Mark 15:21-47 : Easy-to-Read Version
Jesus Is Killed on a Cross
21There was a man from Cyrene walking into the city. The man was Simon, the father of Alexander and Rufus. Simon was walking into the city from the fields. The soldiers forced Simon to carry the cross for Jesus. 22They led Jesus to the place called Golgotha. (Golgotha means "The Place of the Skull.") 23At Golgotha the soldiers tried to give Jesus wine to drink. This wine was mixed with myrrh.* But Jesus refused to drink it. 24The soldiers nailed Jesus to a cross. Then the soldiers divided Jesus' clothes among themselves. They gambled with dice to decide which clothes each soldier would get. 25It was nine o'clock in the morning when they nailed Jesus to the cross. 26There was a sign with the charge against Jesus written on it. The sign said: "THE KING OF THE JEWS." 27They also put two robbers on crosses beside Jesus. They put one robber beside Jesus on the right, and they put the other robber beside Jesus on the left. 28* 29People walked by and said bad things to Jesus. They shook their heads and said, "You said you could destroy the temple* and build it again in three days. 30So save yourself! Come down from that cross!" 31The leading priests and the teachers of the law were also there. They teased Jesus the same as the other people did. They said to themselves, "He saved other people. But he can't save himself. 32If he is really the Christ,* the king of Israel (the Jews), then he should [save himself by] coming down from the cross now. We will see this, and then we will believe in him." The robbers that were being killed on the crosses beside Jesus also said bad things to him.
Jesus Dies
33At noon the whole country became dark. This darkness continued until three o'clock. 34At three o'clock Jesus cried with a loud voice, "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani." This means, "My God, my God, why have you left me alone?"* 35Some of the people standing there heard this. The people said, "Listen! He is calling Elijah."* 36One man there ran and got a sponge. The man filled the sponge with vinegar and tied the sponge to a stick. Then he used the stick to give the sponge to Jesus to drink from it. The man said, "We should wait now and see if Elijah will come to take him down from the cross." 37Then Jesus cried with a loud voice and died. 38When Jesus died, the curtain* in the temple* was torn into two pieces. The tear started at the top and tore all the way to the bottom. 39The army officer* that was standing there before the cross saw what happened when Jesus died. The officer said, "This man really was the Son of God!" 40Some women were standing away from the cross, watching. Some of these women were Mary from the town of Magdala, Salome, and Mary the mother of James and Joses. (James was her youngest son.) 41These were the women that followed Jesus in Galilee and cared for him. Many other women were also there. These women had come with Jesus to Jerusalem.
Jesus Is Buried
42This day was called Preparation day. (That means the day before the Sabbath day.*) It was becoming dark. 43A man named Joseph from Arimathea was brave enough to go to Pilate and ask for Jesus' body. Joseph was an important member of the Jewish council. He was one of the people that wanted the kingdom of God to come. 44Pilate was surprised to hear that Jesus was already dead. Pilate called the army officer* that guarded Jesus. Pilate asked the officer if Jesus was already dead. 45The officer told Pilate that Jesus was dead. So Pilate told Joseph he could have the body. 46Joseph bought some linen cloth. Joseph took the body [from the cross] and wrapped the body in the linen. Then Joseph put the body in a tomb (grave) that was dug in a wall of rock. Then Joseph closed the tomb by rolling a very large stone to cover the entrance. 47Mary from Magdala and Mary the mother of Joses saw the place where Jesus was put.
myrrh Myrrh was mixed with wine, and this was used as a drug to help a person feel less pain. Verse 28 Some Greek copies add verse 28: "And the Scripture happened that says, 'They put him with criminals.'" temple The special building in Jerusalem for Jewish worship. Christ The "anointed one" (Messiah) or chosen one of God. "My God ... alone" Quote from Ps. 22:1. "He is calling Elijah" The word for "My God" (Eloi in Aramaic or Eli in Hebrew) sounded to the people like the name of Elijah, a famous man that spoke for God about 850 B.C. curtain A curtain divided the "most holy place" from the other part of the temple. army officer A centurion, a Roman army officer who had authority over 100 soldiers. Sabbath day The seventh day of the Jewish week. It was a special religious day for the Jews.