And it was the preparation of the passover, and about the sixth hour: and he saith unto the Jews, Behold your King!
At the Passover preparation about the sixth hour Pilate set Jesus before the Jews as their King during the trial that led from his hall to Calvary. He did so in mockery, asking what should be done with him standing condemned before the crowd. The crowd rejected him, called for his crucifixion and for Barabbas instead, while the chief priests declared they had no king but Caesar. That cry denied God as ruler and withdrew the nation from His theocratic rule under leaders who led them to that choice. Though Pilate knew Jesus was faultless, he sacrificed the innocent to save his own power and place, and that rejection bound the rejecters to judgment ending in Jerusalem's ruin while the crucified one stands acknowledged as King and Judge of all.
Trial Setting and Presentation
The presentation belongs to the trial before Pilate at the preparation of the Passover, about the sixth hour. It is the moment in that trial when Pilate brings Jesus forth and bids the Jews behold their King. That trial is the one that leads from Pilate's hall to Calvary for crucifixion.
The Jewish officials would not enter the Roman judgment hall, fearing ceremonial defilement would keep them from the feast. Yet murderous hatred had already defiled their hearts. Christ was the real Passover lamb, and by rejecting Him they emptied the feast of its significance.
The trial and execution stood under the Roman charge of treason, as a supposed offender against Roman rule. Those condemned for this crime were normally taken down by Roman soldiers and buried in a burial ground reserved for criminals who had received the death penalty. In that setting Pilate presented Jesus standing condemned before the crowd as their King, calling on them to behold Him. He asked what should be done with Him. He did so in mockery.
The presentation came amid pressure from the Jewish leaders. That pressure included appeals to loyalty to Caesar. They used that claim to intimidate Pilate, as they later tried to intimidate Festus.
Rejection of the King
When he was presented as King and the question was put what should be done with him, the crowd rejected him, demanded his crucifixion, and called for Barabbas to be released instead. Barabbas was a robber, murderer, and thief chosen in his place. The chief priests and rulers joined that demand for crucifixion and declared that they had no king but Caesar.
That declaration was a denial of God as ruler, a rejection of God as king, and a withdrawal from the theocracy. The religious leaders bore responsibility for leading the nation into that choice and its consequences. The same crowd that had earlier welcomed him as king now reviled him and cried for his crucifixion, showing how fickle popular favor is. His faithful disciples had been prepared for this rejection and did not base their faith on the crowd's changing opinions.
Satan stood at the head of those who reviled and crucified him and led the cruel mob in abuse of the Saviour. His aim was to provoke retaliation or to drive him to use a miracle to release himself and thus break up the plan of salvation. Though by a command he could have brought the heavenly hosts to his aid, he submitted with perfect calmness to the coarsest insults and outrage. One stain upon his human life and one failure to endure the terrible test would have made the Lamb of God an imperfect offering and the redemption of humanity a failure.
Guilt and Consequences
Pilate repeatedly declared that he found no fault in Jesus and knew Him to be innocent, even asserting his power to release or to condemn Him, yet he delivered Him to be scourged and then to be crucified. He did so not from conviction of guilt but to protect his own position, yielding from fear of losing his power, authority, and life and from concern for worldly honor and power. His attempt to shift responsibility to the accusers did not make him blameless, and he remained responsible and guilty for condemning Christ. At the same time his authority over Jesus came from above, and the one who delivered Jesus to him bore the greater sin.
His choice shows that indecision and compromise with evil can lead to ruin, as self-interest overcomes conscience and duty. After Christ's resurrection Pilate was convinced that the One he had condemned was the Son of God, and his guilt left him in lasting despair. By rejecting Christ and choosing a robber and murderer in His place the rejecters bound themselves to judgment. That choice was followed by Jerusalem's destruction forty years later and rule by a foreign power, leaving the nation as a severed, fruitless branch without a Savior, while the rejected and crucified Christ is acknowledged by the heavenly universe as King and Judge of all living.
