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Luk 23:38. Ἦν δὲ καὶ, now there wets also) The mention of His Kingship joins the 37th and 38th verses.-γράμμασιν, in letters) There are still, to the present day, three languages in particular, to which they who learn and preach Christ are bound to devote their attention-Hebrew, Greek, and Latin.-Ἑβραϊκοῖς, Hebraic, of Hebrew) In Joh 19:20, the Hebrew is placed first in order. Luke enumerates the languages in the order in which Pilate had arranged them.[261] That order was [if one is disposed to admit of conjecture.-Harm., p. 567] Greek, Latin, Hebrew. John arranges them according to the custom of the Hebrews, in the order of their nature and dignity. Both however adopt that order, in which Christ and His cross and kingdom were subsequently preached. The beginning was made in the Hebrew tongue: in the last times the Hebrews shall have the first place (the most prominent part to fill). The Roman tongue never occupied the first place; nor is it destined, after the destruction of Rome, to remain in great vigour.
[261] Townson, in his Harmony of the Gospels, shows the probability that Matthew gave the Hebrew inscription, as in other particulars his Gospel has most of an Hebraic character, THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS. Mark, in accordance with the Latin or Roman aspect of his Gospel, probably gave the Latin inscription, THE KING OF THE JEWS; and so no foreign word is found in this, supposing that this is the Latin. Pilate would scorn to introduce any word from another tongue in the inscription written in the language of dominant Rome. The brevity, too, accords with the genius both of the Latin and of the Evangelist’s own style. Luke follows Mark with This is (οὖτός ἐστιν, verse 35), brought down from above, THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS. Thus the Greek is left for John, JESUS OF NAZARETH THE KING OF THE JEWS. But Bengel’s view, given in the note, Joh 19:19, that the words were the same in the three languages, is perhaps more probable. See his note.-E. and T.