"They came to a place called Golgotha (which means The Place of the Skull)" (Matthew 27:33 NIV).
"They brought Jesus to the place called Golgotha (which means The Place of the Skull)" (Mark 15:22 NIV).
"When they came to the place called the Skull, there they crucified him, along with the criminals - one on his right, the other on his left" (Luke 23:33 NIV).
"Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place of the Skull (which in Aramaic is called Golgotha)" (John 19:17 NIV).
For many years, whenever I read any of the above verses, I had a question: Why is the word “skull” singular? In a place of Roman execution, skulls would be all over the place if the Romans did not care about burying the bodies of dead “criminals,” some of whom were “rebelling” against the Roman government. And how many “criminals” would have had a tomb awaiting their dead bodies. Now bodies may have been removed from the vicinity by the caring Jewish people, yet if that was the case, you would think they would do so uniformly for all “criminals.” Thus no skulls would be lying around. Being someone whose gift is not linguistics in any manner, it is interesting this question of the singular “skull” stuck with me for years.
Jesus was crucified at a place called Golgotha. There is disagreement over whether the root of Golgatha is Aramaic or Hebrew, (or both), but the bottom line is that we are dealing with a skull here, a single skull. (I add the word Calvary, from the Latin word for skull, became popular later for Golgotha, which is even the word used in Luke 23:33 in the KJV.)
After about one decade of having that question unanswered, one day in my favorite Christian bookstore I saw a book by Dr. William McBirnie which I immediately grabbed. I had read The Search for the Twelve Apostles by Dr. McBirnie in 2003, which became one of my favorite books, since I have such an interest in Biblical history. So there I was with another Dr. McBirnie book in my hands entitled The Search for the Authentic Tomb of Jesus. (1)
Reading it with a passion, not only was my question about the singular use of “skull” answered to my satisfaction, but I also engrossed myself in that book which I consider a scholarly masterpiece!
The issue of the book: Where is the site of the tomb of Jesus, and where is the site of the crucifixion of Jesus? The first remarkable thing about that book is how Dr. McBirnie begins by giving an in depth analysis of the evidence to support the traditional locations, presenting evidence in support of those theories. I have never read anything by any other scholar where so much evidence was given for the theory he or she was arguing against. Then he proceeds to give methodical evidence to support his thesis regarding the location of the crucifixion and the tomb of Jesus. A bus depot has been built in modern times by his proposed location. Today there are many who advocate this location, but back in 1975, it was hotly disputed, and the location still is scorned by some scholars.
So what does this have to do with the place of a skull? Turns out, there is a rock side of a hill near an ancient quarry where there is the resemblance of two hollow eyes and a nose. If you view recent pictures of it, as I have on the Internet, the face looks rather slight from the common camera angle to the side of the bus depot. Yet in some pictures in Dr. McBirnie’s book, where he had close access to the area and where pictures could be taken from afar without blockage, it looks more like a skull. He even had a picture given to him of "Skull Hill" which was taken in the 1800’s. And it may have looked much more like a skull in the first century! Granted the eyes could have been formed during the past 1900 years, thus maybe it did not look like anything during the time of Jesus. Yet since much solid evidence is presented by Dr. McBirnie supporting this site aside from the whole skull issue, I became convinced the rock formation was the basis for the name Golgotha, a conviction which some scholars have had for years.
This all came to mind this summer as I looked at a picture of one sand sculpture done by Randy Hofman, which you can view below. (I take this opportunity to express my immense gratitude to Randy Hofman for allowing his art to be used within my book posted this summer.) In the sculpture displayed below, Jesus is on the cross and two skulls are lying on the ground. Whether Golgotha got its’ name from skulls lying around, or whether it got its’ name from the rock formation, which I really advocate, the result on Golgotha was that Jesus was crucified, and then put in a new tomb in a garden (John 19:41). The location of that garden tomb is near the site of execution according to Dr. McBirnie. I really recommend that book!
Praise be to God, the history does not all end with a Roman crucifixion in Judea. The unfathomable suffering of Jesus does not end in the death, leaving only a legacy of memorial birthday celebrations. And the tragedy of God the Son being unjustly condemned as a criminal and executed does not result in catastrophic revenge upon mankind. The crucifixion serves a purpose which only God could bring from the ultimate tragedy. Jesus was the Substitute for the consequences of sins of people, which is spiritual death. The purpose of His death on a cross was to make forgiveness possible for people. Then Jesus was resurrected. The stone in front of His tomb was rolled away there in a rock hillside which today is near a bus depot. The body was gone. And Jesus in the wake of His resurrection was seen by people, many people. We human beings still experience suffering and the horror of physical death. Yet that death is not the end. Spiritually, there is life for the person who has been saved by Jesus. Believe in Jesus, and you will be saved and have eternal life.
John 11:25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” (NIV).
Hunter Irvine
(1) William Steuart McBirnie, The Search for the Authentic Tomb of Jesus
(Montrose, CA: Acclaimed Books, 1975).