At the Passover preparation about the sixth hour Pilate set Jesus before the Jews as their King during the trial that led from his hall to Calvary. He did so in mockery, asking what should be done with him standing condemned before the crowd. The crowd rejected him, called for his crucifixion and for Barabbas instead, while the chief priests declared they had no king but Caesar. That cry denied God as ruler and withdrew the nation from His theocratic rule under leaders who led them to that choice. Though Pilate knew Jesus was faultless, he sacrificed the innocent to save his own power and place, and that rejection bound the rejecters to judgment ending in Jerusalem's ruin while the crucified one stands acknowledged as King and Judge of all.
Trial Setting and Presentation
The presentation belongs to the trial before Pilate at the preparation of the Passover, about the sixth hour. It is the moment in that trial when Pilate brings Jesus forth and bids the Jews behold their King. That trial is the one that leads from Pilate's hall to Calvary for crucifixion.
The Jewish officials would not enter the Roman judgment hall, fearing ceremonial defilement would keep them from the feast. Yet murderous hatred had already defiled their hearts. Christ was the real Passover lamb, and by rejecting Him they emptied the feast of its significance.
The trial and execution stood under the Roman charge of treason, as a supposed offender against Roman rule. Those condemned for this crime were normally taken down by Roman soldiers and buried in a burial ground reserved for criminals who had received the death penalty. In that setting Pilate presented Jesus standing condemned before the crowd as their King, calling on them to behold Him. He asked what should be done with Him. He did so in mockery.
The presentation came amid pressure from the Jewish leaders. That pressure included appeals to loyalty to Caesar. They used that claim to intimidate Pilate, as they later tried to intimidate Festus.
Rejection of the King
When he was presented as King and the question was put what should be done with him, the crowd rejected him, demanded his crucifixion, and called for Barabbas to be released instead. Barabbas was a robber, murderer, and thief chosen in his place. The chief priests and rulers joined that demand for crucifixion and declared that they had no king but Caesar.
That declaration was a denial of God as ruler, a rejection of God as king, and a withdrawal from the theocracy. The religious leaders bore responsibility for leading the nation into that choice and its consequences. The same crowd that had earlier welcomed him as king now reviled him and cried for his crucifixion, showing how fickle popular favor is. His faithful disciples had been prepared for this rejection and did not base their faith on the crowd's changing opinions.
Satan stood at the head of those who reviled and crucified him and led the cruel mob in abuse of the Saviour. His aim was to provoke retaliation or to drive him to use a miracle to release himself and thus break up the plan of salvation. Though by a command he could have brought the heavenly hosts to his aid, he submitted with perfect calmness to the coarsest insults and outrage. One stain upon his human life and one failure to endure the terrible test would have made the Lamb of God an imperfect offering and the redemption of humanity a failure.
Guilt and Consequences
Pilate repeatedly declared that he found no fault in Jesus and knew Him to be innocent, even asserting his power to release or to condemn Him, yet he delivered Him to be scourged and then to be crucified. He did so not from conviction of guilt but to protect his own position, yielding from fear of losing his power, authority, and life and from concern for worldly honor and power. His attempt to shift responsibility to the accusers did not make him blameless, and he remained responsible and guilty for condemning Christ. At the same time his authority over Jesus came from above, and the one who delivered Jesus to him bore the greater sin.
His choice shows that indecision and compromise with evil can lead to ruin, as self-interest overcomes conscience and duty. After Christ's resurrection Pilate was convinced that the One he had condemned was the Son of God, and his guilt left him in lasting despair. By rejecting Christ and choosing a robber and murderer in His place the rejecters bound themselves to judgment. That choice was followed by Jerusalem's destruction forty years later and rule by a foreign power, leaving the nation as a severed, fruitless branch without a Savior, while the rejected and crucified Christ is acknowledged by the heavenly universe as King and Judge of all living.