(49) Let us see whether Elias will come.--Here again we have eager expectation rather than derision. Was the "great and dreadful day" (Malachi 4:5) about to burst on them? Would the long-expected prophet at last appear? The sponge and vinegar would seem to minds thus on the stretch an unworthy interruption of the catastrophe of the great drama of which they were spectators.

Verse 49. - The rest [but the rest] said, Let be (ἄφες). This is a common expression, meaning, "Stand off!" "Be quiet!" "Soft!" The bystanders addressed the person who had presented the drink. In St. Mark the verb is in the plural, ἄφετε, that is, the giver of the drink calls upon the others to keep quiet and wait. Let as see whether Elias will come (ἔρχεται, cometh, is coming). They speak in a kind of superstitious mockery, half deriding and half believing in the possible appearance of the great prophet. Between this verse and the following, the Sinaitic, Vatican, and some other manuscripts, together with some few versions, insert a passage borrowed from John 19:34, "And another taking a spear pierced his side, and there came out water and blood." This evident interpolation has been introduced by a scribe, who deemed it expedient to rectify an omission on St. Matthew's part, and clumsily inserted it in a wrong place. It is to be rejected, not only on critical, but on historical and theological grounds, seeing that it makes the piercing of the side to precede Christ's death, and conveys the impression that it was this spear wound that cut short his life.

27:45-50 During the three hours which the darkness continued, Jesus was in agony, wrestling with the powers of darkness, and suffering his Father's displeasure against the sin of man, for which he was now making his soul an offering. Never were there three such hours since the day God created man upon the earth, never such a dark and awful scene; it was the turning point of that great affair, man's redemption and salvation. Jesus uttered a complaint from Ps 22:1. Hereby he teaches of what use the word of God is to direct us in prayer, and recommends the use of Scripture expressions in prayer. The believer may have tasted some drops of bitterness, but he can only form a very feeble idea of the greatness of Christ's sufferings. Yet, hence he learns something of the Saviour's love to sinners; hence he gets deeper conviction of the vileness and evil of sin, and of what he owes to Christ, who delivers him from the wrath to come. His enemies wickedly ridiculed his complaint. Many of the reproaches cast upon the word of God and the people of God, arise, as here, from gross mistakes. Christ, just before he expired, spake in his full strength, to show that his life was not forced from him, but was freely delivered into his Father's hands. He had strength to bid defiance to the powers of death: and to show that by the eternal Spirit he offered himself, being the Priest as well as the Sacrifice, he cried with a loud voice. Then he yielded up the ghost. The Son of God upon the cross, did die by the violence of the pain he was put to. His soul was separated from his body, and so his body was left really and truly dead. It was certain that Christ did die, for it was needful that he should die. He had undertaken to make himself an offering for sin, and he did it when he willingly gave up his life.The rest said, let be,.... The others, to whom he belonged, that fetched the sponge, said to him, let him alone, keep at a distance from him, give him nothing to drink:

let us see whether Elias will come to save him; whom the Jews looked upon to be the forerunner of the Messiah, and therefore suggest, that should he come to save him, they would believe he was the Messiah; and they had a mighty notion of Elias appearing to persons frequently (s), and talking, and conversing with them,

See Gill on Matthew 17:3, though they did not believe he would come, and appear to Christ; for they were persons of great note for piety and learning, to whom he appeared, as they pretend, whereas they had no such opinion of him. The Ethiopic version here adds, and one took a spear and pierced his side with it, and blood and water flowed out: but this circumstance is only recorded by the Evangelist John,

John 19:34, though Beza says the same is read here in two ancient copies,

(s) Vid. Juchasin, fol. 79. 1. & 86. 1. & 101. 1. & 118. 2. & 132. 1.