The Trial: It is early morning.
Following that MOCK trial of Jesus, the whole council is
gathered to justify the action of the previous night, and to
decide how to convince Pilate, the Roman governor, to have
Christ put to death. The troop has proceeded to Pilate's
judgment hall. These men, the members of the religious
council, even though their hearts are filled with hatred and
murder, will not enter the hall, as they do not want to become
defiled by entering the place of a Gentile, and thus be
debarred from the Passover sacrifices which will be taking
place later that day. So they send a note on ahead, asking
Pilate if they would be able to hold the "hearing" on the
palace court Pavement.
This Pavement, which received its name from the beautiful
and rare colored stones with which it was paved, was a raised
balcony where cases were sometimes heard.
Pilate appears and seats himself in the chair of
exquisitely carved white ivory. He looks down upon the sea of
faces beneath him. There he sees the priests with their hard
faces, and the excited multitude that had gathered when they
heard of the arrest of this well-known Preacher and Healer.
There in the midst of the throng, surrounded by guards, stands
Jesus the Prisoner, calm and unmoved by the turmoil, yet
showing the signs of the suffering through which He has just
been put.
Pilate raises his hands. The multitude becomes silent. He
speaks: "What accusations do ye bring
against this Man?" he asks in a loud and annoyed
tone. He doesn’t appreciate being called in so early in the
morning.
The spokesman for the Jews replies, in an equally loud
tone: "We found Him perverting our nation
and forbidding to give tribute to Caesar, and saying that He,
Himself, is Christ, a King."
Jesus stands quietly, making no denial to their charges.
Pilate, who is used to having prisoners calling out their
innocence at this point, wondered at this. He asks, "Do You answer nothing? Do you not hear how many
things they are saying against You?” Still Jesus
says nothing. This is an unusual case. It makes Pilate
determined to examine Jesus privately. He commands that He
should be taken into the judgment hall. Pilate follows.
Jesus Before Pilate: "You! Are You the
King of the Jews?” Pilate asks, looking Jesus up
and down. The way He stands at present, He does not look like
a Man to make such arrogant claims.
“Do you say this of yourself?”
Jesus asks in reply. “Or have
others told you this about Me? Do you really want to know
about Me, or are you simply repeating words of others?”
Jesus would not answer those who accused Him
unjustly, but He would not refuse to answer Pilate if He
really wished to know the truth.
"Am I a Jew?" Pilate snapped
back. "Why would I have any personal
interest in the affairs of the Jews? Your own nation and the
chief priests delivered You to me. What have you done?"
Jesus can see that Pilate really wants to give a just
decision, so He answers, "My Kingdom is
not of this world; If my Kingdom were of this world then would
My servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews;
but now is My Kingdom not from hence."
A Kingdom of another world! Pilate cannot understand such a
statement. This is a new one, Someone declaring such an insane
idea! Why should he condemn a man for such a belief? “Are You
a King, then?” he repeats.
"You sayest that I am a King. I am
indeed a King," says Jesus. "To this end have I been born, and
to this end am I come into the world, that I should bear
witness unto the truth. Everyone that is of the truth hearest
My voice."
"Truth?”
repeats Pilate, with a sneer on his
face and in his voice. "What is truth?"
He certainly hadn't heard much of it in his
business. Pilate walks out of the room, without waiting for a
reply. He walks away from the only Man who could have answered
his question. Going back to the balcony he speaks to the crowd
in a loud agitated tone. "I find no fault
in this Man."
This infuriated the Jews. Their spokesman answers Pilate
back in the same tone. "He stirs up the
people." A murmur of consent ripples through the
crowd. "He has been teaching all through
Judea, and beginning from Galilee even unto this place."
Jesus before Herod: Pilate's spirits rise. This
statement triggered a thought. There just might be hope for
getting this Man off after all. He would send him to the
puppet king, Herod. This was his jurisdiction. So off the
troop go to Herod.
