NO GREATER LOVE: JESUS AND PONTIUS PILATE

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After Jesus was found guilty of blasphemy by the Jewish Sanhedrin, He still needed to be brought before the Roman governor, Pontius Pilate, so that He could be crucified since only Pilate had the power to crucify Him. Those who wanted Jesus crucified where mainly two groups. First, there was the Jewish Sanhedrin who ruled the Temple and the religious affairs of Jews and considered Jesus to be a dangerous blasphemer who might destroy the Temple religious system of animal sacrifices. The other group was the followers of the insurrectionist Barabbas. He was in prison, but could be released because of the customary Passover amnesty of a prisoner. This could happen by popular acclamation. These people would want their leader to be released rather than Jesus. The High Priest Caiaphas and the Jewish Sanhedrin needed a charge to level against Jesus to Pilate since the charge of blasphemy would mean nothing to Pilate, the gentile governor. They told Pilate, “We found this man perverting our nation, and forbidding us to give tribute to Caesar, and saying that he himself is Christ a king.” (Lk 23:2)

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Pontius Pilate, therefore, was faced with a dilemma. What is he to do with this Man who was brought before him and charged by the High Priest Caiaphas and the Jewish Sanhedrin with being a dangerous criminal and a threat to Rome who ought to be crucified? Pope Benedict, in Jesus of Nazareth, gives us insights into the decision which Pilate had to make. The image of Pilate in the Gospels presents the Roman Prefect quite realistically as a man who could be brutal when he judged this to be in the interests of public order. Yet he also knew that Rome owed its world dominance not least to its tolerance of foreign divinities and to the capacity of Roman law to build peace. This is how he comes across to us during Jesus' trial.

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The charge that Jesus claimed to be king of the Jews was a serious one. Rome had no difficulty in recognizing. regional kings like Herod, but they had to be legitimated by Rome and they had to receive from Rome the definition and limitation of their sovereignty. A king without such legitimation was a rebel who threatened the Pax Romana and therefore had to be put to death.

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Pilate knew, however, that no rebel uprising had been instigated by Jesus. Everything he had heard must have made Jesus seem to him like a religious fanatic, who may have offended against some Jewish legal and religious rulings, but that was of no concern to him. The Jews themselves would have to judge that. From the point of view of the Roman juridical and political order, which fell under his competence, there was nothing serious to hold against Jesus.

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Pilate needed to know what was going on among the Jews whom he ruled so he must have had spies who informed him of any dangers to his rule. Pilate would not have had anything to do with Jesus had if He not been brought before him as a criminal and dangerous claimant to kingship. Pilate knew that he needed to question Jesus himself to find out what he was to do with Him. Pilate had Jesus brought into his residence, the praetorium, and asks Him, “Are you the King of the Jews?”  (Jn 18:33) Jesus, however, then asks Pilate a question, “Do you say this of your own accord, or did others say it to you about me?” (Jn 18:34) Jesus wanted to know whether Pilate really thought that He was claiming to be the “King of the Jews”, or was he just repeating the accusation that the Jewish Sanhedrin had brought against Him. Pilate tells Jesus that he knows nothing about Jesus being the “King of the Jews” but is just repeating the accusation brought against Jesus. “Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the chief priests have handed you over to me; what have you done?” Jesus then affirms that He is a King but not in a way which is a threat to the worldly power of Pontius Pilate. “My kingship is not of this world; if my kingship were of this world, my servants would fight, that I might not be handed over to the Jews; but my kingship is not from the world.” (Jn 18:36) Jesus was reminding Pilate that He had not resisted being arrested in the Garden of Gethsemane.

