He was Assigned a Grave with the Wicked

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Isaiah, who worked as a prophet from 740 B.C. to at least 681 B.C., wrote prophetically of the Messiah. In Isaiah 53:9, he tells us:

"He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth."

This prophecy was fulfilled as the rich man, Joseph of Arimathea, kindly donated his own grave and obtained the body of the Lord Jesus Christ, then placed the Lord in his own grave.

Remember that death is the ultimate consequence of sin. (See the March 19 post, "The Prophecy in the Crown of Thorns.") Only the wicked—meaning those who sin—die. Without sin, there is no consequence of death. Jesus was sinless. He shouldn't have died. He died because he took upon himself the sin of the whole world. (Tweet that!)

The sinless, holy Messiah was laid in a cemetery along with other dead bodies, those of the "wicked" who had died because of their sin. And so Isaiah's prophecy was fulfilled. (Tweet that!)

"As evening approached, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who had himself become a disciple of Jesus. Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus' body, and Pilate ordered that it be given to him. Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and placed it in his own new tomb that he had cut out of the rock. He rolled a big stone in front of the entrance to the tomb and went away. Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting there opposite the tomb" (Matthew 27:57-61).

The Prophecy in the Crown of Thorns

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When Adam and Eve introduced sin into the human race way back in the garden of Eden, there were many consequences that we continue to deal with to this day—although each human who has ever lived is equally as guilty of sin.

Perhaps the worst consequence of sin is death, which is what Jesus came to pay the penalty for with his own blood in order to bring each person who will accept it eternal life. (Tweet that!)

Another one of the consequences of sin is that the ground was cursed so mankind would have to work hard to make the land produce food. God told Adam the curse meant the land would produce thorns and thistles:

"To Adam he said, 'Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree about which I commanded you, "You must not eat of it,"

" 'Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life. It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return' " (Genesis3:17-19).

Jesus came to pay the consequences of sin, or possibly we could say to pay for the curse. Thorns are a symbol of the curse. So is it any wonder a stem of thorns was wound into a circle and placed upon Jesus’ head as a crown?

"They put a purple robe on him, then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on him" (Mark 15:17).

As sinful men and woman crucified Jesus for the sins of mankind, they crowned him with the curse. (Tweet that!)