Luke 23:1-12 Then the whole assembly rose and led him off to Pilate. And they began to accuse him, saying,"We have found this man subverting our nation. He opposes payment of taxes to Caesar and claims to be Messiah, a king."
So Pilate asked Jesus, "Are you the king of the Jews?"
"You have said so," Jesus replied.
Then Pilate announced to the chief priests and the crowd, "I find no basis for a charge against this man."
But they insisted, "He stirs up the people all over Judea by his teaching. He started in Galilee and has come all the way here."
On hearing this, Pilate asked if the man was a Galilean.When he learned that Jesus was under Herod's jurisdiction, he sent him to Herod, who was also in Jerusalem at that time.
When Herod saw Jesus, he was greatly pleased, because for a long time he had been wanting to see him. From what he had heard about him, he hoped to see him perform a sign of some sort.He plied him with many questions, but Jesus gave him no answer.The chief priests and the teachers of the law were standing there, vehemently accusing him. Then Herod and his soldiers ridiculed and mocked him. Dressing him in an elegant robe, they sent him back to Pilate.That day Herod and Pilate became friends-before this they had been enemies.
- Observation:
1.Before Pilate, the chief priests and the teachers accused Jesus and said, "We found this man subverting our nation. He opposes payment of taxes to Caesar and claims to be Messiah, a king." They vehemently accused him in front of Herod.
2. Pilate asked Jesus, "Are you the king of the Jews?" "You have said so," Jesus replied. Then Pilate found no basis for a charge against him.
3. Herod, who for a long time had been wanting to see Jesus for his fame, hoped to see Jesus perform a sign of some sort. He plied him with many questions, but Jesus gave him no answer. Then Herod mocked him and sent Jesus back to Pilate. That day Herod and Pilate became friends.
4. Jesus' response: He replied yes when Pilate asked him if he was the king of the Jews, while remaining silent before Herod.
- Explanation:
1. Why did the chief priests and the teachers of the law bring Jesus to be tried by Pilate and Herod? Because it was illegal for them to arrest Jesus and they didn't have the power to judge him. If they had the power, they would have sentenced him to death. They gave the example that Jesus subverted their nation, stirred up the people and that he opposed payment of taxes to Caesar and claimed to be Messiah, a king. Each accusation could lead him to death. So they strongly incited Pilate to convict him. The synagogues couldn't run and the business in the holy temple couldn't be carried out if he didn't die since he was widely supported by the people.
2. Pilate, a political leader, cared about if Jesus was a threat to his power and homeland security by staging an open or secret uprising. Hearing their ethnic tension, he kept from talking about the religious argument and asked Jesus if he was the king of the Jews. His question was to check the threat level of Jesus. But he found that Jesus was no threat and one who did not wish to overthrow the Roman power, so he said that he could find no basis for a charge against this man.
3.Herod, the ruler of Galilee, a region in northern Israel, already heard about Jesus for Jesus was famous in the northern parts of the region and his subordinate officer believed in Jesus. Wanting to know more about Jesus, Herod was greatly pleased to ply him with many questions and hoped to see him perform a sign of some sort. But Jesus gave him no answer and remained silent instead of excusing for himself, making Herod annoyed. Herod ridiculed and mocked him before sending him back to Pilate.
4.Confronted with the fiery accusation of the chief priests and being interrogated by Pilate and Herod, Jesus abandoned the right to arguing for himself to win the protection of the political leaders. He did this to finish God's will because the plan of salvation should be fulfilled.He hoped that the world could love and bless each other and be reconciled with one another.
Translated by Karen Luo
