Matthew 27:34
IntermediateMatthew 27:34 · World English Bible (WEB)
“they gave him sour wine to drink mixed with gall. When he had tasted it, he would not drink.”
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Overview
Jesus is offered a bitter, drugged drink at the place of crucifixion, but He refuses to drink it.
Matthew shows the suffering of Christ unfolding in exact faithfulness to Scripture. Jesus tastes the mixture, but refuses it, entering the agony of the cross with full awareness and holy resolve.
What Makes This Verse Confusing?
This was not the same drink later offered to Jesus in Matthew 27:48. Here, before the crucifixion is fully carried out, the wine is mixed with “gall,” a bitter substance associated with pain, bitterness, or a stupefying effect. Mark 15:23 identifies the mixture as wine mingled with myrrh. The point is not refreshment but a bitter, numbing drink offered at the threshold of crucifixion.
The verse does not identify the “gall” in detail, does not explain the purpose of the mixture, and Matthew’s wording differs from Mark’s “myrrh,” requiring comparison with the parallel account.
This changes the scene from a simple offer of drink into a moment of deliberate obedience: Jesus will not dull His senses as He bears the cup of suffering appointed by the Father.
Cultural & Historical Context
Matthew wrote to believers who needed to see that Jesus’ rejection, suffering, and death were not a defeat of God’s plan but the fulfillment of it.
This occurs immediately before Jesus is crucified. Roman execution by crucifixion was public, brutal, and shameful, yet Matthew presents every detail under the sovereign hand of God.
- ✦A wine mixture could be given to the condemned before crucifixion, apparently as a bitter, numbing drink. Matthew emphasizes its bitterness with the word “gall,” drawing the suffering of Jesus into the language of the Psalms.
Theological Insights
Jesus endured the cross willingly and consciously, refusing to have His suffering artificially dulled.
Christ’s love was not vague or sentimental; He knowingly bore agony for His people. Worship Him as the Lamb who offered Himself with full obedience.
Original Language
gall — χολή , -ῆς, ἡ [in LXX for רֹאשׁ, לַעֲנָה, מְרֵרָה ;] gall : Mat.27:34 (here prob. = myrrh, cf. Mrk.15:23 , see Swete, in l; DCG , i, 634); metaphorically, Act.8:23. † (AS)
The word translated “gall” highlights bitterness. Matthew’s wording echoes the bitterness of Psalm 69:21, helping the reader see Jesus’ suffering not as random cruelty but as Scripture being fulfilled in the Messiah.
to taste — γεύω , γεύομαι , [in LXX chiefly for טעם ;] to make to taste . Mid., to taste eat : absol., Act.10:10 20:11 , Col.2:21 ; with genitive, Mat.27:34 , Luk.14:24 , Act.23:14 ; with accusative (not cl., but see Westc, Heb. , l.with; M, Pr. , 66, 245), Jhn.2:9. Metaphorical, Heb.6:4; ῥῆμα θεοῦ, Heb.6:5 (on case, see supr., and cf. Milligan, NTD , 68) θανάτου (cf. Talmudic טַעַם מִיתָה), Mat.16:28 , Mrk.…
“Tasted” matters because Jesus does not reject the drink blindly. He recognizes what is offered and then refuses it, making His refusal intentional.
to will/desire — θέλω (the strengthened form ἐθέλω is found in Hom., and is the more frequently in Attic; see Rutherford, NPhr. , 415f.), [in LXX for חפץ ,אבה; with neg., מאן pi., etc. ;] to will, be willing, wish, desire (more frequently than βούλομαι, which see, in vernac. and late Gk., also in MGr.; for various views as to its relation to β., see Thayer, 286; but see also BL, §24, see word): absol., Rom.9:16 ,…
The phrase “would not drink” is not merely that He happened not to drink; it expresses will or desire. Jesus actively refuses the mixture.
Lexicon & word tagging: STEP Bible (Tyndale House, STEPBible.org, CC BY 4.0)
Related Passages
Psalms 69:21
fulfillmentPsalm 69:21 says, “They gave me also gall for my meat; and in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.” Matthew’s wording deliberately brings this Scripture to mind.
Mark 15:23
parallelMark says they offered Jesus wine mixed with myrrh, but He did not receive it.
Matthew 27:48
contrastLater in the crucifixion, Jesus is offered sour wine on a sponge. That later drink occurs after His cry and is a different moment from the earlier bitter mixture He refuses here.
John 19:28-30
contrastJohn records that near the end Jesus says, “I thirst,” receives the sour wine, and then declares, “It is finished.”
Cross-references from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · openbible.info (CC-BY)
Key Takeaway
Jesus refused the bitter, numbing drink so that He would bear the cross with clear, willing obedience.
The Savior did not dull the cup of suffering; He drank the Father’s will with open eyes.“
Analysis generated on October 7, 2026 · version 2.0
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