What Is The Foreshadowing In The Passion Of The Christ

From the opening scene of “The Passion of the Christ”, director Mel Gibson establishes a foreshadowing of what this film encompasses. Notably, appearing on the black screen are white words, from Isaiah 53, “He was wounded for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities; by His wounds we are healed” (Gibson, 2004, scene 1). Regarding this, Gibson alludes to Jesus being the “He” this passage is referring to and in so doing, Gibson establishes a message to his modern day audience of Jesus being the “one who suffers” (Powell, 2009, p. 472), sent by God to fulfill this Old Testament passage. Accordingly, in the depiction of the last several hours of Christ’s life, the film distinctly portrays the abovementioned foretelling through grotesque,
Through Gibson’s inclusion of literal passages from the Gospels played out in various scenes, alongside dialogue and occurrences not found in any of the Gospels, he seemingly proclaims this intended message. By way of example, from the opening scenes of Jesus praying in the garden of Gethsemane, representative parts of each Gospel are included. Moreover, dramatic, stress filled, passages of scriptures are put on screen with an eerie horror-like backdrop and dark blue lighting tones. In the film, Christ prays to the Father asking “If it is possible, let this chalice pass of me. But let your will be done, not mine” (Gibson, 2004, scene 1). Similarly, He speaks a prayer in the Gospels (Matthew 26:42; Mark 14:36; Luke 23:42 New Revised Standard Version). Additional examples providing parallel expressions are a betrayal by Judas, in the form of a kiss (Matthew 26:49; Mark 14:45; Luke 22:48). Likewise, Simon Peter revolts and fights the guard, Malchus, cutting off his ear (John 18:10; Matthew 26:51; Mark 14:47; Luke 22:50) of which Jesus heals (Luke 22:51). Interestingly, Gibson adds a “tempter” to further capture his theological message. Nowhere in the Gospels is a tempter mentioned during Jesus time in the garden. Perhaps Gibson was playing out the words that Jesus said to His disciples in the Gospel of Matthew to “Stay awake and pray that you may not come into the time of trial; the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak” (Matthew 26: 41). Clearly, Jesus is experiencing extreme distress over the atrocity He would endure, which we do read about in Luke 22:44, but the intensity seems further magnified through the presence of the tempter. After much emotional torment, viewers of the film witness Jesus determinately