For This Purpose I Was Born Series

At the risk of becoming tedious, though I just cited his words a short while ago, consider the Apostle’s challenge to those who attempted to call God to account. “Who indeed are you—a mere human being—to talk back to God? Does what is molded say to the molder, ‘Why have you made me like this? Has the potter no right to make from the same lump of clay one vessel for special use and another for ordinary use’” [ROMANS 9:20-21 NET BIBLE]?

CHALLENGING THE KING — “Are You the King of the Jews?” Pilate’s demeanour reveals that he was increasingly disquieted by the man standing before him. Religious leaders had distorted Jesus’ words to say something He never so much as intimated. Consequently, the Roman official asked about His claim to be “King of the Jews,” not intending the question as idle curiosity, or even anticipating an answer that would give him concern. Pilate was quite certain that the Jewish leaders had seized Jesus and brought Him to be judged on a trumped-up charge in hope that a sentence of crucifixion would be pronounced. Perhaps at first Pilate thought of Jesus as a harmless eccentric; he may even have seen Him as somewhat daft. What is apparent is that Pilate was not convinced that the prisoner had done anything deserving of death, so he offered to release Him. The governor’s assessment was the Jesus of Nazareth was harmless; He constituted no threat either to his own rule or to the interests of the empire.

In the Gospel account, we read, “At the feast the governor was accustomed to release for the crowd any one prisoner whom they wanted. And they had then a notorious prisoner called Barabbas. So, when they had gathered, Pilate said to them, ‘Whom do you want me to release for you: Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?’ For he knew that it was out of envy that they had delivered him up” [MATTHEW 27:15-18].

It is apparent that Pilate was attempting to manipulate the Jewish leadership into a corner. He offered someone that could possibly be acceptable for release into society. However, the religious and civic leaders were unwilling to yield ground on their demand that Jesus of Nazareth be executed as a common criminal. They maneuvered the crowd into demanding that Jesus be crucified. Pilate was boxed in, his own effort to engineer a different outcome had failed.

Take special note of that eighteenth verse as rendered by one of the more recent translations. “[Pilate] realized that it was out of jealousy that they had handed [Jesus] over” [NRSV]. Jealousy had blinded the eyes of the religious leaders until they were willing to embrace calumny, defamation, slander, libel, vituperation and outright lies in order to engineer the death of this One whom they saw as their nemesis. They didn’t have authority to take His life, but they would seek to compel the Roman authorities to take His life, employing governmental murder. Pilate served as the unwitting dupe who stumbled into their trap; he became the hapless power that allowed himself to be manipulated into doing their nefarious work.