Matthew 27:28 states the mock robe placed on Jesus was scarlet, whereas Mark 15:17 and John 19:2 record it as purple. Traditional harmonization explains that ancient dyes produced fluid shades that could look red or purple depending on the lighting, or that the authors used the terms interchangeably for general royal color motifs; conversely, critical scholarship attributes the divergence to distinct symbolic descriptions, with purple emphasizing kingship and scarlet referencing sacrifice.