LIFE OF CHRIST
PART 93
In our last lesson, we
learned about how Peter and possible John followed Jesus to His illegal trial
by night and how they condemned Him to death using false witnesses. We learned
how Peter denied Jesus 3 times and how Judas hung himself. In this lesson we
begin looking at how Jesus is brought before Pilate.
John 18:29 Pilate then went out to them and
said, "What accusation do you bring against this Man?" 30 They
answered and said to him, "If He were not an evildoer, we would not have
delivered Him up to you." 31 Then Pilate said
to them, "You take Him and judge Him according to your law."
Therefore the Jews said to him, "It is not lawful for us to put anyone to
death," 32 that the saying of Jesus might be
fulfilled which He spoke, signifying by what death He would die.
Pilate wants to know what the accusation is against Jesus,
and the Jews tell him He is an evildoer. When Pilate realized they were
accusing Him of things to do with their law, he told them take care of the
matter themselves, but they wanted Jesus dead, which only Pilate could grant
under Roman law. Since Roman law would not allow the Jews to put Jesus to
death, He would have to die by crucifixion, which is exactly how Jesus said He
would be put to death as can be seen in the following verses:
Jn. 12:32 "And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples
to Myself." 33 This He said, signifying by what death He
would die.
Jn. 3:14 "And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must
the Son of Man be lifted up, 15 "that whoever believes in Him should not perish but1 have eternal life.
Luke’s account records more accusations the Jews made such
as Jesus perverting the nation, not paying His taxes, and that He was claiming
to be a king. In fact, let’s read those verses:
Luke 23:1
Then the whole multitude of them arose and led Him to Pilate. 2 And they began to accuse Him, saying, "We found this fellow
perverting the1 nation, and forbidding to pay taxes to
Caesar, saying that He Himself is Christ, a King." 3 Then Pilate asked Him, saying, "Are You
the King of the Jews?" He answered him and said, "It is as you say." 4 So Pilate said to the chief priests and the
crowd, "I find no fault in this Man." 5 But they were the more fierce, saying,
"He stirs up the people, teaching throughout all Judea, beginning from
Galilee to this place."
Luke’s account also records how Pilate sent Jesus to Herod
first, but Herod sent Jesus back to Pilate. Let’s look at the details.
Lk. 23:6 When Pilate heard of Galilee, he asked if the Man were a Galilean.
7 And as soon as he knew that He belonged to
Herod's jurisdiction, he sent Him to Herod, who was also in Jerusalem at that
time. 8 Now when Herod saw Jesus, he was exceedingly glad; for he had desired
for a long time to see
Him, because he had heard many things about Him, and he hoped to see some
miracle done by Him.
Herod was happy to finally meet Jesus who he had heard about earlier. In
fact, Luke tells us more about this in:
Lk. 9:7 Now Herod the tetrarch heard of all that was done by Him; and he was
perplexed, because it was said by some that John had risen from the dead,
8 and by some that Elijah had appeared, and by
others that one of the old prophets had risen again. 9 Herod said, "John I have beheaded, but
who is this of whom I hear such things?" So he sought to see Him.
So, this was the same Herod that had John the Baptist’s head taken off.
He was really curious about Jesus.
9 Then he questioned Him
with many words, but He answered him nothing. 10 And the chief priests and scribes stood and vehemently accused Him.
Earlier, Jesus warned His disciples about the leaven of Herod (Mk. 8:15) and
referred to him as that fox (Lk. 13:31-32). While Herod asked Jesus many
questions, Jesus was silent. As the writer Proverbs says:
Proverbs 26:4 Do not answer a fool according to
his folly, Lest you also be like him.
Next we read:
11 Then Herod, with his
men of war, treated Him with contempt and mocked Him, arrayed Him in a gorgeous robe, and sent Him back
to Pilate. 12 That very day Pilate and Herod became
friends with each other, for previously they had been at enmity with each
other.
