CXXIX.
FIRST STAGE OF THE ROMAN TRIAL.
JESUS BEFORE PILATE FOR THE FIRST TIME.
(Jerusalem. Early Friday morning.)
aMATT. XXVII. 11-14; bMARK
XV. 2-5; cLUKE XXIII. 2-5; dJOHN
XVIII. 28-38.
dand they themselves entered
not into the Praetorium, that they might not be defiled, but might eat
the passover. [See p. 641.]
29 Pilate therefore went out unto them, and saith, What accusation bring
ye against this man? 30 They answered
and said unto him, If this man were not an evildoer, we should not have
delivered him up unto thee. [The Jewish rulers first attempt to induce
Pilate to accept their verdict and condemn Jesus upon it, and execute him
without a trial. If they had succeeded in this, Jesus would have been put
to death as a blasphemer. But as Pilate had insisted upon trying Jesus,
and as blasphemy was not a capital offense under the Roman law, Jesus was
condemned and executed as the King of the Jews.]
31 Pilate therefore said unto them, Take him yourselves, and judge him
according to your law. The Jews said unto him, It is not lawful for us
to put any man to death: 32 that the
word of Jesus might be fulfilled, which he spake, signifying by what manner
[704] of death he should die. [As the
Jews insisted on their own verdict, Pilate bade them pronounce their own
sentence, declining to mix jurisdictions by pronouncing a Roman sentence
on a Sanhedrin verdict. But the Jews responded that it is not in their
power to pronounce the sentence for which their verdict called, since they
could not put to death. Jesus could only be sentenced to death by the Roman
court, and crucifixion was the mode by which its death sentence was executed.
Jesus had predicted all this in the simple statement that he should die
by crucifixion (John xii. 33, 34), but he also gave the details of his
trial--Matt. xx. 18, 19; Mark x. 33, 34.]
c2 And they began to accuse him, saying, We found this man
perverting our nation, and forbidding to give tribute to Caesar, and saying
that he himself is Christ a king. [The Jews now profess to change their
verdict into a charge, they themselves becoming witnesses as to the truth
of the matter charged. They say "We found," thereby asserting that the
things which they stated to Pilate were the things for which they had condemned
Jesus. Their assertion was utterly false, for the three things which they
now mentioned had formed no part whatever of the evidence against Jesus
in their trial of him. The first charge, that Jesus was a perverter or
seducer of the people, was extremely vague. The second, that he taught
to withhold tribute from Cæsar, was a deliberate falsehood. See p.
599. The third, that he claimed to be king, was true, but this third
charge, coupled with the other two, was intended to convey a sense which
was maliciously false. Jesus was a spiritual King, and claimed to be such,
and as such was no offender against the Roman government. But the rulers
intended that Pilate should regard him as claiming to be a political king,
which he had constantly refused to do--John vi. 15.]
d33 Pilate therefore entered again into the Praetorium, and
called Jesus, a11 Now Jesus
stood before the governor [Jesus is called from the guards who have
him in custody and stands alone before Pilate that the governor may investigate
his case privately]:
b2
And Pilate athe governor [705] asked
him, dand said unto him, {asaying,} Art thou the
King of the Jews? [The Gospels are unanimous in giving this question
as the first words addressed by Pilate to Jesus. The question expresses
surprise. There was nothing in the manner or attire of Jesus to suggest
a royal claimant. The question was designed to draw Jesus out should he
chance to be a fanatical or an unbalanced enthusiast.] And Jesus banswering
saith {canswered him and said,} bunto him, Thou sayest. dSayest
thou this of thyself, or did others tell it thee concerning me? [Using
the Hebrew form of affirmative reply (see p.
