LANGUAGE:
Pilate Meets Jesus
(Mark 15:1–5: Matt 27:11–14; Luke 23:2, 3; John 18:29–38)
I invite you to open your Bibles to Mark 15. We have been following in the footsteps of Jesus for 3 ½ years as told to us by Mark, told to him by Peter.
Mark’s Gospel starts his account of Jesus’ life with these words—The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God (Mark 1:1). When we come to chap 14 we are looking at the last 21 hours leading to Jesus’ crucifixion, where He takes on the sins of the world, giving His life as a ransom for many.[i] We need to get a grip on this truth--the cross is the pinnacle of life transformation.
Jesus’ final hours began in chap 14 with His celebrating the Passover with His disciples, which was followed by an hour of prayer at Gethsemane.
At that point the High Priest blurted out, You have heard the blasphemy (Mark 14:64). v65, the Sanhedrin then physically attack Him, spitting on Him, blindfolding Him, and beating Him with their fits, slapping Him in the face.
When we come to Chap 15 Jesus was taken to Pilate. Emotions are running high. Anger and death hung in the air.
Let’s pray: Gracious Father, help us to see how Jesus has become the crisis of history. As You open this passage to us, help us to realize, that like then, life is confronting us all the time to choose between arrogance and humility. AMEN.
In our study today we move from the Sanhedrin Court to Jesus’ trial before Pilate. As we explore the first 5 verses, I would like you to put your mind around four questions:
Follow along as we read God’s Word that is for us today as found in Mark 15:1-5(GW).
1 Early in the morning the chief priests immediately came to a decision with the leaders and the experts in Moses’ Teachings. The whole Jewish council decided to tie Jesus up, lead him away, and hand him over to Pilate. 2 Pilate asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?” Jesus replied, “Yes, I am”. 3The court room turned into chaos as the chief priests began to accuse Jesus of many things. 4So Pilate asked Jesus again, “Don’t you have any answer? Look how many accusations they’re bringing against you!” 5 But Jesus made no further answer; so Pilate was surprised.
This is the Word of God for us today.
Jesus’ last 21 hours is a rush. In chap 14 He was arrested sometime around 1am Friday morning. Between then and chap 15, He was quizzed by Annas, Caiaphas, and the Sanhedrin, which would be the Jewish Supreme Court. Around 5am, they hold a special planning meeting. [iii] Remember, they have charged Him with blasphemy (Mark 14:46).[iv] Since they saw Jesus as a mere man, claiming to be the omnipotent, eternal God, they branded Him as a blasphemer, which meant certain death.
The Romans had taken that right away from them. And according to John 18, they clearly understood their limitations as to the death penalty.[v]
In other words, they simply couldn’t tell Pilate this man had blasphemed by claiming to be the Messiah. That just wouldn’t have work. For them to have Jesus crucified, they had to conjure up some kind of charge to bring Rome into their scheme.
So we read in v1 (NASB95) Early in the morning the chief priests with the elders and scribes and the whole Council, immediately held a consultation . . . that is, they call a special planning meeting. The point of the planning meeting was to formulate a plan for dragging Rome into their scheme.
They came early in the morning to Pilate’s court because that was when Pilate held court. The Romans generally held court between 6am and 11am. So they are now in a hurry.
Mark doesn’t tell us the result of their specially called meeting, but Luke tells us in chap 23, vs2 that they rewrote their charge. When they came to Pilate, their charges were as follows: “We found this man misleading our nation and forbidding to pay taxes to Caesar, and saying that He Himself is Christ, a King”. So now they have three accusations—
Notice what the Jewish Council has done. In their court the charge was blasphemy—of His claim to be the Christ, the Son of the Blessed One (Mark 14:61). But now in the court of Rome, the charge becomes entirely political. He was leading a rebellion and claimed to be king in opposition to Caesar, which would have been considered high treason. The Council’s behavior reveals the evil that lodges within the human heart.
So following their planning meeting, perhaps around 6am Friday, they again bound Jesus and took Him to Pilate.[vi] Understand, this was a huge move on their part.
They hated Pilate with a passion for he was a ruthless ruler, and Pilate resented them. Luke 13 gives us a little insight as to Pilate’s ruthlessness. Apparently there was a time when Pilate mingled the blood of certain Galileans with their sacrifices (Luke 13:2-5), suggesting that during a time of worship, Pilate slew a number of Galileans in such a way that their blood was mingled with the sacrifices that they had made.[vii] Anyway, after some argument, according to John 18, Pilate agrees to hear their case and question Jesus.
