After ignoring all the signs and works of Jesus, they mocked Him

Indescribable Injustice

MHFM: After ignoring all the signs and works of Jesus, when He was on the Cross the chief priests, scribes, and some others demanded a sign on their own terms, ridiculing Him with indescribable insolence.

Matthew 27:39-42: “And those who passed by derided him, wagging their heads and saying, ‘You who would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself! If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross.’ So also the chief priests, with the scribes and elders, mocked him, saying, ‘He saved others; he cannot save himself. He is the King of Israel; let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him.’”

Their mockery and selfish demands are a striking example of injustice and bad will. They resisted the true sources of revelation, yet demanded one according to their own will. But God does not enlighten those who resist the revelation and signs He has given and look for others in their place (e.g. people who reject the dogmatic teaching of the Church and follow false apparitions, false teachers or the ‘authority of man’ instead).

Matthew 16:1-4: “And the Pharisees and Sadducees came, and to test him they asked him to show them a sign from heaven. He answered them, When it is evening, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red.’ And in the morning, ‘It will be stormy today, for the sky is red and threatening.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times. AN EVIL AND ADULTEROUS GENERATION SEEKS FOR A SIGN, BUT NO SIGN WILL BE GIVEN TO IT EXCEPT THE SIGN OF JONAH.”

St. John Chrysostom, Hom. xxi on John: “... it was fitting that He [Christ] should not begin to work wonders from His early years: for men would have deemed the Incarnation to be imaginary and would have crucified Him before the proper time.”