The Penitent Thief
One of the two criminals crucified beside Jesus began, like the other, hurling insults - but something changed as he watched Jesus forgive his executioners. He silenced his fellow thief: 'Dost not thou fear God... we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss.' Then, turning his head, he made perhaps the most audacious request in Scripture: 'Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom' - addressing a dying man as a king. Jesus's answer, 'To day shalt thou be with me in paradise,' is the only individual assurance of salvation Jesus spoke from the cross. The thief had no time for baptism, restitution, or a changed life; he brought nothing but confession and faith, and received everything - making him for twenty centuries the definitive proof that salvation is by grace to the very last hour.
Biography
- Era
- New Testament
- Also Known As
- Dismas (traditional name, not in the text)
Did You Know?
Tradition names the penitent thief 'Dismas,' but Scripture leaves him anonymous - the point being that anyone can put their own name in his place.
His request used a royal title at the least royal moment imaginable - addressing a man dying on a cross as a king coming into a kingdom.
Jesus's words to him contain the only occurrence of the word 'paradise' in all four Gospels.
Key Chapters
Key Passages
"Lord, Remember Me"
Luke 23:39-43
A condemned man sees a kingdom where everyone else sees defeat, and receives paradise with nothing to offer but faith - grace at its most undiluted.
39nd one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us.