Herod nor his men
were able to get anything out of Jesus. So, after they did their best to mock
Him and dress Him up, they send Him back. We don’t know for sure what problem
there was between these two men. However, it may have been related to what we
read in:
Luke 13:1
There were present at that season some who told Him about the Galileans whose
blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.
Whatever the issue was Jesus has brought them back together. Next, we
have Jesus before Pilate again, and all this recorded in all 4 accounts. It
becomes harder to keep this all this in order. It is possible that what I am
about to read happened from the first time Jesus was with Pilate and fact that
he asks Him about the being the king of the Jews would certainly lend to that
idea, but it possible that simply asked Him the question again during this
second encounter. Regardless if this come from the first or second encounter,
the information is true.
John 18:33 Then Pilate entered the Praetorium
again, called Jesus, and said to Him, "Are You the King of the
Jews?" 34 Jesus answered him, "Are you
speaking for yourself about this, or did others tell you this concerning
Me?" 35 Pilate answered, "Am I a Jew? Your own
nation and the chief priests have delivered You to me. What have You
done?" 36 Jesus answered, "My kingdom is
not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight,
so that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now My kingdom is not from
here." 37 Pilate therefore said to Him,
"Are You a king then?" Jesus answered, "You say rightly that
I am a king. For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the
world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth
hears My voice."
Since the Jews claimed Jesus was calling Himself a king,
Pilate wanted to know if this was true. At first, Jesus wanted to know if this
was Pilate’s question or the Jews. Pilate confirmed that it was a question from
the Jews, so Jesus affirmed that He is a king. However, His kingdom was not a
physical one, it was a spiritual one. He explains that if He was interested in
establishing a physical kingdom, His servants would fight and He would have
been delivered from the Jews.
Jesus was not scared to proclaim the truth no matter what
the consequences may be, and we should learn to follow His example. Just as
Jesus said, He came to bear witness to the truth. Those who are willing to
believe that truth will take heed to what Jesus said.
John 18:38 Pilate said to Him, "What is
truth?" And when he had said this, he went out again to the Jews, and said
to them, "I find no fault in Him at all. 39 "
But you have a custom that I should release someone to you at the Passover. Do
you therefore want me to release to you the King of the Jews?" 40 Then
they all cried again, saying, "Not this Man, but Barabbas!" Now
Barabbas was a robber.
Pilate asked a great question, but our text does not
indicate that he wanted to know the answer. It would be great if every person
asked this question and then listened to the answer found in the Word of God (Jn.
8:32-33; 14:6; 17:17).
Pilate could not find a valid reason to kill Jesus and even
his wife had sent word to him not to have anything to do with this man because
she had suffered many things in a dream because of Him (Mt. 27:19). So, Pilate
did his best to let Jesus go. For instance, he hoped the Jews might let Jesus
go if he gave them a choice of releasing Barabbas, a known criminal, or Jesus.
Once again, we see the term Passover used to describe the feast of the
unleavened bread. Proof for this comes from the other Gospel accounts, which
state that this custom of releasing a prisoner occurs on the feast (Mt. 27:15;
Mk: 15:6; Lk. 23:17). To Pilate’s surprise, the Jews choose Barabbas to be
released who was a robber and a murderer (Mk. 15:7).
I can imagine how relived Barabbas was that Jesus was going
to take his place and had given him another chance at life. The same thing can
be said for all of us because Jesus died on the cross and He bore the weight of
our sins so we can have a chance at eternal life. We only have one life to
live, so we need to make the best of it and live it for God.
Matthew’s account offers us more information that I want to
read even though it will repeat a few things we covered already.
