The Jewish leaders did not want the bodies left on the crosses during their Sabbath, which would begin that evening, so they asked Pilate to have the legs broken and the bodies taken down.  The soldiers broke the legs of both criminals that had been crucified with Jesus.  But when they came to Jesus and found that He was already dead, they did not break His legs. Instead, one of the soldiers pierced Jesus’ side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water.  Once again, a 500 year old prophecy was fulfilled as written in Isaiah 53:5:  “But he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed.” (NLT)