And straightway one of them ran and took a sponge,.... Which was not far from the cross, where a vessel full of vinegar was set, John 19:29,
and filled it with vinegar; dipping it into it, it sucked it up. Some of these sponges had leathern handles to them. r
And put it on a reed; a stalk of hyssop; John 19:29,
and gave him to drink; not to revive his spirits, or hasten his death, as some have thought, but in contempt of him, and to mock him, he having signified that he was athirst.
r Misn. Sabbat, c. 21. sect. 3.