldiers of the governor taking Jesus into the hall, gathered together unto him the whole band;
Tunc milites praesidis suscipientes Jesum in praetorium, congregaverunt ad eum universam cohortem 
[28] And stripping him, they put a scarlet cloak about him.
et exeuntes eum, chlamydem coccineam circumdederunt ei,
[29] And platting a crown of thorns, they put it upon his head, and a reed in his right hand. And bowing the knee before him, they mocked him, saying: Hail, king of the Jews.
et plectentes coronam de spinis, posuerunt super caput ejus, et arundinem in dextera ejus. Et genu flexo ante eum, illudebant ei, dicentes : Ave rex Judaeorum. [Matt 27] 

[2] [30] And spitting upon him, they took the reed, and struck his head.
Et exspuentes in eum, acceperunt arundinem, et percutiebant caput ejus. [Matt 27]

O thorns! O ungrateful creatures! what is it you do? Do you thus torment your Creator? But why reprove the thorns? O sinful thoughts of men! it was you that pierced the head of the Redeemer. Yes, my Jesus, by our criminal consent to sin we have formed Thy crown of thorns. I now detest this compliance with sin, and abhor it more than death or any other evil.

To you, O thorns, consecrated with the blood of the Son of God, I again turn with an humble heart; ah, pierce this soul of mine, make it always sorrowful for having offended so good a God. And since Thou, O Jesus my love, hast suffered so much for me, detach me from creatures and from myself, so that I may be able to say with truth that I am no longer mine, that I belong to Thee alone, and am all Thine.

O my afflicted Saviour! O King of the world! to what do I see Thee reduced? I behold Thee a king of mockery and sorrow! In a word, I see Thee the laughing-stock of all Jerusalem! From the wounded head of our Lord, streams of blood flow down his face and breast. I am filled with astonishment, O my Jesus! at the cruelty of Thy enemies, who are not content with having, as it were, excoriated Thy flesh from head to foot, but still continue to torment Thee with fresh cruelties and insults; but I admire still more Thy meekness and Thy love in suffering and accepting all with so much patience for the love of us: Who when He was reviled, delivered Himself to him that judged Him unjustly.[3] The prediction of Jeremias, that our Saviour would be satiated with sorrows and ignominies, is verified. He shall give His cheek to him that striketh Him, He shall be filled with reproaches.[4]

[3] [23] Who, when he was reviled, did not revile: when he suffered, he threatened not: but delivered himself to him that judged him unjustly.
qui cum malediceretur, non maledicebat : cum pateretur, non comminabatur : tradebat autem judicanti se injuste : [1 Pet 2] 

[4] [30] Jod. He shall give his cheek to him that striketh him, he shall be filled with reproaches.
JOD. Dabit percutienti se maxillam : saturabitur opprobriis. [Lam 3]

But, O soldiers, are you not satisfied? And bowing the knee before Him, they mocked Him, saying, Hail, king of the Jews. [5] St. John writes: And they came to Him, and said, Hail king of the Jews; and they gave Him blows.[6] After having thus tormented him, and clothed him as a mock king, they kneel before him in derision, and say, We salute thee, O king of the Jews. Then, rising up, they laugh at him, mock him, and buffet him. O God! the sacred head of Jesus is all wounded by the punctures of the thorns, so that every motion produced the pangs of death. Thus every buffet and blow was to him a most cruel torment. Go, my soul, and do thou at least confess the Saviour to be what he really is, the Lord of the universe; and thank and love him as the King of sorrow and of love, since he suffers in order to be loved by Thee.

[5] [29] And platting a crown of thorns, they put it upon his head, and a reed in his right hand. And bowing the knee before him, they mocked him, saying: Hail, king of the Jews.
et plectentes coronam de spinis, posuerunt super caput ejus, et arundinem in dextera ejus. Et genu flexo ante eum, illudebant ei, dicentes : Ave rex Judaeorum. [Matt 27] 

[6] [3] And they came to him, and said: Hail, king of the Jews; and they gave him blows.
Et veniebant ad eum, et dicebant : Ave, rex Judaeorum : et dabant ei alapas. [John 19]