SUBMITTED TO ROMAN JUDGMENT
John chapter 18: 28 to 38
In Jerusalem, the Praetorium was the palace in which Pilate resided, in front of which a judgment-seat had been placed.
It was early, technically the fourth watch (3 am. to 6 am), but it was after daybreak (Luke 23:66). Details are found in the other Gospels of the two trials before the Sanhedrin when Caiaphas presided, at night (Matthew 26:57, 59-68; Mark 14:53, 55-65; Luke 22:54, 63-65) and after dawn (Mark 15:1; Mat 27:1; Luke 22:66-71).
There had been two violations of Jewish legal procedure: holding the trial for a capital case at night, and passing condemnation on the same day of the trial; besides, the Sanhedrin no longer had the power of death. A Roman court, however, could meet any time after sunrise. There is a curious irony at the beginning of this narrative: religion in the persons of the chief Jewish priests and officers of the temple, took the Son of God, to be tried by the ruling power in Jerusalem, at the Praetorium. He, the Lord Jesus, had all the right to be the judge of all, but this time He had not come to judge, but to save the world (chapter 8:15; 12:47). Thereafter He has been ordained by God Judge of the living and the dead (Acts 10:42).
The religious leaders piously did not go into the court of judgment lest they should be defiled and not be able to eat the Passover (the Passover meal and the seven-day festival which came after it), yet they thought nothing of striving to kill this innocent man before the Passover Sabbath.
Whether they realised it or not, the prisoner was the One who had come to fulfil the Passover, the Lamb of God who was going to give His life on the Cross for the sins of men.
Pilate found himself facing a prisoner and not knowing what He was accused of. As the Jews would not come in, he had to go outside, apparently on a gallery over the pavement in front of the palace (chapter 19:13), and to ask them what was their formal legal charge.
They gave Pilate the insolent reply that they wouldn't have brought Him if He were not a habitual evildoer. Pilate knew that the chief priests had handed Him over because of envy (Matthew 27:18, Mark 15:10), and he must have sensed that he was being used, and he didn't like it. So he shrewdly told them to judge Him themselves according to their law (they had apparently said nothing to him about their previous trial and condemnation of the prisoner).
They at once admitted that they wanted not so much a fair trial for this prisoner, but a sentence of death, and they needed Pilate's official approval for it (chapter 7:1, 25). They had to admit this, after they had so arrogantly stated earlier: "We are Abraham's seed, and were never in bondage to any man" (chapter 8:33).
They now fulfilled what Jesus had prophesied months earlier: that the religious rulers would condemn Him to death and would deliver Him to the Gentiles, and that He would be crucified (Matthew 20:18,19, John 3:14, 12:32). Furthermore, the only people at that time who executed by crucifixion were the Romans and Psalm 22 prophesies His crucifixion with the piercing of the hands and feet and the agonies of hanging on a cross. If the Jews had put Him to death according to their law, He would have been stoned rather than crucified (chapter 10:31,33).
To give Pilate an excuse for the death sentence, they made the charges implied here "We found this fellow perverting the nation, and forbidding to pay taxes to Caesar, saying that He Himself is Christ, a King" (Luke 23:2). Pilate was compelled to question the Lord as to the charge that He claimed to be a king, so he went back into the palace and summoned Him to his presence (Luke 23:2).
This was the vital accusation from the Roman point of view. It was true that He did claim to be the king of Israel as Nathanael said (John 1:49) and as the ecstatic crowd hailed him on his entry into Jerusalem four days earlier. The Sanhedrin wished Pilate to understand this in a civil sense, rather than spiritually, making Him a rival of Caesar (some of them wanted Him to be this - chapter 6:15) as the Pharisees expected the Messiah to be.
So Pilate asked the Prisoner "Are You the King of the Jews?" The Lord then spoke down to the Roman governor, interposing another question: did he have proper evidence or was it just hearsay?
