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PILATE’S DILEMMA

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PILATE’S DILEMMA

“But Pilate answered, ‘You take Him and crucify Him. As for me, I find no basis for a charge against Him.’ The Jewish leaders insisted, ‘We have a law and, according to that law He must die, because He claimed to be the Son of God.’

“When Pilate heard this, he was even more afraid, and he went back inside the palace. ‘Where do you come from?’ he asked Jesus, but Jesus gave him no answer.” John 19:6b-9.

What a horrible position to be in!

Inside Pilate’s head was a raging conscience; outside the palace was a raging mob led by a persistent, insistent religious hierarchy who were beginning to show their true colours. Although they presented Him to Pilate as a rabble-rousing, trouble-making challenge to Caesar, that was not the real issue. This was a smoke screen for a religious conflict between men who felt threatened because Jesus had exposed their wicked hearts and a man who challenged them to examine the evidence, which they refused to do.

It was easier to charge Him with blasphemy and get rid of Him than to be honest enough to check out His credentials against the Scriptures to find out the truth. It was not their religion as much as it was their position and power over the people that was at stake. Jesus had made God too nice, and that did not suit them because they wanted to retain their hold over the people by their rigid insistence on obedience to their rules.

Pilate’s close encounter with Jesus had unnerved him. He was honest enough to admit that he could find no reason to charge Him with any criminal activity. Treason? Rabble-rousing? Inciting the mob to violence? Jesus didn’t even have any supporters heckling Pilate. He stood there alone and unresisting and Pilate did not know what to make of Him. Questioning Him got him nowhere. Jesus admitted to being a king, but He did not act like a typical usurper nor did He lay claim to the throne of Israel. He said, ‘My kingdom is not of this world.’ What was Pilate supposed to make of that?

Now he was faced with another even more frightening possibility. Two charges Pilate did not understand. He was a pagan Roman. What did he know about these Jews and their strange and complicated religion? King, but not of this world? Son of God? Pilate would rather have been a million miles away, even on another planet if that were possible, rather than have to deal with this man and His howling accusers. He was scared. Jesus was a hot potato but the buck stopped with him. He had to make a decision.

Back he went into the palace to face Jesus again. Desperate to get to the bottom of this matter, he questioned Him again. ‘Who are you? Where do you come from? Come on, Jesus, give me some answers. I’m trying my best to save your skin.’ But Jesus said nothing. It was almost as though He wanted to die. That was even more unnerving and Pilate was thoroughly shaken by his encounter with this unusual man.

What were Pilate’s options? Condemn an innocent man to death to appease a fanatical crowd and live with an accusing conscience, or release Him and risk a Jewish uprising and the inevitable bloodshed that would follow? These Jews were volatile. He knew what would happen if he insisted on releasing Jesus. They would probably lynch Him before He got beyond the palace grounds. Pilate would have to face Rome, no matter what his choice.

Pilate was a cruel and ruthless governor. He was guilty of having Galilean worshippers murdered while they were offering sacrifices at the temple (Luke 13:1). He was recalled to Rome after brutally quelling a Samaritan up rising. Tradition had it that he was exiled to Pontus and finally took his own life.

But Pilate was caught up in circumstances that were not of his own making. Can we judge him? What would you have done?

Acknowledgement

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

SON OF THE FATHER

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SON OF THE FATHER

“With this, he went out again to the Jews gathered there and said, ‘I find no basis for a charge against Him. But it is your custom for me to release to you one prisoner at the time of Passover. Do you want me to release “the king of the Jews”? They shouted back, ‘No, not Him! Give us Barabbas!’ Now Barabbas had taken part in an uprising.” John 18:38b-40.

John’s description of Pilate’s verdict is very sketchy at this point. The chief priests had not specified their charge against Jesus. Their demand was, ‘Sentence Jesus to death; He’s guilty!’ Pilate responded, ‘Guilty of what?’ They replied, ‘He’s guilty because we say so!’ What kind of reply was that?

It was up to Pilate, it seems, to determine why the religious rulers insisted that He was guilty. The only thing Rome was interested in was insurrection. Was Jesus a rabble-rouser, trying to drum up enough support to get rid of the Romans? Annas had grilled Him about His following and His teaching in the hopes that He would let slip any plan He had of an uprising. He failed to get Him to incriminate Himself, so he sent Him to Caiaphas.

John recorded nothing of the religious trial before the Sanhedrin except the verdict, “Guilty as charged!” But not guilty of treason; guilty of blasphemy, according to the other gospels. A verdict of guilty of blasphemy would not cut it with Pilate. That was not his fight. So. they kept mum about the charge and hoped that Jesus would give Pilate the evidence he needed to condemn Him to death.

Pilate must have had some clue to Jesus’ claim, or else he followed that route because it was the one thing that Roman authority would squash, and quickly. Despite Pilate’s verdict, “Not guilty,” after questioning Jesus, the Jewish leaders still demanded His death. Pilate had one last loophole – the Jewish custom of releasing a prisoner on death row at Passover. Surely, if he chose the worst awaiting-execution convict, they would let Jesus go?

Pilate was in for a shock. So deep was their suspicion and hatred of Jesus that they would choose a convicted murderer and insurrectionist and allow him to roam the streets again, rather than a benevolent and upright rabbi who challenged their understanding of the Scriptures and exposed their greedy and selfish hearts.

Who was this Barabbas anyway? In a Jewish name, “bar” indicated the connection of the son with his father, just as does “son” in an English name, e.g., Johnson or Morrison, or “Mac” or “Mc” in a Scottish name, e.g., McGregor. Bartimaeus, the blind man, was the son of Timaeus; Barabbas was the son of his father. What sort of a name was that! Does his name, ironically, stand for all the sons of their fathers in whose place Jesus was crucified.

Did Barabbas’ mother give him a nondescript name like “son of his father’ because he did not have a father? Was she a single mother who tried to shield her son’s illegitimacy? Is that why he resorted to violence and murder — because he was an angry, fatherless boy? Just a thought!

According to Luke, Jesus was accused of being an insurrectionist. “Then the whole assembly rose and led Him off to Pilate. And they began to accuse Him saying, ‘We have found this man subverting our nation. He opposes payment of taxes to Caesar and claims to be Messiah, a king.’…Then Pilate announced to the chief priests and the crowd, ‘I find no basis for a charge against this man.’ But they insisted, ‘He stirs up the people all over Judea by His teaching. He started in Galilee and has come all the way here.'” Luke 23:2; 4-5 NIV.

Pilate was really in a dilemma; Barabbas was a convicted insurrectionist and they wanted him released. Jesus was not guilty of revolutionary activity, but they wanted Him crucified! What was he to do to satisfy justice, the Jews and his conscience?

Watch this space!

Acknowledgement

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.