A garment, and what it covers
The Purple Robe of Mockery
The soldiers dressed Jesus in purple and pressed a crown of thorns on His head, then bowed and jeered as though He were a false king. They meant it as mockery, yet every word they spoke in scorn was true.
“And the soldiers platted a crown of thorns, and put it on his head, and they put on him a purple robe,”John 19:2
The garment in Scripture
The garment in Scripture. And the soldiers platted a crown of thorns, and put it on his head, and they put on him a purple robe (John 19:2). They came to Him with sneering homage, saying, Hail, King of the Jews, and they smote him with their hands (John 19:3). Purple was the color of royalty, and the crown they wove was of thorns, so the whole costume was a cruel joke, dressing a beaten prisoner as a king to make sport of Him. Pilate then brought Jesus out to the crowd, still wearing the crown and the robe, and said, Behold the man (John 19:5). Matthew and Mark record the same scene, noting a scarlet robe and reeds placed as a mock scepter, and how they bowed the knee before him, and mocked him (Matthew 27:29). When they had finished their sport, they took the robe off from him, and put his own raiment on him, and led him away to crucify him (Matthew 27:31). The King of glory stood before the world in the garments of derision, silent and marred.
What it means
What it means. The purple robe was meant to say, look at this pretend king, yet the deepest irony of the gospel hangs upon it. The soldiers dressed Him as a king in scorn, not knowing they were dressing the true King of kings. Their cry, Hail, King of the Jews, was mockery on their lips and truth in the ears of heaven. Pilate's words, Behold the man, meant here is a harmless, beaten wretch, yet they announce the man in whom all humanity is summed up and healed. The whole scene shows the world's blindness. Confronted with the very Son of God, men crowned Him with thorns and laughed. The thorns themselves recall the curse of the ground after the fall, when thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth (Genesis 3:18), and here the King wears the curse upon His brow. He received the mockery in silence, not because He was weak but because He was bearing what we deserved, and even His humiliation was the path to His glory.
How it points to Christ
How it points to Christ. This robe is unlike the others, for it is a garment of scorn, yet it reveals Christ as truly King. What the soldiers did in jest, God meant in earnest. The one mocked as King of the Jews is the King whose kingdom shall have no end. His crown of thorns and robe of purple were the world's insult, but they clothed the very Savior who would clothe His people in righteousness. He bore shame and derision that we might be covered in glory. Isaiah foresaw a servant who would hide not his face from shame and spitting (Isaiah 50:6), and Isaiah also sang, he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness (Isaiah 61:10). The King who was mocked in a borrowed robe now clothes us in Himself, for as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ (Galatians 3:27), and we are called to put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 13:14). His humiliation is our covering.
Questions people ask
Why did the soldiers dress Jesus in purple?
Purple was the color of royalty, so clothing a beaten prisoner in it was a way to mock His claim to be a king (John 19:2-3). The Gospels also mention a scarlet robe (Matthew 27:28), which fits the reddish military cloaks used to imitate royal purple. The intent was ridicule.
What is the significance of Pilate's words, Behold the man?
Pilate meant to present Jesus as a harmless, beaten figure, hoping to satisfy the crowd (John 19:5). Yet in the fuller light of the gospel his words point to Christ as the true man, the one in whom our salvation is found. The scene is full of truth the speakers did not intend.