The Source of the Story of Dividing Jesus' Clothes

Chapter III

The Sources of the Gospels and the Way of Writing Them

Section IV

The Texts that were attributed directly to the Old Testament in the Gospels

In this section we will examine the texts of the Old Testament that were attributed directly to it, and the Gospels authors said that they have not been fulfilled, and achieved only in Jesus and his time and his generation, to find out what is the truth and the reality of them, and if the Gospels authors have told the truth or not.

11 - The Source of the Story of Dividing Jesus' Clothes

Matthew 27:35 Then they crucified Him, and divided His garments, casting lots, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet: "They divided My garments among them, And for My clothing they cast lots."

Mark 15:24 And when they crucified Him, they divided His garments, casting lots for them to determine what every man should take.

Luke 23:34 Then Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do." And they divided His garments and cast lots.

John 19:23 Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took His garments and made four parts, to each soldier a part, and also the tunic. Now the tunic was without seam, woven from the top in one piece.

John 19:24 They said therefore among themselves, "Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be," that the Scripture might be fulfilled which says: "They divided My garments among them, And for My clothing they cast lots." Therefore the soldiers did these things.

In these texts we read the story of dividing Jesus' clothes by the soldiers, the second Person of the three Persons who are one and have the same essence and nature as the churches say!

As we notice that Matthew and John attributed it to the Old Testament directly, while Mark and Luke wrote the story without attributing it to the Old Testament, and the quoted text written in the Psalm twenty-two which is as follows:

Psalm 22:1 (To the Chief Musician. Set to "The Deer of the Dawn." A Psalm of David.) My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me? Why are You so far from helping Me, And from the words of My groaning?

Psalm 22:2 O My God, I cry in the daytime, but You do not hear; And in the night season, and am not silent.

This is the beginning of the Psalm, where a man appears asks his God, who is supposed to be Jesus as the Gospels authors and the churches say, saying, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken me? Why are You so far from helping me, and from the words of my groaning?".

The first paragraph has been quoted by Matthew and Mark as the last words of Jesus on the cross, which will be discussed later, for this we should read the whole Psalm to see if was talking about Jesus or not, and what matters in these paragraphs is that the God has forsaken the speaker in the Psalm, whether cried out in the daytime or in the night time the God will not answer him!

This raises many questions about the abilities of Jesus and his role among the three Hypostases, who are one and have the same essence and nature, as the churches say, if he is one of them and if they already exist, and they did not?! Why he was powerless, to be forced to pray to the first One, who calls him my God, in day and night but has not answered him and has forsaken him to face his fate?!

Or could we say that the three Persons who are one and have the same essence and nature, whom are dwelling (incarnation) in the body of Jesus, (John 14:10), have a God, and ask Him in the night and in the day in order to respond to their demands, and the text says He did not respond to these demands!

And if Jesus has a God and calls Him and asks Him to help, is it not better for the good people of the followers of the churches to worship the God of Jesus instead of worship Jesus, who could not save himself, let alone the others?

Psalm 22:3 But You are holy, Enthroned in the praises of Israel.

Psalm 22:4 Our fathers trusted in You; They trusted, and You delivered them.

Psalm 22:5 They cried to You, and were delivered; They trusted in You, and were not ashamed.

In these paragraphs the speaker in Psalm says that the God has saved the children of Israel, when they have trusted in Him.

Psalm 22:6 But I am a worm, and no man; A reproach of men, and despised by the people.

The existence of this paragraph in the Psalm, should have given to the Gospels authors a strong indication that it was not talking about Jesus, and not to quote from it, but as I say that their way or method or approach of writing has relied upon the texts of the Old Testament regardless of what those texts were talking about, or the true meaning of the texts, otherwise, if this Psalm was talking about Jesus; is it true that he was a worm and not a man! Although this saying contrasts with what is written in the Gospel of John when Jesus described himself as a man, as in the following text:

John 8:39 They answered and said to Him, "Abraham is our father." Jesus said to them, "If you were Abraham’s children, you would do the works of Abraham.

John 8:40 "But now you seek to kill Me, a Man who has told you the truth which I heard from God. Abraham did not do this.

Moreover if Jesus was a worm and not a man; why they did not write a story shows that Jesus was a worm?!

Psalm 22:7 All those who see Me ridicule Me; They shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying,

Psalm 22:8 "He trusted in the LORD, let Him rescue Him; Let Him deliver Him, since He delights in Him!"

Psalm 22:9 But You are He who took Me out of the womb; You made Me trust while on My mother’s breasts.

Psalm 22:10 I was cast upon You from birth. From My mother’s womb You have been My God.

Psalm 22:11 Be not far from Me, For trouble is near; For there is none to help.

These paragraphs have been quoted by the Gospels authors and have reformulated in the story of the crucifixion, but they did not attribute it directly to the Old Testament as they did in this story, as in the following texts:

Matthew 27:39 And those who passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads

Matthew 27:40 and saying, "You who destroy the temple and build it in three days, save Yourself! If You are the Son of God, come down from the cross."

Matthew 27:41 Likewise the chief priests also, mocking with the scribes and elders, said,

Matthew 27:42 "He saved others; Himself He cannot save. If He is the King of Israel, let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe Him.

