Luke 23: 1 – 25
Selected By The Father
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 the 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.” 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. 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. 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. 13 Then Pilate, when he had called together the chief priests, the rulers, and the people, 14 said to them, “You have brought this Man to me, as one who misleads the people. And indeed, having examined Him in your presence, I have found no fault in this Man concerning those things of which you accuse Him; 15 no, neither did Herod, for I sent you back to him; and indeed nothing deserving of death has been done by Him. 16 I will therefore chastise Him and release Him” 17 (for it was necessary for him to release one to them at the feast). 18 And they all cried out at once, saying, “Away with this Man, and release to us Barabbas”— 19 who had been thrown into prison for a certain rebellion made in the city, and for murder. 20 Pilate, therefore, wishing to release Jesus, again called out to them. 21 But they shouted, saying, “Crucify Him, crucify Him!” 22 Then he said to them the third time, “Why, what evil has He done? I have found no reason for death in Him. I will therefore chastise Him and let Him go.” 23 But they were insistent, demanding with loud voices that He be crucified. And the voices of these men and of the chief priests prevailed. 24 So Pilate gave sentence that it should be as they requested. 25 And he released to them the one they requested, who for rebellion and murder had been thrown into prison; but he delivered Jesus to their will.
Having convinced them a long time ago of His blasphemy the majority of the court now acted and brought our Lord Jesus to Pilate. Please take not however on how they purposely falsified the charges. They did not bring against Him the charge of blasphemy, or of claiming to be the Son of God, rather they twisted what He had said and turned it into a political charge. And in doing this they also twisted other evidence. They probably hoped that Pilate would give in to their request without taking too much trouble over it.
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 the nation, and forbidding to pay taxes to Caesar, saying that He Himself is Christ, a King.”
Pilate had no reason for doubting their word, but for some reason Pilate was not compliant. One reason was probably because he was not on the best of terms with these Jewish leaders, and rather despised them, and was delighted to have the opportunity to annoy them. And secondly he appears to have sensed that there was something that was not quite right about the whole affair.
Pilate would not seem a very good candidate to act as one who would defend Jesus. Philo describes him as unbending and callous in nature and speaks of him as, ‘a man of inflexible disposition, harsh and obdurate’. He makes clear that in his view he totally failed in the fulfillment of his official duties. But even such men occasionally come face to face with something that for a moment pierces their hard shell, and that was what, unknown to him, was about to happen to Pilate.
The charge, based on what has gone before, is a travesty of misrepresentation. It was they who had said that He was Messiah the King, as He had pointed out to them. He had certainly not misled the nation, nor had they been able to prove so. And we actually know the basis on which He was being accused of forbidding the giving of tribute to Caesar, and that that charge was therefore totally false. Our Lord Jesus neither sought to arouse an insurrection, nor did He forbid the payment of taxes.
Please take note how clever the charge was. All three counts were of a kind that would disturb Pilate. You don’t mess with the IRS. They probably thought that when challenged about the giving of tribute to Caesar Pilate might not like His theological reply. Pilate would not appreciate any suggestion of reluctance in the matter of taxes. That might thus count as a point against Him. The thought that He was stirring up trouble among the people would certainly be enough to disturb Pilate, and he might well think, why should they say such a thing if it did not have some truth in it? And claiming kingship was a charge that Pilate dare not be seen to treat lightly. They were in many ways astute men and were playing on his fears.
3 Then Pilate asked Him, saying, “Are You the King of the Jews?” He answered him and said, “It is as you say.”
Remember, Our Lord Jesus was beat up by the Jewish leader and their guards. So, now standing before Pilate was a Man Whose face was all swollen. So, we can see some significant puzzlement from Pilate when he asked our Lord, “Are you the King of the Jews?” This is very much an abbreviation of all that was said, but deals with the essential point. What Pilate overall wanted to know was what claims He did make, and whether it was true that He was claiming to be a King in opposition to Caesar and his appointee.
