The Trophy of Christ's Victory

Last year, Kansas Citians had the privilege of hosting the Dead Sea Scrolls Exhibit. It was a wonderful opportunity and I am very thankful that I went to view them. However, the most impactful moment for me during the tour was not viewing the scrolls themselves. There were only about 10 scrolls shown, and while it was neat to see the authentic originals, the small display really was not as interesting as reading about the scrolls and viewing pictures in primary source journals.

However, there was one moment in the exhibit that took my breath away and brought me to tears. Prior to arriving at the rooms with the scrolls, several rooms were set up with other artifacts from the 1st century. As I was gazing at a pile of ancient coins, one of them caught my eye. It was a Roman coin issued in honor of the Roman victory over Jerusalem. It was very similar to the coin in this photo (click image to enlarge).


You will notice in the right image, there is a woman seated and weeping with "Judaea" written below her. She is representative of the Jews defeated after Rome sacked Jerusalem. However, notice the figure next to her. This form is called a "trophy" in the ancient world. It is formed from the weapons and military dress of a soldier who was killed. The victorious army would disarm their enemy and set up these trophies as displays of their victory.

Here is another example of a coin with a Roman trophy (click image to enlarge):


Seeing this coin in person brought about many emotions. First, there were the tears when I considered that this was a primary source example and testimony of the wrath of God against the Old Covenant people. The prophets spoke of this event, and our Lord told his disciples that Jerusalem would soon be leveled. As such, this coin brings fear to my mind. God is powerful and His wrath is certain towards those who are not covered by the atoning blood of Jesus through faith in the Gospel.

But also, this coin is a beautiful illustration of a passage of Scripture that is rarely seen in its proper context. Consider the following passage from Colossians 2:14-15:

Col 2:14 having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. 15 When He had disarmed the rulers and authorities, He made a public display of them, having triumphed over them through Him.

This passage speaks of the work of Christ on the cross. In verse 15, our translations often struggle to convey the idea that is clear in the original text. The NASB, as shown above, states "He made a public display of them". The words "public display" lead English-speaking readers to think of some abstract idea instead of the very concrete and powerful meaning of the original text. The word used in this passage is the word for the "trophy" in the ancient world as described above. The vivid picture of the text is that Christ has conquered his enemies (and ours). He disarmed them, just as the Romans disarmed fallen Jewish soldiers, and He made a trophy of their remains. In verse 14, we see this was done through the work of Christ on the cross. The cross is Christ's trophy. It is there for all to see that He is victorious and that He has defeated the enemies of His people!

We ought to rejoice and know that He is Lord! Amen.