Monday, July 18, 2022

Eugenia Scarvelis Constantinou (EO) on the Christological Significance of John 19:34

  

The first theological truth it points to is the sinlessness of the Lord. Because he was sinless, his body did not suffer corruption. That means it did not decay. Blood coagulating after death could be seen as an early manifestation of decay. Orthodox hymns of Great Friday mention this fact, and this was the teaching of the early Church from the beginning. When the tomb of Lazarus was opened, there was a stench because he had begun to decay. But this was not the case for the Lord, and that too was fulfillment of prophecy. As St. Peter preached to the people in Jerusalem on the Day of Pentecost, he pointed to the tomb of David, located not far from the Upper Room where the Church had received the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. He noted that David had died and was still buried in the tomb. But David had prophesied that his descendant, the Messiah, “was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption” (Acts 2:29-32; quoting Ps. 16:10/15:10 LXX). (Eugenia Scarvelis Constantinou, The Crucifixion of the King of Glory: The Amazing History and Sublime Mystery of the Passion [Chesterton, Ind.: Ancient Faith Publishing, 2021], 313-14)