That God delighted in His Son is very clear. Proverbs 8, speaking about the Lord records, “I was daily His delight” (Prov. 8:30). When He was baptized by John, at the beginning of the Lord’s public ministry, heaven opened and a voice declared, “You are My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Mk. 1:11). Later when the Lord was transfigured, a voice spoke saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Mt. 17:5).

That the Lord delighted in and constantly trusted His Father we see in His words on various occasions: “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me” (Jn. 4:34); “Father … not My will, but Yours, be done” (Lk. 22:42); “shall I not drink the cup which My Father has given Me?” (Jn. 18:11); and at His death, “Father, ‘into Your hands I commit My spirit’” (Lk. 23:46).

What an insult then were these words of the chief priests, scribes, and elders: “let God deliver Him now, if He desires Him” (Mt. 27:43 esv). They implied that if God did not deliver the Lord this meant that God did not delight in Him. But even though God did delight in His Son, God did not deliver Him! God not delivering Him is one of the greatest demonstrations of God’s omnipotence! We know God delighted in the Lord Jesus, from eternity past. We know that the Lord Jesus delighted in and trusted His Father, but then at that moment, rather than responding to the mockery and insolence of men by removing Him from the cross, God laid on Him the iniquity of us all (Isa. 53:6).

Had God rescued His Son from the cross in answer to the mocking, we would still be in our sins. God wanted that His Son be honored by bringing many sons to glory to be with Him and see His glory. How marvelous! How worthy God is of all our praise!