Luke 23:41-45
Luke 23:41 (KJB)
And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man
hath done nothing amiss.
The saved malefactor was speaking bluntly as he continued to rebuke the other
malefactor. He knew that their crimes against Rome would yield the death penalty
if they were caught and they were. The word in the Greek for “due reward”
carries with it the meaning of “suitable, deserving, or fit.” So their
punishment for their crimes were commensurate with their crimes. They may have
also murdered while committing the robberies. Today we would call that felony
murder and carries with it the same penalty as murder itself. Then the saved man
tells the other criminal that Jesus had committed nothing amiss, that is, He did
not even commit anything wrong, never mind anything worthy of a capital offense.
Luke 23:42 (KJB)
And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.
Then the saved man asks Jesus to remember him when He comes into His kingdom.
Now if you notice that the man called Jesus “Lord.” That is the key word in this
verse which tells us that he had become saved on the cross. (1 Cor 12:3 KJV)
Wherefore I give you to understand, that no man speaking by the Spirit of God
calleth Jesus accursed: and that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by
the Holy Ghost. He could not truly claim that Jesus was Lord unless it was
by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. The man probably thought that the kingdom
of God would come at a later date but little did he know what was coming next.
Luke 23:43 (KJB)
And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in
paradise.
There would be no long wait for the Christian man on the cross to gain the
reward that Jesus was about to die for. The Elect man would not have to wait
very long because once he physically died, he would immediately go right into
Heaven. Paradise is a synonym for Heaven showing that there is a great life
after death for the believer and that the only hell a Christian faces will be
here on earth and once we leave the earthly portal, never again will we know
what pain and suffering is.
(2 Cor 12:4 KJV) How that he was caught up into paradise, and heard
unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter.
(Rev 2:7 KJV) He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the
churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which
is in the midst of the paradise of God.
Luke 23:44 (KJB)
And it was about the sixth hour, and there was a darkness over all the earth
until the ninth hour.
The first hour of the day according to the Jewish day was 6 A.M. So the time
frame here would have been from noon to 3 P.M. (Luke 23:45 KJV) And the sun
was darkened,…This phrase in the Greek tells us that the sun was darkened
from an outside source, that is, God the Father had darkened the sun which
showed that the whole world was in darkness as Jesus was paying for the sins of
the Elect. It also signified the beginning of the last days which was from the
cross to the last day of history. (Amos 8:9 KJV) And it shall come to pass
in that day, saith the Lord GOD, that I will cause the sun to go down at noon,
and I will darken the earth in the clear day: It was also a fulfillment of
the prophecy found in Amos. (Amos 8:10 KJV) And I will turn your feasts into
mourning, and all your songs into lamentation; and I will bring up sackcloth
upon all loins, and baldness upon every head; and I will make it as the mourning
of an only son, and the end thereof as a bitter day.
Luke 23:45 (KJB)
And the sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was rent in the midst.
When Jesus had died, in the temple, the veil was rent in two from top to bottom
which was the second veil between the Holy Place and Holy of Holies. It was rent
from the top because it would have shown that no mere human did this. The
thickness of the veil was a handbreadth equal to about 3 inches or 7.6 cm. It
was an act of God. The Holy of Holies was now open and there was no more need
for a human High Priest because one can now approach the Father through His Son,
the Lord Jesus Christ. (John 14:6 KJV) Jesus saith unto him, I am the way,
the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. The era
of the Mosaic system was now at an end and the age of grace began. Then there
was a great earthquake at that time and one of the things that Jesus told His
disciples was that earthquakes did not mean the end. It was just the beginning
but right now all things looked bleak. (Nahum 1:5 KJV) The mountains quake
at him, and the hills melt, and the earth is burned at his presence, yea, the
world, and all that dwell therein.