Our Lord Jesus replied by pointing out that it was all something that had arisen from people’s own ideas. The claim, in the way in which the court meant it, had not come from Him, it had come from Pilate himself, via the Sanhedrin. While then there was a sense in which He was a King, it was not in the way that everyone was saying. His response convinced Pilate, who was very experienced and no fool, that the charge was baseless. This man may be a clever arguer. He might even be more. But He was no revolutionary.
4 So Pilate said to the chief priests and the crowd, “I find no fault in this Man.”
So Pilate declared that as far as he could see the charges were baseless, and therefore our Lord Jesus was innocent. Now this should have been the end of the court case. Once the judge makes his ruling then that’s it. However, as you know in this evil world it doesn’t always work that way.
I use to be on the Board of Directors for this supposed Christian organization. Over the years they had accumulated many assets. An issue that the Board had to deal with was that a cult wanted to rent one of the buildings. At this meeting all the Board members were in attendance except the President of the Board. I took a stance that as a Christian organization ‘what fellowship does light have with darkness.’ I therefore from the Word of God convinced the other members to vote against the business transaction. End of story, right?
The next day the President of the Board called me and said that the issue was going to be brought up again. I informed him that it cannot. Based on the by-laws once the matter was voted on by a majority of Board Members, then the issue was settled. Well, he brought up the matter again and the rest of the members now voted for the interaction with the cult group. I smiled and handed in my resignation.
Please note the reference to ‘The crowds.’ Have you ever had a problem trying to figure out how just a few days ago on Palm Sunday they were praising Him as The Messiah and now they were crying out for His destruction? It should be emphasized that these ‘crowds’ were not composed of the people who had listened to Jesus in the Temple, or of Galileans. Those were still in their camps or lodgings, unaware of what was going on. These were probably local Jerusalemites who had gathered after the news got around of an emergency meeting of the Sanhedrin and those who the religious leaders stirred up.
5 But they were the more fierce, saying, “He stirs up the people, teaching throughout all Judea, beginning from Galilee to this place.”
Fearful that our Lord Jesus might be released without charge, ‘they’ (the chief priests) tried to put pressure on Pilate. Their protests ‘grew stronger’. Did he not realize that this man was stirring up the whole country? And indeed had also previously done it in Galilee, which was as usual the source of all the trouble. With their contempt for Galilee they thought that this in itself should be enough to prove their case. Galilee was a hotbed of troublemakers and heretics.
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.
The mention of Galilee gave Pilate an idea. If the man was a Galilean then perhaps Herod would know what He was talking about. For he himself certainly did not. So he sent him to Herod, who was also in Jerusalem for the Passover, not so that Herod could try Him, but in order that he might investigate the matter and give his views on the matter.
Luke brilliantly brings out what the hearing before Herod involved. Rather than being concerned about the rights and wrongs of the matter Herod is depicted as being more interested in getting our Holy God, The Lord Jesus to perform some wonders before him, than in arriving at a conclusion. Thus his questioning was apparently on a superficial scale, rather than a genuine attempt to arrive at the truth. Our Lord Jesus in return knew exactly what was going on and treated him with contemptuous silence, and said nothing. He was not there to provide a spectacle, nor to perform wonders at Herod’s whim.
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.
Instead of seriously going about the business of ascertaining the truth, Herod is revealed as more interested in seeing a show. The charges against our Lord Jesus meant little to him, but he had heard much about Him and had for a long time wanted to see Him for himself. After all He had something of a reputation in Galilee and Perea over which Herod ruled. So his hope now was to see Jesus ‘perform’.
9 Then he questioned Him with many words, but He answered him nothing.
But all his attempts to make Jesus respond, and they were apparently considerable, failed. Remember, our Adoni Yeshua Is the Lamb of God. The prophet Isaiah said in chapter 53 verse 7, ‘As a sheep that before His shearers is dumb, so He opened not His mouth.’ He had stated His case to Pilate, and had convinced him of His innocence. It was clear to Him what Herod’s view of the situation was and He saw no point in responding to attempts to bully or cajole Him into putting on a show. So He maintained a dignified silence. He was now resigned to the fact that justice was not available to Him whatever He did. He had them all summed up in His own mind, and knew them exactly for what they were.
