Pilate must decide

The religious leaders took Jesus to Pilate, the Roman governor. They accused Jesus of misleading the people.

So Pilate asked Jesus, “Are You the King of the Jews?”

“Yes, it is as you say,” Jesus replied.

Then Pilate spoke to the chief priests and the crowd, saying, “I find no reason to condemn this man.” When Pilate found out that Jesus came from the region ruled by Herod, he sent Him to Herod, who happened to be in Jerusalem at that time. But Herod could find no fault with Jesus either, so he sent Him back to Pilate.

Again, Pilate could find no reason to condemn Jesus. So he took a bowl of water and washed his hands in front of the crowd. Then he had Jesus beaten and handed Him over to be crucified.

Why did Pilate wash his hands?

By washing his hands in front of the crowd, Pilate was trying to show that he was innocent of Jesus’ death—that he was not taking responsibility for sentencing an innocent man to be crucified.

Yet, by not using his power and position to make a fair judgment, Pilate chose to side with the unjust. Although he knew that the religious leaders were jealous of Jesus, Pilate was too afraid to stand up to them. He even tried to pass the responsibility for deciding Jesus’ fate to Herod, hoping Herod would make the decision instead.

Every person has to make the decision Pilate faced: either to stand with Jesus or against Him. Jesus said, “He who is not with Me is against Me” (Matthew 12:30). Because Pilate was afraid to decide for Jesus, he went along with the crowd’s decision to be against Him.

Verse for today

Jesus answered, "You would have no power over me if it were not given to you from above.” John 19:11a

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