Matt. 27:15 Now at the feast the governor was accustomed to releasing to the
multitude one prisoner whom they wished. 16 And at that time they had a notorious
prisoner called Barabbas1. 17 Therefore, when they had gathered together, Pilate said to them,
"Whom do you want me to release to you? Barabbas, or Jesus who is called
Christ?" 18 For he knew that they had handed Him over because of envy. 19 While he was sitting on the judgment seat,
his wife sent to him, saying, "Have nothing to do with that just Man, for
I have suffered many things today in a dream because of Him." 20 But the chief priests and elders persuaded
the multitudes that they should ask for Barabbas and destroy Jesus. 21 The governor answered and said to them,
"Which of the two do you want me to release to you?" They said,
"Barabbas!" 22 Pilate said to them, "What then shall I do with Jesus who is called
Christ?" They all
said to him, "Let Him be crucified!" 23 Then the governor said, "Why, what evil
has He done?" But they cried out all the more, saying, "Let Him be
crucified!" 24 When Pilate saw that he could not prevail at all, but rather that
a tumult was rising, he took water
and washed his hands
before the multitude, saying, "I am innocent of the blood of this just
Person. You see to it."
25 And all the people answered and said,
"His blood be on us
and on our children." 26 Then he released Barabbas to them; and when he had scourged Jesus, he
delivered Him to be
crucified. 27 Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the Praetorium and
gathered the whole garrison around Him. 28 And they stripped Him and put a scarlet robe
on Him. 29 When they had twisted a crown of thorns, they put it on His head, and a reed in His right hand.
And they bowed the knee before Him and mocked Him, saying, "Hail, King of
the Jews!" 30 Then they spat on Him, and took the reed and struck Him on the head.
31 And when they had mocked Him, they took the
robe off Him, put His own clothes
on Him, and led Him away to be crucified.
What a horrible scene.
Jesus came to save all these people and more. Yet, here we have them screaming
crucify Him, crucify Him. Now, let’s move back to John’s account where we will take
a closer look at the scourging Jesus suffered through.
John 19:1 So then Pilate took Jesus and
scourged Him.
Pilate found himself in a difficult political situation.
Even though he knew Jesus was innocent, he allowed the Jewish people to
influence him, which is why he ordered Jesus to be scourged. Scourging was
normally done before a person was crucified, but Pilate was hoping the Jews
would be satisfied with the scourging alone (Lk. 23:22). Scourging is one the
most brutal punishments that has ever been invented.
Mr. Hester writes:
The scourge was a whip with several thongs, each loaded with
acorn-shaped balls of lead, with sharp pieces of bone or
spikes. Stripped of His clothes, His hands tied by a lictor, who
plied these instruments of torture with severity almost to the point of the
death of the prisoner. Each stroke cut into the quivering flesh, until the
veins and sometimes the entrails were laid bare. Often the scourge
struck the face and knocked out the eyes and teeth. Scourging almost
always ended in fainting and sometimes even in death (H. I. Hester, The Heart
of the New Testament (Liberty, Missouri: The William Jewell Press, 1962),
p. 213.).
Mr. Lipscomb writes:
The scourge
was made of rods or throngs with pieces of bone or lead fastened to one end.
The condemned person received the blows while fastened to a post so as to have
the back bent and the skin stretched. With the blows the back became raw and
the blood spurted out. The punishment was so cruel that the condemned person
very often succumbed to it immediately. (David Lipscomb, A Commentary on the
Gospel by John (Nashville, Tennessee: Gospel Advocate Company, 1966).
It was not uncommon for people to die from being scourged,
which explains why Jesus could not carry His own cross. Thinking about Jesus
having to endure such a brutal beating makes me cringe and breaks my heart
especially knowing He was innocent and endured it for us. Isaiah prophesied
about this moment when he wrote, “But He was wounded for our
transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The
chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we
are healed” (Isa. 53:5).
John 19:2 And the soldiers twisted a crown of
thorns and put it on His head, and they put on Him a purple robe. 3 Then
they said, "Hail, King of the Jews!" And they struck Him with their
hands.
We are given more details about this event in Matthew
27:27-31 and Mark 15:16-20. All of this was done to mock Jesus and to
humiliate Him. We do not know for sure what kind of thorns were used because
there were many varieties available. It could have been a prickly plant, or one
with bigger thorns. The main purpose for all of this was to give Him a crown, a
robe, and a reed for His right hand so they could mock Him for being a king.
