Jesus' First Trial Before Pilate

The Official Jewish Verdict

After consulting together all night, the council of elders brought Jesus back into the courtyard to stand before them. Once again, they asked Him: "If You are really the Messiah, tell us!"

In response, Jesus declared that He knew what they were planning to do: "If I tell you, you wouldn't let Me go. And if I asked you the same question about Myself, you wouldn't answer Me...and still wouldn't let Me go. But I will go to sit down at the right hand of the Power on high."

"Then you are the Son of God?" they asked.

"You're correct in saying that I am."

This was the statement that they were determined to use in their case against Him. Blasphemy was considered to be a capital offense to the Jews...and the council condemned Him to death.

Handed Over to Pilate

As soon as daylight came, the council led Jesus to the Roman fort in Jerusalem, called the Praetorium. The Jews were not allowed to execute any criminal without the consent of the Roman authorities. So if they were going to kill Jesus, they had to have the blessing of the Roman governor - a man named Pilate (who held the title "Pontius"). 

This was the plan they had come up with during their night-long consultation:

They couldn't bring a blasphemy charge to the Romans, because the Romans didn't care if someone spoke against the Jewish God. No, they had to drop that accusation and bring a different charge.

If they could convince Pontius Pilate that Jesus was a troublemaker - a rebel who was trying to make Himself king - then Pilate would have no choice but to crucify Him like any other insurrectionist.

To accomplish this, the elders had incited a crowd to declare this accusation against Him. Make no mistake about this; this original crowd that stood before Pilate was not made up of innocent bystanders. These people came with an agenda...and were well aware of their part in the scheme.

Ironically, Pilate couldn't hold the trial inside his palace. The Jewish mob refused to enter his home - because that would make them "unclean" during the Passover feast. These people insisted on following the rituals of the Passover, even while breaking God's commandment against murder!

As the trial began, Pilate stepped out onto the pavilion overlooking his courtyard. He asked the crowd, "What are you accusing this man of?"

They answered him sarcastically, "If He weren't a criminal, we wouldn't have brought Him here."

"Why don't you punish Him yourselves?"

"Because according to our law, He deserves to die - but we need your permission first. This man is troubling our nation, telling our people not to pay taxes to Caesar. He actually claims to be a king Himself...the one called the Messiah."

As the governor of Jerusalem, Pilate was undoubtedly aware of this title: Messiah. It was talked about everywhere.

To the Jewish people, it was a term of hope...a belief in a Savior that would free them from their oppressors. 

To the Romans, it was a cuss word...a belief that drove dozens of bloody rebellions.

When Pilate heard this accusation, he asked Jesus, "Are You the King of the Jews?"

The elders, the chief priests, and the crowd continued to hurl accusations at Jesus. They all affirmed that the claim was true - that Jesus was, in fact, an inciter of rebellion. Through it all, Jesus remained silent. Not once did Jesus answer Pilate's question; nor did He defend Himself from what the crowd was saying.

Pilate wondered at this. Maybe the Man was confused about why He was there. Maybe He didn't understand the charges...maybe He wasn't even hearing them. So he spoke to Jesus a second time, "Don't You hear all the things they're saying about You?" This time, Pilate must have seen the truth in Jesus' eyes...He understood what the crowd was doing. This amazed the governor even more, this Man knew the crowd was trying to get Him executed, but He didn't say a word to defend Himself!

Questioned In Private

Upon realizing this, Pilate gave the word and brought Jesus inside his palace. Inside, he continued his investigation. He asked Jesus again, "Are You the King of the Jews?"

Jesus looked at Pilate and answered, "Are you asking this because you want to know...or are you asking this because that's what they were saying about Me?"

Pilate said, "Am I a Jew? Why would I care about this? Your own people handed You over to Me! What did You do to deserve this?"

Jesus said, "If I were an earthly King (like the crowd accused Him of saying), then My followers would've fought to keep Me from being arrested. My kingdom is from above - for now at least."

Remember what Jesus was being accused of? This statement convinced Pilate that Jesus was not guilty. Why? Because it was simply true...if Jesus had been promoting Himself as an earthly king, then the followers He had would've fought to keep Him from being apprehended. Clearly, this Man had no ambitions of overthrowing Rome.

But there was still this business of what He said..."My kingdom is not of this world". Pilate responded, "Are You a King then?"

"You would be right to say so. This is why I was born, and this is why I came into the world. I came here to proclaim the truth...and everyone who has a part in the truth will hear what I have to say."

As this private interrogation ended, Pilate asked a simple (and profound) question, "And what is truth?"

Now Pilate was sure that the Jesus had done nothing deserving of death. He could see that there was something different about Jesus, and that He was the furthest thing from an insurrectionist. He was also aware of His reputation as a Teacher that drew large crowds. So Pilate knew the motive of the Jewish leadership here - jealousy.

Pilate brought Jesus back out to the platform and informed the crowd, "I haven't found any fault in this Man!"

But the crowd continued to insist that Jesus should die. They declared, "No! He stirs up the people against Rome! He has spread His teachings everywhere, from Galilee to Judea!"

As soon as Pilate heard the word Galilee, he had an idea to get out of this mess. Galilee was not in Pilate's jurisdiction - it was actually under the authority of King Herod. If the first message Jesus preached was actually in Galilee, then He would be Herod's problem, not Pilate's. It just so happened that Herod was in town for the Passover, so Pilate sent Jesus down the road to Herod's vacation home.

A Redemptive Act

What did Jesus suffer for you during this first trial? He stood silent before Pilate, as His accusers slandered Him with all sorts of lies. There was no justice here, He deserved to be set free...completely exonerated. But the false accusations began to cut down His impeccable reputation.

Has this ever happened to you? Have you ever been slandered to someone in authority...has your reputation ever been smeared like this? 

If so, I have good news for you...Jesus took the sting of those lies upon Himself. He took those lies upon Himself to set you free from their effects on your life! He was as silent as a sheep before its shearers...while His righteousness was stripped from Him.

Why? So that you could be vindicated by His righteousness that was given to you.