Jesus In India — Page 38
28 JESUS IN INDIA body could still have borne the wounds inflicted upon him on the cross? What need had he to eat food? And if he required food then he must be in need of food even now! Readers should not fall into the error of thinking that the Jewish cross was like the present day gallows, from which deliver- ance is almost an impossibility. Because in the cross of those days, no noose was secured around the neck of the victim, nor was a wooden plank pulled from under the victim to bring about the hanging. Instead, the victim was put on the cross, his hands and feet were nailed to it; and there was always the possibility that after he was put on the cross and duly nailed, he could still be taken down alive after a day or two, before his bones had been broken, in case it was decided to spare his life, the punishment already undergone being considered sufficient. If he was meant to be killed, he was kept on the cross, was denied food and water and left in this condition under the sun for three days or more, after which his bones were broken and he would at last expire under all these tortures. But the Grace and Mercy of God Almighty, saved Jesus, the Messiah, may peace be on him, from such degree of agony which would have meant certain death. An ordinary perusal of the Gospels would reveal to you that neither did Jesus, the Messiah, may peace be on him, remain on the cross for three days, nor did he have to suffer hunger or thirst for three days, and neither were his bones broken. On the contrary, he remained on the cross only for about two hours, and it was so arranged for him that, by the Grace and Mercy of God, he was placed on the cross in the latter part of the day, and that day was a Friday, and only a small part of the day remained, and the next day was the Sabbath, and the Jewish feast of Fasah. Now, according to Jewish custom,