They bowed down and worshipped Him and gave Him praises as a king, and they
spat on Him, hit Him with their hands, and beat Him on the head with the reed.
All this happened after He endured His scourging.
John 19:4 Pilate then went out again, and said
to them, "Behold, I am bringing Him out to you, that you may know that I
find no fault in Him." 5 Then Jesus came out,
wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. And Pilatesaid to
them, "Behold the Man!"
Once again, Pilate faces these blood thirty Jews who wanted
Jesus dead. Pilate knew Jesus was innocent, and he was hoping if he presented
Him before them scourged and dressed in this ridiculous attire that it would
suffice. Pilate wanted them to see that Jesus has no power and that He had
suffered enough.
John 19:6 Therefore, when the chief priests and
officers saw Him, they cried out, saying, "Crucify Him, crucify Him!" Pilate
said to them, "You take Him and crucify Him, for I find
no fault in Him." 7 The Jews answered him,
"We have a law, and according to our law He ought to die, because He made
Himself the Son of God."
Pilate’s plan did not work. These Jews had no compassion,
and they would not be satisfied until Jesus was dead. They shouted
“Crucify Him, crucify Him!” Even though Jesus
knew He would have to endure all this, it had to be difficult hearing these
Jews hatred toward Him. While He was suffering from His scourging, beatings,
and the hatred of these Jews, He still loved them and was willing to die for
them.
These Jews made several accusations about Jesus and why He
should die, but the real reason came out. They wanted Him dead because “He made
Himself the Son of God” (Mk. 14:62; Jn. 5:18; 10:30-33). If Jesus’
claim was false, the Law of Moses states that He should be put to death:
Leviticus 24:16 'And whoever blasphemes the
name of the LORD shall surely be put to death. All the congregation shall
certainly stone him, the stranger as well as him who is born in the land. When
he blasphemes the name of the Lord, he shall be put to death.
Notice, the death was to be done by the Jews with stones,
but Jesus was not guilty of this because He is the Son of God, and He had
proven it over and over again.
John 19:8 Therefore, when Pilate heard that
saying, he was the more afraid, 9 and went again
into the Praetorium, and said to Jesus, "Where are You from?" But
Jesus gave him no answer. 10 Then Pilate said to
Him, "Are You not speaking to me? Do You not know that I have power to
crucify You, and power to release You?" 11 Jesus
answered, "You could have no power at all against Me unless it had been
given you from above. Therefore the one who delivered Me to you has the greater
sin."
Pilate was supposed to be in control, but He was starting
to feel powerless, and he was afraid. If a riot broke out, he would have some
explaining to do to Caesar, and if he went against the Jews, his new friendship
with Herod would be in jeopardy. He also had the warning from his wife about
Jesus to think about as well (Mt. 27:19).
Once more, he goes into the Praetorium to question Jesus,
but this time Jesus is silent as Isaiah prophesied He would be at times (Isa.
53:7). Jesus already told Pilate everything he needed to know, and it would be
pointless for Him to say anything else. But Pilate is surprised by Jesus’
silence. Apparently Pilate thought Jesus would do whatever He could to talk him
out of putting Him to death. It is possible he was hoping Jesus might give him
a valid reason not to succumb to this angry mob.
Pilate pronounces his authority over Jesus’ life or death.
Jesus tells Pilate the only reason he has any authority is because God had
allowed him to have it. This same principle is taught throughout the Bible (Job
12:23; Dan. 5:17-28; Rom. 13:1).
Who delivered Jesus to Pilate? Was it Judas, Annas,
Caiaphas, or the Jewish nation? Judas certainly had his part in handing Jesus
over to Pilate, and so did Annas because he sent Jesus to Caiaphas who was the
high priest that represented the Sanhedrin council. Caiaphas’ decision made him
guilty of this sin as well, but the chief priests and elders were also
responsible for handing Him over (Mt. 27:1). So, I believe all of these people
involved were guilty of a greater sin especially Caiaphas because he knew the
Law of Moses and should have known that Jesus was the Messiah.