Herod is pleased. He had always wanted to meet this Man. He
had heard so much about Him, how He performed miracles, and of
His teaching... And now Jesus stands before him. Herod,
flaunting his authority, asks Jesus to demonstrate some of His
miracles. Jesus refuses. In fact, He would answer none of
Herod's questions. The arrogant Herod becomes furious that
some pipsqueak Citizen would refuse to obey him. He begins to
mock Jesus. He commands that some Royal robes be brought out.
He drapes Jesus in gorgeous purple robes, and insults Him.
Then he sends Him back to Pilate. He could make no headway
with this strange Prisoner, with whom he could find no
wrongdoing.
Christ or Barabbas: Irritated, Pilate now summons all the
chief priests, rulers and people to gather before him. He
snaps at them, "Ye brought unto me this
Man, as one that perverteth the people; and behold, I, having
examined Him before you, found no fault in this Man touching
those things whereof ye accuse Him; no, nor yet Herod; for he
sent Him back unto us; and behold, nothing worthy of death
hath been done by Him. I will therefore chastise Him and
release Him."
The crowd, building by the minute, cry in unison. "No! Away with Him! He is worthy of death!"
Then Pilate, remembering that it is a Jewish custom
to release a prisoner each year during the Passover, thinks of
a way he would be able to free Jesus. He presents his plan to
the people.
There was a prisoner being held, by the name of Barabbas.
He had held an insurrection against the Romans and was also a
murderer and a robber. Pilate knows that the chief priests and
religious leaders have delivered Jesus to him because of their
envy; so he comes up with this suggestion and presents it to
the common people who had gathered, thinking that he would
appeal to their sympathy. So he says, "Ye
have a custom that I should release unto you one at the
Passover, will ye, therefore, that I release unto you the King
of the Jews?"
Just at this time Pilate is distracted. A servant comes to
him with a note from his wife. Pilate reads the note, great
concern showing on his face. His wife is a good woman, and he
holds a great regard and respect for her. He knows her as a
woman of good judgment. His hands begin to shake as he reads,
"Have thou nothing to do with that just
Man," she entreats him. "For I have suffered many things this
day in a dream because of Him."
His wife's note affects Pilate deeply, and he determines to
save the life of the Prisoner. He turns back to the people.
But this distraction is just long enough for the leaders to
have stirred up the people, passing in and out among them to
tell them to ask for Barabbas' release, not this Christ. So
when Pilate asks again, "Shall I release
Jesus?" they reply in unison, "Not this Man, but Barabbas."
"What then, what do you want me to do
with Jesus who is called the Christ?" asks Pilate.
"Crucify Him! Crucify Him!"
yell the crowd.
"Why? What evil hath He done?”
Pilate persists.
"Crucify Him! Crucify Him! "
comes back the frenzied answer. A third time Pilate pleads
with the people.
"Why? What has He done? I find no evil
in Him. Let me just chastise Him and let Him go."
Pilate is determined to free Jesus, not only
because he knows Him to be innocent, but also because of what
his wife has told him...
The people's cry becomes louder and more vicious. "Away with Him! Away with Him!"
Pilate can see that the people are on the verge of a riot,
and he would be right in the middle of it. What can he do? If
he gives in to the crowd he knows he would be condemning an
innocent Man. If he goes against the mob he knows that this
would be the last day of his life. The crowd would rush on
him, killing him for his decision. Pilate turns to a servant,
requesting that a basin of water be brought. Before the crowd
Pilate makes a great ceremony of washing his hands. "I am innocent of this righteous Man's blood;
let the responsibility be on you," he says.
"Let His blood be on us and our
children!” The echo of their cry rings out across
the valley. The people get their wish. Jesus was condemned to
die.
And from that day on, right down through the ages,
Christ's blood has been on the heads of those people who
condemned Him to death, and on their children...
But before we point any fingers, all down through the ages,
EVERYONE who does not accept Christ's sacrificial offering of
His blood, is as guilty of that decision as were the people
who stood in the crowd on that awful day.