The Greek verb emptuo means to spit upon or spit in the face of someone — an act of supreme contempt and degradation in ancient culture, used in the passion narratives to describe the humiliation Jesus endured.
Emptuo appears exclusively in the passion narratives (Matthew 26:67; 27:30; Mark 10:34; 14:65; 15:19; Luke 18:32) — and Isaiah 50:6 in the Septuagint (LXX): 'I did not hide my face from mockery and spitting.' The suffering servant passage was precisely fulfilled: the Creator of the universe endured being spit upon by His creatures. This act of maximal contempt is met not with retaliation but with silent dignity. In the Roman world, spitting in a person's face was a legal insult that could invite legal action; that Jesus submitted to this humiliation without retort is a profound statement of both His mission and His character. The one who endured emptuo now reigns in glory — the depths of His humiliation revealing the heights of His love.