31. It was the day of preparation, and the Jewish leaders didn’t want the bodies hanging there the next day, which was the Sabbath (and a very special Sabbath, because it was the Passover). So they asked Pilate to hasten their deaths by ordering that their legs be broken. Then their bodies could be taken down.
32. So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the two men crucified with Jesus.
33. But when they came to Jesus, they saw that he was already dead, so they didn’t break his legs.