The Jewish leaders were desperate. If we skip down to v10(GW), there is a very revealing verse. In the midst of all the chaos Mark points out for us that Pilate knew that the chief priests had handed Jesus over to him because they were envious.[viii] To be envious means wanting something that someone else has. If you cannot have it, you strive to keep them from having it, even to the point of destroying the person. The Jewish leaders were envious of Jesus’ popularity, His power, and His authority over the people, so they were bent on destroying Him at all cost. Their envy/jealousy came over them like a giant tsunami wave.
At that point Pilate knew they were willing to go to any lengths to see Jesus dead and that he had no hope of winning the argument by mere persuasion.
Because the Jews charged Jesus as a seditionist against Rome, Pilate takes the accusation serious, and begins his interrogation by asking: V3, Are You The King of the Jews? [ix]
Though it doesn’t show up in English, in the original, the ‘you’ is very emphatic. It’s like us saying You must be kidding me, are YOU really the King of the Jews? There is a touch of mockery in Pilate’s questioning. [x] Keep in mind, what stood before Pilate was a beaten man. Remember the Sanhedrin had literally attacked Him. His face was puffy. Perhaps two black eyes. Dried spit was on His face and beard. His robe was in disarray. And so the question: You must be kidding me, are YOU really the King of the Jews?
Jesus responds, if you say so, which would be something along the lines of “Whatever you say,” which fits with Jesus’ words in John 18:34: “Did you think of that yourself, or did others tell you about me?”
According to John 19, it appears that Pilate has taken Jesus out of sight from the mob, giving him time to question Jesus without interference. There Jesus goes on to say, "My kingship is not of this world; if my kingship were of this world, my servants would fight." In so saying, He makes clear to Pilate that His kingship was no threat to him or Rome whatsoever. I think Pilate understood and was relieved that Jesus was no revolutionary (John 18:36, 37)[xi]
V3, So Pilate goes out to the crowd and makes His assessment. John 18:38, he tells them, I find no guilt in Him. V3, The chief priests began to accuse Jesus ‘even more’ harshly, and perhaps Pilate himself. It could be here that they also shouted out to Pilate according to John 19, If you let this man go, you are no friend of Caesar. Anyone who claims to be a king opposes Caesar.” It was getting ugly.
So Pilate questions Him again. V4(GW) “Don’t you have any answer? Look how many accusations they’re bringing against you!” This time Jesus refuses to discuss the matter further with him. Pilate is absolutely stunned. Here was somebody being falsely accused . . . and He makes no defense. He stands calmly and with dignity before him and his accusers. Isaiah 53:7, He opened not His mouth. And Pilate is absolutely amazed.
Pilate is in a corner. In John 19 He tells Jesus straight up, Don’t you know that I have authority over you? I can do anything I want to you. I have the authority to release You, and I have the authority to crucify You? John 19:11 (GW) Jesus responded, “You wouldn’t have any authority over me if it hadn’t been given to you from above.
As we enter into the final 21 hours leading to the cross, only from the vantage point of faith can we see what is really happening here. It's vital for us to understand that as the Lamb of God who comes to take away the sins of this world, He is the King that came to die for sin though He didn't deserve to die because He could never sin. He took our sin penalty that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
Romans 6:23 comes to mind, for the wages of sin is death. In 2 Corinthians 5:21, God made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. In taking our judgment for sin, He died in our place as a substitute, that we might never know the wrath of God. As followers of Christ, we will never know the truth of Revelation 20:14-15, that there is another death referred to as the second death, defined as living out eternity in the eternal lake of fire. Mark wants us to understand that truth as we work our way to the cross.
As I reflect on what is happening in these five verses, let me make three applications for us.