While sin in general will separate us from God and should
be avoided, Jesus implies there are different levels of sin. We are not given
many details about this, but Jesus also implies various degrees of punishment
in hell:
The greater the sin, the greater the punishment will be.
While we do not know the specifics, one thing we do know is that sin separates
us from God whether it is small or big.
John 19:12 From then on Pilate sought to
release Him, but the Jews cried out, saying, "If you let this Man go, you
are not Caesar's friend. Whoever makes himself a king speaks against
Caesar." 13 When Pilate therefore heard that
saying, he brought Jesus out and sat down in the judgment seat in a place that
is called The Pavement, but in Hebrew, Gabbatha.
No one ever found Jesus guilty of deserving death, and Pilate
tried to find a way to release Him. Earlier, Pilate proclaimed Jesus’ innocence
before them all.
Matthew 27:24 When Pilate saw that he could not
prevail at all, but rather that a tumult was rising, he took
water and washed his hands before the multitude, saying,
"I am innocent of the blood of this just Person. You see to
it."
These opposing Jews knew exactly how to back Pilate into a
corner because they knew it was against Roman law for anyone to proclaim
themselves a king. If someone did this, it was punishable by death. If Caesar
found out that Pilate let a self-proclaimed king go, it would be the end of his
career. So, Pilate sat in his official judgment seat and pronounced Jesus’
death by crucifixion. Even though Pilate proclaimed His innocence and the Jews
said let Jesus’ blood be on us and our children (Mt. 27:25), Pilate was still
guilty of allowing this innocent man to be murdered.
John 19:14 Now it was the Preparation Day of
the Passover, and about the sixth hour. And he said to the Jews, "Behold
your King!" 15 But they cried out, "Away
with Him, away with Him! Crucify Him!"
Pilate said to them, "Shall I crucify your King?" The chief priests
answered, "We have no king but Caesar!" 16 Then
he delivered Him to them to be crucified. So they took Jesus and led Him away.
Once again, we have a reference of the Passover being on
that Friday and being the Preparation Day. Some might think this refers to
preparing for the Passover meal, but as we examined John 18, the Passover can
refer to lamb, the meal, or the feast of unleavened bread.
The Passover meal preparation took place the day before on
Thursday, and at twilight (between the two evenings) the Pascal lamb would have
been killed. That night, which would be the next day according to Jewish time,
is when the Passover meal was eaten (Ex. 12). So, Friday was not the
preparation for the Passover meal, it was the preparation for the feast of the
unleavened bread in which all leaven had to be removed from their homes (Ex.
12).
Guy N. Woods explains:
The `preparation day' was the day preceding the beginning of the seven
days' feast of unleavened bread Friday. `Passover' signifies the entire period
of the feast, the first day of which was the sabbath (John 19:31,42; Mark
15:42; Matt. 27:62; Luke 23:54). The `sixth hour' was 6
a.m., according to Roman reckoning which John followed, and is in complete
harmony with Mark's statement (Mark 15:25), that Jesus was crucified at the
third hour, by Jewish computation (which Mark followed), was 9
a.m. Under Roman law, sentence could not be pronounced earlier than
6 a.m.; it is probable than an hour or so elapsed before the court proceedings
were completed and Jesus was delivered up to be crucified. The
painful trip to Calvary was to occur before the crucifixion would
begin (Guy N. Woods, A Commentary on the Gospel according to John
(Nashville, Tennessee: Gospel Advocate Company, 1981), p. 397-398).
In verses 14 and 15, Pilate seems to be taunting these Jews
by saying Jesus is their king and asking them if they are sure they want him to
crucify their king. They did not like these comments at all, so they said
crucify Him. They even called Caesar their king. It is amazing how people will
change their loyalties to bring about their own desires.
I hate to end this lesson here, but we will have to wait
until next week to examine how Jesus made His way to the cross and died.