10 And the chief priests and scribes stood and vehemently accused Him.
It is important to take in the full measure of the Bible for you are able to see clearer. Herod was not a Jew. He was an Edomite who hated the Jews. He had grown up in Rome and was a friend of the current Caesar. He was given this position and was ruling at the same time as Pilate who was Rome’s Governor.
They pressed home their case with as much force as they could muster, probably aware all the time that Herod was treating them with contempt. In fact he had no doubt had Jesus closely observed while He was preaching in Galilee and knew perfectly well that all the charges were false. Thus he was dismissing the claims as irrelevant, and making it obvious that he was doing so. The centrality of this verse in the chiasmus brings out the emphasis on who were the main perpetrators of the crime against Jesus, although it was only made possible because those mainly responsible for justice failed. Pilate was a shifting sand who had to constantly watch his back in case he was reported to Caesar, and in the end sought only expediency. Herod was a bored and irreligious insane man who wanted only to relieve the monotony of the occasion. Neither he nor Pilate wanted to sentence God’s Son, The Lord Jesus Christ. The ones who kept up the pressure and finally achieved this end, but tried to keep clear of the blame for it, were the chief priests and Scribes.
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.
Having exhausted his attempts to get something out of The Lord Jesus Herod was no doubt convinced that He was after all a fraud, and so proceeded to make fun of Him.
12 That very day Pilate and Herod became friends with each other, for previously they had been at enmity with each other.
That was a pair of friends that beats any full house of cards. The word ‘enmity’ means enemies. I guess that by sending our Lord Jesus to Herod, Herod felt that he was being recognized and honored by Pilate. In addition, by Herod not finding anything to the accusations of the religious leaders, he was supporting Pilate’s original decision.
So, now having received the prisoner back with the confirmation from Herod that he found no fault in our Lord Jesus Pilate goes back to his original decision. Pilate made a further attempt to argue his way out of his position. He should, of course, have simply declared that our Lord Jesus was innocent and let Him go. However, his very wishy-washy action would thus have encourage our Lord Jesus’ accusers. They knew now that if they continued in what they were doing they would get their way, for Pilate had revealed that he was not willing to simply put their accusations to one side. Thus they pressed on to achieve the verdict that they required.
13 Then Pilate, when he had called together the chief priests, the rulers, and the people, 14 said to them, “You have brought this Man to me, as one who misleads the people. And indeed, having examined Him in your presence, I have found no fault in this Man concerning those things of which you accuse Him; 15 no, neither did Herod, for I sent you back to him; and indeed nothing deserving of death has been done by Him. 16 I will therefore chastise Him and release Him” 17 (for it was necessary for him to release one to them at the feast).
Pilate again made his appeal to the chief priests (who would also have returned), the lay rulers and gathered crowds. He pointed out that our Lord Jesus had been thoroughly examined, both by himself and Herod, and had been found innocent on all charges. There were in fact no grounds for putting Him to death. His verdict therefore was that our Holy Master and King Jesus be lashed as a matter of course, a reminder that He should behave whether guilty of not, and then set free.
18 And they all cried out at once, saying, “Away with this Man, and release to us Barabbas”— 19 who had been thrown into prison for a certain rebellion made in the city, and for murder.
The chief priests’ men had been at work among the crowds who, knowing that a prisoner was due to be released according to Jewish custom, now called out as one that Barabbas be released to them and that Jesus should be sent to His fate. Barabbas was an insurrectionist awaiting execution for murder.
20 Pilate, therefore, wishing to release Jesus, again called out to them. 21 But they shouted, saying, “Crucify Him, crucify Him!” 22 Then he said to them the third time, “Why, what evil has He done? I have found no reason for death in Him. I will therefore chastise Him and let Him go.” 23 But they were insistent, demanding with loud voices that He be crucified. And the voices of these men and of the chief priests prevailed. 24 So Pilate gave sentence that it should be as they requested. 25 And he released to them the one they requested, who for rebellion and murder had been thrown into prison; but he delivered Jesus to their will.
