The Last Scribe

Story scene · The Life of Jesus · Matthew 27, Mark 15, Luke 23, John 19

The cross of Calvary as a game: the road, the seven sayings and the veil

Walk from the common hall to the place called Calvary, and stand by the cross with those who were there. Hear Him pray, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do,” as all four Gospels tell it.

Play free Try the quiz questions

No download. Plays in any modern browser on a phone, tablet or computer. Revelation 1 and the Baptism of Jesus are free to try first.

What you will see

One day outside Jerusalem, told from the common hall to the centurion’s words

You arrive as a Scribe, sent to witness the story and write it down. The cross of Calvary is told from four passages at once, Matthew 27, Mark 15, Luke 23 and John 19, and the scene is one map you can walk end to end. Seven stand on it: Simon of Cyrene, Jesus on the way to Calvary, the repentant thief, Jesus on the cross, the disciple whom Jesus loved, the centurion and Mary Magdalene. Each speaks only from their own verses. Jesus is met and spoken with, never played. The scene is told with reverence, in the words of the Gospels, and nothing is drawn out beyond them.

Seven things wait to be found and read: the scarlet robe and the crown of thorns, the title Pilate wrote in Hebrew, Greek and Latin, the coat without seam, the promise Jesus made to the thief, the veil of the temple rent from the top to the bottom, the opened graves, and the preparation before the sabbath. The quest follows the passages in order: what the soldiers did in the hall, the man who carried the cross, what Jesus said to the women who wept, the title, the thief’s prayer, His words from the cross, the veil, and what the centurion said.

His last words in John are told as John tells them: “It is finished.” When you have seen it all, step into the quiz zone and twenty-two questions ask what you saw.

The Cross of Calvary in the game: the map of the story with its people standing where the passage puts them
The game itself, not a mock-up: The Cross of Calvary.

The story, in order

The quest, From the Praetorium to the Cross, has eight steps, and they follow the passages in order. Nothing is added to the text; the steps are a way of making sure you miss none of it.

  1. See what the soldiers did in the Praetorium.
  2. Meet the man who carried the cross.
  3. Hear what Jesus said to the women who wept.
  4. Read what Pilate wrote above the cross.
  5. Hear the prayer of the thief who turned to Him.
  6. Stand at the foot of the cross and hear His words.
  7. Learn what was torn in the temple, and why.
  8. Hear what the centurion said when it was over.

Who you meet

Seven people and voices stand in the scene. Each speaks only from their own place in the passages.

  • Simon of Cyrene — the man coming out of the country, “the father of Alexander and Rufus”, who was made to bear the cross after Jesus.
  • Jesus on the Way to Calvary — met and spoken with, never played, who turns to the women and says, “Daughters of Jerusalem, weep not for me”.
  • The Repentant Thief — the man crucified beside Him who prayed, “Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom”.
  • Jesus on the Cross — met and spoken with, never played, who speaks the sayings from the cross, from “Father, forgive them” to “It is finished”.
  • The Disciple Whom Jesus Loved — the disciple who stood by the cross with Mary, took her to his own home, and “bare record” of what he saw.
  • The Centurion — the Roman officer who kept watch and said, “Truly this was the Son of God”.
  • Mary Magdalene — one of the women who “followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering unto him”, and stood watching from afar.

What you find

Walk up to any of these and the game reads you the verses it comes from, in the King James Version.

  • The Scarlet Robe and the Crown of Thorns (Matthew 27:27–29)
  • The Title on the Cross (John 19:19–22)
  • The Seamless Tunic (John 19:23–24)
  • A Promise Made Today (Luke 23:42–43)
  • The Veil of the Temple (Matthew 27:50–51)
  • The Opened Graves (Matthew 27:51–53)
  • The Spear, and the Sabbath Drawing On (John 19:31–37)

His prayer from the cross

“Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast lots.” Luke 23:34, King James Version

Every verse the game quotes is the KJV. Where a character speaks in their own words, the dialogue is written from the passages and checked against our doctrinal rules before release. The about page says plainly how we read the Bible.

