May 2, 2026 -King of the Jews

Psalms 122:1-9

John 19:1-42

1 Samuel 3:1-21

1 Samuel 4:1-22

Bible in a Year Through Song - Day 122 of 365

John 19:19-20 NIV

[19] Pilate had a notice prepared and fastened to the cross. It read: JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS. [20] Many of the Jews read this sign, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city, and the sign was written in Aramaic, Latin and Greek.

I was struck by the fact that the sign that Pilate posted was written in Aramaic, Latin and Greek. Aramaic is what most Jews spoke at the time but many of them were multilingual. The fact that it was also written in Latin and Greek says that he wanted everyone to know and understand what it said. Latin was the official language of the Roman Empire and Greek was the common language of the region so anyone who was there would be able to read it. I don't recall reading that it was in 3 languages in other gospels. A little research shows that each gospel is written a little differently. I found this interesting article that explains why they are different and even shows a picture of what the sign likely looked like. Basically, Matthew, Luke & John used a different language to document and Mark in what Diane and I would call his "just the facts" way of writing referenced the one thing they all had in common and that was it.

Take a few minutes to read the article I think you will find it very interesting.

INSCRIPTIONS ON THE CROSS - Why do all four Gospels contain different versions of the inscription on the Cross? - ChristianAnswers.Net