Here is a golden nugget that I want you to see. As a minister, many times you want to avoid certain books of the bible? Stop and think about this yourselves. Is there any book in the bible that you think is boring? Come on now tell the truth and shame the Devil. Please forgive us Precious Holy Spirit, this is our sinful dispositions that kick in. You will not volunteer any books? Well, let me throw out a few at you? How about Leviticus, Numbers, 1 and 2 Chronicles? I see heads bobbing up and down. May our Lord greatly bless all those Pastors who do not just skip past them because there are plenty of Godly Wisdom in these books. Let me show you just one example which applies to today’s study. Turn with me to the book of Leviticus chapter 16. We are going to read about what at first appears strange but you will see is amazing.
1 Now the LORD spoke to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they offered profane fire before the LORD, and died; 2 and the LORD said to Moses: “Tell Aaron your brother not to come at just any time into the Holy Place inside the veil, before the mercy seat which is on the ark, lest he die; for I will appear in the cloud above the mercy seat. 3 “Thus Aaron shall come into the Holy Place: with the blood of a young bull as a sin offering, and of a ram as a burnt offering. 4 He shall put the holy linen tunic and the linen trousers on his body; he shall be girded with a linen sash, and with the linen turban he shall be attired. These are holy garments. Therefore he shall wash his body in water, and put them on. 5 And he shall take from the congregation of the children of Israel two kids of the goats as a sin offering, and one ram as a burnt offering. 6 “Aaron shall offer the bull as a sin offering, which is for himself, and make atonement for himself and for his house. 7 He shall take the two goats and present them before the LORD at the door of the tabernacle of meeting. 8 Then Aaron shall cast lots for the two goats: one lot for the LORD and the other lot for the scapegoat. 9 And Aaron shall bring the goat on which the LORD’s lot fell, and offer it as a sin offering. 10 But the goat on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat shall be presented alive before the LORD, to make atonement upon it, and to let it go as the scapegoat into the wilderness. 11 “And Aaron shall bring the bull of the sin offering, which is for himself, and make atonement for himself and for his house, and shall kill the bull as the sin offering which is for himself. 12 Then he shall take a censer full of burning coals of fire from the altar before the LORD, with his hands full of sweet incense beaten fine, and bring it inside the veil. 13 And he shall put the incense on the fire before the LORD, that the cloud of incense may cover the mercy seat that is on the Testimony, lest he die. 14 He shall take some of the blood of the bull and sprinkle it with his finger on the mercy seat on the east side; and before the mercy seat he shall sprinkle some of the blood with his finger seven times. 15 “Then he shall kill the goat of the sin offering, which is for the people, bring its blood inside the veil, do with that blood as he did with the blood of the bull, and sprinkle it on the mercy seat and before the mercy seat. 16 So he shall make atonement for the Holy Place, because of the uncleanness of the children of Israel, and because of their transgressions, for all their sins; and so he shall do for the tabernacle of meeting which remains among them in the midst of their uncleanness. 17 There shall be no man in the tabernacle of meeting when he goes in to make atonement in the Holy Place, until he comes out, that he may make atonement for himself, for his household, and for all the assembly of Israel. 18 And he shall go out to the altar that is before the LORD, and make atonement for it, and shall take some of the blood of the bull and some of the blood of the goat, and put it on the horns of the altar all around. 19 Then he shall sprinkle some of the blood on it with his finger seven times, cleanse it, and consecrate it from the uncleanness of the children of Israel. 20 “And when he has made an end of atoning for the Holy Place, the tabernacle of meeting, and the altar, he shall bring the live goat. 21 Aaron shall lay both his hands on the head of the live goat, confess over it all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions, concerning all their sins, putting them on the head of the goat, and shall send it away into the wilderness by the hand of a suitable man. 22 The goat shall bear on itself all their iniquities to an uninhabited land; and he shall release the goat in the wilderness. 23 “Then Aaron shall come into the tabernacle of meeting, shall take off the linen garments which he put on when he went into the Holy Place, and shall leave them there. 