Last Wednesday evening I had the opportunity to speak at the Northside church in Roswell, GA. Their Summer Series Theme was “Good Lessons from Bad People” and my topic was Pilate. I love the opportunity to study these kinds of lessons as it forces me to think “outside the box” and look at things differently than I have in the past.

When you look at Pilate’s trial before Jesus (yes, I meant to put it that way, because that is really what was happening), I tried to look at all of the accounts and put them in some sort of chronological order. The accounts are found in Matthew 17:1-2, 11-26; Mk 15:1-15, 42-47; Luke 23:1-4, 13-25 and John 18:28-19:16, 38-42. Below is a reconstruction of the events at that trial – I encourage you to study these things yourselves and see if these events happened this way. Then, if God wills’ we will look next week at some of the lessons that jumped out to me as I studied this account.

First, they go through the mockery of a trail before the Sanhedrin council, in which they determined to kill Jesus. The rest of the night was spent abusing our Lord, by spitting on him, slapping him and hitting them with fists.
They then bring Jesus before Pilate, early the next morning. The chief priests would not go into Pilate, lest they receive some ceremonial defilement that would make them unworthy to partake of the Passover. Pilate has to come out to them on the judgment seat.

What is the accusation? If this man were not an evildoer, we would not have brought him to you. (John 18:28-29) Think about what kind of accusation that is in and of itself. No real charges! Just that he is an evildoer.
Pilate at first tries to decline hearing the case. “You take him and judge him according to your law.”
They reply, “It is not lawful for us to put anyone to death!” Pilate then realizes how serious this is, and why they brought Jesus to him.

In Luke 23:2 we find the first hint of formal charges, “We found this fellow perverting the nation, and forbidding to pay taxes to Caesar, saying that he himself is Christ, a king.”

Pilate then asks Jesus, “Are you king of the Jews?” Remember that Jesus has spittle running down his face, and very possibly bruises from the previous night’s mistreatment.

Jesus answers nothing in Matthew, Mark and Luke.

In John’s account, however, perhaps because Pilate was insistent – he does discuss the nature of his kingdom with Pilate. He makes clear that his kingdom is no threat to that of Rome, and that his kingdom is a spiritual kingdom.
Luke then records that the chief priests mentions that Jesus was from Galilee – so Pilate sends him to Herod, who is in the city of Jerusalem at this time, no doubt for the Passover celebration.

When brought before Herod, Jesus again answers nothing, so he is then mocked by Herod’s men, and sent back to Pilate.

As Pilate hears the case, he declares him innocent, and seeks to release Jesus from what they wish to have happen to him. So, Pilate, seeking the “politically correct” solution to the problem, offers the compromise – Barabbas or Jesus. While the crowd is mulling that over, and the chief priests and elders is going amongst the crowd to sway them to crucify Jesus.

At the same time, according to John 18 and 19:1, Pilate has Jesus’ scourged, in the hopes that when the people see him they will pity him. He then brings Jesus out before the crowd, with spit mingled with blood, and his bruised, and battered body hoping to elicit some sort of sympathy!

Pilate tries to release Jesus because he knows that they delivered him because of envy, and because he knows that Jesus is innocent. He is even warned by his wife in a dream, “Have nothing to do with that Just man.”
When Pilate sees that they ask for Barabbas instead of Jesus, Pilate then asks, “What then do you want me to do with Jesus?” “Crucify him!”

“Why, what evil has he done?”

Now, the chief priests tells Pilate, “He claims to be the Son of God, and by our law this is blasphemy and is worthy of death.” Pilate then brings Jesus back into the judgment hall, and questions him about his origin. Jesus does not answer, and Pilate says, “Do you not know that I have the power (authority) to crucify you, and the power to release you?” Jesus then makes it clear that Pilate only has that authority on the basis of what God has given him. (Now we know why the person on trial here is not Jesus, but Pilate. What will he do? How will he handle it?)
If Pilate does not give them the sentence they ask for, they will report Pilate back to Rome of sedition, and because Pilate has already been in trouble with Tiberius Caesar for other accounts of stirring up the Jews, he is now fearful for his job, and perhaps his life.

Pilate then brings Jesus to the seat of Judgment (the Pavement), in the Hebrew—Gabbatha. He washes his hands, and states, “I am innocent of the blood of this just person, see you to it.” The crowd says, “His blood be on us, and on our children” (and in Acts 2 and 5:28 the apostles lay Jesus’ blood at the feet of the Jews – hence, Jews and Gentiles alike are guilty of the death of Jesus).

Pilate then delivers Jesus to be crucified.

The lessons next week!