Even after having their plea to remove the "King of the Jews" sign had been dismissed, the Chief Priests went back to Pilate with one last request regarding the crucifixion of Jesus: Please send someone to break the legs of Jesus and the two thieves.
Their end goal was to hasten death. A man on a cross could survive several days, but that survival - as he hung with his arms elevated above his shoulders - was dependent on being able to push himself up straight enough to breath deeply. And this involved putting his full weight on the nail through his ankles.
Broken legs would guarantee suffocation in short order.
And why did the Jewish leadership want to hasten the deaths of these three men?
The next day was to be a special Sabbath as part of the week of Passover, and they did not want the bodies left hanging dead over the Sabbath.
This was in accord with Deuteronomy 21:22-23:
If a man guilty of capital offense is put to death and his body is hung on a tree, you must not leave his body on the tree overnight. Be sure to bury him that same day, because anyone who is hung on a tree is under God's curse. You must not desecrate the land the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance.
Remember, they considered themselves the stalwart heroes of this story - the ones who were in the right, upholding God's law. They had disposed of a blasphemer. And now, to make sure they did not play a role in "desecrating the land", they wanted to be able to remove the bodies before sunset.
They were intent on obeying God's word to the letter. And they knew it forwards and backwards.
But somehow they had failed to read it in such a way as to recognize the Author Himself when he showed up in the flesh.
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