24 And he shall wash his body with water in a holy place, put on his garments, come out and offer his burnt offering and the burnt offering of the people, and make atonement for himself and for the people. 25 The fat of the sin offering he shall burn on the altar. 26 And he who released the goat as the scapegoat shall wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and afterward he may come into the camp. 27 The bull for the sin offering and the goat for the sin offering, whose blood was brought in to make atonement in the Holy Place, shall be carried outside the camp. And they shall burn in the fire their skins, their flesh, and their offal. 28 Then he who burns them shall wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and afterward he may come into the camp. 29 “This shall be a statute forever for you: In the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you shall afflict your souls, and do no work at all, whether a native of your own country or a stranger who dwells among you. 30 For on that day the priest shall make atonement for you, to cleanse you, that you may be clean from all your sins before the LORD. 31 It is a Sabbath of solemn rest for you, and you shall afflict your souls. It is a statute forever. 32 And the priest, who is anointed and consecrated to minister as priest in his father’s place, shall make atonement, and put on the linen clothes, the holy garments; 33 then he shall make atonement for the Holy Sanctuary, and he shall make atonement for the tabernacle of meeting and for the altar, and he shall make atonement for the priests and for all the people of the assembly. 34 This shall be an everlasting statute for you, to make atonement for the children of Israel, for all their sins, once a year.” And he did as the LORD commanded Moses.
Do you see anything significant here? No? Well, let us take a more in depth look at the Scripture. The High Priest was to take two innocent baby goats from the flock. As we read in chapter 16, one would be slain and the other set free. The one that was to be slain was the one selected by Jehovah Elyon – The Lord Most High.
Now back to the Gospel of Luke. There were two prisoners, our Lord Jesus Christ and Barabbas. One was chosen to be slain and the other would be set free. Now, here is an awesome fact. Barabbas means ‘son of the father’ in comparison to the real ‘Son, of The Father’, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
I do not know about you but I am overwhelmed by the significance of all of this.
Pilate wanted to release our Holy Creator. Do you see the irony of all this – the judge is pleading with the Prosecutor to allow his decision to stand.
This action was so unlike Pilate, who had a reputation for acting abruptly and brutally, that it probably arose because of the fear that Pilate had of a complaint going to Caesar that he had failed in his duty of protecting Judea from a self-proclaimed king. It was now no longer a case of guilt or innocence and everyone knew it. It had become a political seesaw. The question was whether Pilate would do the right thing or would give in to political blackmail.
Pilate was well aware that a complaint against him might mean the end of his career. And it was something that he dared not risk. Thus he did not want to provide them with any cause for complaint. Yet at the same time it was clear that his conscience also was at work. This man had made an impression on him, and he did not want to have to condemn Him. And on top of that he also did not want to give the Jewish leaders their way.
Luke wanted it made clear to all that the verdict of the authority who spoke on behalf of Rome was unequivocal. Jesus was free of all blame and should never have been crucified. And he wanted it known that He was without blemish and without spot.
Weakly and helplessly Pilate gave way and gave sentence that the crowd’s will might be done. His desire to release Jesus had now collapsed before their pressure. He had given way to mob rule.
Suppose you were Caesar in Rome who receives a court ruling by someone on your staff that you are getting second thoughts about this person’s leadership abilities. You read that he let go a murderer while compromising the law to put to death an innocent man.
It is also quite probable that Luke intends us to see here in the release of Barabbas and the handing over of Jesus the idea of substitution in which our Wonderful Holy Spirit described to us in the book of Leviticus. The one who deserved to die was released, and the innocent One took his place. For He was the One Who gave His life a ransom in the place of many being numbered with the transgressors, so that a transgressor might go free.
There comes times in our lives that we have to fish or cut bait. You have to take a stand for Jesus or turn to be a coward. I pray for you and me that when that time comes that we will forget all to say, ‘I live, yet not I, for Christ lives in me. My life is His to give or take. Do what you must but I stand for Jesus now and forever!’
