Commentaries:
Robertson's Word Pictures (NT)
Four parts (tessera merh). There were four soldiers, the usual quaternion (tetradion, Acts 12:9) besides the centurion (Mark 15:39; Matthew 27:54; Luke 23:47). The clothes (imatia, outer clothes) of the criminal were removed before the crucifixion and belonged to the soldiers. Luke (Luke 23:34) mentions the division of the garments, but not the number four. The four pieces would be the head gear, the sandals, the girdle, the talliq (outer garment with fringes).
The coat was without seam (o xitwn arafov). For xitwn (the inner garment) see Matthew 5:40. Arafov is compound of a privative and raptw, to sew together, and so seamless (unsewed together), only here in N.T. It occurs elsewhere in Josephus, Ant. III. 6, 4.
Woven (ufantov). Verbal (old word) from ufainw (some MSS. in Luke 12:27), only here in N.T.
Other Robertson's Word Pictures (NT) entries containing John 19:23:
Luke 23:34
John 3:3
John 18:20
Revelation 8:5
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