Matthew · New Testament · Matthew 27:1–26
Jesus Before Pilate
The Story
At daybreak the chief priests and elders finalized their plot and handed Jesus over to Pontius Pilate the Roman governor — the only one with the authority to carry out a death sentence — and Matthew pauses the narrative to record the tragic and terrible end of Judas Iscariot, who was seized with remorse when he saw that Jesus had been condemned, threw the thirty pieces of silver back into the Temple, and went out and hanged himself, with the chief priests using the blood money to buy a potter's field as a burial place for foreigners. Before Pilate, Jesus again answered His accusers with sovereign silence that deeply amazed the governor, who recognized that Jesus had been handed over out of envy rather than genuine criminal guilt. Pilate then attempted to use the Passover custom of releasing one prisoner chosen by the crowd to free Jesus, offering them a choice between Jesus and a notorious criminal named Barabbas — fully expecting the crowd to choose Jesus. But the chief priests and elders worked the crowd skillfully, stirring them up to demand Barabbas and to call for Jesus to be crucified — and when Pilate asked what crime Jesus had committed the crowd simply shouted louder for His crucifixion. Pilate performed the famous act of washing his hands before the crowd, declaring himself innocent of the blood of this righteous man — but then immediately surrendered to the pressure of the crowd, released Barabbas, had Jesus flogged, and handed Him over to be crucified, with the crowd crying out that His blood be on them and on their children.
The Message
Pilate knew Jesus was innocent and said so — yet he chose the approval of the crowd over the demands of justice, reminding us that there is no neutral ground when it comes to Jesus and that washing our hands of a decision about Him is itself a decision with eternal consequences.