Jesus To Be Crucified (J69)

If Judea’s high priest had done his job,
Jesus Christ’s claims he would have verified;
Instead, he became leader of the mob
That forced Pilate to have Him crucified!
There was no crime, no evidence, no trial;
When Pilate said, “I find no fault in this man,”
They howled back in bloodthirsty denial,
“You’re no friend of Caesar’s! Death, we demand!”
He would’ve kept the killer, and Jesus freed;
They chose Barabbas, and the Savior killed!
Pilate gave in, “Crucify Him,” decreed;
This silenced the Jews, their demand fulfilled!
The judge each would face the world’s last day,
Is Jesus, o’er whom they had had their say!

Commentary on: John 18:19-40, 19:1-16 (NIV)
The “trial” of Jesus was not a true trial of justice. He was questioned by Annas and Caiaphas, the former and current high priests, with no charges found; the Sanhedrin, a similar result; Roman governor Pontius Pilate (twice), who was convinced He did not deserve any punishment and tried to free Him; and King Herod, current King of Judea, again with no criminal charge. During this “soap opera” of a trial at law, Jesus was flogged, probably with a “cat of nine tails”, a leather whip with nine strips, each embedded with sharp pieces of metal, 39 lashes; struck in the face by many hands; mocked by having a twisted crown of briars pressed deep into His head, together with a purple robe placed on His shoulders; cursed, and spit upon. There were no charges substantiated by any of the authorities who questioned Him, and the two or three false witnesses, who accused Him of saying He would destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, misunderstood that He was speaking of His resurrection.

Pilate wanted to free Jesus—though he had Him flogged, it was an attempt to silence the mob of Jews raising an uproar outside his palace. There was great pressure upon him, because his boss, the Roman emperor, never wanted to be disturbed by hearing of riots and unrest in any of the nations that made up the empire—it was the governor’s chief duty to see that no such “rebellions” occurred. Pilate had to preserve the peace, even if it meant putting to death an innocent person. His last effort to free Jesus failed, when he gave the Jews a choice between freeing Barabbas, his most wicked murderer, or Jesus. The self-righteous Pharisees who formed the majority of the lynch-mob howled with derision and chose Barabbas, while screaming “Crucify Jesus!”, “Crucify Jesus”.

Jesus accepted everything that came His way with equanimity, speaking calmly in response, especially when He had a chance to testify some truth. To the high priest, He said He had always spoken in public, never in secret; He always taught in the synagogues and the temple, where large numbers of Jews heard Him (John 18:20-21). His kingdom, He said to Pilate, was not of this world (John 18:37). He also said the greater sin was made by the Jews, because it was they who turned Him over to Pilate (John 19:11). Many details of His trial are contained in the books of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, that John does not mention. Pilate tried to free Jesus several times; when everything he attempted was unaccepted, he gave in and ordered that Roman soldiers crucify Him.

Jesus of Nazareth met the same fate as most of the other prophets sent by God to Israel did; He was slain. He was the promised Messiah, sent to save the Jews from the wages of sin, but instead of accepting and obeying Him, His own people had Him killed, opening the spread of the gospel to all men and women in the world. The gospel was given first to the Jews through Moses; God expected them to be priests to the world, but instead they kept it to themselves. God set them aside temporarily and turned to the Gentiles, and the situation still prevails today. When Christ returns the Second time, He will restore Israel to their original status (See Zechariah 12:10ff.).

“For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him, will not die, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16)

“That if you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord’, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” (Romans 10:9)