Suspense and anguish build dramatically as we read Matthew's account of Jesus' sufferings unto death. It is as if he desires for you, the reader, to sense something of the horror he and his fellow disciples experienced during the darkest chapter of the gospel: The Crucifixion of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. There is some irony in his writing as he has already in formed us that he and his comrades had long since scattered. But now as the 'Shepherd' is struck by the hand of the Almighty, as He hands the cup of sufferings and death to His Son. Matthew implores us to lean in close. Consider each detail fulfilling all righteousness. In chapter 21 Jesus had employed a parable and an analogy to explain these circumstances playing out in history on the grand stage of God's redemptive purposes. The tenets of the vineyard -- longtime beneficiaries of the covenant relationship with God -- had rejected and slaughtered messenger after messenger (the prophets) sent by the master to inform them through the centuries. Finally the Master sends His only begotten son... But like a stone rejected by the builders themselves, He is killed. Unbeknownst to all at the time, this Jesus, whom they crucified, would become the Cornerstone and it is marvelous indeed.