As the life of Jesus approaches to a climax, political forces are very active. The Jewish leaders have condemned Jesus to death for the crime of blasphemy. But no Roman authority cared about such a religious charge. For many years the Roman Prefect, or Procurator system, had been in place to supervise the sometimes-over-zealous Jewish people. At the time of Jesus, the Prefect (or Governor), was a Roman by the name of Pontius Pilate. He had been commissioned out of the second level of Roman military structure known as the Equestrian Order. But like all assignments, the Roman Governors were all looking for a cushier and more lucrative appointment in the future. Pilate had done well for himself in Judea, but like his predecessors, he occasionally had confrontations with the Jewish leaders. Pilate’s status was somewhat tenuous in Judea and the last thing he wanted to do was deal with this Jesus controversy. Since the Jewish Sanhedrin had authorized the death sentence upon Jesus, they knew they had to get Pilate to approve of this capital punishment. They accused Jesus of insurrection against the Roman Emperor. They had to seek Pilate’s sanction of the death penalty because under Roman law consent for crucifixion can only be given by Rome. If that approval was gained, the condemned would then be crucified (see John 18:31-32).
When Pilate was confronted with this appeal, he scrambled to release Jesus, rather than condemn Him. In the various Gospel accounts of this mock trial, Pilate says on six occasions, I find no fault in this man. But the Jewish religious leaders keep the pressure on Pontius Pilate trying to force his hand to sanction the death penalty. In John 19:6-8, Pilate heard that Jesus should be crucified because He made Himself the Son of God. Pilate would have heard that as a Roman, not a Jew. The Romans believed in a pantheon of gods and sometimes believed that gods actually came down in human form. Pilate may have thought Oh, no, have I just beaten a god? It scared him to think about that possibility. Notice John 19:9-11. Pilate wanted to know where Jesus was from. But Jesus did not answer him! Who do you think is really on trial here?
As you reflect on this passage, answer the following questions:
- What were the reasons you think Pilate initially thought to release Jesus from being executed?
- From our text, what were the reasons that Pontius Pilate ultimately capitulated to the Jewish authorities and their demands for Jesus’ death?
- Why was it important that Jesus died via a Roman death (crucifixion) rather than a Jewish mode of execution (stoning)?
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