Crown of thorns

The crown of thorns was plaited by Roman soldiers and placed on Jesus's head during his mocking before the crucifixion, recorded in Matthew 27:29, Mark 15:17, and John 19:2. The act was part of a sustained mockery of Jesus's claim to be king of the Jews — the soldiers dressed him in a purple robe, put a reed in his hand as a scepter, and knelt before him crying Hail, King of the Jews! before striking him. The thorns inflicted both pain and humiliation, inverting the royal crown into an instrument of suffering.

Theological reflection on the crown of thorns has consistently found resonance with the curse of Genesis 3:17–18, where thorns and thistles come from the ground cursed for Adam's sin — the thorns pressed onto the head of the second Adam are read as the bearing of the curse that came through the first. The crown of thorns also stands in ironic contrast with the crowns of glory and life that the New Testament promises to those who suffer with Christ, and with the many crowns Christ wears in Revelation 19:12 as the returning King of kings.