They Took His Clothes

On shame and public humiliation.

Today is Wednesday of Holy Week. We continue in John below, but if you want to reflect on traditional observances of Holy Wednesday (sometimes called Spy Wednesday), there’s Jesus’ anointing or Judas’ betrayal.

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God in Christ has never told his people to shame anyone. Yes, God convicts. But God does not humiliate.

Throughout the gospels, the character of Christ reveals this clearly. Consider the woman caught in adultery—publicly exposed, shamed by religious leaders, and brought before Jesus. He did not add to her shame. He shielded her from it, even as he invited her into a new way of life.

Governments and institutions may use public shame as a tactic—to quell violence, deter crime, or assert control. Maybe they think it works. But let’s be clear: this is not the way of Christ.

Even well-intended efforts—within churches or ministries—can carry shame with them. The way we speak, the way we offer help, the way we label others. Without care, even these can humiliate more than they heal.

One of the most powerful truths of the cross is that Jesus chose to step fully into that experience of human humiliation. They took his clothes. He was stripped, exposed, mocked. And he bore it. Psalm 22, from which Jesus quotes while hanging there, is filled with this pain. Today's portion speaks directly to the scorn he endured.

He took it—not to validate shame, but to overcome it.

His exposure exposed ours.

John 19:23-24

When the soldiers crucified Jesus, they took his clothes and his sandals, and divided them into four shares, one for each soldier. His shirt was seamless, woven as one piece from the top to the bottom. They said to each other, “Let’s not tear it. Let’s cast lots to see who will get it.” This was to fulfill the scripture,

They divided my clothes among themselves, and they cast lots for my clothing.

That’s what the soldiers did.

Psalm 22:6-8

But I’m just a worm, less than human;
insulted by one person, despised by another.
All who see me make fun of me—
they gape, shaking their heads:
“He committed himself to the Lord,
so let God rescue him;
let God deliver him
because God likes him so much.”

Prayer

God,

Christ was handed over. He was mocked. They took his clothes. Hanging naked, exposed to the world. In his exposure, you have seen us fully—and loved us still.

Unbelievable.

Shield us from the false comfort of casting shame, and teach us instead to carry one another’s burdens with humility, tenderness, and grace.

By your spirit & in Christ,
Amen.