No Bones Would Be Broken
Bodie Hodge, M.Sc., B.Sc., PEI
Biblical Authority Ministries, October 23, 2026 (Donate)
Therefore purge out the old leaven,
that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ,
our Passover, was sacrificed for us. (1 Corinthians 5:7, NKJV)
Christ is our eternal Passover. In Christ’s sacrifice, He
was put to death by order of the High Priest after inspection seeing that He
was without blemish (hence, they had to throw false charges at Him; Mark
14:53-63). This was in keeping with the Old Testament Law (e.g., Exodus 12:5;
Leviticus 22:17-25; Malachi 1:6-14).
There were other laws pertaining to the sacrificial lamb.
One of them had to do with its bones—don’t break any. I’m not sure if we should
“break a leg” as we dive into this fascinating subject.
The Passover Lamb And The Old Testament Commandment
God instituted the Passover in Exodus 12 based on a real
historical event. He gave specific instructions about the selection and
preparing of the Passover lamb. The lamb was to be a male without blemish
(Exodus 12:5), and at the first Passover, its blood was to be placed on the
doorposts and lintel of the Israelite homes. This protected the firstborn from
death when God’s judgment came upon Egypt.
One particularly important command was that none of the
lamb's bones were to be broken.
In one house it shall be eaten; you
shall not carry any of the flesh outside the house, nor shall you break one of
its bones. (Exodus 12:46, NKJV).
This command was reiterated in Numbers 9:12. The lamb was to
stay physically intact, even in death. These instructions weren’t arbitrary.
The Passover lamb was a type and shadow pointing forward to the ultimate
Passover Lamb, Jesus Christ (e.g., 1 Corinthians 5:7; Hebrews 10:1).
Jesus, The Ultimate Passover Lamb
Jesus was identified as the Lamb of God by John the
Baptist (John 1:29, 36). Unlike the repeated animal sacrifices under the Old
Testament sacrificial system, Christ offered Himself once for all as the
perfect sacrifice for sin (Hebrews 10:10-14). And He could do that being the
very nature of God!
As the sinless Son of God, Jesus fulfilled what the Passover
lamb symbolized. Powerfully, the command concerning unbroken bones also sees
its fulfillment in His crucifixion.
John 19:33 records that when the Roman soldiers approached
Jesus on the cross when they were about to break His legs, they discovered He
was already dead. Therefore, they didn’t break His legs. John specifically
identifies this as the fulfillment of Scripture:
"For these things were done
that the Scripture should be fulfilled, 'Not one of His bones shall be
broken'" (John 19:36, NKJV).
Psalm 34:20 also declares that God guards the bones of the
righteous and that none are broken, providing another possible prophetic
connection.
Why Did The Soldiers Not Break His Legs?
Let’s discuss this in more detail. Roman soldiers sometimes
practiced what they called “crurifragium”, the breaking of a crucified person's
legs, to speed up the dying process. On a cross, a victim must use their legs
to push up on the nail that is pierces their feet and foot nerves just to take
each breath—it is excruciating! The victim trades immense pain for each breath.
But with broken legs, they can’t do this any longer. Hence, they die much
quicker, as they can’t breathe properly anymore.
John 19:31-32 explains that the Jewish leaders requested the
removal of the bodies before the Sabbath, particularly because it was a high
day (a Sabbath that fell during the Passover Week celebrations). The soldiers
consequently broke the legs of the two criminals crucified alongside Jesus. However,
Jesus had already died. And this makes sense, Jesus was as up all night, beaten
fiercely by the Romans, lashed with an unnumbered amount of Roman
lashes—perhaps hundreds, and a crown of thorns was thrust onto His head.
John 19:30 says that Jesus declared, "it is finished!"
and gave up His spirit. Luke 23:46 also records Jesus committing His
spirit into His Father's hands before breathing His last.
Keep in mind though that Jesus also taught that He had
authority to lay down His life and take it again (John 10:17-18). Thus, His
death was in accordance with God's purpose, even with the enemies of Christ
conspiring against Him. Through all this, and unbeknownst to the Roman
soldiers, they fulfilled a prophecy about Jesus and his bones not being broken.
Pierced Instead Of Broken
Although the soldiers didn’t break Jesus' legs, one soldier
pierced His side with a spear. Blood and water came out (John 19:34). John
immediately connects this event with another prophetic passage:
And again another Scripture says,
“They shall look on Him whom they pierced.” (John 19:37, NKJV).
This goes back to to Zechariah 12:10, written centuries
before the crucifixion. The fulfillment is amazing. Jesus was indeed pierced,
yet His bones remained unbroken, just as Scripture had foretold. Did we expect
anything less from an all-powerful
and all-knowing God who sits sovereignly on the throne?
A Caution Regarding Images Of Christ
When producing illustrations, paintings, models, or
crucifixion exhibits, Christians should exercise care in representing Christ's
injuries.
Scripture states that none of His bones were broken. As a
result, depictions showing fractured legs, nails through bones, broken ribs, or
other shattered bones would be in contradiction with this biblical prophecy and
fulfillment.
Therefore, artists should avoid depicting nails driven
directly through bones or portraying fractures on the body of Christ.
Conclusion
The unbroken bones of Jesus Christ is an incredible
confirmation between the Old Testament and the New Testament. The Passover lamb
pointed forward to the ultimate Passover of Christ, whose perfect sacrifice
accomplished what animal sacrifices could never accomplish.
Jesus was pierced but not broken, fulfilling
Scripture in amazing detail. God wasn’t tricked. His death was no accident. It
was the sovereign plan of God to redeem us, as fallen and broken sinners,
through the blood of the final and supreme Passover Lamb (1 Peter 1:18-19).
□
Bodie Hodge, Ken Ham's son in law, has been an apologist
defending 6-day creation and opposing evolution since 1998. He spent 21 years
working at Answers in Genesis as a speaker, writer, and
researcher as well as a founding news anchor for Answers News. He
was also head of the Oversight Council.
Bodie launched Biblical Authority Ministries in
2015 as a personal website and it was organized officially in 2025 as a
501(c)(3). He has spoken on multiple continents and hosts of US states in
churches, colleges, and universities. He is married with four children.
Mr. Hodge earned a Bachelor and Master of Science degrees
from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale (SIUC). Then he taught
at SIUC for a couple of years as a Visiting Instructor teaching all levels of
undergraduate engineering and running a materials lab and a CAD lab. He did
research on advanced ceramic materials to develop a new method of production of
titanium diboride with a grant from Lockheed Martin. He worked as a Test
Engineer for Caterpillar, Inc., prior to entering full-time ministry.
His love of science was coupled with a love of history,
philosophy, and theology. For about one year of his life, Bodie was editing and
updating a theological, historical, and scientific dictionary/encyclopedia. Mr.
Hodge has over 25 years of experience in writing, speaking and researching in
these fields.
*Image by generative program as requested by Bodie Hodge