Understand, He guided the entire process of bringing His Own Son to the cross. In reality, God was the executioner. He was the One who was pleased to kill His own Son as a substitutionary sacrifice for our sins.[xiii] Isaiah 53:10 (GW) It was the Lord’s will to crush him with suffering. When the Lord has made his life a sacrifice for our wrongdoings, He will see His descendants for many days. The will of the Lord will succeed through Him.[xiv] This truth was hammer home by Peter in Acts 2:23, when speaking to the crowds, said, you put Him to death by the determined counsel and foreknowledge of God. The point for us is that this was not a surprise moment for God. What unfolded had been laid out way before creation in Genesis 1.[xv]
It is well that we be reminded that in the midst of it all, God uses wicked men and women to fulfill His purposes. And in so doing provides for us fresh evidence that the Bible is true. Scoffers can scarcely talk of our faith without ridicule and scorn. We would do well to remember that their conduct was foreseen and foretold long ago. "There shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts." (2 Peter 3:3)
Hebrews 12:3 (NASB95) For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. When Jesus stood before Pilate and "accused of many things," He answered nothing. Though the charges against Him were false, and He knew no sin, He was content to endure the charges against Himself and not answer.
It is normal for us who follow Christ to have experiences of stress and suffering that threaten our faith, pressing too hard, or lasting too long and feeling intolerable. Losing heart is a great spiritual danger for every one of us. So the writer of Hebrews writes: “Consider him who has endured such hostility by sinners against himself.” Why consider this? Because the same kind of thing may happen to you. And if not now, it surely will, and we need to get strength from Jesus.
Notice how the writer of Hebrews takes Jesus and the hostility shown against him and links Him with our own suffering and struggles. “He endured hostility from sinners . . . you too have resisted, but have not yet had to shed your blood.” So the suffering in view here is mainly persecution in various forms, short of martyrdom. At some point all of us are going to be forced to take a stand as to the Gospel. The wolves of Satan are circling.
Knowing Christ and His endurance is meant to help us to not grow weary and lose heart.[xvi] The point for us is that Christ must be our center at every turn.
There’s a chorus we have sung that goes like this:
Jesus, be the centre, Be my source, be my light
Jesus, be the centre, Be my hope, be my song
Be the fire in my heart, Be the wind in these sails
Be the reason that I live,
Jesus, be my vision, be my path, be my guide, Jesus[xvii]
If Jesus ever ceases to be the center of our lives, we will crash into destruction. We must stay focused on Christ, the author and designer of our faith, who despised the shame of the cross, and now sits at the right hand of the throne of God (Hebrews 12:2) if we do that we will not “grow weary and lose heart.”
Keeping Him as our center we will keep the faith, fight the good fight, and finish our course, and die well, and glorify our Father in heaven.
Mark 15:4–5 (NASB95) 4Pilate questioned Him again, saying, “Do You not answer? See how many charges they bring against You!” 5 But Jesus made no further answer; so Pilate was amazed.[xviii]
If we let our imaginations run, the Sanhedrin and Pilate’s courtroom was in total chaos as hell itself unleashed its fury. It is in the clamorous chaos Jesus remained utterly silent--demonstrating extraordinary strength and dignity. The envy and priorities of the Sanhedrin blinded them to the glorious messenger of God as Hebrews 1 tells us, in these last days God has spoken to us in His Son. Their jealousy and priorities stopped up their ears so that they could not hear what God had to say. And so God became silent.
As it happened then, so it is happening today. People are stopping up their ears so that they cannot hear what God has to say because of their priorities.[xix] We need to realize that we can easily block out the voice of God. When God seems silent, it may mean that we have stopped listening to His voice, our priorities rule, our cares of this world have plugged our spiritual ears, and we actively neglect His Word. Listen to David’s prayer in Psalm 28:1 (NASB95) To You, O LORD, I call; My rock, do not be deaf to me, For if You are silent to me, I will become like those who go down to the pit. For some reason God was silent, and David was quick to acknowledge that he was in great danger because of His silence.
Make a note of this: when God is silent we are vulnerable to feeling forsaken and to react with wrong thoughts about Him and wrong attitudes towards Him. When God is silent is when we experience the most painful and confusing moments of our lives. So it was with the Sanhedrin and Pilate. God’s silence was meant to bring to them a deep sense of sinfulness. And so it is with us: God’s silence is often meant to bring us to a deep sense of our sinfulness. God became silent to the Sanhedrin because of envy/jealousy couldn’t find God. By their envy, by their jealousy they had de-throned God, and by de-throning God they had moved into idolatrous rebellion against His authority and goodness.
When you and I sense the silence of God, that is the time to be still like David and cry out to Him.
