Jesus is Sentenced to Death^(A)

¹⁵ At every festival^[a] the governor had a custom of releasing to the crowd any prisoner whom they wanted. ¹⁶ At that time they were holding a notorious prisoner named Barabbas.^{[b] 17} So when the people^[c] had gathered, Pilate asked them, “Which man do you want me to release for you—Barabbas,^[d] or Jesus who is called ‘the Messiah’?”^{[e] 18} He did this^[f] because he knew that they had handed him over out of jealousy.

¹⁹ While he was sitting on the judge’s seat, his wife sent him a message^[g] that said, “Have nothing to do with that righteous man, because today I have suffered terribly due to a dream I had about him.”

²⁰ But the high priests and elders persuaded the crowds to ask for Barabbas and to demand that Jesus be put to death. ²¹ So the governor asked them, “Which of the two men do you want me to release for you?”

“Barabbas!” they replied.

²² Pilate asked them, “Then what should I do with Jesus, who is called the Messiah?”^[h]

They all said, “Let him be crucified!”

²³ He asked, “What has he done wrong?”

But they kept shouting louder and louder, “Let him be crucified!”

²⁴ Pilate saw that he was getting nowhere, but that a riot was about to break out instead. So he took some water and washed his hands in front of the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this man’s^[i] blood. Attend to that yourselves.”

²⁵ All the people answered, “Let his blood be on us and our children!” ²⁶ Then he released Barabbas for them, but he had Jesus whipped and handed over to be crucified.

Jesus is Sentenced to Death^(A)

⁶ At every festival,^[a] Pilate^[b] would release any one prisoner whom the people^[c] requested. ⁷ Now there was a man in prison named Barabbas. He had been with the insurgents who had committed murder during the rebellion. ⁸ So the crowd came and began to request that Pilate^[d] do for them what he always did.^{[e] 9} Pilate answered them, “Do you want me to release the king of the Jews for you?” ¹⁰ because he knew that the high priests had handed him over due to jealousy.

¹¹ But the high priests stirred up the crowd to get him to release Barabbas for them instead. ¹² So Pilate asked them again, “Then what should I do with the man you call^[f] ‘the King of the Jews’?”

¹³ “Crucify him!” they shouted back.

¹⁴ “Why?” Pilate asked them. “What has he done wrong?”

But they shouted even louder, “Crucify him!”

¹⁵ So Pilate, wanting to satisfy the crowd, released Barabbas for them, but he had Jesus whipped and handed over to be crucified.

³⁹ But you have a custom that I release one person for you at Passover. Do you want me to release for you the king of the Jews?”

⁴⁰ At this, they shouted out again, “Not this fellow, but Barabbas!” Now Barabbas was a revolutionary.^[a]

Jesus is Sentenced to Death^(A)

19 Then Pilate had Jesus taken away and whipped. ² The soldiers twisted some thorns into a victor’s crown, put it on his head, and threw a purple robe on him. ³ They kept coming up to him and saying, “Long live the king of the Jews!” Then they began to slap him on the face.

⁴ Pilate went outside again and told the Jews,^[b] “Look, I am bringing him out to you to let you know that I find no basis for a charge against him.” ⁵ Then Jesus came outside, wearing the victor’s crown of thorns and the purple robe.

Pilate told them, “Here is the man!”

⁶ When the high priests and the officials saw him, they shouted, “Crucify him! Crucify him!”

Pilate told them, “You take him and crucify him. I find no basis for a charge against him.”

⁷ The Jewish leaders^[c] answered Pilate,^[d] “We have a law, and according to that Law he must die because he made himself out to be the Son of God.”

⁸ When Pilate heard this, he became even more afraid. ⁹ Returning to his headquarters,^[e] he asked Jesus, “Where are you from?”

But Jesus did not answer him.

¹⁰ So Pilate asked him, “Aren’t you going to speak to me? You realize, don’t you, that I have the authority to release you and the authority to crucify you?”

¹¹ Jesus answered him, “You have no authority over me at all, except what was given to you from above. That’s why the one who handed me over to you is guilty of a greater sin.”

¹² From then on, Pilate tried to release him, but the Jewish leaders^[f] kept shouting, “If you release this fellow, you’re not a friend of Caesar! Anyone who claims to be a king is defying Caesar!”

¹³ When Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus outside and sat down on the judgment seat in a place called The Pavement, which in Hebrew is called Gabbatha. ¹⁴ Now it was the Preparation Day for the Passover, about noon.^[g] He told the Jewish leaders,^[h] “Here is your king!”

¹⁵ Then they shouted, “Take him away! Take him away! Crucify him!”

Pilate asked them, “Should I crucify your king?”

The high priests responded, “We have no king but Caesar!” ¹⁶ Then Pilate^[i] handed him over to be crucified, and they took Jesus away.