YHWH‘s appearance in human form. Pilate had been both intrigued and impressed by Y‘shua. Could there
be something supernatural about him?
He realised the seriousness of this charge and decided not to consider it publicly, but to examine Y‘shua
about it personally and in private. ―Where are you from?‖ he asked Y‘shua (John 19:9). Could it be that he
might have thought to himself that the accused was indeed a man come from God? But Y‘shua did not
answer. Previously he had answered other questions readily. Pilate persisted with his questioning. ―Do you
not speak to me? Do you not know that I have power to release you and I have power to crucify you?‖ (John
19:10)
Y‘shua answered, ―You would have no power over me if it had not been given to you from above. For this
reason the one who handed me over to you has the greater sin‖ (John 19:11.) These were Y‘shua‘s last
words to Pilate. He pointed out that the real responsibility for His trial rested with Caiaphas and the Jewish
authorities. These words had a profound impact on Pilate. The truth was beginning to dawn. There was
something different about this man - something God-like.
The result was that from then on, ―Pilate tried to release him‖. We do not know how Pilate tried to do this,
but the Jews kept shouting, ―If you release him, you are not a friend of Caesar. Everyone who makes himself
a king opposes Caesar.‖ (John 19:12) Later they shouted... ―We have no king but Caesar.‖ (John 19:15)
Again, this revealed the crowd‘s hostility towards Y‘shua. Caesar was certainly not their friend or their king.
But they were determined that Y‘shua must be crucified.
The Jews‘ threat to report Pilate to Caesar amounted to blackmail. On a previous occasion, the Jews had
made a similar threat to send a deputation (or embassy) to Caesar. Philo tells us that Pilate feared that if
they actually sent an embassy, they would also expose the rest of his conduct as a governor by stating in full
the briberies, the insults, the outrageous and meaningless injuries, the executions without trial constantly
repeated, and the ceaseless and supremely grievous cruelty. Pilate had already been in serious trouble with
the Jews three times, and under no circumstances could he risk a complaint being lodged against him.
He was outmaneuvered and afraid of a riot because the Jews had gotten the better of him. Pilate yielded. He
collapsed, miserably, utterly; and hurtled down the slippery slope of self-interest and expediency to his
destruction. He abandoned his high duty as judge to do right and mete justice to the accused. He gave way
to the clamour of the mob without fear or favour, partiality, affection or ill will in an attempt to save himself
from a charge of treason.
Pilate‘s last gesture was to wash his hands of the whole affair. He did this publicly, taking advantage of a
Jewish custom. But he could not avoid the fact that the ultimate responsibility was his. Matthew records,
―Then he released Barabbas to them, but after he had Jesus scourged, he handed him over to be crucified.‖
(Matt 27:26)
So the trials of Y‘shua were at an end. Pilate, the one man who could have obtained justice for Y‘shua, had
handed him over to his executioners. And every time the church says the creed, they remember that Y‘shua
―suffered under Pontius Pilate.‖
The sentence:
When Y‘shua was sentenced there was no doubt about what would happen. Under Jewish law, a death
sentence could be carried out by: stoning, burning, beheading or strangling.
Roman law added the torture of crucifixion. This was the most horrible of all punishments. It had been
invented by the Phoenicians. They had tried death by the spear, boiling in oil, stoning, strangulation,
drowning and burning; but all these had been found to be too quick. They wanted a way of punishing
criminals slowly and inexorably, so they devised death by crucifixion. By it they could decide how much they
wanted to hurt and how long it would take the victim to die. The victim might then hang there for two or three
days until at last suffocated and died either of exhaustion or starvation. From it, we get our English word
̳excruciating‘.
It represented the same peak of the torture‘s art, atrocious physical sufferings, length of torment, ignominy,
the effect on the crowd gathered to witness the long agony of the crucified. Nothing could be more horrible
than the sight of this living body: seeing, hearing, still able to feel; and yet reduced to the state of a corpse by
forced immobility and absolute helplessness. We cannot even say that the crucified person writhed in agony,
for it was impossible for him to move.