Try five of the twenty-two

The Cross of Calvary quiz questions, with answers

Five real questions from the The Cross of Calvary quiz, in the game's own words. In the game the options are shuffled every time, and you need 70% to pass.

1. Whom did the soldiers compel to bear His cross?

  1. Simon, a man of Cyrene
  2. Nicodemus
  3. Joseph of Arimathea
  4. Simon Peter
Show the answer

A. Simon, a man of Cyrene Simon a Cyrenian, the father of Alexander and Rufus, was coming out of the country and passing by when they compelled him.

Mark 15:21

2. What did Jesus pray for those who crucified Him?

  1. Father, let this cup pass from Me
  2. Father, judge them according to their works
  3. Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do
  4. Father, open their eyes that they may see
Show the answer

C. Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do His first words from the cross were a prayer for the men who put Him there.

Luke 23:34

3. In which three languages was the title on the cross written?

  1. Latin, Greek and Egyptian
  2. Aramaic, Latin and Persian
  3. Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek
  4. Hebrew, Greek and Latin
Show the answer

D. Hebrew, Greek and Latin This title then read many of the Jews: for the place where Jesus was crucified was nigh to the city: and it was written in Hebrew, and Greek, and Latin.

John 19:20

4. Into whose care did Jesus give His mother?

  1. The disciple whom He loved
  2. His brother James
  3. Simon Peter
  4. Joseph of Arimathea
Show the answer

A. The disciple whom He loved He said to His mother, “Woman, behold your son!” and to the disciple, “Behold your mother!” From that hour that disciple took her unto his own home.

John 19:26–27

5. What did the centurion say when he saw the earthquake and the things that had happened?

  1. Let us see if Elijah will come
  2. His blood be on us!
  3. We have crucified a prophet!
  4. Truly this was the Son of God!
Show the answer

D. Truly this was the Son of God! A Roman officer who had watched Him die was the one to say it. Luke records that he also glorified God, saying, “Certainly this was a righteous Man!”

Matthew 27:54

Right answers pay 10 XP each and a perfect score pays 50 more. In a room, everyone answers the same quiz and sees how the others did. More on how the quiz works.

Story facts

102
verses from Matthew 27, Mark 15, Luke 23, John 19, every one covered by something you see, hear or read
22
quiz questions, each tied to a verse
7
people and voices to speak with
7
things to find and read
1–6
players in a room; solo play is fine too
KJV
every verse quoted from the King James Version

How to play it

  1. Open the game in your browser and make an account. A child under 13 gives a parent's email instead of their own, and the parent confirms before the child can play with anyone else; see the page for parents.
  2. Play the short intro story in the Archivery, the library where the Scribe finds the Book. It is free and takes a few minutes.
  3. Open the world map and choose The Cross of Calvary. To play with others, start a room and share its code, which looks like SCRIBE-7K4P2Q; up to six people can join from their own devices.
  4. Walk the map, speak with everyone, read everything, then step into the quiz zone.

Free, and with a subscription

The Cross of Calvary is one of the 14 story scenes, in the series The Life of Jesus. It is part of the subscription ($9.99 a month or $79.99 a year), and the story scenes are open from the first day of it: they do not wait on the road through the books. See pricing.

Free forever, for every player: the intro story, Revelation 1, the story scene The Baptism of Jesus, and four open lands to walk with other players: the City of the Last Days, the Garden of Eden, Judea in the days of Jesus, and Patmos and the Seven Churches. Revelation 1 is a good first chapter to try before you subscribe.

More to play

  • Before: The Last Supper — Follow Peter and John into the city to make ready the passover in “a large upper room furnished”.
  • After: The Resurrection — Come to the sepulchre with the women “as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week”, and find the stone rolled back.
  • Every chapter and story with a page: the list of what you can play.

Stand by the cross.

The cross of Calvary takes about twenty minutes alone, a little longer with friends in a room.

Start with the free chapters