Who killed Jesus—the Jews, the Romans, or did He give up His life willingly?
Scripture teaches that no Jew took Jesus’ life and no Roman took it; He gave it up of His own will. Yet Peter, by inspiration, accused the nation of Israel of killing their Messiah, showing Israel’s responsibility in rejecting Him.
Les explains that as Christ hung on the cross, no Jew took His life and no Roman took His life; He gave it up of His own will. In God’s dealing with the covenant people, Peter according to inspiration accuses the nation of Israel of having killed their Messiah. Because Israel rejected their Messiah, they lost their temple and land, entered dispersion, and suffered through the ghettos and the Holocaust. Yet God promised from day one not to give up on them; He will bring them back to the land and fulfill the promises made to their forefathers. Paul, though having a heart for Israel, was not Israel’s apostle as Peter was, but the apostle to the Gentiles, as Romans 11:13 states. Paul also defends Israel in Romans 11, showing they will not be completely annihilated.