Then Pilate took Jesus and had him flogged. The soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on his head. They clothed him in a purple robe and went up to him again and again, saying, “Hail, king of the Jews!” And they slapped him in the face.
John 19:1-3 NIV
This is a snapshot of the Roman army in action in the first century. They controlled a large empire by force. Here is how they treat anyone who claims to be a king. It is a combination of mockery and brutality. Pilate had him flogged. The text would almost give us the impression that the Roman Governor was the one carrying out the flogging. More likely he had delegated this disgusting torture to his soldiers. The flogging or scourging was carried out with the victim stripped naked or almost naked. The whip would have several tails and each tail would have sharp bones or metal inserted to tear the bear flesh. Strong men would take it in turns to bring this brutal leather strap down on his back or buttocks. It would soon rip up the flesh and produce copious amounts of blood. How many lashes? The Jewish law restricted the number of strokes to 40 but this was Roman law and there was no restriction or restraint. All of this was carried out in the heat of the blazing sun.
Jesus would have suffered intense agony from this gratuitous torture. Pilate was convinced Jesus was innocent but he was maybe thinking that such brutality would satisfy the hatred of the Jews for one of their own people. The soldiers are enjoying their work. They skillfully blend mockery and humiliation with sheer brutality. A king needs a crown and the Romans were in the habit of plaiting a laurel wreath to adorn the head of a victor. They find a thorn bush which were plentiful in Palestine and the thorns were long and sharp. They twist the spiky branches into a sort of wreath and they place this roughly on his bare head. They then take a reed like a stick and smash the crown into his brow. Blood would be flowing from gaping wounds in his scalp and temple.
They are thinking he looks nothing like a king. So they want to make him an object of mockery and derision. A purple robe was only worn by aristocrats and royalty. It was a sign of wealth and distinction. I have often wondered where these soldiers obtained this particular robe. It may have been an old discarded garment bearing in mind that it would be saturated with blood and it seems unlikely that anyone would have allowed their 'good' toga to be used for this purpose. The whole intention is to make a fool of Jesus' claim to be the King of the Jews.
So the statement 'Hail, King of the Jews' was the ultimate in sarcasm. By the way, the word 'hail' means 'greetings or 'long life to you' which is certainly cruel sarcasm before a crucifixion.
This is the best example of God's 'outrageous' grace (to use the word Lou Fellingham uses in her song). It is completely beyond our imagination and understanding. It is so hard to grasp that the Son of God, the creator of this boundless universe, should allow his creatures to treat him so shamefully.
Purple was a special commodity from Tyre originally (where Solomon got Temple materials 1Ki 7:13) where the dying process had been perfected. Purple was previously luxury item but could have been more common by this time. The reason for the 'purple' theologically, is that Jesus is the ENTRANCE, he has gone through the CURTAIN (Ex 26:31-37, 35:35, 36:37, Mt 27:51, Heb 6:19-20, 9:3, 10:19) into Heaven. Both the robe and the crown/thorns together show Christ, King of Kings, reversing the Curse and providing righteous garments, after the Fall of the King and Queen when they left the Garden 4000 years earlier (Gen 3:18,21, Rev 7:9)