Have seen it, that is? Had you been there would you have seen it? Had you, somehow, been standing at the foot of the cross on Golgotha (or, Skull Hill, as the locals called it), when Jesus died, would you have seen it? There was a mixed crowd there on that terrible day. Some, like the mother of Jesus, Mary, and her companions, Mary Magdalene, Salome, another Mary (the mother of James the younger) … and John – the only disciple who had not cut and run when Jesus was arrested. They were grief stricken. Others, like the chief priests and many teachers of the law (rabbis), mocked Him as did other assorted gawkers.
There was a Roman centurion there, too, with his crucifixion detail. It was a grisly, grim and ghastly command for them to carry out. To kill a man in battle was one thing, but to execute someone by means of crucifixion, well, that was another thing entirely – even for seasoned troops. A thick darkness had fallen at noon, and that was pretty unnerving. Everything went black, yet there is no record anywhere in history of any kind of eclipse taking place anywhere near that day.
Mark 15:22-40 (NIV)
They brought Jesus to the place called Golgotha (which means “the place of the skull”). 23 Then they offered Him wine mixed with myrrh, but He did not take it. 24 And they crucified Him. Dividing up His clothes, they cast lots to see what each would get. 25 It was nine in the morning when they crucified Him. 26 The written notice of the charge against Him read: THE KING OF THE JEWS. 27 They crucified two rebels with Him, one on His right and one on His left. 29 Those who passed by hurled insults at Him, shaking their heads and saying, “So! You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, 30 come down from the cross and save yourself!" 31 In the same way the chief priests and the teachers of the law mocked Him among themselves. “He saved others,” they said, “but he can't save Himself! 32 Let this Messiah, this king of Israel, come down now from the cross, that we may see and believe.” Those crucified with Him also heaped insults on Him. 33 At noon, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. 34 And at three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” (which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken Me?”). 35 When some of those standing near heard this, they said, “Listen, He's calling Elijah.” 36 Someone ran, filled a sponge with wine vinegar, put it on a staff, and offered it to Jesus to drink. “Now leave Him alone. Let's see if Elijah comes to take Him down,” he said. 37 With a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last. 38 The curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. 39 And when the centurion, who stood there in front of Jesus, saw how He died, he said, “Surely this man was the Son of God!”
At the very moment of Jesus’ death the centurion sees something no one else saw. What did he see that others did not? He is a Caesar-worshipping foreigner, yet he utters an astounding exclamation. We get a strong sense that the truth of what he saw shocked him to the core. Jesus must have looked like any other criminal he’d previously executed. So, what was going on this day? What did the centurion see? How do we explain his shocked observation? And why him and not the chief priests? How is it that a profane man, an enemy of the state, the crucifier of the Messiah, Himself, see something that the very leaders of the people of God do not see at all? God is always working behind the scenes. He is at work in an almost hidden way. He is invisibly present, but never completely hidden. The apostle Paul made this point.
Romans 1:20 (NIV)
“For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—His eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.”
God’s way is to reveal Himself in particular ways to those who really want to see Him, or who accept the unspoken invitation to come near. God never reveals Himself in a way by which we are forced to believe. We are always left with the option to see, or not. This is God's way - from the burning bush to the manger. One option is called faith - and faith pleases God. Faith goes seeking, and God answers faith.
There is an ancient word the equivalent of which we just don’t quite have in English. That word is τυποσ – (tupos). It’s a great word! τυποσ means, the mark of a stroke or blow, the faint imprint of the maker left behind on the finished article, such as a copper worker, or craftsman might leave. It refers to the faintest impression, the barely visible image, or tell-tale mark revealing a reality or cause beyond itself. For example, a faded scar, the faint but unique brushstrokes of an artist. Or the now barely visible handprint in an ancient cave painting. A faint sign that points to something now not able to be seen, but is evidence of the initiator … or creator. The scars on Jesus’ hands the disciples saw on resurrection day were clear and healed. But John does not use a word for scars, but “tupoi” (pl.), or “marks”. The tupoi, the “marks”, told the disciples who it was that was standing there.
That word τυποσ – tupos, tupoi (pl.) – became part of the lingo of the early church. When a believer suddenly realised the invisible hand of God at work in the moment or, perhaps, as they later looked back they saw what they didn’t see at the time, they realised tupoi moments. Tupoi were what couldn’t be fully seen with their physical eyes at the time or, maybe, very, very faintly if one was really concentrating. I am convinced that many believers never recognise the faint tupoi moments because we’re just way too busy and focused on the ordinary, and not looking for the divine at all.
The centurion “seeing how Jesus died” suddenly notices something faintly unusual. He saw a mark, a tupos, which somehow signalled that something of far greater importance than an execution was happening – if that were possible. Behind the scenes is the much greater thing. The divine Initiator was doing something. Very alert now he leans in to see, and the full reality of Jesus’ divinity and Messiahship is seen and understood. It rocked him! No one else saw it, not even John. They should have. (John would later see at the empty tomb).
The centurion noticed something faintly unusual amidst the horror of what he is looking at. It attracted his attention. He leans toward it, and suddenly discovers the Son of God dying for his sins. He knows who it is, and what is happening! He knows! What an astonishing, wonderful moment! He is undone and overwhelmed by grace in that moment. I cannot imagine what rushed through his soul. A tupos is the reason shepherds saw what thousands did not. A tupos is why pagan astrologers saw much more than a star and followed what was behind that star’s appearance. Tupos is why they knelt and worshipped the child king of the universe. A tupos is why one of the thieves crucified with Jesus pleads for salvation – yet the other didn’t see it at all, and curses Jesus with his dying breath. A tupos caught Moses’ attention and he turned aside to look into it. Tupos moments are invitations from God to draw near and get ready for revelation. The humble and the teachable sense the tupoi and lean in in worship so that He might reveal Himself to them.
Those who stood at the foot of the cross and scoffed, never saw anything more than a criminal being executed for blasphemy. Yet a tupos was right there when God was giving Himself up for them in love to save them from their sins. They never saw it. The centurion did. The humble and penitent and seeking … see tupoi – they sense something invisible wanting to become visible … and they lean in to lay hold of it. Easter is special every year, it is full of tupoi. When we stand at the cross and look on Him who became sin for us, who bled and died for our redemption, there are always new tupoi beckoning us to come near and see a fresh revelation of God’s love. And we are overwhelmed yet again by His grace.
Would you have seen it that day?
Ps Milton
[Sources: Greek New Testament Dictionary; various journal articles; reflection notes; https://www.bibletools.org/index.cfm/fuseaction/Topical.show/RTD/cgg/ID/10386/Tupos.htm]