Are the Jews cursed because they killed Christ and asked for “His blood to be on us,” according to Matthew 27:25?

Response

Some individuals hold the belief that the Jewish people are under a curse due to their involvement in the crucifixion of Jesus, which can lead to anti-Semitic sentiments and prejudice against them. However, this notion is not supported by biblical teachings. While the Jews’ rejection of Jesus as their Messiah had consequences, the Bible does not indicate an ongoing curse on God’s chosen people.

In the account of Jesus’ trial in Matthew 27:22, Pilate asks the crowd, “What then shall I do with Jesus who is called the Messiah?” The crowd responds, “Crucify him!” Despite Pilate declaring Jesus’ innocence publicly, the crowd insists even more loudly on crucifying him (verse 23). Pilate symbolically washes his hands, proclaiming his innocence (verse 24), and shifts the responsibility to the crowd, stating that Jesus’ blood is on their hands. The crowd accepts this responsibility, proclaiming, “His blood is on us and on our children!” (verse 25).

It is crucial to consider the source of these statements. Matthew 27:20 reveals that “the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowd.” While the crowd at Jesus’ trial consisted of Jews in Jerusalem for Passover, they were influenced by religious leaders who had previously rejected Jesus. The instigators of the mob hold the greatest responsibility, along with Pilate, who oversaw the unjust proceedings. Furthermore, the self-condemnation expressed by the mob represents only a portion of the Jewish population present. Jesus and His disciples, who were Jewish, did not invoke a curse upon themselves.

The Jewish people did face consequences for rejecting their Messiah. Jesus, on His way to the cross, alludes to an impending judgment, questioning, “For if they do these things in a green tree, what shall be done in the dry?”, (Luke 23:31). Within a single generation of Christ’s crucifixion, Jerusalem was completely destroyed by the Romans. The Jewish people were dispersed, and for nearly 1,900 years (until 1948), they did not have a homeland. There were also spiritual consequences, as the gospel was embraced by the more receptive Gentiles (see Acts 18:6). The apostle Paul compares the inclusion of Gentiles in salvation to wild branches being grafted into a cultivated olive tree. The Jews (the natural branches) are not abandoned entirely: “If they do not persist in unbelief, they will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again” «And they also, if they abide not still in unbelief, shall be graffed in: for God is able to graff them in again. », (Romans 11:23).

By rejecting Christ, the Jews “stumbled over the stumbling stone” (Romans 9:32;cf: Isaiah 8:14). However, they are not forsaken by God. Paul poses the rhetorical question: “Did God reject his people? By no means! I am an Israelite myself, a descendant of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin. God did not reject his people, whom he foreknew” (Romans 11:1-2). Indeed, there will come a time when “all Israel will be saved” «And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, And shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: », (Romans 11:26).

How can the Jews be “cursed” when God had established an unconditional covenant with Abraham? “I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and allPeoples on Earth will be blessed through you” (Genesis 12:2-3). God also promised the Jews a large extent of land in Genesis 15. Israel has never had full possession of the land God promised, so the prophecy still awaits fulfillment during the Millennial Kingdom.

People reap what they sow «Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. », (Galatians 6:7), and disobedience brings sorrow. When the people of Israel fell into gross, unrepentant idolatry, they lost their land for the 70 years of the Babylonian exile «For thus saith the LORD, That after seventy years be accomplished at Babylon I will visit you, and perform my good word toward you, in causing you to return to this place. », (Jeremiah 29:10). When they rejected their Messiah, they lost their land for even longer. Jesus “came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him” «He came unto his own, and his own received him not. », (John 1:11). But God’s promise still stands: “The Lord has made proclamation to the ends of the earth: ‘Say to Daughter Zion, “See, your Savior comes!”’ . . . They will be called the Holy People, the Redeemed of the Lord; and you will be called Sought After, the City No Longer Deserted” (Isaiah 62:11-12).