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Here was Pilate’s dilemma. He knew that the High Priest Caiaphas and the Jewish Sanhedrin wanted Jesus crucified, but Jesus had many followers, and he was not sure what they would do if He was crucified. Perhaps he could “pass the buck” to someone else.  Pilate discovered that Jesus was a Galilean and was thus under the jurisdiction of Herod Antipas, the ruler of Galilee and Perea. He then sent Jesus to Herod who was in Jerusalem at that time. Herod was an Edomite and thus was a descendent of Esau, the brother of the patriarch, Jacob, who was the father of the twelve tribes of Israel. Esau had sold his birthright to Jacob (Gen 25:27-34) and then lost the blessing of his father, Isaac, through the trickery of his mother, Rebekah. (Gen 27:1-40) Esau became the patriarch of the nation of Edom which was historically one of the enemies of Israel. Herod knew about Jesus because he governed Perea, east of the Jordan river where John the Baptist was preaching. Herod was living with his mistress, Herodias, who was the wife of his half-brother, Herod Philip. John had denounced Herod’s union with Herodias, since it was unlawful (adultery). Herod then put John into prison but still continued to listen to him. (Mk 6:20) However, he beheaded John at the request of his mistress Herodias. (Mk 6:14-29, Mt 14:1-12) When Jesus was brought to Herod, he was glad to see Jesus and hoped to see Jesus perform a miracle. (Lk 23:8) He questioned Jesus extensively, but Jesus gave no answer (Lk 23:9). Why not? Perhaps He had nothing to say to Herod, the unrepentant sinner. Luke’s Gospel then tells us, “And Herod and Pilate became friends with each other that very day, for before this they had been at enmity with each other.” (Lk 23:12) They saw that their interests were in common since Pilate governed under the Roman Empire and Herod had been installed  by Rome as “tetrarch” over Galilee and Perea. Both saw no danger to their rule from Jesus and had contempt for the Jewish rulers in Jerusalem, some of whom wanted to be free of Roman rule, and considered Herod to be an illegitimate ruler since he was not a descendant of King David.

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Herod sent Jesus back to Pilate, which meant that he had to deal with Jesus himself. Pilate knew he had to do the “dirty work” of Caiaphas and the Sanhedrin because of the threat of rioting and disorder which the Sanhedrin hung over him, yet he did not want to look like the “bad guy” who had an innocent man crucified. Pilate’s wife told him, “Have nothing to do with that righteous man, for I have suffered much over him in a dream.” (Mt 27:19) Pilate tried to escape from blame for the death of Jesus by offering the Passover amnesty of a prisoner to Jesus. Of course, the crowd wanted to free the insurrectionist Barabbas, instead. “Now the chief priests and the elders persuaded the people to ask for Barabbas and destroy Jesus.” (Mt 27:20). Pilate kept maintaining that he wanted to free Jesus, but the crowd demanded that Barabbas be released. Pilate, however, tried to absolve himself of blame for the crucifixion of Jesus by washing his hands in front of the crowd and saying “I am innocent of this righteous man’s blood; see to it yourselves.” (Mt 27:24). The crowd answered, “His blood be on us and on our children!” (Mt 27:25)

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There was one last exchange between Jesus and Pilate recorded in the Gospels.  When Pilate had heard that Jesus had claimed to be the Son of God he went back into his residence and asked Jesus, “Where are you from?”, (Jn 19:9) but Jesus did not answer him. Pilate then says to Jesus, “You will not speak to me? Do you not know that I have power to release you, and power to crucify you?” (Jn 19:10) Jesus answers him, “You would have no power over me unless it had been given you from above; therefore he who delivered me to you has the greater sin.” (Jn 19:11) Pilate is asserting his power over Jesus and expects Jesus to acknowledge that power. Jesus, however, reminds Pilate that his power comes from God. The One over whom Pilate was claiming power is actually the source of his power.

After Jesus had been scourged, beaten, mocked, crowned with thorns, and robed with a mocking royal purple robe, Pilate presents Jesus to his accusers in such pitiable state saying, “Here is your king!” (Jn 19:14) The mob replied, “Away with him, away with him, crucify him!”  (Jn 19:15) Pilate answers, “Shall I crucify your King?” (Jn 19:15) The chief priests give their final reply, “We have no king but Caesar.” (Jn 19:15) Pilate was certainly surprised that the One whom the Jewish authorities were claiming to be a King and thus a threat to the rule of Pilate, was not resisting him nor were His followers resisting Pilate and the Romans. He was probably mocking the Jewish authorities by asserting that this Man in such a pitiable state was their King. To Pilate, and to secular powers down through the ages to the present, power comes from “below”, money, political power, armies, weapons, and other means of force. Even the chief priests only recognized worldly power when they said “We have no king but Caesar.” Earlier, Jesus tells Pilate “You would have no power over me unless it had been given you from above.” The power of Jesus and His followers also comes from “above” but do we now recognize that Power? – Jim Nugent, CfP