Now there was set a vessel full of vinegar. — This vessel of the ordinary sour wine drunk by the Roman soldiers, was placed near in order to be given to those who were crucified. Thirst was always an accompaniment of death by crucifixion, and that the vessel of wine was prepared for this purpose is made probable by the mention of the sponge and hyssop (Comp. Note on Matthew 27:48.)
And put it upon hyssop. — This detail is peculiar to St. John. Bochart (Hierozoicon, i. 2, 50) thinks that the plant was marjoram, or some plant like it, and he is borne out by ancient tradition. The stalks, from a foot to a foot and a half high, would be sufficient to reach to the cross. The plant is named in one other passage in the New Testament (Hebrews 9:19), and is frequent in the Greek of the Old Testament. The Hebrew word is çzôv, and the identification must always be uncertain, because we cannot know whether the Greek translation is based upon an identification of the plant, or upon a similarity in the sound of the names.