Episode 127 - "Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews" - John 19:16-22

So they took Jesus, 17 and he went out, bearing his own cross, to the place called The Place of a Skull, which in Aramaic is called Golgotha. 18 There they crucified him, and with him two others, one on either side, and Jesus between them. 19 Pilate also wrote an inscription and put it on the cross. It read, “Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.” 20 Many of the Jews read this inscription, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city, and it was written in Aramaic, in Latin, and in Greek. 21 So the chief priests of the Jews said to Pilate, “Do not write, ‘The King of the Jews,’ but rather, ‘This man said, I am King of the Jews.’” 22 Pilate answered, “What I have written I have written.”

The account of Jesus’ crucifixion is consistent with other historical information that exists regarding the Roman practice of crucifixion. The detail in verse 17 that Jesus went out, “bearing his own cross” was common for the condemned to carry the crossbeam to the place of crucifixion where they would be hoisted up on the vertical post and nailed to the cross. Other Gospel accounts include details that a bystander was compelled by the soldiers to ultimately carry Jesus’ cross. This was probably due to the effect on his body of the previous flogging and beating he had received. He must have been very weak from it. John does not feel compelled to include that in this account and probably wanted to highlight that Jesus did carry his own cross, being treated like other criminals, since Jesus had taught that those who wanted to be his disciples must “carry his own cross.” (Luke 14:25-35)  Jesus never required his disciples to do things he could not or would not do himself.

While some commentators make suggestions about Golgotha “looking like a skull,” the reality is that no one really knows why it was called “The Place of the Skull” or its actual location today. 

The next point that Pilate wrote an inscription, “Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews” is also consistent historically. It was common for the name of the condemned and the crime for which they were being executed to be written and displayed with the individual to be a testimony to others why they were being executed. It is this inscription to which I will return shortly.

In verse 20, John writes that “Many of the Jews read this inscription.” Why is that? Because it was “near the city” and it’s during the Passover Feast when people are coming from all over to celebrate this feast. 

John then points out the inscription was written in the three common languages of the day “Aramaic, Latin, and Greek.” What we see in these two points is the impeccable timing of God for the Son of Man to be lifted up like the serpent in the wilderness and for the Lamb of God to be sacrificed to take away the sins of the world. Jews and Gentiles alike would see Jesus on the cross with the message accessible to everyone that this is the King of the Jews. 

You can why this bothered the chief priests. They understood the impact this might have on people and they appealed to Pilate to change it. But, Pilate got his final revenge on them by saying, “What I have written I have written.” It has been observed that every other occurrence of the Greek word in John that is translated “written” refers to God’s word. It would seem that John mentions this to suggest that even through Pilate or one of his soldiers, God’s word was proclaiming His revelation and truth regarding Jesus. 

As I write this, we have entered Lent this past week and moving toward the Passion week, I hope you will reflect upon Jesus as “The King of the Jews.” He is the Messiah and he will return and be our eternal king. Praise the Lord!

Episode 126 - "Behold your King!" - John 19:12-16

John 19:12   From then on Pilate sought to release him, but the Jews cried out, “If you release this man, you are not Caesar’s friend. Everyone who makes himself a king opposes Caesar.” 13 So when Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus out and sat down on the judgment seat at a place called The Stone Pavement, and in Aramaic Gabbatha. 14 Now it was the day of Preparation of the Passover. It was about the sixth hour. He said to the Jews, “Behold your King!” 15 They cried out, “Away with him, away with him, crucify him!” Pilate said to them, “Shall I crucify your King?” The chief priests answered, “We have no king but Caesar.” 16 So he delivered him over to them to be crucified.

In the text preceding this, the mob told Pilate that according to their law, Jesus ought to die because he “made himself the Son of God.” (v. 7) John says that when Pilate heard this he was even more afraid. I wonder how John knew that. Is it possible that someone close to Pilate was or became a follower of Jesus and reported this to the apostles? Perhaps Pilate was required to provide reports of his actions, including executions he authorized and he recorded his hesitancy to condemn Jesus. However this became known, Pilate seems to be looking for an escape from this situation. He either wants evidence that will make it easy for him to condemn Jesus and satisfy the crowd or for the crowd to give up on their demand. 

Verse 12 reveals that Pilate is convinced that Jesus should be released. But, the crowd will not listen and they played the political pressure card on him suggesting a threat to Pilate if he does not concede to their demands. This ploy had its desired effect. Yet, not without Pilate exacting his own kind of retributive pressure upon the Jews. 

He brought Jesus out and said to the crowd, “Behold your King!” Does either Pilate or the Jews believe Jesus is their king, their Messiah? No. Yet, as so often in John’s gospel, we see people making statements from an errant perspective that is ironically true from God’s perspective. (“It is better for one man to die than for the whole nation to perish.” - Caiaphus, John 11:50 ) This is no exception. Jesus is truly their king. But, the crowd rejected him and responded with “Crucify him!” 

I can’t help but suspect that this is where Pilate sees an opportunity to set a trap for them. He asks, “Shall I crucify your king?” The answer is, “We have no king but Caesar.” (v. 15) Let’s consider the significance of this statement. 

The leaders of this crowd are the religious leaders including the high priests. These were the people who identified themselves as Abraham’s children and appealed to Moses. They believed they were the most obedient of Jews to the LORD. John mentioned in verse 14 the nearing of the Passover. They were under a measure of pressure to get this over with so they could observe Passover as good Jews did. Therefore, these were people who should be looking for their Messiah, their king. The very last thing they should be doing as Jewish adherents of the Law is committing murder and saying, “We have no king but Caesar.” (A pagan, gentile leader) Yet, it was the chief priests themselves who responded, confessing that Caesar was their king. It makes me wonder if, at the utterance of this confession, Pilate gave a simple smile knowing he had put them on the hook as they had with him. They had used pressure to control Pilate. But, Pilate was willing to condemn Jesus in order to turn the table on this crowd. 

What stands out to me as a spiritual principle and a challenge to us is Pilate’s command, “Behold your King!” Think about that. How do you and I view Jesus? As we read and reflect upon the gospels and the life of Jesus, do we see Jesus as a great teacher, an amazing miracle worker, a wonderful philosopher, or our King? Does the thought of Jesus invoke within me a need to submit completely to his authority over my life or do I have another king? 

The same man who penned this book also wrote the final book in the Bible, Revelation. In that book, Jesus returns as the conquering and eternally ruling king over us all. Perhaps we ought to get used to the idea right now. Fortunately, he is a good king and one in whom is no guilt, no fault, and no deceit.