698), Jesus admits that he is a king, but asks a question which forms
the strongest negation that he is a king in the sense contained in the
Jewish accusation. Had he been a king in that sense, Pilate would have
been the one most likely to know it. The question also, by an indirect
query as to the accuser, reveals to Pilate's mind that no Roman had accused
him. He was accused of the Jews, and when he had that restless, rebellious
people ever found fault with a man who sought to free them from the galling
Roman yoke?] 35 Pilate answered,;
Amos I a Jew? [The strong, practical mind of the Roman at once caught
the drift of Christ's question, and perceived that the title "King of the
Jews" had in it a double meaning, so that it might be construed in some
unpolitical sense. What this sense was he could not tell, for he was not
a Jew. The mysteries of that nation were of no interest to him save where
his office compelled him to understand them.] Thine own nation and the
chief priests delivered thee unto me: what hast thou done? [Pilate
concedes that the accusation against Jesus comes from an unexpected and
suspicious source, and he asks Jesus to tell him plainly by what means
he had incurred the enmity of the leaders of his people.]
36 Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were
of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered
to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence. [Jesus answers Pilate's
question indirectly. He had done something to incur [706] the
enmity of the rulers, and that was to have authority with and exercise
influence over the people (John xii. 19). They objected to his kingly claims
(Matt. xxi. 15, 16; Luke xix. 38, 39), but Jesus shows Pilate that these
kingly claims, however distasteful to the Jews, were no offense to or menace
against the authority of Rome. Further than this, Jesus did not define
his kingdom, for Pilate had no concern in it beyond this. It was sufficient
to inform him that it made no use of physical power even for purposes of
defense. Such a kingdom could cause no trouble to Rome, and the bare fact
stated by Jesus proved that it was indeed such a kingdom.]
37 Pilate therefore said unto him, Art thou a king then? Jesus answered,
Thou sayest that I am a king. [See p.
698.] To this end have I been born, and to this end am I come into
the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is
of the truth heareth my voice. [Jesus here enlightens Pilate as to
the nature of his kingdom. He, the King, was the incarnation of truth,
and all those who derive the inspiration of their life from truth were
his subjects. For the purpose of thus bearing witness to and revealing
truth Jesus had been born, thus entering a new state of being, and he had
come into the world in this changed condition, thus entering a new sphere
of action. The words clearly imply the pre-existence of Christ and no doubt
aroused that state of uneasiness or fear which was increased by the words
of the Jewish rulers--John xix. 7, 8.]
38 Pilate saith unto him, What is truth? [This question has been regarded
as an earnest inquiry (Chrysostom), the inquiry of one who despaired (Olshausen),
a scoffing question (Alford), etc. But it is evident that Pilate asked
it intending to investigate the case of Jesus further, but, suddenly concluding
that he already knew enough to answer his purpose as a judge, he stifles
his curiosity as a human being and proceeds with the trial of Jesus, leaving
the question unanswered.] And when he had
said this, he went out again unto the Jews, and saith unto them, cunto
the chief priests and the multitudes, I find no fault in this man. dno
crime in [707] him. [The pronoun
"I" is emphatic; as if Pilate said, "You, prejudiced fanatics, demand his
death, but I, the calm judge, pronounce him innocent."]
b3 And the chief priests accused him of many things.
a12 And when he was accused by the chief priests and elders,
he answered nothing. [When Pilate left the Prætorium to speak
with the Jewish rulers, it is evident that Jesus was led out with him,
and so stood there in the presence of his accusers.]
b4 And a13 Then
bPilate
again asked him, {asaith unto him,} bsaying, Answerest
thou nothing? behold how many things they accuse thee of. aHearest
thou not how many things they witness against thee?
b5 But Jesus no more answered anything;
a14 And he gave him no answer, not even to one word: binsomuch
that Pilate athe governor bmarvelled. agreatly.
[Pilate was irritated that Jesus did not speak in his own defense. He had
already seen enough of our Lord's wisdom to assure him that it would be
an easy matter for him to expose the malicious emptiness of these charges--charges
which Pilate himself knew to be false, but about which he had to keep silent,
for, being judge, he could not become our Lord's advocate. Our Lord's silence
was a matter of prophecy (Isa. liii. 7). Jesus kept still because to have
successfully defended himself would have been to frustrate the purpose
for which he came into the world--John xii. 23-28.]
c5 But they were the more urgent, saying, He stirreth up the
people, teaching throughout all Judaea, and beginning from Galilee even
unto this place. [The Jews cling to their general accusation of sedition,
and seek to make the largeness of the territory where Jesus operated overshadow
and conceal the smallness of their testimony as to what his operations
were.] [708]
[FFG 704-708]
