Superscription on cross, the
The superscription on the cross:
| Gospel | Quoted language? | Reason | Wording of inscription |
| Mat 27:37 | Latin (Matt was Roman official) | Civil, legal | “Hic est Jesus rex Judaeorum” (This is Jesus the king of the Jews). |
| Luk 23:38 | Greek | Intellectual, cultural | “This is the king of the Jews”. |
| Joh 19:19,20 | Hebrew | Religious, national | “Jesus of Nazareth the king of the Jews”. |
| Mark 15:26 | Greek, but only words common to all three | Summary of other 3, most concise | “The king of the Jews” |
“His crime became his title” — the “titulus” = inscription board, commonly used in Roman executions.
The fullest title, in Hebrew — “Yeshua [Jesus] Ha-Natzr [of Nazareth] u’Melek [the King] Ha-Yehudim [of the Jews]” — spells out, as an acronym, the very name of God: “YHWH”. And for this reason, too, the leaders of Israel would demand that the title be removed!