Let’s close in prayer -- Heavenly Father, Thank You for sending Jesus to die for our sin. Thank You that His blood has paid the full penalty for our sins and that the power of sin in our lives has been broken through Him. Thank You that His sacrifice reveals Your immense love for everyone despite our rebellion. This morning I give You thanks and praise for this free gift of salvation that is open to whosoever will come. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen[xx]
[i] Mark 10:45 (NASB95) 45 “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”
[ii] Mark 14:62 (NASB95) 62 And Jesus said, “I am; and you shall see THE SON OF MAN SITTING AT THE RIGHT HAND OF POWER, and COMING WITH THE CLOUDS OF HEAVEN.”
[iii] Matthew 27:1 (NASB95) 1 Now when morning came, all the chief priests and the elders of the people conferred together against Jesus to put Him to death;
[iv] The high priest asked him directly: “Art thou the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?” Jesus (silent up to that point in His own defense) answered him plainly. “I am,” He said, “and ye shall see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven” (Mark 14:62). The council immediately voted to condemn Him to death, since blasphemy was considered a capital crime. https://www.blueletterbible.org/comm/guzik_david/study-guide/mark/mark-15.cfm “The detail that Jesus was delivered to Pilate’s forum early in the morning is a significant index of the historical accuracy of the tradition. It was necessary for the Sanhedrin to bring its business to Pilate as soon after dawn as possible because the working day of a Roman official began at the earliest hour of daylight. Legal trials in the Roman forum were customarily held shortly after sunrise.”
[v] John 18:29–38 (NASB95) 29 Therefore Pilate went out to them and said, “What accusation do you bring against this Man?” 30 They answered and said to him, “If this Man were not an evildoer, we would not have delivered Him to you.” 31 So Pilate said to them, “Take Him yourselves, and judge Him according to your law.” The Jews said to him, “We are not permitted to put anyone to death,” 32 to fulfill the word of Jesus which He spoke, signifying by what kind of death He was about to die. 33 Therefore Pilate entered again into the Praetorium, and summoned Jesus and said to Him, “Are You the King of the Jews?” 34 Jesus answered, “Are you saying this on your own initiative, or did others tell you about Me?” 35 Pilate answered, “I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests 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, then My servants would be fighting so that I would not be handed over to the Jews; but as it is, My kingdom is not of this realm.” 37 Therefore Pilate said to Him, “So You are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say correctly that I am a king. For this I have been born, and for this I have come into the world, to testify 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 guilt in Him.
[vi] J. Ligon Duncan, “Are You The King of the Jews? (Luke 23:1-5), https://rts.edu/resources/are-you-the-king-of-the-jews/. Pilate didn’t like the Jews, didn’t really understand their law, and didn’t want to be dragged into some infernal, nitpicking religious debate. Pilate had a very contentious relationship with the Sanhedrin, with the council of the elders, and with the Jewish people in general. They considered him greedy; they considered him contentious and condescending. He did things that provoked the Jews. For instance, he laid his hands on monies that were meant for the temple service and used them to build an aqueduct. He was very unpopular, but the Jewish Council were in desperate need of Pilate
[vii] Josephus records still another disturbance. To construct an aqueduct to bring water into Jerusalem for a distance of about twenty-five miles, Pilate used money from the temple treasury at Jerusalem. When he made a visit to the city, large crowds clamored against this act. Pilate then sent disguised soldiers to mingle among the multitude and, at a signal, to attack the Jews. (Antiquities of the Jews, Book XVIII, chap. III, par. 2; Wars of the Jews, Book II, chap. IX, par. 4) If Luke 13: 1 does not refer to another incident, it may have been at this time that Pilate ‘mixed the blood of Galileans with their sacrifices.’ This seems to imply that he had them slain right in the temple area. Since the Galileans were subjects of Herod Antipas, the district ruler of Galilee, this slaughter may have been at least a contributing factor in the enmity existing between Pilate and Herod up until the time of Jesus’ trial.