Pilate uncomfortably avoided a direct answer but implied this was a Jewish matter, and said truthfully that the Jewish nation had delivered Him for punishment. Pilate was apparently dumbfounded. He couldn't believe there was someone claiming to be the king of the Jews and that they would have the audacity to bring such a charge over to him.
He was inside the court, alone with the prisoner; the Jews were waiting outside because of their scruples about contaminating themselves. Pilate would be happy if the prisoner would somehow incriminate himself, so He could be judged and condemned according to Roman law. He therefore asked what had He done causing Him to be brought there?
The Lord graciously explained to Pilate, literally "My kingdom is out of this world." This meant that His Kingdom was not going to be of this world system, a power structure built on politics, brought on by worldly measures, war, turmoil, hatred and bitterness. Pilate himself was a crooked politician, who bought his job and was a puppet of Rome. He hated the Jews, but was afraid to offend them because if there were riots he might lose his job.
The Lord added "If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight..." He didn't pose any threat to the dominion of Rome. He didn't say that His Kingdom wasn't going to be on this earth some day, but "... now My kingdom is not from here." When the time comes He will rule as King of kings and Lord of lords and ". . . the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea" (Isaiah 11:9).
The church cannot build His Kingdom either, for the Bible teaches us clearly that in this present age Christ is gathering out a people for His name (see Acts 15:14). These are the ekklesia or the called-out ones, the church. They are called out of the world to live in the world but not of the world. The time will come when the Lord will completely remove the church from the world, to be united with the resurrected dead of the church in heaven. Later, when Christ comes with His saints, the church, He will establish His Kingdom on earth.
Pilate was now definitely puzzled, so he again asked this prisoner to state that He was indeed a king: maybe he could still catch Him out somehow. He got a very positive answer, but obviously this king was no political threat: He had come to bear witness of the truth, and everyone who is of the truth would hear His voice. This was getting too deep for the likes of Pilate, so he threw out the question "What is truth?" and, without waiting for a reply, went out again to the Jews, and said to them, "I find no fault in Him at all".
At this point the other gospels add that the chief priests accused Him of many things and became the more fierce, saying, "He stirs up the people, teaching throughout all Judea, beginning from Galilee to this place." The Lord maintained complete silence when these accusations were made, which greatly surprised Pilate.
Having discovered that He came from Galilee, Pilate sent Him over to Herod who had jurisdiction over Galilee; but the Lord said not a word to Herod either, so he sent him back to Pilate (Matthew 27:12-14, Mark 15:3-5, Luke 23:5-12). In the meantime Pilate received a message from his wife telling him not to have anything to do with this Just man for she had suffered much in her dreams because of Him (Matthew 27:19).
Pilate was now legally obliged to release this prisoner in whom he could find no fault. He was personally impressed by His coolness, dignity and wisdom. He was also afraid of Him because of what his wife had told him.
R David Jones
28 Then they led Jesus from Caiaphas to the Praetorium, and it was early morning. But they themselves did not go into the Praetorium, lest they should be defiled, but that they might eat the Passover.
29 Pilate then went out to them and said, "What accusation do you bring against this Man?"
30 They answered and said to him, "If He were not an evildoer, we would not have delivered Him up to you."
31 Then Pilate said to them, "You take Him and judge Him according to your law." Therefore the Jews said to him, "It is not lawful for us to put anyone to death,"
32 that the saying of Jesus might be fulfilled which He spoke, signifying by what death He would die.
33 Then Pilate entered the Praetorium again, called Jesus, and said to Him, "Are You the King of the Jews?"
34 Jesus answered him, "Are you speaking for yourself about this, or did others tell you this concerning Me?"
35 Pilate answered, "Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the chief priests have delivered You to me. What have You done?"
36 Jesus answered, "My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now My kingdom is not from here."
37 Pilate therefore said to Him, "Are You a king then?" Jesus answered, "You say rightly that I am a king. For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice."
38 Pilate said to Him, "What is truth?" And when he had said this, he went out again to the Jews, and said to them, "I find no fault in Him at all.