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Matthew 27 · Grade 4

The King on the Cross

Name Date

Read and Think

Early in the morning, the leaders handed Jesus over to Pilate, the Roman governor. When Judas saw that Jesus was condemned, he was filled with regret and returned the silver, but he did not turn to God for mercy. Pilate questioned Jesus, who said very little. Pilate's wife warned him that Jesus was righteous. Pilate offered to release Jesus or Barabbas, a well-known prisoner, but the crowd shouted for Barabbas and cried, "Let him be crucified!"

Pilate washed his hands, claiming he was innocent, and handed Jesus over. Soldiers mocked Him as a king with a robe, a crown of thorns and a reed. Simon of Cyrene carried His cross to Golgotha. Above Jesus they wrote: "THIS IS JESUS, THE KING OF THE JEWS." Passersby and leaders mocked Him, saying He saved others but could not save Himself.

From noon until three o'clock, darkness covered the land. Jesus cried, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" words from Psalm 22, and then gave up His spirit. The temple curtain tore from top to bottom, and the centurion said, "Truly this was the Son of God." Joseph of Arimathea laid Jesus' body in his new tomb, and a stone was rolled across the entrance. The tomb was sealed and guarded. But this was not the end. Three days later, Jesus rose from the dead! (Matthew 28)

Show What You Know

  1. What did Pilate do to claim he was innocent?

  2. What did the sign above Jesus say?

  3. What Psalm did Jesus quote from the cross?

  4. What did the centurion say when he saw what happened?

Word Bank Fill-In

Use the word bank to fill in each blank.

tombPilateGodcross
  1. Early in the morning, the leaders handed Jesus over to , the Roman governor.
  2. When Judas saw that Jesus was condemned, he was filled with regret and returned the silver, but he did not turn to for mercy.
  3. Simon of Cyrene carried His to Golgotha.
  4. The was sealed and guarded.

Think About It

  1. The leaders said Jesus could not save Himself. Why did He choose not to come down from the cross?

  2. Barabbas, a guilty man, went free while Jesus died. How is that a picture of what Jesus did for you?

Memory Verse

They set up over his head the accusation against him written, “THIS IS JESUS, THE KING OF THE JEWS.”

Matthew 27:37 (WEB)

Copy It

Prayer

Dear God, thank You for this Bible story. Help me to . Amen.

Take It Home

For families: talk about these together.

  • What does it mean that Jesus took the punishment we deserved?
  • The temple veil was torn. How does Jesus open the way for us to come to God?

Scripture: World English Bible, public domain, eBible.org. © 2026 The Daily Rooted. Free to print and copy for church and home use; not for resale. Original line art.