[viii] Robert S. Rayburn, Jesus Judged, https://www.faithtacoma.org/mark/2008-06-22-amPontius Pilate was the fifth Roman prefect of Palestine, appointed by the emperor Tiberius. He ordinarily lived in Caesarea but at the Jewish festivals, when large numbers of Jewish pilgrims streamed into Jerusalem and religious fervor ran high, the governor’s presence was needed in the capital. Pilate was prefect from A.D. 26 to A.D. 37, the longest tenure of any of the 14 Roman governors of Judea. By Roman standards he was a competent ruler but he tended to be severe and intractable and it was for this that he was eventually fired by Caligula: he dealt too ruthlessly with what was probably an innocent gathering of people in Samaria. The political situation of a Roman governor of Palestine was not simple. The Jews were constantly agitating against Roman rule. He would be expected to put down insurrection without mercy, but he could be punished for dealing too severely with his subjects. There was no use making an already volatile situation still more so. The picture we are given of Pilate in the NT comports very well with the information we have about him in other sources. Preacher's Outline and Sermon Bible - Commentary - The Preacher's Outline & Sermon Bible – Mark. When Pilate became procurator of Judea, he did two things that aroused the people's bitter hatred against him forever. First, on his state visits to Jerusalem he rode into the city with the Roman standard, an eagle sitting atop a pole. All previous governors had removed the standard because of the Jews' opposition to idols. Second, Pilate launched the construction of a new water supply for Jerusalem. To finance the project, he took the money out of the temple treasury. The Jews never forgot or forgave this act. They bitterly opposed Pilate all through his reign, and he treated them with equal contempt.
[ix] J. Ligon Duncan, “Are You The King of the Jews? (Luke 23:1-5), https://rts.edu/resources/are-you-the-king-of-the-jews/. We know a few things about Pilate from the secular record, from that which has been recorded about him outside of Scripture. He had been governor since AD 26. He came from Spain. Not a man of noble birth, but a very ambitious man, a man who served in the Roman legions in Germany and fought along the Rhine river, and afterward went to Rome to make his fortune. And while in Rome, he met and married Claudia Procula, the youngest daughter of Julia, who was the daughter of Caesar Augustus. And so, he married the granddaughter of Caesar. And by that marriage, became a man who was well-connected. And perhaps due to those connections he had by marriage, he gained the governorship of Judea. https://www.pulpitpages.com/uploads/9/5/3/2/9532717/78._brought_before_pilate_-_mark_15_1-5_.pdf. Pilate was removed as governor when he ordered an attack on Samaritans who had gathered at Mount Gerizim for religious activities. After being removed as governor, Pilate was exiled to northern Europe. Tradition claims he committed suicide there, being unable to deal with his loss of power and prestige.
[x] Craig A. Evans, Mark 8:27–16:20, vol. 34B, Word Biblical Commentary (Dallas: Word, Incorporated, 2001), 478.
[xi] Ray Stedman, Jesus and the Rulers (Mark 15:)
[xii] Matthew 27:14 (NASB95) 14 And He did not answer him with regard to even a single charge, so the governor was quite amazed.
[xiii] Cf., John MacArthur, Pilate Before Jesus (Mark 15:1-5) https://www.gty.org/library/sermons-library/41-79/pilate-before-jesus.
[xiv]2 Corinthians 5:21 (NASB95) 21 He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. Romans 3:25 (NASB95) 25 whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith. This was to demonstrate His righteousness, because in the forbearance of God He passed over the sins previously committed; Romans 4:25 (NASB95) 25 He who was delivered over because of our transgressions, and was raised because of our justification.
[xv] Cf., Ephesians 1:4 (NASB95) just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love. Matthew 25:34 (NASB95) “Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 2 Timothy 1:9 (ESV) who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was granted us in Christ Jesus before the ages began. 1 Corinthians 2:7 (NASB95) but we speak God’s wisdom in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God predestined before the ages to our glory; John 17:24 (NASB95) “Father, I desire that they also, whom You have given Me, be with Me where I am, so that they may see My glory which You have given Me, for You loved Me before the foundation of the world. Revelation 13:8 (NASB95) All who dwell on the earth will worship him, everyone whose name has not been written from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who has been slain. Ephesians 1:9–10 (NASB95) 9 He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention which He purposed in Him 10 with a view to an administration suitable to the fullness of the times, that is, the summing up of all things in Christ, things in the heavens and things on the earth. In Him
[xvi] Galatians 6:9 (NASB95) 9 Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary.
[xvii] Be The Centre, https://genius.com/Vineyard-worship-be-the-centre-lyrics
[xviii] Mark 14:61 (NASB95) 61 But He kept silent and did not answer. Again the high priest was questioning Him, and saying to Him, “Are You the Christ, the Son of the Blessed One?” Matthew 26:63 (NASB95) 63 But Jesus kept silent. And the high priest said to Him, “I adjure You by the living God, that You tell us whether You are the Christ, the Son of God.”
[xix] 2 Timothy 4:3 (NASB95) 3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires,
[xx] https://prayer.knowing-jesus.com/John/3/16