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John 19:36
ESV For these things took place that the Scripture might be fulfilled: "Not one of his bones will be broken."
NIV These things happened so that the scripture would be fulfilled: "Not one of his bones will be broken,"
NASB For these things took place so that the Scripture would be fulfilled: 'NOT A BONE OF HIM SHALL BE BROKEN.'
CSB For these things happened so that the Scripture would be fulfilled: Not one of his bones will be broken.
NLT These things happened in fulfillment of the Scriptures that say, 'Not one of his bones will be broken,'
KJV For these things were done, that the scripture should be fulfilled, A bone of him shall not be broken.
NKJV For these things were done that the Scripture should be fulfilled, “Not one of His bones shall be broken.”

What does John 19:36 mean?

Old Testament prophecy comes up several times in John's description of the crucifixion. Earlier, as Jesus was dying, soldiers rolled dice to split up His clothes (John 19:23–24). This connects to Psalm 22:18, which depicts an innocent man suffering at the hands of His enemies. Jesus is given a vile liquid in response to His thirst (John 19:28–29). John sees this as an echo of Psalm 69:21.

To speed up execution, the Roman governor gave permission to break the legs of the condemned men (John 19:31–32). Jesus was already dead by then (John 19:33), though a soldier confirmed this by impaling the corpse with a spear (John 19:34).

The reference cited here seems to be Psalm 34:20. That passage speaks of God's ultimate rescue of those who are righteous. The prior verse (Psalm 34:19) speaks of God delivering the righteous "out of" their suffering. While Jesus is killed on the cross, He will soon be resurrected: a rescue "out of" death that demonstrates His divine nature.

The fact that Jesus did not break any bones also corresponds to His role as the perfect Passover Lamb (1 Corinthians 5:7). Israel sacrificed spotless lambs at Passover (Exodus 12:5), being careful not to break their bones (Exodus 12:46). That a sinless man (Hebrews 4:15) has been killed without broken bones corresponds to these prophetic images.
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