Matthew 27:43 "He trusted in God; let Him deliver Him now if He will have Him; for He said, ‘I am the Son of God’."

Matthew 27:44 Even the robbers who were crucified with Him reviled Him with the same thing.

Mark 15:29 And those who passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads and saying, "Aha! You who destroy the temple and build it in three days,

Mark 15:30 "save Yourself, and come down from the cross!"

Mark 15:31 Likewise the chief priests also, mocking among themselves with the scribes, said, "He saved others; Himself He cannot save.

Psalm 22:12 Many bulls have surrounded Me; Strong bulls of Bashan have encircled Me.

Psalm 22:13 They gape at Me with their mouths, Like a raging and roaring lion.

As for these paragraphs; the Gospels authors did not write stories containing their content, such as, many bulls surrounded Jesus, or strong bulls of Bashan encircled him, or they gape at him with their mouths like a raging and roaring lion, if the Psalm was really talking or prophesying about Jesus!

Psalm 22:14 I am poured out like water, And all My bones are out of joint; My heart is like wax; It has melted within Me.

Psalm 22:15 My strength is dried up like a potsherd, And My tongue clings to My jaws; You have brought Me to the dust of death.

As for these paragraphs; the Gospels authors did not write stories that containing their content, as is their method of writing by quoting from the texts of the Old Testament. They have not mentioned that all Jesus' bones were out of joint; his heart was like wax; it has melted within him and his tongue clung to his jaws!

As for the saying that the Lord will bring him to the dust of death, this indicates that the speaker has nothing to do with the Lord the Creator but he subjects to His will, and he didn't have any divine's attributes because the Lord the Creator alive forever, and this speaker talks about the death of himself.

Psalm 22:16 For dogs have surrounded Me; The congregation of the wicked has enclosed Me. They pierced My hands and My feet;

Psalm 22:17 I can count all My bones. They look and stare at Me.

I do think that John relied on the first paragraph to write the story of Jesus' appearance to Thomas, (John 20:24-29)!

Psalm 22:18 They divide My garments among them, And for My clothing they cast lots.

This is the paragraph that has been quoted by the Gospels authors to say that the soldiers have divided Jesus' clothes and cast lots for it. Yet they forget that this paragraph is part of the Psalm that says that the speaker is a worm, not a man! And I wonder where have the Gospels authors read in the Psalm about the crucifixion of the body, which was dwelt by the three Persons, or at least one of them! While it was a prayer and supplication of the speaker to the Lord the Creator of the heavens and the earth?!

Psalm 22:19 But You, O LORD, do not be far from Me; O My Strength, hasten to help Me!

Psalm 22:20 Deliver Me from the sword, My precious life from the power of the dog.

As for these paragraphs; the Gospels authors did not write any story says that Jesus was delivered from the sword, and his precious life from the power of the dog! But they wrote that Jesus was crying out on the cross, saying "Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?" that is, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?", "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?" which is translated, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?"!

Psalm 22:21 Save Me from the lion’s mouth And from the horns of the wild oxen! You have answered Me.

This paragraph, as its predecessors, the Gospels authors did not mention any story says that Jesus had been saved from the mouth of a lion and from the horns of the wild oxen!

Psalm 22:22 I will declare Your name to My brethren; In the midst of the assembly I will praise You.

This paragraph, I do think is one of the reasons that made the Gospels authors talking about that there are brothers and sisters to Jesus, and the unusual thing more than the existence of those brothers is the saying of John that they were not believing in Jesus! As in the following text:

John 7:5 For even His brothers did not believe in Him.

And the rest of the Psalm is reminding to worship the only true God, who Has the kingdom, which is what the speaker did, by praise the Lord all the time and in the great assembly, while the churches did not adhere to it, because they praise other gods with the LORD, as is well-known.

Psalm 22:23 You who fear the LORD, praise Him! All you descendants of Jacob, glorify Him, And fear Him, all you offspring of Israel!

Psalm 22:24 For He has not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; Nor has He hidden His face from Him; But when He cried to Him, He heard.

Psalm 22:25 My praise shall be of You in the great assembly; I will pay My vows before those who fear Him.

Psalm 22:26 The poor shall eat and be satisfied; Those who seek Him will praise the LORD. Let your heart live forever!

Psalm 22:27 All the ends of the world Shall remember and turn to the LORD, And all the families of the nations Shall worship before You.

Psalm 22:28 For the kingdom is the LORD’S, And He rules over the nations.

Psalm 22:29 All the prosperous of the earth Shall eat and worship; All those who go down to the dust Shall bow before Him, Even he who cannot keep himself alive.

Psalm 22:30 A posterity shall serve Him. It will be recounted of the Lord to the next generation,

Psalm 22:31 They will come and declare His righteousness to a people who will be born, That He has done this.

From this careful reading of the Psalm, which the Gospels authors had quoted the paragraph "They divide my garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots" from it, we find that it definitely was not talking about Jesus, whether from near or far, and this shows the way or the method or the approach of the Gospels authors to write their Gospels, which is the quoting from the texts of the Old Testament, either directly or indirectly and reformulating them in their stories to bestow a state of holiness, credibility and reliability on their Gospels, regardless of the true meaning of those texts, or what they were talking about, and this means that the law "do not accept the lying and false" applies to this story.