Matthew 27:11 ¶ And Jesus
stood before the governor: and the governor asked him, saying, Art thou the
King of the Jews? And Jesus said unto him, Thou sayest. 12 And when he was accused of the chief priests
and elders, he answered nothing. 13 Then
said Pilate unto him, Hearest thou not how many things they witness against
thee? 14 And he answered him to never a
word; insomuch that the governor marvelled greatly. 15 Now at that feast the governor was
wont to release unto the people a prisoner, whom they would. 16 And they had then a notable prisoner, called
Barabbas. 17 Therefore when they were
gathered together, Pilate said unto them, Whom will ye that I release unto you?
Barabbas, or Jesus which is called Christ? 18
For he knew that for envy they had delivered him. 19 When he was set down on the judgment seat,
his wife sent unto him, saying, Have thou nothing to do with that just man: for
I have suffered many things this day in a dream because of him. 20 But the chief priests and elders persuaded
the multitude that they should ask Barabbas, and destroy Jesus. 21 The governor answered and said unto them,
Whether of the twain will ye that I release unto you? They said, Barabbas.
22 Pilate saith unto them, What shall I
do then with Jesus which is called Christ? They all say unto him, Let
him be crucified. 23 And the governor
said, Why, what evil hath he done? But they cried out the more, saying, Let him
be crucified. 24 When Pilate saw that he
could prevail nothing, but that rather a tumult was made, he took water,
and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, I am innocent of the
blood of this just person: see ye to it. 25 Then answered all the people, and said, His
blood be on us, and on our children.
Pontius Pilate asks a pointed question of Jesus, similar to the
question posed to him in 26:63. Again Jesus turns this political
question back on Pilate as He did the spiritual question back on the High
Priest. Whereas before He was asked if He was the Messiah now He is asked if He
is the King of the Jews. Again he turns it back on them. “You said it.” This is
a confirmation. But he did not respond to the accusations made by the Jews. Jesus’
spiritual authority is already established at the Cross and the Empty Tomb as
the Saviour of all mankind but His political authority will be realized when He
returns to rule from Jerusalem.
As you read this it is clear that Pilate does the political thing
he must do to appease the Jews and their condemnation, the outright rejection
of their Messiah, and the demand that a murderer be released instead of Jesus
and that Jesus be crucified weighs on their own heads and the heads of their
children for two thousand years.
Pilate, like any cowardly politician, washes his hands of the
matter. However, Ethiopian and Coptic Christian tradition says that Pilate,
too, perhaps I think from the influence of his wife, becomes a Christian and he
is a saint and a martyr in their churches.
Pilate knew that Christ was being condemned for envy. The
religious high mucketymucks despised His popularity among the common people and
we know;
Proverbs 27:4 Wrath is
cruel, and anger is outrageous; but who is able to stand before envy?
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