John 18:28-19:16

Jesus had been unjustifiably taken captive by the Roman soldiers and religious leaders (18:1-11), who believed that His teachings were blasphemous (18:19). In their minds, Jesus was not God nor was He the Messiah who had been promised to the people of Israel, as well as to the world (Genesis 3:15; 12:1-3). Instead of accepting Him for who He really was, the religious leaders were doing everything in their power to bring false accusations against Him so they could ultimately put Him to death (11:53). Following Jesus’ arrest, He was passed back and forth between the former (Annas) and reigning (Caiaphas) high priest, who did their best to bring a charge against Jesus; however, their questioning did not get the desired results. In the midst of Jesus’ interrogation, John also follows another story line which is taking place simultaneously. Peter, one of the disciples, had been tracking Jesus’ movements to see what would come of Him, but people continued to recognize him as a follower of Jesus. Each time someone identified Peter as a follower of Jesus, he denied it bringing fulfillment to Jesus’ earlier prophecy that Peter would deny Him three times (13:38). When Peter remembered Jesus’ words, he “wept bitterly” (Matthew 26:75).

The angry mob which arrested Jesus took Him from the presence of the high priest, Caiaphas, to the residence (Praetorium) of Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor (18:28). Since the Jews could not take legal action to put Jesus to death, their visit to the Roman governor was significant. If they could convince Pilate that Jesus was guilty of blasphemy, they might have a chance at exterminating Him. However, it is also noteworthy that the Jews hated Jesus more than Pilate. They despised the fact that a Gentile ruled over them, but in this case their jealousy of Jesus’ popularity amongst the people overruled their hatred of Roman rule. Pilate met with the Jews in the courtyard and inquired as to why they were bringing an accusation against Jesus (18:29). The Jews answered, in a roundabout way, that Jesus was an evildoer who was worthy of death (18:30-32). Inviting Jesus into his residence, Pilate asked Him if He was the King of the Jews. Rather than answering the question, Jesus returned a question to Pilate saying, “Are you speaking for yourself about this, or did others tell you this concerning Me?” (18:34). Underneath Jesus’ question to Pilate was whether or not he viewed Him as a threat to Roman rule; in other words, did Pilate think Jesus was trying to overthrow the Roman government? Making it very clear to Pilate, Jesus declares, “My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now My kingdom is not from here” (18:36). Jesus’ kingdom was not in fighting against earthly government, but sin in the hearts of people. Eventually Jesus would return to earth to defeat sin and set up His kingdom, but until then He was not interested in a rebellion against the political powers of Rome. Pilate immediately responded to Jesus’ talk of a kingdom and asked if He was a king to which Jesus answered, “You say rightly that I am a king. For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice” (18:37). Again, Jesus declares that His kingdom is unlike any other kingdom because it is characterized by truth, which He was sent to declare. Responding to Jesus’ words, Pilate tells the Jews, “I find no fault in Him at all” (18:38).

Although Pilate declared Jesus’ innocence, he set in motion a series of compromising decisions in order to avoid being hated by the Jews. First, Pilate sends Jesus to Herod thinking maybe he could be responsible for the situation (recorded in Luke 23:6-12); however, Herod sends him back to Pilate. When Pilate realized that this circumstance was not quickly going away, he presented a custom where a prisoner would be released out of mercy (18:39). Pilate gave them two choices: release Jesus or release Barabbas, who was a robber (18:40). Pilate had underestimated the influence of the religious leaders upon the crowd who had gathered for Passover, so they cried out to allow Barabbas to be set free (18:40). Under pressure from the crowd, Pilate ordered Jesus to be beaten and whipped (19:1-3). Pilate then delivered Jesus back to the crowd assuming they would feel sorry for Him (19:4-5) and ask for His release, but they demanded that Jesus be crucified (19:6-7). Pilate pleads with the Jews to release Jesus, but they would not listen (19:12) and eventually he gave into the demands of the crowds, releasing Jesus to be crucified by the Jews (19:13-16).

Although the accusations against Jesus were unfair and unfounded, God allowed all of this to happen so that He could become the perfect sacrifice for the sins of man. Without Jesus crucifixion, no salvation from the power and penalty of sin could take place. Thank God, who loved mankind so much, that He was willing to sacrifice His own Son, Jesus, in order to set free those who would believe in Him (John 3:16-17).

Dear God, I am grateful to You for willingly giving up Your only Son to be crucified. Without Jesus’ sacrifice and resurrection, there would be no hope of eternal life.